Minneapolis schools need hiring flexibility

When a teaching vacancy occurs at a Minneapolis public school, seniority usually determines who gets the job. Under the current contract, the bidding process protects individuals, allowing the most senior person to decide how teaching spots are filled.

That's not the best way to build or maintain a teaching team -- especially now as the district deals with staff and budget cuts, declining enrollment, stiff competition and the need to build public confidence. Making staffing choices at the building level is essential. Teacher placement should be driven by the needs of the students and the schools, and the seniority rule should change.

The hiring practice is a major sticking point in current talks between the Minneapolis teachers union and the school board and administration. Teachers have been working under an agreement that expired last June. Negotiations for a 2007-09 contract that began last spring are stalled, with representatives from both sides saying they are "far apart" on most issues. As a result, the two sides have gone to mediation.

There's pressure to reach an agreement by the Jan. 15 state deadline for teacher contract settlements. Failure to have a pact in place by then could result in the loss of state school aid.

Minneapolis school officials are right to press for the hiring modification because they need to create more academically successful and family-friendly and more academically successful programs. In recent years, several thousand students have left traditional city schools for private, suburban and charter schools where principals and site committees select teachers. That's one of the features that attracts families; they like staff stability with groups of educators committed to the same goals.

And most other state school systems have already switched to a interview-and-select hiring method. St. Paul for example, with similar challenges and students, has successfully used more program-based staffing decisions for years.

Minneapolis Federation of Teachers President Rob Panning-Miller argues that teachers need first choice on vacancies to prevent being rejected unfairly by principals and site committees. Teachers with the necessary experience and license are qualified and should have the first access to job openings, he says.

Of course, experience matters. Seniority can certainly be among the hiring criteria. But it shouldn't be the only factor or the primary one. In the interest of making traditional public schools more competitive, successful and family friendly, the teachers union should compromise on this issue.