Posted by
Waski_the_Squirrel on Wednesday, August 30, 2006 9:47:24 PM
With all my union blogs, I'm beginning to feel a bit like a broken record. However, with the hiring of many new teachers at my school (including me), the pressure is on to join the union. I wanted to speak about how a new teacher gets sucked in.
I am no longer a new teacher, although I'm not yet old! I can see through many of the arguments and the "friendly" pressure. I also have the confidence to stand up for my opinions.
To suck in a new teacher is quite easy. They are eager to make a good first impression. The union explains that all the other teachers are union members. This has the advantage of either being true or so close to true that the difference doesn't matter.
Once in a while a new teacher balks either at the cost or because they've heard something and they're idealistic. The union then brings out the big guns.
The first is legal protection. What new teachers don't know is that the school protects them in cases of parental/student legal problems. Of course, in cases of firing or staff reduction, the school will provide no protection. The new teacher doesn't realize that there are non-union alternatives and that all the legal protections apply to them no matter whether they are union members or not.
The second big gun is guilt. The union member explains that all the teachers have to stand together or the board will take away what they've gained. What the new teacher does not realize is that, in North Dakota, the board can just do what it wants anyway. I've experienced that first hand. (This isn't true of all states.) The new teacher also doesn't realize how collective bargaining has killed excellence, specialization, and created shortages in specific fields.
By now, most new teachers will have succumbed. Even I did my first year. Once in a while, a recalcitrant teacher will bring up some of the creepy stances the NEA has taken. However, very few are even aware of what the NEA has its fingers in. Those who are aware are simply told, "That's the national union. They don't affect us."
In many states, to actually get away from the union is an arduous process. Too many states have "closed-shop" rules. To get out of the union requires specific objections and a long, unpleasant string of red-tape. Even so, union fees must be paid to a charity from a list created by the union.
Along with this, the union in larger schools plays "nasty." Non-members are harassed, ostracized, kept "out of the loop," and generally made to feel unwanted. One woman I know cannot enter the teacher's lounge without it emptying out. Some teachers yell or whisper insults as they pass her, and there has even been some vandalism.
The bright hope is that union membership is declining among the younger generation of teachers. I pray that this is the beginning of a trend. Teachers entering the profession right now tend to be quite idealistic and less political than the generation that is retiring. Right now we are seeing the greatest turnover of teachers we will see in a generation. Now is the time to make some long-lasting changes.