The author was so close, but failed to take it a step further due to his own bias. The motivation for Republican voters to pay into a union that overwhelmingly supports Democratic candidates is because the Republican platform is unilaterally anti-union and anti-workers' rights. People join unions after failing to convince their employers to treat and pay them fairly. Nobody wants to pay nearly $800 a year of their meager salary just to say they're part of a union. It's because if they get wrongfully terminated, they know they'll have support. They also know that without the union, their chances for increased pay and better benefits are grim. Unfortunately, oftentimes union battles are won at the state and national level, which is why a large portion of the dues goes to those entities. If you don't have collective bargaining power (money and numbers), then you cannot take on massive entities like school boards and the FL Department of Education. It's the sad reality of litigation in our society.
Well said both Maria & Joshua. I don't notice bias (easy to read into anything though), and honestly the article seems pretty factual vs politically leaning or emotional.
I agree on your points Maria, and my largest worry is that with dwindling Florida wages and a younger generation taking the helm of teaching, paying 2% of your yearly Clay County teacher's salary for a union may not resonate with the new guard; weakening an already bruised but vital workforce historically backed by the power of numbers.
Compound that with an increase in Charter & Home schooling (see: burning taxpayer dollars, freedom style), the only way to go is down from here if Clay teachers don't keep their union.
Yeah I did cover the support teachers believe they get from the union that they don’t receive from their administrators and school district:
“The value they get from union membership is support and legal protection against false allegations and unsafe classroom conditions, support that they aren’t confident they would receive from the school district.”
I disagree that Republicans teachers join the union knowing their dues are sent to state and national level unions. The teachers I have spoken with recently and throughout my many years covering Clay county schools all had local, practical reasons for joining. Never heard one talk about or advocate for their dues being sent upwards.
Teachers continue to pour their hard-earned money into unions—money they often complain isn’t enough to begin with. Don’t get me wrong; I believe every teacher deserves a six-figure salary. But it’s baffling when these unions take that money and funnel it to the Democratic Party, which, in my view, pushes policies that undermine child protection. The whole thing feels utterly oxymoronic. It reminds me of that classic Janet Jackson song: “What Have You Done for Me Lately?”
I'm pretty sure you are confusing your views with the brass tacks of it; teachers need a voice before we lose them in this state. They deserve more pay outright, and I'd argue they are the ones protecting children daily. Could you reference what policies are "undermining child protection"?
Some notations below-
While Florida has made some efforts to raise teacher pay, the data show that Florida still ranks at or near the bottom nationally for average teacher salaries, and many experienced teachers in districts like Clay County earn significantly less than the national average. Teacher unions negotiate local contracts, but they cannot control state education budgets or funding policy. Rather, unions work within constrained budgets to protect teachers’ livelihoods, advocate for competitive pay, and push for better funding (which is exactly what teachers deserve).
-Florida’s average teacher salary is about $54,875 per year, ranked #50 out of 50 states in recent NEA data.
-experienced teachers in Clay County with 20+ years often make less (~$54.5k/year, 11/20/2025, News4Jax) than equivalent roles across neighboring counties.
The author was so close, but failed to take it a step further due to his own bias. The motivation for Republican voters to pay into a union that overwhelmingly supports Democratic candidates is because the Republican platform is unilaterally anti-union and anti-workers' rights. People join unions after failing to convince their employers to treat and pay them fairly. Nobody wants to pay nearly $800 a year of their meager salary just to say they're part of a union. It's because if they get wrongfully terminated, they know they'll have support. They also know that without the union, their chances for increased pay and better benefits are grim. Unfortunately, oftentimes union battles are won at the state and national level, which is why a large portion of the dues goes to those entities. If you don't have collective bargaining power (money and numbers), then you cannot take on massive entities like school boards and the FL Department of Education. It's the sad reality of litigation in our society.
Well said both Maria & Joshua. I don't notice bias (easy to read into anything though), and honestly the article seems pretty factual vs politically leaning or emotional.
I agree on your points Maria, and my largest worry is that with dwindling Florida wages and a younger generation taking the helm of teaching, paying 2% of your yearly Clay County teacher's salary for a union may not resonate with the new guard; weakening an already bruised but vital workforce historically backed by the power of numbers.
Compound that with an increase in Charter & Home schooling (see: burning taxpayer dollars, freedom style), the only way to go is down from here if Clay teachers don't keep their union.
Yeah I did cover the support teachers believe they get from the union that they don’t receive from their administrators and school district:
“The value they get from union membership is support and legal protection against false allegations and unsafe classroom conditions, support that they aren’t confident they would receive from the school district.”
I disagree that Republicans teachers join the union knowing their dues are sent to state and national level unions. The teachers I have spoken with recently and throughout my many years covering Clay county schools all had local, practical reasons for joining. Never heard one talk about or advocate for their dues being sent upwards.
Teachers continue to pour their hard-earned money into unions—money they often complain isn’t enough to begin with. Don’t get me wrong; I believe every teacher deserves a six-figure salary. But it’s baffling when these unions take that money and funnel it to the Democratic Party, which, in my view, pushes policies that undermine child protection. The whole thing feels utterly oxymoronic. It reminds me of that classic Janet Jackson song: “What Have You Done for Me Lately?”
I'm pretty sure you are confusing your views with the brass tacks of it; teachers need a voice before we lose them in this state. They deserve more pay outright, and I'd argue they are the ones protecting children daily. Could you reference what policies are "undermining child protection"?
Some notations below-
While Florida has made some efforts to raise teacher pay, the data show that Florida still ranks at or near the bottom nationally for average teacher salaries, and many experienced teachers in districts like Clay County earn significantly less than the national average. Teacher unions negotiate local contracts, but they cannot control state education budgets or funding policy. Rather, unions work within constrained budgets to protect teachers’ livelihoods, advocate for competitive pay, and push for better funding (which is exactly what teachers deserve).
-Florida’s average teacher salary is about $54,875 per year, ranked #50 out of 50 states in recent NEA data.
-experienced teachers in Clay County with 20+ years often make less (~$54.5k/year, 11/20/2025, News4Jax) than equivalent roles across neighboring counties.