Posts tagged education
CTU and SEIU back different candidates for school board president, widening rift between staff unions
July 28, 2026 // The SEIU and the CTU used to work together to protest budget cuts, school closings and other actions that affected workers. SEIU was one of the biggest backers of CTU organizer turned mayoral candidate Brandon Johnson, and its related PACs contributed more than $4.6 million to his campaign. But a rift formed after the CTU attempted to get some of SEIU’s members reclassified so they would be under CTU. SEIU officials accused the CTU of raiding its members.
Teachers’ Union Boss Vows ‘All-Out-War’ if Mamdani Doesn’t Back Bonuses
July 27, 2026 // The legislation would cost New York City $325 million. The Citizens Budget Commission, a nonpartisan watchdog group that opposes the bill, warned that it would set a “dangerous precedent” by encouraging unions to bypass the bargaining table and appeal directly to lawmakers.
VIDEO: Randi Weingarten is a ‘world class hypocrite,’ says retired teacher
July 24, 2026 // Retired teacher Larry Sand discusses The American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten facing criticism for allegedly prioritizing political agendas over academic achievement
Affordability at forefront of union negotiations between Pinellas district and teachers
July 23, 2026 // If the district and teachers association are unable to negotiate a contract ahead of the July 31 deadline they will reach impasse. Impasse is a deadlock in negotiations between workers and employers. Though this has not occurred since 2009, association members and officials are saying that this year, impasse is not an impossibility. If an impasse is reached, Florida’s Public Employees Relations Commission will appoint a special magistrate who will make recommendations on disputed contract items. If those recommendations are not approved by both parties, it will head to the school board which will make a final ruling on any remaining disputes.
Teachers’ Unions Are Losing One of Their Government Perks
July 22, 2026 // The question is not whether teachers unions should exist, but whether taxpayers should subsidize organizations that subsequently seek more taxpayer subsidy, often for actions the taxpayer wouldn’t otherwise support. Removing public subsidies forces unions to rely on voluntary member support, increases accountability, and keeps government resources focused on their proper purpose: educating children. The reforms in Idaho, Florida, and Arizona mark the beginning of a necessary correction.
New Mercatus Liya Palagashvilli Report: Artificial Intelligence and the Rise of Independent Work
July 20, 2026 // A freelancer or solo business owner may earn income from multiple clients without any one client serving as the institutional provider of benefits. If AI expands this kind of independent knowledge work, then benefits should increasingly attach to the worker rather than to a single firm. Portable benefits would allow workers to maintain access to health benefits, retirement accounts, paid leave, and other forms of security across different work arrangements.17Contributions could come from multiple sources: the worker, firms, clients, platforms, customers, or government matches for lower-income workers. The goal is not to make independent work look exactly like traditional employment. It is to make sure that workers do not lose financial security simply because their income comes from contracts, clients, or a one-person business rather than from a firm. The second implication concerns unemployment insurance and income disruption. Traditional unemployment insurance is built around a clean layoff from an employer. But AI-related disruption may not always appear that way. A consultant may lose clients. A software contractor may face fewer projects. A designer may see rates fall. A worker may move from a salaried job into solo self-employment, not because work disappeared entirely, but because the organization of work changed. In these cases, the relevant question is not only whether an employer laid someone off. It is whether the worker experienced a meaningful earnings shock or transition.
While NAEP scores hit 20-year lows, teachers’ unions were debating ethical veganism
July 16, 2026 // Recognizing ethical veganism as a protected philosophical belief; glyphosate has no place on student food and beverages; opposing merging US military operations, intelligence, and/or defense technology with those of any foreign military; comprehensive immigration reform; banning the use of AI in the decision-making process for the use of nuclear weapons; investigating fires for evidence of microwave energy attacks through the use of “direct energy weapons”; prohibiting weather modification to be injected into the stratosphere; calling for the impeachment of Trump before the November election, at a campaign cost of $5.2 million; and ending the war in Iran. For an entity that cloaks itself in sanctimony for defending the rights of teachers, it seems very much that the welfare of average union members might not be the C-suite’s top priority.
Editorial: Randi Weingarten’s book sleaze might mean the end of corrupt teacher-union power
July 13, 2026 // Under Reps. Tim Walberg (R-Mich.) and Rick Allen (R-Ga.), the committee is following up on Post reporting on dubious transactions uncovered by the Freedom Foundation that amount to hundreds of thousands of AFT dollars spent to help produce the book Of course, that’s just a fraction of how union higherups profit from members’ dues: Weingarten’s pay is now $470,000 a year, not to mention ample perks. Maybe she’s worth it — to the union itself, at least: She’s been a Democratic Party powerbroker for decades, using that influence to protect the power of the AFT and its larger ally, the National Education Association.
Miami-Dade teachers union says it survives despite missing participation threshold
July 10, 2026 // Miami-Dade’s teachers union says it will survive another year, even after falling just shy of a 50% recertification voter participation threshold among eligible employees set by a recent law. A spokesperson for United Teachers of Dade said Tuesday they were informed by officials with the Public Employees Relations Commission (PERC) that the threshold did not apply to this election because the process began before July 1, when the law took effect. The union shared a signed form from PERC stating that the union had “prevailed” in the election. Read more at: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/education/article316414172.html#storylink=cpy
House launches probe into AFT boss Randi Weingarten tapping teachers’ union spending to write ‘manifesto’ book
July 8, 2026 // As part of its sweeping investigation, it requested Weingarten turn over by July 21 all AFT expenditures related to the drafting, publishing, promoting and tour activities associated with the book; all agreements between AFT and outside parties and documents of all work performed by AFT employees on the book. See Also An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows Randi Weingarten holding her book "Why Fascists Fear Teachers: Public Education and the Future of Democracy", Image 2 shows Randi Weingarten holding a copy of her book, "Why Fascists Fear Teachers: Public Education and the Future of Democracy." AFT boss Randi Weingarten tapped union resources worth over $1.4M to write ‘manifesto’ book Walberg and Allen said they have a responsibility to ensure that unions representing American workers operate “transparently and that union members receive a full accounting of how their dues are utilized.”