In posting this, we must first note a correction that needs to be made in the information provided during the show. Host Rich Girard said that every teacher in the Manchester School District will receive a 7.2 pay raise in the first year of the contract. In fact, teachers who are at the top of the pay scale will receive a 5% pay raise in the first year. Those who have yet to reach the top of the scale will get 7.2%.
In this edition of the Girard at Large TV Show, not only does Girard provide the actual and true projected costs of the contract approved by the Board of Mayor and Aldermen on September 1, 2015, he also directly addressed the conflict of interest provisions of the Manchester City Charter, which should have prevented aldermen Ron Ludwig of Ward 2, Barbara Shaw of Ward 9 and Normand Gamache of Ward 11 from voting. As the contract was vetoed by Mayor Ted Gatsas, their votes were consequential in overriding the veto.
In sharing the provisions of the charter, Girard also aired “before and after” clips of Ludwig and Shaw saying the would not violate the law in their meeting of August 4, 2015, to admitting they were going to violate it and rationalizing it on September 1, 2015. Girard let them tell you what they were doing and why they knew it was wrong in their own words.
Oh, and for those of you who like show and tell, Girard put it all on PowerPoint slides so you can easily follow along. Just in case, here are the presentations.
Financial impact of MEA contract
To learn more about the contracts, check out these articles:
Avard defends contract numbers. Does the math add up?
The teachers contract veto battle
Now, grab your favorite munchies and beverage and enjoy!
