I read with almost unrestrained glee that the town’s leadership has finally come to its senses in regard to town spending and selected the biggest culprit from which to extract it, the school board. This is an ideal time because the current teacher’s contract which has contained automatic annual increases since its inception is due to expire. The annual increase for next year alone should be almost sufficient by itself to return the money demanded by the town manager.

If they reduce the number of teachers commensurate to that when the class size was what it is today it will result in the layoff of the lowest paid teachers, those, who more than the others, need the jobs.

The current contract prohibits the school board from laying off the highest paid teachers regardless of their performance but who is to say these terms should be in the next contract. Another issue is the pension and health care insurance benefits, which are the most liberal in the nation, but typical of government and unionized workers. Ninety percent of these are paid by the taxpayer, in addition to the highest salaries in the teaching profession in Maine. This benefit need not be in the next contract either and the taxpayer will be more the better off for it. As is currently provided by contract, a teacher retiring after 40 years service will receive over 80 percent in retirement of that they earned in the 40 years of actual work. This is not only unsustainable but it is ridiculous.

The teachers will scream these benefits are needed to combat inflation but they fail to tell you it is these terms and salary increases that are responsible for it. I applaud the town manager for laying down the gauntlet and now it is up to the school board to put our pockets where their brains are.

Fred Blanchard Brunswick