By Al Korach

As I approach my 77th birthday I seem to be more involved with my personal thoughts regarding a variety of past situations. Many of my contemplations relate back to May 1958 when I first became a member of the Chicago Teachers Union. I have served under every CTU president from John Fewkes to Marilyn Stewart. I would sum up the years by stating that when I first joined the union the union served the membership. Today it appears to have become an organization where the first priority is to serve the salaries and benefits of those that are employed by the union.

And then they refuse to let the members know the full extent of their pay and benefits.

Our union is not the only thing we need to try and save. Equally important is the pension fund.

As a former Vice President of the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund (having served from 1978 to 1990), I keep a close tab on what is happening pension wise. With contract time coming up and the Board of Education and the state crying poverty, everything could become negotiable. Will the CTU trade off a small raise for some type of pension vacation? Only time will tell.

One thing is certain. While Arne Duncan may not have been able to justify the claims he made in the media that the Chicago Board of Education was facing a “deficit” of more than $300 million for next year, he certainly found support for his attack on the Chicago pension fund. Even though Chicago’s fund has been one of the best managed anywhere, to read the reports one would think the opposition was becoming true. [See illustration]. The attack on our pensions is part of a broader attack on defined benefit plans, and we need to understand what is happening and keep a close eye on the union leaders and politicians who are part of that attack.

Musings as a school year ends

My wife and I returned last month from southern Florida. On April 20th unleaded regular was $3.03 on the Florida turnpike. Just across the boarder in Georgia I was able to purchase unleaded regular for $2.76 a gallon. The rest of the trip it averaged out to $2.89 to $2.99 a gallon. It was construction all the way with the worst going along the Dan Ryan during rush hour.

As gasoline prices keep going up my thoughts go to the thousands of teachers that have to serve in schools miles from their residences. Most drive due to the inability, distance and safety factors involved in their assignments. Even with the residency requirement, it is possible for a teacher or ESP to live on one end of Chicago and be forced (as Substance’s editor once was) to drive more than 40 miles per day round-trip to and from work. For those who live outside the city (grandfathered in under the residency rule), the miles may be even greater. It may be time to consider some type of compensation with mileage and assignment distance. I recall my first assignment miles from my home and a little off the beaten path. I ended my career with an assignment that I could ride my bicycle to work. I guess those days are gone forever. Getting assigned to a position could become a life sentence.

In the 77 years that have passed I have seen more social and technological changes that have occurred since the beginning of time. On the other hand I have seen more cruelty, international mayhem and warfare conducted under the guise of religion. God help us if this continues.

As Memorial Day again approached, thoughts grew about the meaning of it. Just think that in my 77 years I have gone through World War II, Korea, Vietnam, Desert Storm, and now the Iraq madness. I guess I’ll throw in superintendent after superintendent of schools. I think that the only war that I can recall that the majority of the country was behind was WWII. It seems that all we are accomplishing now is a large number of body bags and the terribly wounded returning daily.

We are a nation that only reacts to problems after they occur. One example is that we did not get moving in space until the Russian Sputnik was sent aloft. Another good example is the millions of illegal aliens that have come to our country in search of a better life. There is no way we can deport millions of illegal aliens.

My wife and I are both first generation Americans. Both of our parents came to this country to escape the discrimination that they encountered in Europe. If we went to the moon we should be able to solve this problem on a morally acceptable level. Whatever we do it will not appeal to everyone. This is the price we shall pay for waiting to long to address this problem. As of the writing of this article we still are not addressing this issue.

As I watched thousands of people marching in support of immigration amnesty, I realized that the marching was taking place here in the USA. I wondered why there was no marching taking place south of the border to protest the conditions that drive people north for a better life. I have been south to Mexico, Central America and South America and have seen the poverty residing amidst great wealth. Could it be that it could be cheaper for these governments to force people to go north than to share the wealth.

I recall my parents going to English citizenship school so their relatives would not call them “greenhorns.” NO! They did not drive around with a flag of the country they left hanging on the rear view mirror. My folks left for a better life and found it here. I am sure that many others are here for the same reason. The problem for them was that many of their political leaders and business corporate leaders were to busy taking care of themselves and not trying to make a better life for their citizens back home.

Poor Gov. George Ryan found guilty. After decades of feeding at the public trough he has been found guilty on all counts. While the Chicago Teachers Pension Fund is trying to derail an attempt to again short change the teachers, Ryan is hoping that he can stay out of jail and stall long enough to collect a pension around $200,000 a year. This should warm the hearts of the many teachers that have retired in the $20,000 pension range or less. I’m hoping that some of the CTU field Reps. and others that have retired and are still working and collecting their pensions and salaries at the CTU will comment on Ryan’s take. It’s legal and therein lays the beauty of his setup.

Many thanks to Bill and Melinda Gates for the $21 million that they have donated to the Chicago School system. The money will be used to try and stem the dropout rate among Chicago high school students. It’s a most generous gift and can be utilized. I hope that the donor should understand that the teachers would also need the cooperation of the home if this challenge were to succeed. I wonder if city hall will send more of their political dropouts to help run this program at over $100,000 a year.

Things in southern Florida are similar to educational problems throughout the USA. Many of the schools are inundated with non-English speaking students and those within the poverty range. All of this adds up to educational and social problems with small funds earmarked to help.

The CTU’s endorsement of Gov. Rod. Blagojevich in the primary election because of some minor items leaves much to be desired as a retiree. I would not endorse him or anyone else without a firm statement that he will not allow a stop of any commitments to fund our pension system. Anyone looking at Blagojevich’s treatment of the state pension funds over which he has some control should be worried. As they say in some movies — very worried.

Those of us that have reached what we call the golden years have to realize that we are subjected to many illnesses that strike us at this time of our lives. Some of us say it’s nothing and it will pass are headed for problems. For example: My wife awoke and complained with a vision problem in her left eye. I immediately told her lets see an ophthalmologist. She said, “It will pass.” I still made an immediate appointment for that day.

We were lucky as it was a detached retina. They used a laser to attach it and she is well on the road to recovery instead of blindness. My wife and I both go to a local gym. She does water aerobics and I swim laps. I do not drink or smoke and try to keep in shape for an older codger. Last year I was about to take my motorcycle for a spin and did not feel well. After about an hour and a half it did not go away. I saw my physician and he referred me to a cardiologist at the local hospital for some heavy diagnostic work. It seemed that I had a 90% blockage. I went to surgery that same day and probably saved my life by not waiting.

As I wrote some of this, my wife and I were all packed up and ready to return to Chicago from our other home in Florida. I can’t wait to see the rush to the mikes by the UPC loyalist at the House of Delegates meetings. I guess they feel if they fend off enough delegates trying to speak they could end up with a job for life with their salaries and pensions combined. See you at the future House of Delegates meetings.

And as summer approaches, let’s watch what they’re trying to do to our pensions. Keep your eyes on the United Auto Workers (UAW) in the face of the Delphi situation, the pilots associations, and the other unions. We are facing some strenuous times labor wise. There will be some concessions coupled with negotiations. We must never allow pension funds to be negotiated away. We must always protect those that have served most of their lives serving our children.