Posts tagged SB 256
Commentary: Dade Teachers’ Union Looks to the Failed Policies of Chicago for Salvation
November 10, 2023 // Taking a look at financial statements from the NEA, its priorities are unmistakably clear. Almost a third of its budget is devoted to politics and political organizations. A quarter goes toward officer salaries and benefits, while a mere five percent is spent on representing NEA members. In real dollars, the NEA spends $13 per member per year actually representing its members. Last year, the union spent almost twice as much on benefits for its own employees as it did on representing NEA’s three million members. Teachers are smart, and the realization that more than half of their dues is sent out of the district to fund the NEA’s massive bureaucracy and political agenda is bound to trigger questions the union can’t answer.
FLORIDA: Graduate student union could lose recognition under new law
September 12, 2023 // If a union doesn’t meet the membership requirements, its employer is no longer obligated to legally recognize and honor union contracts, according to the bill. Failure to meet the quota triggers an application process for the union. It is unclear whether the union is able to collectively bargain while in the application stage. GAU and its parent unions: United Faculty of Florida, Florida Education Association, National Education Association and American Federation of Teachers also have negotiated thousands of discounts for members, ranging from local restaurants to phone and insurance plans.
Florida unions scramble to avoid recertification
July 17, 2023 // “Florida’s recertification requirement doesn’t automatically remove unions—it makes them stand for re-election,” said AFFT Special Counsel David Osborne. “It’s only fair that public employees should get to vote on who represents them, and democracy would force union officials to reassess their model and prove their value to public employees,” he said. Overall, it is estimated that only 23 out of 65 total teachers unions in Florida passed the 60% threshold in 2022, while the rest varied from as low as 36% to 59%.
As Florida’s new union law goes into effect, it’s ‘do or die’ time for labor
July 10, 2023 // In the face of the double-whammy law — creating a new process for paying dues while simultaneously requiring more people to pay dues — public labor unions are launching all-out campaigns to get their numbers up. “Are we at 60%? No. I can't give you a definitive number,” said Se’Adoria “Cee Cee” Brown, the president of AFSCME Local 199. “However, I can say that there has been a push and we've signed up 700 new members since we started this whole campaign, and when folks realized, ‘Hey, this is real.’” The Local 199 chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union represents about 7,500 employees of Miami-Dade County: transit officials, animal services, staff at the Medical Examiner’s Office, administrative clerks in the court system.
Commentary: When Wokeness Implodes: An Irony-Steeped Showdown in Florida, Echoes of Janus v. AFSCME, and a Fresh Start for Florida’s Public Employees
July 3, 2023 // In an environment of “wokeness,” the NEA—one of the largest teachers’ unions in the country—is tasting a bitter concoction of its own brewing, served up by its ideological kin, the Saint Paul Federation of Educators (SPFE). The SPFE has declared a boycott of the NEA’s 2023 Representative Assembly in Orlando, Fla., in response to the NAACP’s travel advisory warning of Florida’s purported hostility toward African Americans, people of color, and LGBTQ+ individuals. This irony-steeped drama unfolds alongside the fifth anniversary of Janus v. AFSCME, a landmark ruling that strengthened public employees’ rights by allowing them the freedom to choose whether to join and pay dues to a union. Federal reports show a drop in the NEA’s membership of more than 200,000 workers (7.6 percent) since the Janus decision. The Freedom Foundation, in that same period, has assisted more than 143,000 government employees in opting out of their unions. This legacy of empowerment starkly contrasts with the NEA’s current predicament, where ideology appears to overshadow dialogue and mutual respect.
Florida: State officials sued by education unions over SB 256
May 22, 2023 // SB 256 outlaws requiring the state to deduct union dues, restricts the freedom of educators and other working people to join unions, forces local unions to undergo monitoring, and requires that an arbitrary 60% supermajority of eligible employees pay dues in order for a union to exist. “Dues will no longer be deducted from their paycheck along with Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security, and taxes,” Brown told the Florida Record. “Union dues don't belong on there anyway. The state should not be collecting money on behalf of private organizations anymore. Unions can just call their members and get their credit card information, their bank account and have it set up as a direct payment that way if they would like to.” Defendants include Donald J. Rubottom, chair of the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission, Jeff Aaron, commissioner of the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission, and Michael Sasso, commissioner of the Florida Public Employees Relations Commission.
DeSantis touts ‘Teacher Bill of Rights’ as he signs 5 education bills Tuesday in Miami
May 11, 2023 // “This bill gives Florida teachers a voice and a choice,” said Senior Labor Policy Advisor Vincent Vernuccio. “Teachers and other public workers will know their rights. They’ll know exactly how much union membership costs them each year. And they’ll know that, if their union isn’t serving them, they can do something about it.” Workers for Opportunity said the legislation drew from its proposed reforms giving employees more control over their paychecks and union representation.
A bill that changes how union dues and fees are collected is headed to the Governor’s desk
April 27, 2023 // Lanny Mathis is the President of North Central Florida Central Labor Council who represents nearly 3,000 people. He says payment changes are just one of his concerns. The legislation also proposes to raise union membership from 50% to 60 % of those eligible to join or they could face decertification. The legislation does not effect law enforcement including: fire fighters and correctional officers.
Florida House Passes Historic Union Transparency Bill Backed by Workers for Opportunity
April 26, 2023 // The Florida House of Representatives voted today to pass SB 256, which increases union transparency and changes how union dues are collected for public employees. Workers for Opportunity has spearheaded this collaborative effort with teachers, policymakers, the administration and in-state allies since 2019. The legislation drew from Workers for Opportunity's proposed reforms giving employees more control over their paychecks and union representation. "This bill gives Florida teachers a voice and a choice,” said Senior Labor Policy Advisor Vincent Vernuccio. “Teachers and other public workers will know their rights. They’ll know exactly how much union membership costs them each year. And they’ll know that, if their union isn’t serving them, they can do something about it." The bill allows public employees to opt out of union membership at any time. It also increases the threshold for triggering a union recertification from 50% to 60%,
Four states advance bills prohibiting union dues deductions
April 21, 2023 //