Editor’s note: On Thursday, Oct. 10, the Akron Education Association filed an Unfair Labor Practice complaint with the State Employment Relations Board against the Akron Public Schools’ Board of Education, Superintendent Michael Robinson and his administration. AEA President Patricia Shipe said the legal action was in response to Robinson’s initial comments shared with local media in a press release; she said he appeared to threaten teachers with disciplinary action if they contacted their union representatives about issues they encountered in schools.
A press release from Akron Public Schools on Tuesday defended the district’s new full-day pre-kindergarten program, which, according to several teachers, is experiencing a litany of safety and hygiene issues.
Superintendent Michael Robinson’s response came eight days after complaints made to the teachers’ union by at least six anonymous teachers were described in a Signal Akron report.
Signal Akron’s previous reporting outlined the following issues:
- A lack of paraprofessionals in classrooms, repeatedly leaving teachers with classes of 15 or more students and no assistance.
- Staffing shortages causing children to go for long periods without their diapers being changed.
- Facilities lacking accessibility features that created safety hazards.
The school district said in the press release that it maintains enough staffing of teachers and paraprofessionals and that there are processes in place to ensure children are not left in soiled diapers.
Communication systems are also in place to ensure that when a teacher or paraprofessional needs to leave the room to assist a child, the district stated, another is available to step in to meet legal staffing requirements for pre-kindergarten programs.
The district has “strict protocols” in place for teaching staff to address classroom issues at the school-building level, according to the press release, which was also posted on the district’s website and has since been taken down. It said that “no other procedure” should be necessary for resolving classroom issues.
Second press release clarifies ‘incorrect’ quote
Robinson’s initial response, a press release emailed to local media outlets Tuesday morning at 10:30 a.m., said teachers should not contact their union representatives about issues they encounter and appeared to threaten disciplinary action if they did so.
“No one should be going to their union rep if they are concerned about classroom procedures,” Robinson said in his first statement. “Those who do not follow our protocols will face disciplinary measures. We will certainly investigate the issues that have been raised.”
The district did not initially respond to requests for clarity on whether district policies preclude teachers from contacting their union representatives about issues they encounter in the classroom or about the nature of the district’s protocols.
But at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, the school district sent a correction email stating “an incorrect quote” attributed to Robinson was included in the earlier press release that stated teachers should not be contacting their union representatives and threatening disciplinary action.
“We encourage staff to raise concerns through appropriate avenues, including their union representatives,” Robinson said in the second statement. “However, it is crucial that all staff follow our established protocols for the safety and care of our students.”
The ability of union employees to contact their representatives is a federally protected right in the National Labor Relations Act. It’s an unfair labor practice “to interfere with, restrain, or coerce employees in the exercise of the rights guaranteed” in the law or to “threaten employees with adverse consequences if they engage in protected, concerted activity.”
“We believe this to be yet another glaring example of the Superintendent and his administration deflecting responsibility from themselves by either providing dishonest answers or avoiding issues altogether,” the Akron Education Association stated in a press release responding to Robinson’s first statement.
