Teacher Unions – Why the Hate?

By Alan HaskvitzcloseAuthor: Alan Haskvitz Name: Alan Haskvitz
Site: http://reacheverychild.com
About: Alan Haskvitz is a member of the National Teachers Hall of Fame and has been recognized many times as one of the nation's most successful and innovative teachers. Accounts of his students' accomplishments have been featured in books, periodicals, and on national radio and television. He is a classroom teacher with experience at every grade level and every major subject.See Authors Posts (11)
 

Manifest in his findings is that improvement in teachers comes within the first five or so years. This information can be taken several ways. For example, it can be a call for additional professional development, or it may be taken as a call for districts to not automatically extend salary increases to experienced teachers. This could result in the demise of the more expensive, experienced teachers to solve budget problems, but deny experienced, veteran teachers increases in salary, which unions would not condone. I wrote to Steve Rivkin saying that in my 35 years in the classroom for ten different school districts, I have found teachers always striving to improve. He did not reply. Certainly there are a few exceptions, but what is bothersome is why teacher unions don’t do an effective job of promoting the value of experienced teachers.

Unions need to be more proactive in showcasing their many talented members

How many awards are given out by unions for mentoring or serving as a master teacher? How many experienced teachers have been sought out by unions to present at conferences? How many experienced teachers have been used as sounding boards and problem solvers by newer teachers or given the time for such encounters? Indeed, how many unions even bother to hold good teaching conferences? When a teacher does present at a conference what incentive is it for him or her to say “I teach at such and such school and am a member of the x-union”? Sadly, none.

With large organizations churning out research that can be used by anti-union agents, why doesn’t the union promote a grass roots public relations program of its own? Yes, union members get the NEA and state monthly journals with a few tidbits and a puff piece or two. But where is the research and the listing of accomplishments?

Let me provide one example. I asked the California Teaching Association to do an article on the state’s National Teacher Hall of Fame* members. All of these must have about 20 years of classroom experience and it would be of value to have others learn about their ideas and methods. After all, there are three million teachers in America and only 75 have earned induction into the Hall. This type of article would be ideal fodder to counter any arguments against the value of experienced teachers. Sadly, the CTA did not respond to this request.

Another area that creates union hate is jealousy. Plain and simple, it is the numbers. Teacher unions have by far the largest membership with well over three million. That is nearly three times as many members as the second largest union, the Service Employees International Union. That is power in terms of donations and voters. And that can, and probably does, create jealousy especially since this influence usually goes to the Democratic Party. In fact, conservative Texas has prohibited school districts from collecting money from teacher paychecks that would go into union coffers to be spent on political action. One doubts that action would have been taken if the Republican Party had not been left out of the trough.

The last anti-union focus is on the membership’s feeling of powerlessness due to the large size of the unions and the fact that the unions can stray from the educational arena into areas such as abortion and gay marriage. It is not that these issues are not important concerns, it is because the decision to get involved seems to be a top down proposition despite the fact that it may have been voted on at the state conference. Thus unions create an enemy within, even if there is an option for those teachers opposed to such issues to have their funds for these purposes donated to non-profit causes.

Conclusion

So there are at least four major areas that relate to the hatred of teacher unions. First, the fact that they are a union. Second, because unions don’t do enough to publish research and promote union teachers at the local level there is little to counter anti-union media. Third, the fact that teachers’ unions are so large in terms of voting power and potential donations that it causes envy and fear. Finally, the notion that teacher unions can, and do, get involved with issues that some may consider unrelated to the promotion of education in the classroom.

Recommendations

Regardless of whether these observations are consistent with those of the reader, there is no doubt that there is a clear need for teacher unions to spend a great deal more time and money on the locals. There needs to be a channel for more feedback to the state and national leadership, and above all, there must be a vocalized effort to stop the hate by providing research and examples that negate the negative. Finally, at your next local meeting why not suggest organizing a committee to look into putting a face on the local union. If a member does something great let the local media know. Perhaps even the district office could be asked to use the teacher’s union membership affiliation on its public relations pieces about teachers.

*Alan Haskvitz is a National Hall of Fame teacher inductee.