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Oakland Teachers Ask Wells Fargo Bank For Bailout

OAKLAND (KCBS) --- Some Oakland school teachers who want Wells Fargo Bank to help bail out the cash-strapped district tried to make their point at a downtown Oakland branch today.

The teachers turned out to ask that the bank respond to a letter that Oakland Education Association leaders had written asking to meet with Wells Fargo President John Stumpf and any other financial leaders he chose to invite. The letter said that Wells Fargo has received a $50 billion bailout from the federal government and that Stumpf's $20 million annual salary makes him the highest paid bank CEO in the country.

KCBS' Bob Melrose Reports:

OEA President Betty Olsen-Jones said more than 600 teachers and counselors in Oakland have gotten lay-off notices.

"We already have a city where children are in huge need of additional services," she said. "The schools are not going to be able to survive."

In a statement, Wells Fargo officials said they had donated $57 million to local nonprofits last year, including $500,000 to Alameda and Contra Costa schools.

The protest, on the anniversary of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr., begins a week of protests sponsored by labor unions and various community groups across the country.

(Copyright 2011 by CBS San Francisco. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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