Governor Matt Bevin Posts “Sick Of Sickouts” Video On Facebook

(LEX 18)– Governor Matt Bevin posted a video on Facebook Monday about sickouts and public schools.

In the video, Bevin says that students’ lives are being disrupted by “a handful of people who are putting their own interests ahead of the kids.”

He also called out the teacher’s union in Jefferson County, saying that they are “reloading sick days into the accounts of teachers so they can call in sick when they’re not sick.”

Bevin said, ” Don’t let all the noise of the power-hungry, money-hungry people, at the KEA and others, distract you from the fact that putting the children first is the greatest responsibility we have.”

The status on his Facebook post says, “SICK OF “SICKOUTS?”So are many Kentuckians…Continued sickouts have serious ramifications for Kentucky students, families, educators, taxpayers and businesses. Thank you to the many professionals who continue putting the needs of our children ahead of their own political interests…United We Stand, Divided We Fall. #WeAreKY”.

Teachers have been visiting the Capitol to show lawmakers that they are “keeping an eye on them.” Some teachers say they do not trust lawmakers anymore, especially after last year’s last-minute pension bill changes.

The two big education bills teachers are against are House Bill 525, which changes who controls their pensions, and House Bill 205, which give tax breaks to people who donate scholarship funds for private schools. Neither one of these bills was on lawmakers’ agendas Monday, but teachers say that they wanted to be there just to make sure it stayed that way.

There were no “sickouts” Monday.

You can watch the video below:

“Hi, this is Kentucky Governor Matt Bevin. I wanted to speak briefly to you something that has been very topical and I think parents across Kentucky are very appropriately getting a little wary of and that is pretending to be sick when you’re not sick, and doing this at the expense of the very students that public education is intended to serve. This is about the students and it should be about the students. Not about what’s in the best interest of the KEA or any of these other groups that want to attract attention and resources and power to themselves. This about the teachers themselves and their ability to do the job of educating kids, because, at the end of the day, this is about the kids. The idea that we would be calling in sick, anybody, and doing it at the expense of kids, including testing for ACTs and prep for this, the ability for kids whose livelihoods as they head into post-secondary world are dependent on what’s happening now, being disrupted because of the handful of people who are putting their own interests ahead of the kids, it’s just not acceptable. It really isn’t. It shouldn’t be acceptable to anyone. And the fact that the teacher’s union in Jefferson County, for example, is pretending that they’re not supporting this, but meanwhile,  are reloading sick day hours into the accounts of teachers so that they can call in sick when they’re not sick, walk out on the students, when they’re not sick, pretend to be doing this for the students, when it’s not, and then the teacher’s union pretending, ‘we’re not really supportive of this, oh but don’t worry, we’ll make you whole and give you some more sick days’…this is the kind of stuff that the taxpayers of Kentucky, which is those of you watching this, you should be offended by this. You really should be. And if you’re parents whose kids are in school, as I am, you should be offended by this. We have a responsibility to take care of our young people, we just do. It’s as simple as that.  This isn’t that controversial, it shouldn’t be. There’s no proposals at all, other than to actually take care of the obligations we have, to our pension, among other things, that anybody should be concerned about.  There’s no reason to be walking out on students, leaving students in the lurch, hurting them and their parents, and the many businesses in Kentucky that are affected by this. This administration is the only administration that has never swept a penny from the lottery fund. One hundred percent of that has gone to education. I’m the only administration, ours is, that is the first to ever fund the pension system, in its entirety. We’ve put more money into the pension in the last three years, in the last two budgets, than the previous governor did in eight years. We’re the only ones to actually be bringing attention to the obligation we have to those who are responsible, to our students. And so to the vast majority of you that are out there busting your tails day in and day out, not just in the classroom, but people as administrators, and people as custodial agents and people who are doing other jobs in our state, protecting, and serving, and plowing the roads, and you name it. To each and every one of you who works every day for the people of Kentucky, thank you. Truly grateful to you. it’s for you that I am doing this, that I am trying to make sure that we fund your pension, make sure that it will actually be there as promised to you when you retire. Don’t let all the noise of the power-hungry, money-hungry people, at the KEA and others, distract you from the fact that putting the children first is the greatest responsibility we have. Each and every one of us. United we stand, divided we fall. It’s more than just our state motto. It’s literally true as it relates to our young people as well. Thank you so much for those of you who take this seriously. Thank you for those of you who do put our children and the Commonwealth ahead of your own personal interest. We are Kentucky.”