Education Intelligence Agency

Public Education Research, Analysis and Investigations

1)  Staff/Dues Comparison of NEA Affiliates. EIA got hold of a nifty little table that runs down some basic statistics of eleven NEA state affiliates – recreated here:

*UniServ dues range from $150-$524

2)  Union Payoff Bills Facing Resistance. With Democratic gains in the 2006 elections, particularly in state legislatures, it was inevitable that the introduction of unions' pet legislation would be next. It was also inevitable that such legislation would not smoothly sail through to passage. The same voter tendencies that defeat efforts to target the unions also defeat efforts to aggrandize the unions.

In California, we have seen it time and again. It's one thing to stop unfriendly bills. It's entirely another thing to get your own bills enacted into law. We have another couple of examples, this time from Iowa and Washington.

Two weeks ago, the Iowa agency fee bill was amended to make the provisions apply only to public sector unions. That got the bill through the state senate on a 28-21 vote. The bill was approved by the House labor committee last week, but the floor debate, scheduled for last Thursday, was postponed after Democrats determined they didn't have the votes to pass it.

And if I read Washington state legislature rules correctly, it appears another union bill didn't make it out of the lower house. House Bill 2383 would have effectively required employers to remain neutral during union organizing efforts. The bill evidently did not meet the deadline for passage and forwarding to the state senate.

The Washington bill was interestingly worded. It would have made it unlawful "for an employer to require its employees to attend an employer-sponsored meeting or to participate in any communications with the employer if the primary purpose is to communicate the employer's opinion about religious or political matters."

The bill then defined "political matters" as "political party affiliation or the decision to join or not join a lawful, political, social, or community group or activity, or a labor organization."

If joining a union is merely a political act, then non-members shouldn't have to pay any agency fees anywhere, but I guess internal consistency is overrated.

3)  Zullinger to Fight Dismissal? Last week, EIA reported exclusively the ouster of Chip Zullinger as executive director of the South Carolina Education Association after only eight months on the job. Zullinger is currently on suspension while the administrative procedures for his dismissal run their course. He is apparently preparing a vigorous defense.

Meanwhile, as is the normal procedure in such cases, NEA will send a staffer from the national office to serve as interim executive director until the situation sorts itself out and SCEA can conduct another candidate search. Normally, such an assignment is highly sought after by NEA employees, since it is an entrée into upper management. But this time it might be difficult to find a volunteer, especially since the previous ousted SCEA executive director, Richard Miller, now works at NEA HQ and can paint a unique picture for anyone interested in the job.

4)  The Soft Bigotry of Low Expectations. The West Virginia Education Association declared its one-day walkout in support of a 6 percent pay hike "a success." This is another indication of the falling standards in the nation's schools.

Teachers stayed home in 14 of West Virginia's counties – 25 percent of the total. In one county, middle and high school teachers walked out, and elementary school teachers showed up.

Well, numbers aren't the only measure of success. How about solidarity? The West Virginia School Service Personnel Association advised its members to report to work, "unless crossing a picket line appears dangerous." Dangerous?

AFT West Virginia President Judy Hale sent a letter to her members in advance of the walkout that read, in part: "The WVEA is a shell of what it was in the 1990s. It is no longer the dominant voice for education personnel and their membership figures and lack of political clout reflect this cold hard truth." Hale added that "you can't trust the WVEA leadership in Charleston."

OK, but what about the press coverage and the attention to WVEA priorities? Yep, the walkout certainly inspired press response, especially from the editorial board of the Charleston Daily Mail, who slammed the union's "myths" and "deceptive" claims. They even trotted out the "nine-month work year" argument. Ouch!

About the only success from the enterprise was that it demonstrated once again the futility of no-strike laws (see "Why No-Strike Laws Are a Waste of Paper").

5)  State Affiliates Look to Raise Cash. As spring is NEA state affiliate convention season, a union delegate's fancy turn to thoughts of… dues.

The board of directors of the Nebraska State Education Association will decide whether to place an $18 dues increase before its delegates at the union's convention next month.

Meanwhile, Education Minnesota stole a march on national NEA by creating an associate membership category, which will consist of those who don't work in education, or are otherwise ineligible for membership, but who want to donate PAC money to the largest political lobbying organization in the state.

6)  Take a Bow, Education Reporters. Not one, but two, thoughtful and balanced stories on underreported issues in education:

* Scott Elliott and William Hershey of the Dayton Daily News examine the conventional wisdom that school district consolidation saves money, and conclude the savings are ephemeral.

* Alison Kepner of the Wilmington News Journal looks at efforts in Delaware and elsewhere to create a teacher career ladder that doesn't lead to administration. Everyone gets a say, but she concludes with a quote from a teacher with 35 years of experience - "One thing that teachers don't always realize is that the way the pay schedule is structured currently is to no one's advantage."

7)  Chow at the Union Mess Hall. Wednesday is all-you-can-eat day – at least if you're a candidate for the Democratic Presidential nomination and you don't mind sharing grub with union bosses.

According to The Hotline, John Edwards had lunch with AFT President Ed McElroy last Wednesday, then followed it up with dinner with McElroy and the presidents of six other national labor unions.

This Wednesday, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton gets the same dinner treatment. Don't forget, tips are merit pay!

8)  Last Week's Intercepts. EIA's blog, Intercepts, covered these topics from March 12-19:

*  Accountability. $23 billion. $32 billion. $1.5 trillion. It's easy to toss out numbers if your job isn't on the line.

*  On the Other Hand… NEA supports opt-in provisions. Just not for itself.

*  Who Owns NCLB? AFT can't believe union rhetoric on NCLB worked.

9)  Quote of the Week #1. "The rhetoric of 'No New Taxes' will not be recorded in our history books and if by chance it is marked at all, it will be by the dead end milepost!" – Education Minnesota President Judy Schaubach, in her farewell speech to the union's representative convention.

Quote of the Week #2. "We, as a labor movement, have failed the work force." – United Steelworkers, representative of the United Steelworkers, commenting on the decline in union membership. (March 14 Daily Press of Hampton Roads, Virginia)

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