Teacher Union News
The Daily Signal provides coverage of how unions shape education policy, funding, and classroom priorities nationwide.
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Teachers Union Report Pushes Insurance Coverage of Abortions, Reimbursement for Out-of-State Travel
In a new report, America’s largest teachers union is encouraging educators to bargain for their health care coverage to include abortion. The National Education Association’s Feb. 14 report, “Bargaining and Advocacy in a Post Roe Environment,” advises teachers how to ask for insurance coverage for surgical and chemical abortions, including reimbursement for out-of-state abortion travel expenses. …Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
Straights Need Not Apply: California Teachers Union Discriminates on Basis of Sexuality
The California Teachers Association offers a scholarship limited to LGBT students, though the Biden administration’s Title IX rule change prohibits sexuality-based discrimination. “Self-identified LGBTQ+” union members pursuing a career in public education can apply by May 31, 2023, for the LGBTQ+ Safety in Schools Program to receive a scholarship of up to $2,500,” the scholarship…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
‘Page Not Found’: Teachers Union Won’t Explain Why It Discarded Presidents Day Curriculum
The National Education Association removed its resources on Presidents Day from its websites in 2020, according to a Daily Signal review of the Internet Archive’s Wayback Machine. Three years later, the teachers union still has not updated the page. The resources, last saved on June 17, 2020, included lesson plans celebrating “the lives of George…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
Gov. Youngkin Condemns Black Lives Matter at School Push in Virginia Teachers Union: ‘This Will Not Be Tolerated’
Virginia Republican Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s office said the Black Lives Matter at School toolkit released by a Virginia teachers union “will not be tolerated.” The Virginia Education Association’s Black Lives Matter at School Week of Action toolkit champions BLM’s 13 principles in the classroom. It uses kindergarten through 12th grade lesson plans made by the education…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
Lessons in Preferred Pronouns Should Start in Pre-K, Largest Teachers Union Says
The nation’s largest teachers union recommends that educators begin teaching the concepts of preferred personal pronouns and gender identity starting in pre-kindergarten. “When you look at elementary school students, many people think they are too young to talk about pronouns,” said panelist Matthew Powell, a member of the National Education Association’s Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee,…Elizabeth Troutman Mitchell -
Helping 200 Teachers Abandon Indiana’s Largest Teachers Union
On Dec. 20, I helped my 200th teacher leave the Indiana State Teachers Association. This behemoth of a pyramid scheme charges Indiana teachers $1,000 per year to lobby for progressive political goals at the state and national level—while claiming to be integral in salary negotiation and legal defense. Over the last five years, I’ve enjoyed…Tony Kinnett -
For Teachers Unions, Parents and Children Come Last
Schools in the Rochester school district in Michigan include in their curriculum a course called “History of Ethnic and Gender Studies.” If my child were attending school there, I would wonder why this is in the curriculum as part of K-12 education and what is taught. One mother, Carol Beth Litkouhi, wondered enough that she…Star Parker -
Bill Would Block Taxpayer Funding of Teachers Unions
U.S. taxpayers’ money would not help finance teachers unions if a bill introduced this week by Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, wins final passage in Congress. “Corrupt teachers unions sold out our kids when they lined Democrat politicians’ pockets with campaign contributions to keep students out of the classroom, and later to force masking, despite clear…Virginia Allen -
Aren’t We Better Than Minneapolis Teachers Union’s Racist ‘Fire Whites First’ Policy?
