In the contemporary world, it is a commonplace for workers especially those employed by the government to agitate for better pay and working conditions. Although these strikes used to be rampant and often turned several violent decades ago, modern day workers have established more efficient and extremely reliable ways to agitate for better pay. Indeed, strikes and go-slows have become prevalent in the modern day society, and this has prompted several experts to weigh in and give their perspectives on the issue. In the paper, sociological effects of teacher’s strikes are discussed in detail.
According to renowned sociologists, employees often take to the streets whenever they feel they are paid far less than what they deserve. Additionally, workers strike when they are paid less but play fundamental roles towards the creation of a better society and nation at large. Teachers strike impact not only on learners but the society as a whole. This is because teachers influence a significant number of people in the community. They are considered to be the mirrors of the community, and thus many members of the community look up to them. A large number of individuals believe that educators have moral obligations to provide quality education to their children in their respective institutions of learning. Moreover, teachers are typically held in high esteem in the society due to the immense role they play towards children’s development. Members of the community, therefore, believe that teachers should follow the right channels when fighting for better wages and Working conditions.
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In the last few weeks, news of teacher’s strikes has been rounded on social media and various news outlets. Teachers from multiple states have demonstrated against what they term as unfair treatment by the government. According to educators, low income has fuelled the current teacher's shortage across the United States. States that have been adversely affected by the recent strikes include the State of Arizona and West Virginia.
According to educational experts and parents, leaners from West Virginia have not attended classes for more than a week as a result of the ongoing teachers strike in West Virginia. Although the governor and the Legislature approved a pay rise for the teachers after intense negotiations, it was swiftly stopped by the Senate under unclear circumstances. This move by the Senate only served to strengthen the teachers will. They saw this as a sign of disrespect and lack of recognition of the role they play in the society. Teachers from various states have laid down concrete plans to rally against the legislators in the Capitol.
Analysis of the Teachers Strike
Teacher’s strikes have far-ranging consequences in the society (CliffsNotes, 2016) . The violent demonstrations affect not only leaners but also the parents who toil day and night to guarantee that their children receive the best possible education. Despite the significant milestones that have been made in the education sector in the United States, constant demonstrations and picketing by educators still pose significant challenges to the sector.
According to available data, teachers are among the lowest paid civil servants in the United States (Liacko, 2018) . The teachers are demanding a five percent of their wages that was negotiated by the Republican governor Jim Justice. The fact that the strike has been declared illegal has not deterred the teachers. According to available data, more than 20,000 educators in West Virginia have defied orders from the government to return to work pending negotiations. In a show of solidarity, teachers in Oklahoma have threatened to join the ongoing demonstrations if their grievances are not met. The demonstrations are expected to continue since none of the parties involved is willing to compromise.
Stratification
Social stratification is a situation whereby community ranks different classes of people in a pyramid. In the United States, it is clear that specific groups of people have more critical status, wealth and power than other groups. According to experts, there exists a wide wage disparity in the U.S. Those who play significant roles in building the economy earn meager wages while those who pay lesser roles make much more than they deserve. Most Americans recognize a three-tier model that consists of the upper, middle and lower classes. Although high-income earners brackets in most societies usually incorporate highly educated individuals, the irony is that teachers in the United States earn less compared to their counterparts in other countries (Strauss, 2018) .
While politicians and CEO’s of various organizations take more than $200,000 annually, teachers in the U.S have to contend with just $40, 000 annually. A case scenario is West Virginia where newly recruited teachers earn $31,000 a year while the average educator's salary is $42,000 per year. According to a survey conducted by National Education Association, West Virginia is ranked 48 in the average wage. During hard economic times, most teachers have to take second jobs to make ends meet. This leaves them with little time to socialize and connect with friends. Moreover, most teachers live in low-income neighborhoods that are infested with crime and insecurity. Teachers in Oklahoma, West Virginia and Arizona have complained for several years concerning poor salaries, but the relevant authorities have never stepped in or taken measures to ensure that they are paid well. Most teachers claim other government employees such as engineers, teachers, and magistrates are usually paid well due to their rank in the society. Consequently, their grievances are listened to swiftly compared to teachers. Currently, many students are not interested in pursuing a career in education as teachers since most of the teachers are paid poorly and rank last in societal hierarchy.
Deviance and Crime
There exist numerous explanations for deviance in any society. More often than not, members of a given society tend to deviate from the accepted norms in the society. Just like uniformity, deviance is shaped by the community. It is the society that decides what is appropriate and what is inappropriate. For instance, there are actions such as killing and stealing which are frowned upon by everyone in the society. Consequently, while speeding or driving under the influence of alcohol is prohibited, they are considered lesser crimes or offense.
Once in a while, employees behave contrary to norms and expectations of an organization. These behaviors are termed as workplace deviance. Employees sometimes consciously violate rules and regulations, and this has the potential of affecting the organization's productivity negatively. Consequences of deviances are far-reaching and impact all aspects of an industry or organizations. When teachers protest in the streets, they go against the societal norms, and this presents a lousy picture not only to their students but members of the society as well. Demonstrations often turn violent, leading to life-threatening injuries or even loss of lives. Students, therefore, tend to imitate their teachers when advocating for their rights or better learning conditions.
Social Control
Different societies have put up various measures to prevent its members from deviating from the accepted norms and behavior. These rafts of measures are aimed at ensuring that the community is safe and no one infringes on another's rights. Some of these measures or reinforcements include sanctions, rewards, and punishment. Since teachers are entrusted with developing learners into respectable beings, they are expected to lead by example by portraying a good picture in the society.
Social Construction
Social construction assumes that individuals construct their understanding of world issues with others. People, therefore, construct their understanding with others jointly and not individually. In the contemporary world, Americans have been made to believe that social equality exists but this is not the case (Johnson, 2017) . There exists a broad social and economic disparity in the U.S. Some individuals are superior to others due to their economic and social status. It is these that have often led to call for equality regarding pay and how people are treated in the society. The ongoing teachers strike primarily aimed at improving their life and social position since through better pay they will be able to live like their peers.
Conclusion
Although people have been conditioned to believe that all members of the society are equal, this is not the case since sure people are treated better due to the positions they hold in the society. Some are paid much better while others are paid poorly. It is such issues that have often prompted different classes of people to agitate for better pay.
References
CliffsNotes. (2016). Types of Social Classes. CliffsNotes , 55-88.
Johnson, H. (2017). Social construction. knowledgeispowe.com , 55-67.
Liacko, A. (2018). Arizona teachers wearing red Wednesday to protest low teacher pay. KGUN9 , Retrieved from https://www.kgun9.com/news/local-news/arizona-teachers-wearing-red-wednesday-to-protest-low-teacher-pay.
Strauss, V. (2018). Why the remarkable West Virginia teachers strike is not over after eight days. Washington Post , Retrieved from; https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/answer-sheet/wp/2018/03/05/why-the-remarkable-west-virginia-teachers-strike-is-not-over-after-eight-days/?utm_term=.d8b21c3c71dd.
