Teachers union regaining momentum [The Indianapolis Star]
By Jeff Swiatek, The Indianapolis Star | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
One of its own, teacher and union activist
It's a rare bright spot for ISTA.
Since the 2009 collapse of its insurance trust, the influential teachers union has been financially and operationally hobbled, a condition the recent electoral bragging rights aren't expected to reverse anytime soon.
"The victory of
But Downs notes that ISTA still has to prove that it can overcome its own financial challenges.
Among them:
After its insurance trust collapsed, ISTA found itself saddled by debt, which helped put it
Over the past three years, its lifeblood -- dues-paying membership -- has fallen by about 10 percent, to 45,000. Widespread layoffs of teachers by many schools played a role in that drop.
ISTA has given up its independence, including the deed to its longtime Downtown office tower, to its parent, the
Although ISTA settled a hard-fought lawsuit against its former executive director, it still faces a high-stakes legal battle with the state securities commissioner. The state seeks damages of more than
"We are not prone to having our dirty laundry shown in public," said
ISTA has been stanching the damage. It has settled some of the lawsuits against it and is negotiating givebacks in benefits with two unions that represent its unionized employees.
ISTA quietly settled the lawsuit involving its former executive director,
Still, Williams is upset the settlement didn't cover the value of retirement benefits that he says ISTA stripped from him when he left in 2009. He was one of the longest-serving state NEA executives in the country at the time.
"I am extremely angry, extremely bitter," said Williams, now retired at age 70 on
Williams contends ISTA shelled out far more in legal fees pursuing him and others in court over the insurance fund collapse than it recovered in settlement money.
"A lot of members should be really upset and should be asking for a total accounting," he said. "It's just an absolute total waste of money."
"It needed to be done," she said of the lawsuit against Williams, who had been ISTA's executive director since 1984. "Everyone I know hoped there would be some penalty to bear. There was a need for litigation, regardless of the cost. What was done was done in the interest of our members, our organization."
ISTA was left responsible for a reported
ISTA doesn't expect to pay off the plan's liability until 2027, using member dues and loans. "It could be less, probably won't be longer,"
One wild card that could add considerably to ISTA's financial woes is the pending lawsuit against it by the state.
The state seeks damages of
"Our securities division has taken our responsibility seriously," said
The state has alleged fraud, breach of contract and other charges against ISTA in the case, filed in federal court in
ISTA and the state tried to mediate their way out of the dispute but couldn't agree. The judge put off an October trial date in order to rule on pending motions, including one by ISTA to dismiss the charges.
ISTA today is a smaller version of the organization it used to be.
Since 2009, its staff has shrunk from 180 to 59 people. Much of that was from casting off the insurance business, but deep cuts also occurred in professional staff, which has been reduced from 35 to 24 people.
To cut costs, the state's largest teachers union wrested contract givebacks from its own unionized staff. Two staff unions that represent 46 ISTA employees agreed last summer to benefit givebacks for the sake of "ISTA's financial well- being," said
"We are all disappointed, obviously, that we are even in this situation," he said.
"We are working with management the best we can to survive," said
Neither side would discuss what benefits the unions gave up.
The man who oversees ISTA, NEA-appointed trustee
An
Wilkins said she is satisfied with ISTA's efforts to deal with its financial troubles. "We're still standing," she said. "They're trying to keep their head above water."
Some outsiders see ISTA as a less potent force in politics and education because of its troubles.
"They're a mess financially. ISTA doesn't expect to be solvent until 2027. They're basically subsidized by the NEA," said Mike Antonnuci, who runs
"They've lost their moral ground," he said.
One indication that ISTA remains a force in public policy: Its main political action committee,
Ritz, though, won election as the new state superintendent largely through a word-of-mouth and social media campaign and was heavily outspent by the Republican incumbent.
Over the years, ISTA's political donations have gone heavily to Democrats.
State Rep.
"They've definitely been diminished just by that (the Republican dominance)," Bauer said.
Bauer said the election of Ritz was "a moral victory" for ISTA but said that for it to gain strength, "There's no question they have to go out and recoup new membership."
"We're not focusing on all that horrible mess," she said of the financial troubles. "ISTA's going to continue to pursue its reason for existence: enhancing public education and the rights of our students to a quality public education.
"It is no secret that the prior administration left ISTA with tremendous financial challenges,"
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