American Federation of Teachers

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March 2015

“It’s no coincidence that the rise of the middle class in America coincided in large part with the rise of unions—workers who organized together for higher wages, better working conditions, and the benefits and protections that most workers take for granted today. So it’s inexcusable that, over the past several years, just when middle-class families and workers need that kind of security the most, there’s been a sustained, coordinated assault on unions, led by powerful interests and their allies in government. So I’m deeply disappointed that a new anti-worker law in Wisconsin will weaken, rather than strengthen workers in the new economy. Wisconsin is a state built by labor, with a proud pro-worker past. So even as its governor claims victory over working Americans, I’d encourage him to try and score a victory for working Americans—by taking meaningful action to raise their wages and offer them the security of paid leave. That’s how you give hardworking middle-class families a fair shot in the new economy—not by stripping their rights in the workplace, but by offering them all the tools they need to get ahead.”—President Obama on Gov. Scott Walker’s signing of right-to-work legislation in Wisconsin
Mar 10, 2015 10 notes
#righttoworkiswrong
Mar 8, 2015 7 notes
Mar 7, 2015 4,520 notes
Mar 5, 2015
#workerscomp
Mar 5, 2015
#womenshistorymonth
Mar 5, 2015
Mar 4, 2015 6 notes
#nsbw15
What's the message when charter schools ditch classes to lobby New York legislators? (Editorial)t.co

nysaflcio:

#AllKidsNeed to be in fully funded schools learning, not pulled out for charter school political stunts.

Mar 4, 2015 1 note
Mar 3, 2015 1,329 notes
Mar 2, 2015 2,090 notes
Mar 1, 2015 289 notes

February 2015

Feb 28, 2015 4 notes
Feb 27, 2015
“We simply cannot hope to build a better world if we turn our backs on our past.”—

AFT President Randi Weingarten

Read Weingarten’s full column “Why we can’t allow the GOP to whitewash AP US History” on MSNBC.com

Feb 26, 2015
Play
Feb 25, 2015 7 notes
Feb 25, 2015 13 notes
Feb 25, 2015 4 notes
Feb 24, 2015
Feb 24, 2015 123 notes
An immigration success story

As the Obama administration moves to overturn a judge’s ruling that blocked the president’s executive action on immigration, it’s worth hearing from someone whose story shows what immigration reform is all about.

This is AFT member Rosa Alvarez, a second-grade dual language teacher in Austin, Texas:

“My mother and I immigrated to Wisconsin in 1995, when I was just 9 years old. This August will mark 20 years since my arrival to the United States. It has been my dream to become a teacher since I was just 5 years old. My teachers have always been my heroes; they saw potential in me that I myself did not believe I had and encouraged me to set and achieve my goals. My desire to become an educator grew throughout my childhood, and I made the decision to study education in college.

"Because of my immigration status, however, my journey to college graduation was very difficult. In 2009, after a lot of hard work, I received a bachelor of science in education with minors in bilingual education and English as a second language. Unfortunately, because of my continued lack of immigration status, I had to wait over three years to use my degree and become a teacher. During those three years, I lost a lot of hope of ever becoming a teacher; I thought that relief would never come, and I even considered returning to Mexico.

"In 2012, relief finally arrived, and I became hopeful again. Thanks to President Obama’s executive action, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), I am finally a second-grade dual language teacher in the Austin Independent School District.

"DACA has restored the energy and passion I once had for education. It has re-instilled the notion in me that I can make a difference. Every day in my classroom, my students serve as a reminder of the impact my teachers made in my life. I often find that my students and their parents have very similar stories to mine. Because of this, I can relate to their experiences and serve as part of their support system. In this way, I believe I can make an impact in their lives, just like my teachers made an impact in mine. If it weren’t for DACA, I would not have this opportunity to serve and contribute to my community in this capacity.”

Read the AFT’s statement about the Texas judge’s temporary injunction delaying the executive action.

Feb 23, 2015
Feb 23, 2015
Feb 22, 2015 14 notes
Feb 22, 2015 35 notes
5 Valiant GOP Efforts to Make Americans As Dumb As Possiblealternet.org

© From the AP history ban to university budget cuts, education in America is taking a hit from the right.

Feb 22, 2015 38 notes
Feb 19, 2015 36 notes
Feb 19, 2015 663 notes
Feb 18, 2015 1 note
Laura Hainey (AFT-NH): Right To Work Weakens Collective Bargaining And Hurts All Workersnhlabornews.tumblr.com

I am here today to ask that you defeat HB 402-FN: establishing the Franklin Partin right-to-work act. AFT-NH represents 4,000 employees in NH, mostly public employees who work in your cities, towns…

Feb 18, 2015 1 note
Feb 14, 2015 2 notes
Play
Feb 13, 2015
Feb 13, 2015 9 notes
Feb 12, 2015
#raisethewage #‎Fightfor15‬
Feb 12, 2015 1 note
Feb 12, 2015 11 notes
Scott Walker Lies About Wisconsin Teacher of the Year: Real Teacher of the Year Responds (UPDATEx2)dailykos.com

Sorry this will be a short diary, but in all honesty, I could write as much as I want about this story and it wouldn’t have the impact of the words written by in Claudia Klein Felske, one of …

Feb 11, 2015 28 notes
Feb 10, 2015 309 notes
Feb 10, 2015 3 notes
Feb 10, 2015 11 notes
Feb 9, 2015
#blacklivesmatter
Feb 9, 2015 1,430 notes
You made it personal: We are not the enemym.timesunion.com

nysaflcio:

“Dear Governor Cuomo: We are teachers. We have given our hearts and souls to this noble profession. We have pursued intellectual rigor. We have fed students who were hungry. We have celebrated at student weddings and wept at student funerals. Education is our life. For this, you have made us the enemy. This is personal.”

Feb 8, 2015 2 notes
Feb 6, 2015 7 notes
Play
Feb 6, 2015 1 note
Feb 6, 2015 301 notes
Feb 5, 2015 2 notes
Union CPR training saves a life

Most members who take AFT training in cardiopulmonary resuscitation never get a chance to use it. 

That was not the case for Robin Herrin, a special education paraprofessional who saved a woman’s life on New Year’s Eve. She was ringing in the new year with her husband and sister-in-law at a resort casino when, after dinner, she heard a woman cry for help because her wheelchair-bound mother had slumped over and stopped breathing.

“I didn’t want the mother to die in front of her daughter,” says Herrin, a member of Red River United in Shreveport, La.

Herrin had taken CPR training at the AFT several years ago. She found the older woman without a pulse, her lips and nails turning blue. As she’d practiced in AFT training, Herrin stated that she knew how to do CPR, asked a bystander to call 911, and told another bystander to bring the hotel’s defibrillator.

It seemed like just a few breaths and a couple of rounds of compressions before paramedics arrived. By the time they did, the woman had resumed breathing.

“I was a little bit shaken up,” Herrin says, but “glad I was able to help.“

Get the full story.

Feb 4, 2015
Feb 3, 2015 1,495 notes
Feb 2, 2015 16 notes
Feb 2, 2015
Feb 2, 2015
#blackhistorymonth
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