By Victor Skinner
EAGnews.org

LAWRENCE, Mass. – The Lawrence, Massachusetts teachers union should lead, follow or get out of the way.

That’s the message the local Eagle Tribune newspaper delivered to the union in an editorial this week, regarding its refusal to cooperate with necessary and positive reforms being implemented by the district’s state-appointed administrator.

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The Lawrence district is in state receivership, meaning the state has taken over the district and turned control over to receiver Jeffrey C. Riley to make unilateral changes. The Lawrence Teachers Union, however, filed complaints with the state in an effort to reverse contract terms Riley implemented to improve the district.

The imposed contract terms seem very promising for teachers. It’s hard to understand why the union would object.

“Under his plan to revive Lawrence’s moribund school system … Riley wants to give all city teachers a raise, allow the best and most experienced teachers to earn as much as $100,000 per year and plans to invite the top 100 teachers to serve in a ‘teacher leader cabinet’ to advise him on the turnaround plan,” according to the Eagle Tribune editorial.

“Yet, in spite of this effort to reward teachers for performance and bring them in to the turnaround process, the Lawrence Teachers Union finds itself aggrieved. The union contends Riley’s actions violate collective bargaining law. The union has filed three unfair labor complaints with the state Labor Relations Board in an effort to block Riley’s reforms.”

It’s clear the union is more concerned about the process than the outcome. Union officials couldn’t possibly object to the raises proposed for teachers, but they do object to the idea of having a government-appointed official imposing policy without their approval.

That’s just too bad. As the newspaper points out, “State law gives the receiver final authority to run the school system as he sees fit. (Riley) has unprecedented power to make additional changes to collective bargaining agreements that he determines are necessary.”

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Riley has determined it’s necessary to change the way the district operates, and he’s using his power to refocus the district on what matters most: student learning.

“I don’t know how many times we have to say this for LTU leadership to understand: Lawrence is a Level 5 district, the only one in the state, and the status quo  simply is no longer an option,” Riley said, according to the Eagle Tribune.

“Things can’t be done the old way and in fact it’s my job to make sure they change,” he said.

Which leads to the newspaper’s conclusion:  The LTU “needs to lead, follow or get out of the way.”