June 1, 2008
My union’s gearing up. Without getting into details, I am ambivalent.
Unions are indispensible (check this out for what they’re doing for the service workers in Las Vegas– fascinating stuff.)
And, I believe there is credence to the argument that educational unionization as it now stands has contributed to the deprofessionalism of teaching.
Unions do the dirty work– negotiations, protection, grievances– and they do it well.
And, I’ve been concerned from the beginning about the fact that should I or any of my colleagues choose not to join the union for considered, thoughtful reason, in New York and 18 other states one is legally forced to pay them nonetheless. Additionally one is therefore tied, however indirectly, to union involvement in politics, which may or may not have anything to do with one’s own personal political convictions. (Try this for a thought-provoking criticism of teacher unions.)
Yet there is no power for justice, whisper Gandhi and ML King Jr on my one shoulder, unless it is the power of the unified.
And, I sleep at night with Thoreau and the Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars whispering on the other.
watch?v=eWcQFrJeEOc&feature=related
Why the All Stars?
One of my first ESL students was a tiny girl from Sierra Leone. And frankly, once you’ve met a kid who’s lucky to not have had her limbs macheted off, you can’t help but place the increasingly and inexplicably fraught contractual negotiations of your First World union and privileged school district next to the message of the All Stars: peace, in the face of arguably some of the worst violations of human rights on the planet. It makes you think hard about what real “diplomacy” is.
So yes, I’ll listen carefully to my union. But there is a deeper reality I must honor first, deeper than unified stances, worker’s rights, or socialist utopia: the human being’s inalienable right to think for herself. I’ll be thinking of this.
The whole All Stars documentary (and related lesson plans) are available here.
June 1st, 2008 at 11:16 am
As much as I hate organizational politics, and as much as I hate going to meetings in which everyone comes down on the wrong side of an issue, and as much as I hate thinking about the reasons why there is a union to begin with, I made a promise to myself couple of days ago to start going to union meetings again in the fall.
I was a teachers’ rights advocate/rep many years ago, participating in grievance hearings. I saw from that experience how arbitrary and unfair some decisions are for some teachers, and how incompetent some administrators can be. Yes, and teachers. Stupidity is fairly evenly distributed. That was a whole different level of involvement from, say, contract negotiation, or policy advocacy. But to me, it was eye-opening.
I figure it’s time to go to meetings again, and to take part in discussions, for the same reason that I vote in elections. Democracy is a participatory form of self-government, and if the organization is off the rails I’ll ask myself what I ever did to try to pull it back on track.
Who else are you gonna stand with?
June 1st, 2008 at 1:06 pm
Yeah, I know. I just find my fur standing up when I’m being told how to think or whom to support– by anyone. Add to that the *presupposition* of conflict– the unexamined idea that negotiation must be played in antagonistic terms– and in the words of Josh Ritter, I find myself needing to “turn up the music and pray that we make it through.”
There’s a book that looking into Anthony Giddens led me to: Charles Blattberg, investigating value pluralism and negotiations within it. Maybe I need to move that off my “someday” reading list…
June 1st, 2008 at 6:56 pm
I hear you. You might be interested to know that your post The Real Problem with Passion was part of what triggered my resolve to do more than close the door and get on with the job of teaching. The temptation to do that is very strong, but given the range of problems I see connected to schools and teaching now, I’ve decided it’s necessary to do more work outside the classroom. And if that means trying to keep the “good guys” pointed in the right direction, then I guess I need to be there working on that, too.
June 3rd, 2008 at 10:43 pm
Thank you for this post. It was so clear in its layout and balanced in its choices. I, too, am for the theory of unions but face the frustrations of their implementation. They are so necessary, and I am grateful for those who lend them their fight, yet because of their order to protect the contract and the contracted, union find themselves at times protecting the wrong side of an issue.
Since unions have standardized protection, they, like standardized tests in fact, must end up also protecting the mediocre. I have been approached to be our union rep every year it has become available, yet despite my support of the union, I cannot in good conscious support all teachers unconditionally and with equity. (I’m glad someone does, but it cannot be me).
Not all teachers are the same or put the same amount of effort into their positions. I prefer to be a mentor and a leader in my department, able to help other teachers that need my voice, but allowing me to differentiate my battles. I wish unions could have that flexibility as well, since they would have more credibility and strength by protecting the harder-working teachers regardless of their status.
I understand the need to have teacher protection, but in the age of necessary reform, the union, like many of its members, needs to evolve to reflect the needs of the schools.
June 10th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
Couple of comments . . .
As a Union Rep I protect the contract not teachers.
As a negotiator I preserve the core and integrity of the contract, not just try to get more money and benefits.
When we give our allegiance to an organization, cause or to each other we promise to support and defend the overall interests and benefits of all. Does this mean we need to agree to everything? Of course not, but we should support our leaders for the work they do. Visit your local, State and National websites and read what your Union organizations are doing for education, teaching and students. You may be surprised just how much influence teacher unions have on education, legislation and policy.
Our district is in the middle of contract talks with little success. It has caused stress and animosity on both sides. To improve teacher morale, Union leaders have begun a series of activities that are meant to show support and solidarity. In no way are any of the activities disruptive to the education process or a “stick it to the man” type of actions. Simple activities like wearing the same color on meeting days, gathering in front of the building before school to walk in together, has created a feeling of power and unification. It has had an almost spiritual lifting effect on teachers.
These activities, while they seem to be actions against the district, are in reality providing teachers a sense of, “we are not alone”. I had one teacher say that she never thought so many people would wear black on Thursday, but was inspired by not just how many were wearing black but WHO. Another report I received from one of my elementary schools said that two of the Union’s more vocal critics attended the morning breakfast and walk-in. There have also been sightings of administrators secretly showing support by wearing black on meeting days as well. The momentum is growing so rapidly that I am receiving emails asking, “What’s next?”
I wonder, why do those who choose not to participate feel intimidated by these activities? How is wearing the school’s team colors to show school spirit the day of the big game any different than wearing a common color to show Union support? Why is it okay to have a pizza party to celebrate and show pride in one’s academic achievement any different than teachers having breakfast before school to celebrate and recognize the collaborative work done by all. As a Union leader I am thrilled when members join together to support each other and the work we do. And if there are those who don’t agree with Union issues or policies then I challenge them to get involved. If one REALLY saw what goes on daily in the life of a Union leader they may just change their opinion of Unions or at the very least take the time to say, thank you, before they stick their heads back into the sand.
June 10th, 2008 at 6:24 pm
@all: Thanks for helping me continue to think these issues through. Truly, it’s the first time in eight years I’ve given it the attention it deserves.
@Nance: So good to have you on the blog. I should clarify that when I get itchy about antagonism, I don’t necessarily mean peaceful and non-disruptive union actions as wearing black and walk-ins (obviously– I think I ate about seventeen cookies at the last one), and I include district filibustering in my criticism.
I guess, in just a huge philsophical sense, it boggles my mind the things that we human beings can’t seem to work out in a transparent and timely fashion. And of course, of all the people in the world who would know that frustration from the inside, a union negotiator would.
As for the other things I wrestle with regarding unions, these too are large, social/institutional type issues that by no means criticizes the good intent and hard work of the people who run unions, and have more to do with the question of whether there is a *universal* need to re-examine the nature of a contractual relationship of a teacher to a district. I have no answers…but thanks to commenters like you and others, I’m getting more informed about it than I ever have been.