Courts vs. teachers: unconstitutional job security.

• Author: Doherty, Brian
• Position: Citings - Brief article

In June, a California court struck down policies that lock the state's public school teachers into their jobs, even if they aren't good at those jobs.

The plaintiffs in Vergara v. California included nine students who claimed that various job protection policies meant bad teachers kept teaching, and thus illegitimately damaged their right under the state constitution to a quality education. Their suit, which was sponsored by an activist group called Students Matter, argued that teachers enjoy what amounted to permanent employment status after less than two years on the job, that dismissal procedures are too complicated and expensive, and that a "last in, first out" rule for teacher layoffs exacerbates the problem.

State Superior Court Judge Rolf M.Treu ruled that such policies do indeed "cause...