Some thought unions would come to an end after the Janus ruling. Some thought it would invigorate the union movement out of fear. Neither came true:
When it came to money, at least, all that sound and fury signified nothing.
The combined annual incomes of the National Education Association and its state affiliates as of Aug. 31, 2019, was $1,663,883,934. That was an increase of $45,727 from the previous year, or 0.003 percent.
That’s not to say there was no effect whatsoever. Thirty-one state affiliates lost members that year, and 24 saw a reduction in revenues. But there is no consistent correlation between membership levels or revenues and states where there were either #RedforEd protests or agency fee laws.
All the financial information comes from the unions’ annual disclosure reports for the Internal Revenue Service detailing their income and expenditures. These are public records, but the pandemic created a long delay before the IRS made many of them available.
Now that I'm not required to give them a cent of my money, it doesn't matter to me if they grow, shrink, or stay steady. I just want them to leave me alone.
Well, the Janus decision did increase MY income by about 1K per year!
ReplyDeleteHear hear!
ReplyDeleteI kept my membership one more year because I wanted to vote to return to school, but we never got the option.
ReplyDeleteMost of the time, unions are irrelevant to my job and I pay the dues because I feel it's the least I can do for them negotiating my salary.
But during the pandemic, the union's interference in my life became unbearable, and given how much of the dues goes to politics I loathe, I figure I'm done. This year I'm ending my membership.