Teachers and Their Unions

Todd A. DeMitchell, a John & H. Irene Peters Professor of Education, served as a teacher and administrator in the public schools for 18 years. During his 30 years at the University of New Hampshire he has studied, taught, and consulted on school law and labor relations.

Table of Contents
Preface: Labor Unrest, or Unrest with Labor?
Chapter 1. Introduction: 2010 to the Present, Teachers and Their Unions
The Legislative Response
The Judicial Response
Tenure
Agency Fees: Subsidized Compelled Speech
Getting Rid of Rotten Apples?
The Book
Section I. Teacher Unions
Chapter 2. Teachers, Their Work, and Their Union
From Colonies to a Republic: A Glimpse at Early American Education
The Common School Movement: Setting the Table for Bargaining
Education: A People Intensive Enterprise
Labor Relations in Education
What Do Unions Do?
Chapter 3. The Rise of Teacher Unions: The Influence of the Law
A Legal Framework for Teacher Unions
National Labor Relations Act
The NLRB and Charter Schools (Jacob A. Bennett, Graduate Assistant and doctoral candidate in Leadership & Policy Studies, University of New Hampshire)
History of Teachers Unions
The AFT
The NEA
Collective Bargaining in the Public Schools
Public Sector Labor Laws
Enforcing the Law: State Public Sector Labor Boards
Chapter 4. The Industrial Union Legacy
Labor, Not Craft, Art, or Profession: The Organizing Model
From the Assembly Line to the Classroom
Strikes and Work-to-Rule
The Ocean Hill-Brownsville Strike
Work to Rule: Just Follow the Rules
Section II. Transitions: The Impact of Unionization
Chapter 5. Transitions: Formalize, Standardize, and Centralize Relationships
Collective Bargaining and Relationships
Formalize Relationships
Standardize Relationships
Centralization for Uniformity
Transitions
Transition: Union President to Administration (Nathan Fellman, Assistant Principal, Ross A. Lurgio Middle School)
Chapter 6. The Union Member and the Professional: A Tangled Fit
The Conundrum: The Union Member
The Conundrum: The Role of the Profession
The Fit in Two Parts
Short Answer
Protection
Advocacy
Support
Blind Protection
Work of the Union
Divisiveness
The Union Label
Bread-and-Butter and/or Professionalism
Section III. Law and Politics in Uncertain Times: Retrenchment and Assault
Chapter 7. Power, Money, and Politics: Responses to Teacher Unions
A Legal Retrenchment Up to 2010
Beyond 2010: The Struggle over Unions, Power, and Influence
Wisconsin’s Budget Repair Act: It’s About Money and Unions
Right-to-Work: Starve the Beast or Protect Workers’ Rights?
The Janus Decision: Free Speech and Free Riders
Questions Raised
VAMming Teachers: “Rank and Yank”
Charter Schools and Teacher Unions: A New Horizon for Unions?
#RedforEd: Teacher Protest/Strikes/Walkouts
Concluding Comments
Chapter 8. Teacher Tenure: Necessary Protection or Boondoggle for the Incompetent? The Courts and State Legislatures Respond—Joseph J. Onosko, Co-author
Herein Lies Tenure: RIP. Maybe?
What is Tenure?
Due Process: Procedural and Substantive Rights
Attacking Tenure through the Courts: Vergara v. State of California
The Complaint
The Tenure Analysis: Uber Due Process
1. The Tenure Statute
2. Dismissal Statutes
3. Last In, First Out (LIFO)
The Appeals
Legislative Attacks on Teacher Tenure
North Carolina’s Legislation is Declared Unconstitutional
Successful Legislative Attacks on Tenure: Louisiana & Kansas
Attacking Tenure: Context and Impact
Should Tenure Practices be Modified? Yes!
Section IV. Thoughts on an Uncertain Future
Chapter 9. Labor Relations in an Uncertain Time
An Uncertain Time for Teachers
Loosening the Grip of the Industrial Labor Model
Us-And-Them
Standardization v. Flexibility
The Role of Seniority
Retaining Effective Teachers: Serving the Common Good
The Union
Moving Forward
About the Authors
Other Books by Todd A. DeMitchell
Index