A teachers union in Minneapolis recently struck a deal with the city’s school district that explicitly targets whites for firing. Under the new contract negotiated by the union, Minnesota-based outlet Alpha News reported Sunday, “If excessing a teacher who is a member of a population underrepresented among licensed teachers in the site, the [Minneapolis…Douglas Blair -
Teachers Union Promotes Pronouns Cards for Students: ‘Hello, My Pronouns Are… ’
A “Student Identification Card” sounds relatively innocuous, like something that could come in handy for a field trip, emergency drill, or cafeteria hour. Such a card seems unlikely to serve a purpose in promoting LGBT indoctrination and deceiving parents. And yet, that’s exactly what it is now being used for. This particular student ID card…Joshua Arnold -
Preferred Pronouns and More: What I Saw at Teachers Union Convention
As a teacher, I attended the National Education Association convention last week, and my worst fears were confirmed. Public schools are no longer a safe place for families who hold traditional values or for families who believe gender (as in male/female binary) is biologically determined. It was also evident that the teachers union is a…Brenda Lebsack -
Chicago Public Schools Forced to Cancel School After Teachers Union Votes to Move to Remote Learning
The Chicago Teachers Union voted Tuesday to move to remote learning Wednesday, citing concerns over safety amid the rise in COVID-19 cases, the union said in a press release. The Chicago Teachers Union’s elected House of Delegates voted in favor (88%) of a resolution to return to remote education amid the surge of COVID-19 cases and the…Kendall Tietz -
Mom Asks Judge to Dismiss Lawsuit Filed by Teachers Union When She Looked Into Content of Lessons
A mother’s fight for transparency in public schools continues in a Rhode Island courtroom. “Parents have an absolute right to request public information about public education and what their children will learn in school,” Nicole Solas, a mother of two young children, told The Daily Signal in an email Thursday. The state affiliate of the…Virginia Allen -
Teacher Shares Behind-Scenes Look at How Unions Further Woke Agenda
California teacher Brenda Lebsack says she began seeing “red flags” in public education when she decided to become more involved with her union, the California Teachers Association. After she began attending the union's conferences in 2015, Lebsack says, she was alarmed to see that many of the topics weren’t academic but instead focused on social…Virginia Allen -
Nation’s Largest Teachers Union Chooses Indoctrination Over Education
It’s disappointing—though not surprising—that the National Education Association has doubled down on prioritizing far-left political activism over the best interests of America’s children. By asserting that the problems with America’s educational system stem from systemic racism, the NEA is, in effect, blaming others for the failures of the country’s public school system—while absolving itself of any culpability…Nicole Neily -
In a Rebuke to Teachers Unions, School Choice Is Going Gangbusters in the States
School districts are slowly beginning to reopen in-person instruction after being closed for nearly a year—or, in many places, for over a year. While this is a wonderful development, it will never erase what parents experienced last year: uncertainty, inconsistency, and, in some cases, ineptitude from public schools. The events of the last year have…Lindsey Burke -
California Reopening Plan ‘Propagates Racism,’ LA Teachers Union Says
The Los Angeles teachers union said Monday California’s school reopening plan is a “recipe” for propagating racism and will unfairly punish minority communities. United Teachers Los Angeles representatives argued that teachers are being asked to make up for the leadership failings of elected officials “from Washington, D.C., to Sacramento to LA” during a press conference Monday. Since California’s plan calls on schools…Thomas Catenacci -
We Hear You: Rebuffing Teachers Unions and Reopening Schools
Editor's note: The Daily Signal's audience isn't buying the teachers union's reasons for refusing to return to classrooms. Here's a sampling, plus some thoughts on the new Biden administration. Write about our coverage to [email protected].—Ken McIntyre Dear Daily Signal: I just read your commentary article on teachers and their unions and the continual refusal during…Ken McIntyre -
The Real Harm of Teachers Union’s Decision to Keep Schools Closed
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently announced it’s now safe to resume in-person schooling, providing appropriate precautions are taken. Yet, the Chicago Teachers Union voted Sunday to keep students home and continue all teaching virtual. Jonathan Butcher, a Heritage Foundation senior policy analyst in the Center for Education Policy, joins the show to…Virginia Allen -
It’s Time for a Bold, Reaganesque Approach to Teachers Unions on School Closures
In 1971, the Supreme Court upheld a 1955 law making it illegal for federal employees to strike against the U.S. government. So, when members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization union went on strike in August 1981, demanding a $10,000 a year bump in pay and a reduction in the workweek from 40 hours…Lindsey Burke