AFT Head Tells Congress: Invest in Schools, Health; Cites Need to Create Jobs

American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten Oct. 29 urged Congress to pass a new stimulus package to bolster the struggling economy through job creation and investment in education and health-care.

RANDI WEINGARTEN: Must prime the pump.

Speaking at a House Ways and Means Committee hearing on economic recovery, Ms. Weingarten said, "the boldest action that you can take now is the simplest: Invest in the foundations of our country's strength — jobs, education and health-care."

'Education, Economy Intertwined'

Acknowledging that "some may think it odd to see the president of the AFT at a hearing on the economic stimulus," she explained her view that "education and the economy are intertwined ... neither is strong while the other is weak." She cited a survey by the National Institute for Early Education Research, "which reports for every dollar invested in preschool, the return is $7."

Ms. Weingarten's testimony on Capitol Hill focused on the country's economic downturn and mounting signs that education, along with health-care and infrastructure, would face city and state cuts across the board. "For school districts, this has resulted in consolidated or eliminated bus routes, fewer supplies and instructional assistants, the loss of professional development for staff, and increased class sizes," said the woman who also heads the United Federation of Teachers.

"The fiscal turmoil that has gripped our nation in recent months does not change the fact that investing in education and other public services is just as important today as it was yesterday," she continued, saying that by spending on public services, government could find a way out of recession by making the country "competitive in the international marketplace and able to remain a world leader."

Urges Spending on Infrastructure

The key proposals she outlined were raising unemployment insurance benefits, to keep the growing ranks of the unemployed afloat as they search for new jobs; offering fiscal relief to the states, and investing in Federal infrastructure, which "offers a dual benefit — improved roads, schools, bridges and water systems as well as more jobs for either unemployed or underemployed workers."

Kenneth Brynien, president of the Public Employees Federation, agreed that states needed fiscal relief in a written statement submitted to the committee. "The services we provide to the most vulnerable citizens are in jeopardy," he said. "For example, the child protective services registry is under court mandate to respond to every incoming call within one minute. Vacant positions have been eliminated and overtime has been cut."

Regarding education specifically, Ms. Weingarten added that the House of Representatives-passed stimulus package included $3 billion for school construction and renovation, and that the committee could add to that by adopting a portion of the America's Better Classroom Act, drafted by committee Chairman Charles B. Rangel, which provides Federal interest payments on school construction bonds.

"During the New York City fiscal crisis in the 70s, construction was halted and maintenance was deferred to such an extent that it took the next 30 years to fix the problems created by this inactivity. And that doesn't even touch upon the educational losses that resulted," warned Ms. Weingarten in her closing remarks.