Kavan-awesome

By Larry Sand
09/04/2018
With the Brett Kavanaugh Supreme Court confirmation hearings underway, the unions are very jumpy.  Did you know that the U.S. Supreme Court is there to protect the little guy and minorities, uphold women’s rights, and destroy school choice? That’s according to the make-it-up-as-you-go-along left, including the teachers unions. In reality, the job of a SCOTUS...

TAGS: American Federation of State, American Federation of Teachers, Betsy DeVos, County and Municipal Employees, Donald Trump, Larry Sand, Lee Saunders, Lily Eskelsen Garcia, Mark Janus, National Education Association, Randi Weingarten, school choice, Supreme Court, teachers union, vouchers, Walter Williams, Zelman v. Simmons-Harris

Young minds, bureaucrats and union bosses

By Larry Sand
08/28/2018
School choice is advancing, but the monopolists continue to defend a failing system. As I mentioned in last week’s post, the latest bogus anti-school choice study being touted by the National Education Association was released in June. The report from the Network for Public Education (NPE) and the Schott Foundation contains all the usual gasp-worthy...

TAGS: Cato Institute, Corey DeAngelis, EdChoice, Education Next, ESA, Greg Forster, Larry Sand, Network for Public Education, Patrick Wolf, privatization, school choice, teachers union, vouchers

School choice matters

By Larry Sand
08/21/2018
From Puerto Rico to Los Angeles, teachers unions still try to deny parental choice at every turn. In March, six months after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico, the island’s lawmakers approved a bill that offered parents school choice options, including vouchers and charter schools. Hardly radical, the voucher program was capped at 3 percent of...

TAGS: American Federation for Children, American Federation of Teachers, EdChoice, Larry Sand, National Education Association, Network for Public Education, Randi Weingarten, teacher strike, teachers union, United Teachers of Los Angeles

Teacher pay fray

By Larry Sand
08/14/2018
  In light of strikes past and future, a brief review of teacher compensation is in order. A recent headline in the Austin American-Statesman caught my eye. It read, “Texas education chief suggests paying higher-performing teachers more.” Those of you whose first reaction is “Well, duh,” are hardly outliers. But in the land of...

TAGS: Democrats for Education Reform, Education Next, Educators for Excellence, Eric Hanushek, Janus, Larry Sand, pensions, teacher pay, teachers union

Will Los Angeles teachers strike out on a bad pitch?

By Larry Sand
08/07/2018
Using loads of bogus info, LA teacher union leader prepares teachers for a walkout in the fall. In my post last Tuesday, I wrote about the many problems facing the Los Angeles Unified School District. Since then, one of the issues I detailed has moved front and center: the strong possibility of a teacher strike....

TAGS: Alex Caputo-Pearl, Austin Beutner, bargaining for the common good, Charter schools, EdSource, James Agresti, John Fensterwald, Larry Sand, Lisa Snell, Los Angeles Unified School District, Mike Antonucci, Reason Foundation, socialism, teacher pay, teacher strike, teachers union, United Teachers of Los Angeles

Why Teachers Unions are the Worst of the Worst

By Edward Ring
08/01/2018
When considering the influence of unions on American society, there are vast differences depending on what type of union one considers. Private sector unions, for all the criticisms they may deserve, have nonetheless played a vital role in securing rights for the American worker. Subject to appropriate regulations, private sector unions have the opportunity to...

TAGS: American Federation of Teachers, California Federation of Teachers, California Teachers Association, National Education Association, teachers union

The other (left) shoe has dropped

By Larry Sand
07/24/2018
The choice between unions becoming more ecumenical or more radical has been made. In the run-up to the Janus decision, some thought a victory for the plaintiff would lead to the teachers unions becoming more politically balanced by embracing at least some conservative candidates and causes as a way to ensure the uninterrupted flow of...

TAGS: American Federation of Teachers, Bernie Sanders, California Teachers Association, Chicago Teachers Union, Elizabeth Warren, Hillary Clinton, Janus v. AFSCME, Jesse Sharkey, Larry Sand, National Education Association, socialism, teachers union

The unions keep rigging the rules as workers sue them

By Larry Sand
07/17/2018
  Legislation and litigation ramp up in light of the Janus decision.   The public employee unions have not been at all contrite since their 41 year run of legalized theft came to an abrupt halt. On June 27th, the Supreme Court overturned 1977’s abysmal Abood v. Detroit Board of Education decision and ruled...

TAGS: AB 119, California Policy Center, California Teachers Association, Edward Ring, Freedom Foundation, Janus v. AFSCME, Larry Sand, Mackinac Center, National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, teachers union

No dues without political representation

By Larry Sand
07/10/2018
Dissident educators have the power to change the course of teacher union politics in California. A few years back I was on a panel with then California Teachers Association President Dean Vogel, who mentioned during his talk that about 35 percent of his union’s membership was Republican which is roughly the way the rest of...

TAGS: California Teachers Association, Daniel DiSalvo, Dean Vogel, Eric Heins, Gavin Newsom, Janus v. AFSCME, Larry Sand, Mike Antonucci, National Education Association, political spending, teachers union, union dues

The Janus victory and ongoing whine festival

By Larry Sand
07/03/2018
The Abood decision has been overturned and its mourners are beside themselves.  The hysterical reaction to the recent Supreme Court decision in the Janus v. AFSCME case, which frees public employees in 22 states from having to pay any money to a union as a condition of employment, has Chicken Little nodding in solidarity. As...

TAGS: AFSCME, Alex Caputo-Pearl, American Federation of Teachers, California Teachers Association, Chicago Teachers Union, Janus v. AFSCME, Jesse Sharkey, Larry Sand, LAUSD, Mike Antonucci, National Education Association, Randi Weingarten, seiu, stare decisis, teachers union, United Teachers of Los Angeles