On a Day Meant to Honor Workers, Governor Cements Legacy of Anti-Worker Policy

Floridians have made it clear that they expect an economic future that benefits us all, and that begins with a public education system that is strengthened by state leaders, not abandoned, weakened, or destroyed. The future we want for ourselves, for our children, and for our communities is possible if we come together and fight for a stronger Florida.

Yet, at a time when Floridians are struggling to pay their bills and dealing with skyrocketing costs for necessities like rent, childcare, groceries, and more, Gov. Ron DeSantis and anti-union, anti-worker legislators have focused on chipping away at the constitutionally enshrined rights of thousands of workers in the state. Instead of making life more affordable for nurses, sanitation workers, utility workers, line technicians, certified nursing assistants, doctors and medical residents, city bus drivers, teachers, education staff professionals, higher education faculty and graduate assistants, city and municipal workers, communications workers, and countless other public sector workers who help make Florida safe and prosperous, the Governor and his activist administration are being clear that they do not care about the workers of this state.

Today, the Governor’s signing of SB 1296 is yet another entry in a long line of betrayals of working Floridians by Gov. DeSantis in favor of out-of-state, billionaire-backed, special interest groups.

It’s not lost on us that the Governor has signed an anti-worker bill on May Day, a day grounded in the labor movement and the belief that working people deserve power and dignity. In his effort to stifle workers and their unions, the Governor actually reminds us that May Day exists because workers across the nation fought for safer workplaces, fair hours, and stronger protections. Unions, as far back as the 1800s in America, gave workers the power to elect politicians who had the best interests of workers in mind—a lesson that would be worth remembering for any politician who aligns themselves with anti-worker policies today.

It’s no surprise that the Governor has signed this bill right before Teacher Appreciation Week, given how his policies have negatively impacted educators across the state. For the past decade, Florida students have suffered under lawmakers who have placed political agendas ahead of students and their families. Under Governor DeSantis, Florida ranks 50th in the nation in average teacher pay for the third year in a row and 41st in per-student funding. In fact, from 2014-15 to 2024-25, the average teacher salary in Florida fell 12.4% in inflation-adjusted dollars, and almost 60% of all education staff professionals in the state earn less than $35,000 a year. Working families are being asked to pay more and get less while the Governor and too many lawmakers push politically motivated policies that weaken the workforce.

Florida voters are paying attention.

Floridians are tired of the politics being inserted into our classrooms by a state Department of Education that appears intent on dismantling public education in favor of charter and voucher schools, run by corporations that treat every child as nothing more than incoming paychecks. Floridians are tired of being told lawmakers are working for them while not receiving any relief from a cost-of-living crisis, especially when lawmakers cannot even do their one constitutionally mandated job of finalizing a state budget—causing taxpayers to foot the bill as they come back to Tallahassee to try again.

Floridians are tired of their public schools, colleges, and universities suffering under the weight of policies that have underfunded our public schools, added more barriers for our education professionals, attempted to strip academic freedom from our higher education institutions, and ultimately shortchanged our students.

Florida’s workers and parents will continue to fight for every student in Florida to access the public education they deserve and have a constitutional right to receive.