Posts tagged public education
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.”
Opinion: NC teacher walkout is sacrificing students for left-wing politics
April 27, 2026 // The N.C. Association of Educators has scheduled a mass walkout for May 1, urging teachers to leave school and rally in downtown Raleigh. School districts are already beginning to close in response, keeping children out of the classroom at a critical point before the end of the school year. Durham Public Schools shifted May 1 to a teacher workday after more than 600 teachers, about a quarter of its educators, requested leave. Asheville City Schools said it could not provide “adequate supervision of students” because so many staff planned to be out. Guilford, Chatham and Chapel Hill-Carrboro have made similar moves.
Op-ed: The Case Against Public-Sector Unions
April 9, 2026 // The reforms are commonsense: make re-enrollment annual and affirmative — if a worker wants to belong, they sign up every year end automatic payroll deductions so dues are a visible, conscious transaction require unions to disclose political spending the same way corporations have to These are exactly the kinds of reforms Oregon, New York and Hawaii are working to prevent — not by defeating them in debate, but by making it illegal to tell workers such options exist.
Opinion: California’s Kitchen Nightmare: Union Demands Rise as Enrollment Falls
March 20, 2026 // Even though public school enrollment has fallen sharply since the pandemic, most California districts have continued adding staff. Now teachers unions are pressing districts to commit to more expensive labor contracts, even as the funding they receive remains tied to the number of students they serve. Earlier this month, teachers in two Sacramento-area school districts walked off the job after contract negotiations stalled, bringing the number of teacher strikes in California to six this school year. And more may be on the way. Unions in Los Angeles and Berkeley have already authorized strikes if negotiations fail. These strikes are not isolated incidents. They are part of a coordinated statewide pressure campaign by the California Teachers Association (CTA) called “We Can’t Wait,”
MAXFORD NELSEN: The Other Education Choice: Freeing Teachers from Monopolistic Unions
November 17, 2025 // Public-sector collective bargaining tends to crowd out the interests of students, families, and taxpayers in education policymaking, but teachers unions’ power comes from subjecting teachers to a monopoly system of workplace restrictions. While individual educators now have the legal right to forgo union membership, state policymakers have many opportunities to improve educators’ ability to exercise that right. To level the playing field and increase teachers unions’ accountability to the public and their own members, policymakers should consider reforming or replacing collective bargaining in public education.
Randi Weingarten ’80 Book Talk Slated for NYC Office
November 7, 2025 // American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten ’80 will discuss her new book, “Why Fascists Fear Teachers: Public Education and the Future of Democracy,” on Monday, November 17 at ILR’s New York City Conference Center at 570 Lexington Avenue. Doors will open at 6 p.m. for light refreshments and networking, before a discussion, moderated by former NY Times reporter Steven Greenhouse, will begin at 6:30 p.m. Weingarten will sign books following the conversation. The event is free to the public and will be live-streamed.
Largest U.S. teachers union encourages resistance to Trump
July 10, 2025 // “NEA pledges to defend democracy against Trump’s embrace of fascism by using the term facism [sic] in NEA materials to correctly characterize Donald Trump’s program and actions," according to the union's resolution. "NEA will use existing media channels to oppose any move to eliminate the U.S. Department of Education as an illegal, anti-democratic, and racist attempt to destroy public education and privatize it in the interests of the billionaires.” The NEA changed the language of deporting illegal immigrants to “kidnapping” and expressed its support for students protesting against ICE raids. “NEA opposes Immigration and Customs Enforcement kidnapping student leaders and supports students’ right to organize against ICE raids and deportations," read another resolution. The NEA stated it will no longer endorse or publicize material from the Anti-Defamation League, an organization founded to combat antisemitism.
Teachers at The Met School vote to unionize with NEARI
June 21, 2025 // “Now, we’ve organized to ensure that The Met continues to thrive, with smaller class sizes, greater transparency, and a real voice in shaping the future of our school.”
John Fetterman Completely Loses It in Meeting With Union Leaders
May 12, 2025 // The Pennsylvania senator was in a meeting with members of a teachers union when he began to lash out. The Inquirer spoke to several former Fetterman staffers anonymously who said that Fetterman wasn’t living up to his duties as a senator. His sharp, zero-sum advocacy for Israel and antipathy toward Palestinians amid Israel’s war on Gaza has alienated staff and constituents. He frequently misses meetings and votes, avoids colleagues, and spends many hours on Capitol Hill alone in his office. “It’s pretty impossible to overstate how disengaged he is,” said one former Fetterman staffer. “He doesn’t read memos, he’s taking very few meetings.… The job is just a platform for him to run for president; that’s all he cares about.”
Opinion: Unions’ victories shake Utah politics
April 25, 2025 // Legislators will not go quietly into the night, allowing an activist judge to dismantle Utah’s school choice program. Expect legislation to shore up the program, and judges to once again be recipients of legislative ire. Pignanelli: Unless resolved soon, the role of public employee associations will be a feature in political party conventions and swing legislative districts. The Supreme Court’s ultimate ruling on the scholarship program could foster another constitutional ballot proposition.