The second largest teachers’ union in the state has filed an unfair labor practice charge against Utica Community Schools this week. The Utica Education Association states that they have lost $65 million in wages since 2011.
That seems like a staggering amount of money, so let’s put it in context. In 2011, Governor Rick Snyder cut state funding for education, which resulted in an approximate $470 per-pupil funding cut statewide. Liza Parkinson, president of the UEA, says, “We all did our part.” In other words, teachers took pay cuts so they could still fully staff schools and provide programming for kids.