Teacher’s Union?

[MHDNURSE]

I just got hired into a new school district and nurses in this district can join the teacher’s union. I’ve never been a member of any type of union. My only union experience was several years ago down in DC managing a few unionized nurses at a non union hospital and it was a nightmare.

Anyone here members of their District’s Teacher’s union? Thoughts? Benefits? I tried calling the president of the TU and she’s out until next Monday. If I do decide to join it’s $21.27/pay check. I’d love some advice.

thanks!

[cid1]

I am in our support staff union. Depending on state if you don't join the union you may still have to pay into it something called fair share as you reap the benefits of their negotiations. My union helps with grievances, provides an attorney to defend you in the event of lawsuit, negotiates pay, sick time, etc. You can also get travel, and insurance discounts and some local discounts as well.

[RedKat]

I'm in the teachers union at my school. Most districts around here have the nurses in the civil service union, but mine and one other district put us in the teachers union. I don't know how it would work at your school, but here that means I'm on the teachers pay scale, and increase steps yearly just like the teachers, and when I retire I'll get paid back a dollar amount for every unused sick day I've saved up. And the benefits that cid1 mentioned above. If nothing else, I'm glad I'm a part of it just for the sake of knowing there's someone to back me up if issues arise.

[guest464345]

I'm in the teacher's union....to me, well worth the dues. I'm on their pay scale, I get yearly increases and great benefits which the union negotiates. (And the non-unionized schools here pay their nurses much, much, much less). And although I carry my own Liability Insurance, I'm glad for that extra layer of protection.

[JustJai, ADN, LPN, RN, EMT-I]

Mu union dues are approx $1000 a school year. Worth every penny to me. For pay purposes, I am on the teacher pay scale. My Liability Insurance is provided through the union. There is a union spokesperson in every school that has monthly meetings with the principal, and a union president that meets with the district superintendent and area superintendent also on a monthly basis. The one thing I wish the union would pay more attention to is re-credentialing credits. I am required to earn 6 college level credits every 6 years in the "area of my instruction." I, and other nurses/psychs, have argued for years that we should be X number of CEU's required every two year state licensing period rather than college credits. The CEU's I have taken provide much more valuable information to me than a college class does at this point.

[Flare, ASN, BSN]

i joined the union as soon as i entered public school. The legal protection they offer is well worth the money. Besides, if you choose not to join the union, you still may need to pay most of that $20-something dollars a pay, but reap no benefits. I know my union required that and so does my husband's - and he doesn't work for a school system, he works for a county government. I think it's like80% that non-union members have to pay.

[rbytsdy]

I was a member of the teachers union when I was full time. They were useless in helping me when administrators ordered me to improperly administer a medication. As I was dealing with that, I called the union rep for a meeting. We agreed to meet during my lunch. I told my school I was leaving, the counselor sat in my office (to cover) and I signed out and went to the school 0.5miles down the road. My school called 20 minutes later and ordered me back to deal with an emergency (1st grader with a loose tooth). Then the administrators wrote me up for leaving the school during my contracted lunch period (we were allowed to leave but they wrote me up anyway). The union rep tried to help but ultimately, the union said there was nothing they could do (mostly because I wasn’t tenured).