State of the (Teachers) Unions

The Wall Street Journal ^ | December 7, 2006 | Stephen Moore

[Zakeet]

SPOKANE, Wash.--Teachers unions are supposed to promote the financial interests of, well, teachers--but not in Washington state. Here, the Washington Education Association is fighting some 4,000 nonmember teachers who don't want their paychecks raided each year and used for political activities that they don't believe in. "The right of free speech is being trampled" by the union political spending, complains Scott Carlson, a business teacher in Spokane. "And that's a right I hold very precious."

Too bad the unions don't. The WEA derisively refers to teachers like Mr. Carlson who want their money back not as free-speech advocates but "dissidents." The goal is to squash these dissidents by overturning Initiative 134, a law--approved by 72% of Washington voters in 1992--that requires unions to obtain written approval from teachers before dues are spent on campaigns or candidates. Back in March, the unions got a surprising assist from the state Supreme Court, which ruled that the paycheck protection law places "too heavy" a burden on the free-speech rights of the union.

The case has now been bumped up to the U.S. Supreme Court, which will hear oral arguments in January--in what could be the most important First Amendment decision in years.

[Zakeet]

The article goes on to tell in some length about how the nice union sued the evil dissident teachers who wanted some say in how their dues were spent on political campaigns. The excerpt doesn't do it justice.

[Joe Boucher]

ame thing happens here in Florida with the Florida Bar Association.
Led by liberal lawyers they force the members to pay dues and then direct it to liberal causes which infuriates conservative members.

[wolfcreek]

"The goal is to squash these dissidents by overturning Initiative 134, a law--approved by 72% of Washington voters in 1992--that requires unions to obtain written approval from teachers before dues are spent on campaigns or candidates."


Not only stealing their first amendment rights but, breaking the law in the process. Shameful!

[cobaltblu]

This stinks.

[sionnsar]

WA ping request

[Amelia]

Nationally, about one-third of union workers voted Republican in recent elections, but more than 90% of the union campaign cash that is forcibly extracted from their checks goes to help elect Democrats...In the year before Prop. 134 was enacted in Washington, 48,000 teachers made "voluntary" contributions, but in the last election cycle that number dwindled to 4,537...In Colorado and Utah, similar rules requiring unions to get affirmative consent from members for political activities led to a 70% to 90% reduction in dues collections.

So much for the argument that most teachers are leftists and support the leftist political agenda?

Most teachers I know who belong to unions do so because until recently, it was the only way to get professional liability insurance in our state.

[BADROTOFINGER]

WA Ping List...JFK