Picketing our BOE with red shirts and signs is a union thug tactic . There is no room for your NJEA style tactics in our Village. Tell the full-time NJEA lawyers, activists and lobbyists advising the REA that we have no room for their thug-like tactics in our beautiful Village. Take it back to Hudson County.
I think the term “thugs” was used referring to union tactics but our teachers are not behaving professionally. If you look at the faces in the middle picture above none of them look very happy. I’d say malcontent is an accurate description. If I made a face like that at my job, I’d be placed on a PIP for having a bad attitude! I believe the majority of Ridgewood residents support the BOE holding the line given that we already pay our teachers very generously. We live in a beautiful town and we value education but a lot of us are struggling to make ends meet and our property taxes are getting out of hand. We don’t speak openly because we do not want our children punished in the classroom for our opinions.
Picture does not really show much of anything except pickets,but i do agree the BOE should hold the line. There is no reason why teachers to feel entitled to raises yearly and low medical copays, it is time to welcome them to a new era.
For most village residents with job in the real world, any behavior resembling what is seen here would result in instant dismissal.
Do not cave in to the union please – let them bring out their big inflatable rat.
Maybe teachers ask for a yearly raise since someone with a masters degree and 5 years experience earns $64,793. or with a masters and 10 years experience earns $73,453., must make mandatory pension payments and now is required to pay a much bigger portion of their health insurance benefits! Can you honestly say this is asking too much??
The dictionary defines a thug tan aggressive,violent criminal.
Synonyms: hood, hoodlum, punk, strong-armer, toughie, goon, tough
Does this really define the people in this photo?
12:35, it’s way too much. Why do you deserve average wage growth above the 2% property tax cap (and Bergen inflation) o. Top of the highest average teacher salaries in Bergen, plus a lifetime defined benefit pension that you’ve contributed less than 7.5% of your base salary towards, plus lifetime Cadillac healthcare with $10 co-pays? NO ONE in the private sector gets these things, no one. Get it through your head, were being taxed to death to pay for all of this for you, but none of us enjoy the same benefits. Add the value of your benefits to your salary, and you’re doing better than the median household in Ridgewood, which pays more for a lower level health plan, saves in to a defined contribution pension, and doesn’t get contractual annual wage growth. Please wake up. #taxedtodeath, #supportourstudents, #supportourboe
Thugs must be getting the NJEA rat soon
Again I ask, does someone holding a masters degree, professional certification and, 5 years experience earning $64,793 seeking a fair contract asking for too much?
4:01 you said exactly how I feel! 12:35 if you consider the benefits, defined pensions and a 180 working days a year schedule teachers in Ridgewood with master’s degrees and 10 years experience are still doing very, very well in this economy. I suggest you look at salary.com or go to a Neighbors Helping Neighbors meeting. (For those who have lost jobs and are often looking at 2 retail jobs so they don’t lose their homes to get a sense of reality that many are dealing with). We are taxed to death already. You are fortunate to have the good jobs you have and need to see that Ridgewood is not opposed to teachers, evidenced by the current pay scale. Consider your behavior and demands. The behavior and picket signs are a no-win as far as many of us are concerned. Stay strong BOE. Everyone and anyone can be replaced.
4:24 187 days for Ridgewood teachers but that is splitting hairs. Why do you believe I should
apologize for choosing a career that requires education, certification,dedication , professionalism, scrutiny from every angle of the public, derisive comments when the economy’s in a slump and pays a living wage? I have compared the salaries to similarly educated professionals in the private sector and teachers make less. This is not a fallacy, or union lies, but the honest truth when statistics are compared.
Why is a master’s or doctorate degree needed to teach highschool students?
5:45 No one is asking you to apologize. I’m not saying that teaching is an easy profession but perhaps it is not as demanding as private sector jobs considering the generous amount of time off and other benefits. What many of the responses on this blog are trying to say is that many, maybe most, Ridgewood taxpayers feel you are very well compensated already. You knew very well what teaching salaries were so if you honestly felt it was not enough money for your desired lifestyle perhaps you should have abandoned the profession and gone into another field. Don’t think it is so easy in the private sector, highly competitive and there is constant scrutiny for performance. Also, realize that there 1,100 applicants who would love to have your job. You should really do some serious soul searching as to why you decided to teach.
4:14, why are you conveniently ignoring the benefits package? Is it because that’s not in your self-interest to mention that? Add in your lifetime defined benefit pension (which current REA members only contribute 6.5% of their base salary to, rising to only 7.5% by 2018!) which you can start collecting at age 55~60 when you have enough service time. Add in the sick leave you’ve accumulated year after year. Add in your lifetime health plan which covers 96% of all medical costs, both in- and out-of-network, with $10 co-pays, with all of the above being subsidized by Ridgewood taxpayers. How is that not fair? No one in the private sector has benefits like these. That’s was supposed to be the trade-off, but now you want more wages growing faster than the 2% property cap (and inflation), too? Most Ridgewood residents think you’re asking for far too much; we’re being taxed to death to pay for this and your benefits should be diminished. Time to accept you’re in a losing position.
