Friday, June 4, 2010

LIFO the Party

I want to give credit where credit is due, so let me start by saying this post is inspired by a commenter named Vote NO on GothamSchools. This person made the brilliant yet obvious-once-you-think-about-it comment that teachers, and especially newbies, should be down on their knees thanking the "Last In, First Out" (LIFO) layoff rule for saving their jobs.

As Vote NO correctly pointed out, the mayor decided to cancel layoffs once it became clear that we would not allow a change to LIFO. That meant that his newest teachers--the ones Mayor4Life salivates over because they are cheap and will likely never qualify for a pension--would be the first to go if layoffs occurred. That would destroy the BloomKlein new school juggernaut that relies so heavily on newbie teachers. Rather than destroy his beloved initiatives, His Wealthy Mayorness decided to cancel all layoffs.

That move saved the jobs of people like Evan Stone and Sydney Morris, the two lunk-headed backstabbers who tried to change LIFO so they could save their own hides. What a delicious irony that, but for the very thing they were trying to eliminate, Evan and Sydney would shortly be standing on the unemployment line. BTW--check out South Bronx School's blog for an interesting expose on the E4E people. Seems like they've incorporated and gotten some very high powered backing. Not surprising--when was the last time Joel Klein thanked you in an email to all 80,000 teachers for taking your students to the Grand Canyon? (How was that funded again, Evan?)

Of course, considering their high-powered and moneyed backing, it's likely Klein would have spared Evan and Sydney somehow. But all 857 of you (mostly new teachers) who joined E4E's Facebook page should let them know how they almost cost you your job. Naturally, though, comments aren't allowed on their Facebook page or their blog.

Had E4E and M4L gotten their way, we would have had massive layoffs of newbie and senior teachers, increased class sizes, and a destabilized system for years to come. So when all of you whose jobs were spared celebrate your good fortune this weekend, don't forget to hoist one for your old pal LIFO, who made the party possible.

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