Teachers Find Union Alternatives
Liability insurance, legal protection, professional resources all available at a fraction of the union cost
Now that Michigan is a right-to-work state, more and more educators who chose to leave the Michigan Education Association are turning to professional organizations to get legal protection and liability coverage. The American Association of Educators says calls are coming in daily and membership in Michigan has doubled.
“The new climate in Michigan is proof that when teachers have the right to choose, many decide to flee the unions in favor of professional associations that provide similar benefits, at a fraction of the cost,” said AAE spokesperson Alexandra Freeze.
Her organization is getting particular attention this month because the MEA says August is the only time its members can leave. That is being contested in legal proceedings.
A new poll out this week by National Employee Freedom Week reveals how a “new climate” is emerging in Michigan. When asked, “Should employees have the right to decide, without force or penalty, whether to join or leave a labor union,” nationally, 83 percent of those surveyed answered “yes”. In Michigan, the percentage was 84 percent, the fifth highest “yes” response in the nation.
One benefit the MEA touts as part of membership is the $1 million liability protection it gives members as part of their $800 to $1,000 annual dues. AAE charges $198 for annual membership and provides $2 million in liability protection. And unlike the union coverage, explains Freeze, AAE’s members own the policy, eliminating the need to go through a chain of command at the union when making a claim.
Additionally, liability insurance doesn’t cost organizations a great sum of money when they purchase a policy to cover hundreds of thousands of people. At a hearing before the Michigan Employment Relations Commission this year, the MEA’s executive director said the plan is offered through the parent organization, the National Education Association, and costs $4.35 a year per member.
The difference between the costs of benefits and fees paid is what has driven teachers like Rob Wiersema to seek coverage through AAE.
“I’m getting more bang for the buck,” said Wiersema.
How much dues money goes to actual benefits can be determined by reading a union’s LM-2 form filed with the federal government every year. In 2013, for example, the MEA collected $133.4 million in revenue, but spent just $14.2 million on “representational activities” that year. The rest went to general overhead, salaries and benefits for staff, and union administration. It spent $9.3 million on political activity and lobbying.
The MEA is also telling members they lose the chance to vote on contracts if they quit the union. Unions, however, have fought in court to protect their right to “exclusive representation,” meaning they get to bargain on behalf of all workers in a unit, not just members.
Freeze points out that workers are getting frustrated by “one size fits all” contracts. She uses the example of single teachers without children who may not need extra days off with pay but instead would prefer higher pay overall.
“The teachers who join our group think of themselves as true professionals, not laborers on the line,” Freeze added.
Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.
'Competitiveness' Outlook Ranks Michigan 12th Best
State has a way to go to overcome past policies
They 7th edition of “Rich States, Poor States” was released recently and it ranks Michigan 12th best among the 50 states for its “economic outlook” based on 15 public policy variables, such as tax, business and labor policies. The higher position may signal better economic times ahead for Michigan.
This is the highest rank achieved by the Great Lake State since the index’s creation. Since 2009, Michigan has steadily moved from near the bottom (34th) to where it is now.
The index is created from 15 variables that the authors believe contribute to a states’ economic well-being: marginal personal tax rates; marginal corporate tax rates; personal income tax progressivity; property tax burden; sales tax burden; remaining tax burden; estate tax levy (if any); recent tax changes; debt service as a share of tax revenue; public employees per 10,000 of state population; the state’s liability system; state minimum wages; average worker’s compensation costs; whether or not a state has a right-to-work law and whether or not a state maintains expenditure limits like the Headlee Amendment.
The good news is that these variables — measured through 2012 — rank Michigan relatively high for future economic performance. The bad news is that the authors still rank Michigan low (dead last, actually) for actual performance based on three major metrics: state gross domestic product, domestic migration and non-farm payroll employment over the previous 10 years.
These measures will keep Michigan ranked very low in the index’s ranking due to the state’s performance during the 2000-2009 time frame. As Mackinac Center analysts have pointed out repeatedly, Michigan was the only state in the union to have negative state GDP and a net loss of population during the past full decade. During that time period, Michigan was adopting several harmful policies: large tax hikes, a failure to truly balance its budget, paying more and more for public employees and grappling with forced unionization.
The good news is that our outlook is encouraging. In addition, “Rich States, Poor States” is not the only index that ranks performance in vital policy variables. The Tax Foundation’s Business Tax Climate Index has also noted Michigan’s policy improvements in recent years and that, too, bodes well for the state’s future.
There have been some recent set-backs, but Michigan has been steadily improving its economic policies. Lawmakers should keep it up.
Michigan Capitol Confidential is the news source produced by the Mackinac Center for Public Policy. Michigan Capitol Confidential reports with a free-market news perspective.
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