5:45, your pension and health benefits are better than the private sector. That’s always been the trade-off. Teachers make less than comparable professionals in the private sector, but get an incredible retirement deal. Now your union and the NJEA are telling you that you deserve equivalent wages, too? You are getting the wrong advice. Prorate your salary for 187 days a year, add in all of your excessive benefits, and remember there are 1,100 applicants to replace you if you decide there’s a better deal elsewhere. Stop holding us hostage.
9:05…. I do not need to search my soul to determine why I went into the field of education. I love my students, my school and the community. I make a difference in the lives of my pupils and their families and work diligently to provide a positive, successful learning experience. I have never doubted what I do or the choice to do it.
I knew that, despite needing a college education, state certification, and an expectation to continually maintain competency with professional development, I would never earn what a contemporary in the private sector would earn. I did however, expect to make a fair wage, have good benefits and realize a pension when I retired..
As it stands now, with the terms of Chapter 78 fully implemented, teacher net salaries have decreased substantially and will only continue to do so as health benefit premiums increase. Negotiating a slight increase in the gross salary will help defray some, but not all, of the reduction. Teachers are not looking to have a lavish lifestyle but want to be able to make mortgage payments, cover taxes and monthly bills and provide a decent standard of living for their families.
got to laugh when I read this stuff , do teacher realize all professional jobs require degrees, certifications,compliance , continuing ed , and licences ?
In NYS a teacher must get Master’s Degree within 5 years to remain a teacher. Many states look for advanced degrees. In hiring a district may prefer a candidate with a more advanced education. The best teacher in the HS has her doctorate in Physics and came from the private sector after working with a Nobel Prize winning Physicist.
Silly to question advanced degrees of educators. It actually shows that some do not understand the how much teaching has changed and the specialized education that all students receive.
James…glad you got a chuckle but it’s no laughing matter. Teaching is a professional job, as you state, but is, the least compensated. That is the point 1;43 was trying to make. The benefits, which now seem to be the center of the uproar, are the equalizers. Once taken away or reduced, the profession is paid even less.
1:43 and 7:31 – most of us do not believe teachers in the Ridgewood school system are under compensated. In some districts, perhaps they are but not in Ridgewood. That is why there is opposition to the current demands. I also believe that tuition reimbursement for higher degrees is paid for by most school systems. If the private sector salaries and benefits were as good as they used to be and our taxes were not already what they are I’m sure the majority of Ridgewood taxpayers would not be opposed to your wishes. But a lot of us are hurting and from where we stand, you have an excellent deal. How much money would we need to stash in our 401Ks to get the type of pensions the NJEA members receive? I believe its called deferred compensation. Maybe if a switch is made to 401K style plans the current salaries would be a little higher. There is no doubt some type of reform is needed for all public employees. Current system is unsustainable.
That’s right 1:43, just keep ignoring your lifetime, defined benefit pension and health plan benefits as part of your deal post retirement at age 60… put in $16,000 in average Ridgewood property taxes a year, and get out $105,000 in pension & healthcare benefits every year in retirement after you contributed less than 7% towards your own pension and make only $10 co-pays. Just keep ignoring that – Ridgewood taxpayers aren’t that stupid anymore, the gravy train is over. Stop holding us hostage with your unreasonable demands.
There’s that word, “unsustainable”. REA members should look up the definition and take it to heart. Send your NJEA thug masters back to Trenton.
hey james what degrees, certifications, compliance , continuing education or licenses do you need to run a blog?
lol , no tenure or lifetime state pensions either
With the advent of computer learning, teaching (regurgitation of written textbooks) will go the way of the 8-track tape.
If computer based learning of systems is good enough to train airline pilots whose passengers lives depend upon their skills, it’s good enough to learn history , science, math, and humanities.
Hopefully technology can be applied and reduce the number of teachers on staff.
7:31, are you really stating that teachers are the least compensated profession requiring a degree and continuing education? Have you ever met a nurse? Jeez you are so out of touch! That is what most posters here are trying to explain and you are just not getting it. You have job security, summer off, pensions and health benefits that none of us paying for your salaries have or can afford for ourselves.
8:42, I’m not sure this this multi-millionaire has any of the credentials you mention, yet she generates a 5-figure payday per post: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Kardashian#Wealth
most Billionaires in the world never graduated college , thats not what we are talking about the REA rep is trying to act like taking continuing ed is some big deal and only teachers do it , yet CPA’s, Lawyers, Doctors, stock brokers , Investment bankers , money mangers ,Nurses , plumbers, electricians and many others all have to take CE or continuing ed clasess for their profession
stock brokers , Investment bankers , pension money mangers……all are thieves and nothin more.
sounds like your special ed
9:11 – my child had an honors level science class at RHS this year where the teacher did not lecture a single day all year. Every day was a video or news article and then a worksheet. Same with homework. No lecture, no labs, minimal discussion And almost ALL of the worksheets were out of dates and the links provided to fill out the worksheets were non-functional.
Computer based learning is great when it is timely and current; my oldest has had many useful online college courses.
Out of line 11:55, out of line… 😉
James – special ed comment way out of line. And, btw, it’s you’re, not your.