The Center of the American Experiment says teachers should be free to join – or not join – unions at their school districts as they chose.
The policy organization wrote a summary of the rights of teachers in the wake of the Janus v. AFSCME U.S. Supreme Court decision. The decision ruled teachers and public education workers cannot be forced to financially support a union.
The center writes that the court decision did not undercut unions because it gives the union incentive to be stronger in its advocacy for its members instead of guaranteeing member support. The organization said many teachers feel pressure to join unions and don’t realize their dues are used for political causes they may or may not agree with. Also, the local union that does the most work for members often gets the smallest share of the dues paid by individual employees, the organization states.
The center says union leadership often misleads new teachers about their rights under the law and encourages teachers to conduct research into the issue.
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