Tuesday is another day off from school for most Detroit Public Schools students. Most of the teachers are staging a work stoppage. It’s the second straight day of a teacher sickout. The list of closed schools totals more than 80.
“We do not work for free and therefore we do not expect you to report to school tomorrow,” DFT President Ivy Bailey said in an email to teachers.
Teachers plan a rally at the Fisher Building where DPS is headquartered, and hold a membership meeting later.
Teachers picketed in front of the school offices Monday after calling in sick.
Detroit teachers were told by Bailey on Saturday that the school system only has enough money to pay its teachers through June 30. Most school employees elect to have their pay spread out over the entire year rather than the school year, which means that if they don’t get paid after June 30, they’ve already started working for free, according to the union.
The House Appropriations Committee has scheduled a vote Tuesday on a package of bills that include a bailout for DPS. The bills total more than 500 million dollars, The teachers union and democrats in the legislature oppose the bills, contending it’s not enough money. The Senate has passed bills totaling more than 700 million dollars.
