Clay Teacher's Union Short of Certification Goal
A recent email from union president Vicki Kidwell calls for more sign-ups
In May 2023, Governor Ron Desantis signed Florida SB 256 into law. This legislation, among other things, requires local teacher’s unions to re-certify their membership every year to remain in existence. Local teacher’s union membership must be at least 60 percent, and members must actively confirm their membership each year. This new rule will apply to Clay’s teacher union, the Clay County Education Association.
The local teacher’s union is currently at risk of not achieving the membership level mandated by the new law. In an email dated Sept. 10, 2023, local union president Vicki Kidwell advised the union has not reached the threshold.
Of the roughly 2600 teachers in the county, approximately 1300 are union members. Before the new law’s implementation, the total number of union members was around 1600.
The email indicates that 300 teachers chose not to renew their union dues this year. The union will need nearly all these members to re-join to meet the legal requirements enacted this year.
Here is the text from the email:
Did you know that CCEA has not made the 60 percent goal necessary to save our contract? You can help your colleagues understand the importance of being a member and the urgency of what we will lose without our contractual rights.
Members, thank you for standing together!
If you are one of the 300 members who have not taken action to set up alternative dues, your membership grace period will end tomorrow, September 11, 2023. We need you and hope you will take action to stand with educators of Clay to preserve our contract and our voice. Please call or email to sign back up. You will be glad you did.
Union leadership has been putting in full efforts to convert members to renew their membership since May of this year. Multiple teachers reported aggressive tactics by union representatives and the union president herself. Using school lunchrooms across the county, the union pressured teachers on their lunch breaks to sign up or else “our contract will be dissolved, and the district will take away all of your rights.” One teacher was told their lunch breaks and health insurance would “disappear” without the union.
SB 256 also mandated membership cards used to sign up new union members have specific language printed on them to, in the eyes of the state, clarify that union membership is optional and teachers have rights under Florida law to protect them.
The last provision of the bill prohibits union dues from being collected via payroll deduction. Instead, teachers who wish to be union members must pay the union directly.
Critics have claimed that the bill unfairly targets teacher unions while ignoring the other police and firefighter unions, which are also public sector unions.
So far, legal challenges from the state and national teacher unions have not successfully overturned the legislation. Legal cases will continue as the state and national teacher unions stand to lose millions in funding from member dues when local chapters dissolve. The Clay County union generates over 1 million dollars in funding via its members' dues.
The deadline for local teacher unions to report their data to the state of Florida is Oct. 1, 2023.