Chester Upland Schoolteachers Agree To Continue Working Amid Budget Crisis
By David Madden
CHESTER, Pa. (CBS) -- Employees in the financially beleaguered Chester Upland School District got paid today. But what happens two weeks from now is anyone's guess, after district officials announced they can no longer meet payroll (see related story).
Meanwhile, unionized teachers and support staff have vowed to stay on the job for now, money or not.
More than 200 teachers and 65 assistants gave their blessing to the payless paydays for as long as individuals can hold out.
"The main concern is that students, who are the unintended victims of what appears to be a game between Harrisburg and the school board, are the ones who are suffering here," said Pennsylvania State Education Association spokesman Paul Gottlieb.
The union is asking Governor Tom Corbett to reconsider his refusal of an $18.7-million advance in state funding that could take care of the problem (see related story).
The union plans to push local legislators to put heat on the governor as well. But the Corbett administration has so far been steadfast in its contention that the board must get its own fiscal house in order before coming to them, hat in hand.
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