O'Hara Teachers on Strike: 'Protecting Our Collective Bargaining Rights'

teachers picketed in the rain up and down Sproul Road Sept. 8 joining with other area in their second day of protest.

The Archdiocese of Philadelphia and the Association of Catholic Teachers, the union that represents the educators, couldn't agree on a contract during negotiations Tuesday morning. 

The Archdiocese said union officials walked away from the negotiating table, saying that the new contract offered wasn't sufficient.

Vincent Toner, a biology and chemistry teacher, said the issue is job security.

“The bottom line is that they will find a way to get rid of the most senior teachers, ones at the higher salary level, to bring in the people at the lowest salary level,” he said. Toner has been teaching in Catholic schools for 27 years. “We’re not being treated fairly, with dignity and respect.”

The high school has posted a modified schedule for opening week.

"Sports teams will practice, at the discretion of their coach, but not compete in games," the school website states.

School administrators and non-union personnel are conducting orientation related activities.

“They know that we have a bad economy right now and they’re hoping that we’re so hungry for money that we will cave over these rights we’ve won over the last 42 years,” said Rob Wills, a social studies teacher of 25 years.

"The contract proposed by the Archdiocese was a watershed agreement aiming to allow our schools to adapt to the ever changing 21st century educational landscape and provide our students with the tools to succeed," a press release from the Archdiocese states.

“They’re saying it’s 21st century education but it looks more like 18th century education, where teachers have no rights, they can be fired at will, where there’s no seniority, no tenure. They want us to come in for extra days, work for extra hours and they don’t want to pay us for all those things,” Wills said.

“In one contract they want to give up 42 years of collective hard bargaining that we’ve won on the strike line over 42 years. Just because we have a bad economy, we’re not going to sell our soul for a bowl of porridge.  

“The only thing that they have really succeeded in doing is uniting a lot of teachers. Some of the teachers on the line today were against past strikes, but this time we’re all out here. We’re running in shifts.

“I’ve never seen a vote so lopsided than the one that was taken on Tuesday against accepting a contract. They want to strip us of our collective bargaining rights. This is happening all over the country right now. I don’t know why unions are suddenly the great enemy nowadays. It’s as though they’re saying all the teachers over the last 40-50 years are not doing their job.

“They say we’re hurting children; we wouldn’t do this if we didn’t love children. We want to be in there,” he said, pointing toward the school.

“No body wants to be out here standing in the rain. But we have to, for our families, for our security. We are not just striking for ourselves we are striking for every working person out there.”

Wills said that if the union settles, then teachers in other districts would be forced to do so.

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“We hope and pray that we can get back to work as soon as possible," Wills said. "If going back to work this week means they get 75 percent of what they want, they’ve won. If we don't strike next week, they’ll get 50 percent of what they want. The following week, they’ll get 25 percent. It’s like a war of attrition. It’s like besieging a castle. It’s a matter of who holds out the longest.”

A letter to parents and answers to frequently asked questions are posted on an Archdiocese web page created to provide updates on teacher negotiations at www.catholicschools-phl.org.