Teachers Cry Foul After Natomas School District Posts List Of Demands
By Kelly Ryan
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) – A local school district's struggle to get qualified teachers teaching has taken a nasty turn.
The latest round of negotiations between Natomas Unified and its teachers is leaving parents concerned over what the district is saying about the teacher's demands.
Parents say what the district is describing is frightening, but teachers say the district isn't being truthful.
"It makes absolutely no sense," a parent said.
That's the reaction to a website where the Natomas Unified School District urged staff, parents and the community to read what it calls timely facts about demands from its teachers.
The schools descriptions of those demands are alarming.
The district lays out some examples of the teachers association proposals and then lists what they mean:
-If a teacher engages in an inappropriate relationship with a student, he or she cannot be fired.
-If a teacher brings a weapon on campus, the teacher cannot be fired.
-If a teacher assaults, harasses and or bullies a student, that person cannot be fired.
"Why would they get special treatment?" the parent said.
Jim Sanders, director of communications for the district, emailed CBS13 a statement.
"We want to drive home the point that this is simply not something we can accept nor do we think the community can accept it," Sanders wrote.
But the president of the Natomas Teachers Association says there were no questions asked or discussions with the district when the proposal was submitted last week. They say the district has misrepresented the teachers' intent.
"The intent of the article was to provide the district with tools to work with our members in the case there are any minor infractions," said Phil Cox, president of the Natomas Teachers Association.
In any case, the back and forth has left some parents feeling frustrated.
"I don't think teachers should have any preferential treatment just because of their profession," another parent said.
This Wednesday night there will be a Natomas Unified School Board meeting where parents will be able to let the district and teachers hear their concerns.
