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Charters in Washington, D.C. Schools Face Pressure from Unions
posted by: Ruthie | November 20, 2012, 01:19 pm
In the past year, Washington, D.C. public charter schools have experienced a five percent enrollment increase, rising to nearly 81,000 students this school year alone. They now comprise 41% of all public school students in the District of Columbia.
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Thomas B. Fordham Institute Releases Study about Strength of Teacher Unions
posted by: Ruthie | October 31, 2012, 11:06 am The Thomas B. Fordham Institute and Education Reform Now recently completed a study about the strength of teacher unions nationwide. The study ranked all 50 states according to the influence of their state-level unions and concludes that there is indeed a declining status of teacher unions across the country. Continue Reading...
New Book: Shadowbosses Sheds Light on Public Sector Union Spending & Tactics
posted by: Alix | August 23, 2012, 01:57 pm
Shadowbosses, released this week, tells a story of intrigue, drama, and corruption and reads like an organized crime novel. Amazingly, it is actually a true story of how public sector labor unions (including teacher unions) are spending member dues and controlling the political process.
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Union Bosses Received 20% Pay Increase Last Year, Making 10 Times the Average Teacher Salary
posted by: Colin | July 14, 2012, 11:34 am
“Are teachers or anyone in the private sector experiencing those increases in times of financial hardship?" AAE Executive Director Gary Beckner featured in FoxNews.com article about union boss salaries being nearly 10 times that of the average teacher:
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According to one Las Vegas teacher, "The fat lady has sung" and he is washing his hands of union membership. Frustrated by years of hostile negotiations, massive lay-offs, exorbitant dues, and partisan politics, Nathan Warner is advising his fellow educators to drop union membership this week during a small resignation period– July 1-15 – which just might be the best kept secret in town.
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National Education Association Bailing Out State Affiliates
posted by: Alix | June 19, 2012, 11:26 am
As recently reported on the AAE blog, teacher union public approval and membership are hitting record lows. Following a decline of 150,000 members in the past two years and a projection of an additional 200,000 member loss by 2014, the National Education Association and its state affiliates are in extreme financial distress. According to a report by union-watchdog Mike Antonucci and the Education Intelligence Agency (EIA), as the NEA national budgets are being slashed, aid to state affiliates has risen to keep certain state affiliate operations afloat.
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This week's recall election has thrust union special interests and teacher freedoms back into the national dialogue like never before. After a bitter campaign and an estimated $60 million spent on election efforts, the commanding win for Governor Walker illustrates an overwhelming shift in public opinion against teachers unions. As the dust settles on this historic election, it's no coincidence that according to a new public opinion poll, teacher unions nationally are reaching all-time low approval levels.
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Yesterday, the nonpartisan, Chicago-based Heartland Institute released a comprehensive report about non-union associations and teachers and their quest for equal treatment in a union-dominated landscape. The exposé, authored by Education Policy Research Fellow Joy Pullman, highlights the Association of American Educators and AAE state chapter teachers and staff who have experienced harassment, discrimination, and bullying from union representatives keen on maintaining their monopoly in local schools.
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As reported recently on the AAE blog, despite record-breaking growth among non-union teacher organizations, local AAE recruiters and state partners have experienced tremendous hurdles in establishing equal treatment among competing associations in states across the country. Whether it is the inability to attend a new teacher orientation or access to payroll deduction services, non-union associations are constantly passed over in favor of powerful teacher union interests. Despite this climate, there is renewed hope for teachers seeking options in Colorado, as House Bill 1333 was recently introduced to promote fairness among teacher associations and union and non-union teachers alike.
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Union-Owned Insurance Trust Declines Under Teacher Choice
posted by: Alix | April 16, 2012, 02:43 pm
In 2011, Wisconsin's fight over collective bargaining was the number one domestic story. From protests at the capitol to high-profile lawsuits, the battle to close budget shortfalls and curb union power is still gaining headlines in the state. In the latest development, WEA Trust, the health care insurer that has covered as many as two-thirds of Wisconsin school districts under strict collective bargaining agreements, has seen its revenue decline almost $70 million after a new law gave school districts the freedom to switch health care insurers to save funds.
