DO TEACHERS REALLY WANT UNION REPRESENTATION?
Even though public education is very heavily unionized, there is considerable evidence that teachers aren’t necessarily in favor of unionism. Perhaps the best evidence is the way the NEA resisted identifying itself as a union for so many years. It has only been recently, during merger discussions with the American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO, that the NEA has flown full union colors. During the debate on merger some members of the NEA’s Delegate Assembly expressed concern that if they merged with an AFL-CIO union, many members would quit and join a “professional educator” group. That’s hardly a ringing endorsement of “unionism.” The “professional educator” organizations are much more compelling evidence that teachers don’t want unionism. In states which haven’t given unions monopoly bargaining privileges there are thriving, independent organizations of teachers. These teachers reject the adversarial, confrontational and monopolistic nature of unionism. Their organizations are fierc
