Teacher Unions

Teacher unions are membership organizations for educators, administrators, counselors, staff, and school-related personnel. There are various teacher unions that are nationally known. Many teacher unions are broken down into local chapters, which may be composed of particular schools, regions, or particular school districts.

One teacher union, American Federation of Teachers states that its mission is to “represent the economic, social and professional interests of classroom teachers.” In other words, AFT works to improve the economic conditions of teachers by supporting legislation that would increase teacher’s pay to the national average which would improve the economic conditions of teachers and the lifestyles that their salaries support.

AFT representatives urge lawmakers and local representatives to make wise decisions and to support legislation that improves the economic conditions of teachers. They may lobby certain issues and support certain candidates who have a record that reflects that the candidate shares similar beliefs and has particular stances on issues that the organization shares.

The old adage is true that there are strength in numbers, and this is certainly the case with teacher unions. The more members, the stronger the voice tends to be and the more influential that unions can be, especially when members or the union are working toward a shared goal: whether it is zero tolerance or pay raises.

The downside is that such memberships are fairly expensively. For many teachers, belonging to a union is a necessity because of the benefits that one receives. In many cases, teachers receive discounts, and these discounts usually tend to be fairly generous. Sometimes, the savings offset the cost of the membership. For me, the cost of term life insurance is significantly cheaper through my teacher union than it is through the insurance programs that my employer offers.

Many people just join unions because many teacher unions offer free legal representation and malpractice insurance. The hope is that you, as a teacher, will never need legal representation or malpractice insurance, but it is better to be prepared than to find yourself in a bind.