Reply to Time to switch unions

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I'm a member of FCFT and the new president is excellent, IMO.  She brought real passion to the table and did some amazing organizing before she was elected, and I'm really optimistic about what she will do in office.

The union is only as strong as its members.  [b]We need every teacher to join and get involved, to advocate[/b] for yourself, for the profession, for our students, and for our community.  Teachers in FCPS have accepted being beaten up, rolled over thrown under the bus, and shortchanged for far too long, this year included.  With collective bargaining we have taken a step forward, but again that strength is only as meaningful as the people who actually turn out to budget hearings, speak up at meetings turn up to knock on doors for elections, and speak up when a bunch of anti-union trolls show up in comments sections like here.

[/quote]

How? The only way I've heard to "advocate" is to beg the people who make decisions to consider staff points of view. And then the BOS/SB/superintendent says "Thank you for your time" and then does what they were going to do anyway.

I mean, suppose all 15,000ish teachers joined the union. We all cry that we need more money/smaller classes/more planning time. Then the BOS says, "We can't afford to give you that" and the school board says, "Sorry, can't afford that."  Unless everyone is willing to quit (they aren't, pay checks are important), what is the point? What other bargaining chip do we have besides threatening to be super angry?

When the union has a better plan than "ask your SB member to support this!", maybe I'd be willing to pay nearly $1000 a year. Until then, I can send my own emails AND save $1000.[/quote]

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