Does Fairfax County Schools have a Teachers Union? Y/N

[Anonymous]

New to this area and wanted to understand this before heading into a parent teacher conference.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:New to this area and wanted to understand this before heading into a parent teacher conference.

Not like in other states. It is not required to be a member. There are a couple of organizations that represent them, however.

But, what does that have to do with a parent/teacher conference?

[Anonymous]

Virginia is an 'at will' state and teachers do not have a teachers union.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New to this area and wanted to understand this before heading into a parent teacher conference.

Not like in other states. It is not required to be a member. There are a couple of organizations that represent them, however.

But, what does that have to do with a parent/teacher conference?

?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New to this area and wanted to understand this before heading into a parent teacher conference.

Not like in other states. It is not required to be a member. There are a couple of organizations that represent them, however.

But, what does that have to do with a parent/teacher conference?

This is OP. I'm coming from a state where the teacher's union was strong. My perception, and I understand that this may be my bias, is that teacher's that come from a strong union aren't as open to parental feedback. Maybe it's because they don't care as much as "at will" teachers because their employment is secure ...or maybe I've just had a couple bad experiences.

For the record, I have two children in Fairfax and both teacher's seem to put forth a lot of effort into their classrooms so the fact that Fairfax doesn't have a teacher's union fits into my perception.

[Anonymous]

So tired of anti-union attitudes.

[Anonymous]

Fairfax teachers are also pretty secure in their jobs. However, as a teacher, I agree with you. I taught in a school which had teachers from lots of different states. The ones from the states with strong teachers' unions were definitely the ones who were unwilling to ever go over and above what is required.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:New to this area and wanted to understand this before heading into a parent teacher conference.

Not like in other states. It is not required to be a member. There are a couple of organizations that represent them, however.

But, what does that have to do with a parent/teacher conference?

This is OP. I'm coming from a state where the teacher's union was strong. My perception, and I understand that this may be my bias, is that teacher's that come from a strong union aren't as open to parental feedback. Maybe it's because they don't care as much as "at will" teachers because their employment is secure ...or maybe I've just had a couple bad experiences.

For the record, I have two children in Fairfax and both teacher's seem to put forth a lot of effort into their classrooms so the fact that Fairfax doesn't have a teacher's union fits into my perception.

[Anonymous]

Do people realize there is a teacher shortage and the teacher hate is making things worse...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do people realize there is a teacher shortage and the teacher hate is making things worse...

I'm OP. I don't have "teacher hate" rather, I was just trying to understand my children's teacher situation so that I could know what to expect on my end. Half of life is understanding the perspective and context of the person you are talking to so that there is less miscommunication or in my case, a more accurate set of expectations.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Do people realize there is a teacher shortage and the teacher hate is making things worse...

It seems to me that there is always a good teacher shortage but not so sure that there is a regular teacher shortage. Much the same way that good employees are hard to find.

[Anonymous]

I work in a state where we have a union for teachers. If a parent complains has legitimate complaints about a teacher and goes to the admin, we will be marked down in our professional responsibilities on our end of year evaluation (which determines whether or not we get a raise the following year). So just because there is a union doesn't mean teachers can be less responsive to parents. It protects us from abuse from parents and admins.

[Anonymous]

Yes, there is a teacher's union, but it is effectively toothless in Virginia.

Most teachers sign up simply for the insurance.

[Anonymous]

Honestly, who wants to be a teacher any more? Low pay, little flexibility, annoying parents, no discipline in schools. Maybe the summers off aren't enough of a perk anymore.

[Anonymous]

Actually, OP, after hearing your 'why', I now suspect that you're trying to determine how many hoops of fire you can make the two teachers jump through. Sheesh.