That Union Thing
The Broward School Board, facing huge budget cuts, has
proposed reducing arts, library, and physical education programs. Under the proposal, elementary schools would either share media specialists and art, music, and physical education teachers with three other schools, have electives incorporated into other classes (with or without the assistance of consultants), or have teachers of electives teach two classes at once.
Teachers unions in Broward and Palm Beach counties are protesting trips taken by their respective school boards to recruit teachers from outside of Florida. The two counties plan to spend nearly $100,000 on trips to Michigan, New York, Puerto Rico, and other destinations looking for teachers to recruit. The unions believe that there are plenty of qualified teachers looking for work within Florida and that local teachers should be hired before the district looks elsewhere for new hires.
SEIU has won the right to bargain on behalf of more than fifty security officers working for Security Alliance in Miami Beach.
Pasco County employees are seeking to be represented by the Teamsters. Over 1,000 employees, from library assistants to code enforcement officers to social workers, will vote in an NLRB election to determine whether the Teamsters will be their bargaining agent. Job security and pay rates are two of the issues of concern. Pasco County firefighters already have union representation through the International Association of Fire Fighters.
Employees of AT&T's Southeast Region have ratified a new three-year agreement. Their previous contract expired in August and they are represented by Communication Workers of America.