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Since the labor battles of 2011 and the growing push for education reform nationwide, pundits and education experts from across the political spectrum have predicted massive membership and financial losses for teacher labor unions in the coming years. While there have been media reports about union lay-offs and budget shortfalls, new data for the Bureau of Labor Statistics sheds light on total membership losses by percentage in some very unlikely states.
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In the wake of last year's labor battles in Wisconsin, Indiana, and Ohio, 2012 is shaping up to mark a new era in curtailed teacher union power. While it might seem difficult to believe that the National Education Association and its state affiliates, at their peak a $1.5 billion annual powerhouse, could be suffering from money troubles, new evidence suggests deep trouble for the NEA and state affiliates.
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Yesterday, Indiana made history as Governor Mitch Daniels signed Right-to-Work legislation into law, making the Hoosier State 23rd in the nation with the provision—the first new Right-to-Work state in over a decade. Interestingly, Indiana is also the first state in the "Rust Belt" of the Midwest and Northeast to adopt the measure that protects workers' freedom of association when it comes to union membership, in the public and private sector.
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The Education Intelligence Agency, a popular education research blog run by union-watchdog Mike Antonucci, has analyzed the NEA's 2010-11 financial disclosure report and discovered that the largest teachers union in the country has given nearly $19 million of teacher dues, some collected by force, to advocacy groups and primarily left-leaning causes. Up $5 million from the previous year, the NEA has increased their advocacy spending despite a climate of declining membership and harsh budget realities.
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What started in February as a battle over budget shortfalls and forced unionism has grown into a full scale ballot referendum in the key swing state of Ohio. The question known as "Issue 2" will ask voters to either accept or reject a sweeping collective bargaining law that Governor John Kasich signed in March, less than three months after his election day. Tomorrow, Ohioans will go to the polls to vote on the referendum, a case study in the near nationwide debate over union power and the sustainability of the current collective bargaining system.
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Since the class warfare message of the Occupy Wall Street protests started nearly two months ago, the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers have taken every chance possible to align themselves in solidarity with the group of mostly underemployed college students and left-leaning activists. With AFT President Randi Weingarten joining in on protests and affiliates in Kentucky and Missouri taking part in protests of their own, the teacher unions are quick to point out that "public education, teachers and unions have increasingly come under attack from the One Percent."
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NEA Membership Down, Non-Union Groups Growing Stronger Than Ever
posted by: Alix | October 21, 2011, 01:10 pm
In the wake of unilaterally negative press and legislative and legal battles across the country, the National Education Association is undoubtedly coping with new fiscal realities. According to its latest financial disclosures, the NEA has lost over 100,000 active members since the 2009-10 school year. While non-union groups, like AAE and its partners, are experiencing tremendous growth: nearly 30% during the same time frame.
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2011 is shaping up to be the year of education and labor reform nearly nationwide. In March, 48 states were considering labor reform bills on the heels of major Republican gains in state legislatures across the country. What started as legislative progress and meaningful education reform in states like Indiana, Florida, and Idaho, has yielded an unprecedented backlash from unions who are literally fighting for their very survival in long drawn out court battles that are leaving many commonsense policies in limbo. Continue Reading...
“Right to Teach” Legislation Gaining Steam in Michigan
posted by: Alix | September 22, 2011, 03:02 pm
In light of the labor battles brewing across the country, compulsory unionism has become a hot topic among education advocates and teachers nearly nationwide. Gaining national headlines lately is the traditionally union-friendly state of Michigan, and their new "Right to Teach" legislation that seeks to end forced unionism for public school teachers.
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This week we look back on another Labor Day gone, and the hope and promise of a new school year ahead. While most Americans see Labor Day as a long weekend marking the end of summer, it is critical to not only recognize the history and hardship of the workers of over century ago, but recognize the state of labor today.
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