FEA’s statement on the Attack on Workers’ Rights, SB 1746

Today, the Florida Senate Rules Committee passed SB 1746, an anti-worker bill sponsored by Senator Blaise Ingoglia (R-11) that would place additional mandates on any person seeking to join their union. The Florida Education Association (FEA) has released a statement regarding the passage of this bill, below:

“While we are disappointed by the actions of the Senate today, we are not surprised. Instead of supporting our hard-working teachers, staff and professors, lawmakers continue to create more bureaucratic red tape. We are calling on lawmakers to amend the bill on the floor so workers in the communities they represent are not left without a voice.

“SB 1746 and its companion HB 1471 double down on last year’s anti-freedom bill by requiring a membership authorization form full of anti-worker slogans and propaganda be filled out by 60% of eligible employees or the union risks decertification. No other organization in the state is required to have its members fill out a state mandated form in addition to an organization’s own form to be considered members – not the NRA, not the Sierra club, not the chamber of commerce. These bills essentially require hard working teachers, staff, and professors to get permission from the state to be a union member. If they don’t complete the form, then they simply won’t be considered a member of their public employee union by the state of Florida. This is not less government, it’s not personal freedom and it’s not local control— it’s government intrusion at its worst.

“Every educator in Florida- regardless of if they are a union member or not- deserves support, adequate resources, and salaries that reflect their professionalism and enable them to live comfortably in their communities. Every educator deserves the freedom to join their union, without the state requiring arbitrary forms which only seek to disenfranchise them.

“Instead of dealing with the pervasive teacher shortage, the need to pay teachers fairly, ensuring educators and staff have the resources needed to do their jobs, cementing opportunities for educators to access affordable healthcare or housing, and ensuring all educators have access to retirement plans that help them continue to thrive, lawmakers insist on focusing on chipping away at the freedoms of Floridians and their right to have a voice in their workplace.

“At FEA, we will continue to work with lawmakers and reach out to them to discuss the need for a refocus of priorities. Teachers simply want to teach. And if we want to ensure that students are receiving a world-class education at the hands of highly trained and qualified professionals, we must focus on the real issues that matter to teachers, professors, education staff professionals, parents, and students.”