Chicago Tribune, February 28, 2006, Tuesday

Copyright 2006 Chicago Tribune
Chicago Tribune

Distributed by Knight/Ridder Tribune News Service

February 28, 2006 Tuesday

SECTION: BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL NEWS

HEADLINE: Teachers OK partner trial with AFL-CIO

BYLINE: Stephen Franklin, Chicago Tribune

BODY:
Feb. 28--SAN DIEGO -- Delivering a dose of good news for the AFL-CIO, the 2.8 million-member National Education Association, the nation's largest labor group, announced a pilot partnership Monday with the troubled labor federation.
NEA President Reg Weaver, speaking here at a meeting of the executive council of the AFL-CIO, said local affiliates of his organization would be able to join the state or local AFL-CIO councils, while the NEA remains independent.
But the effect of the action is unclear, because the decision to join will be left up to local NEA groups, said Weaver, a one-time teacher from suburban Harvey and former head of the Illinois Education Association. He said he could he not predict how many would take such a step.
Weaver described the move as a pilot project that would be evaluated in 2009 by the NEA, which represents teachers from kindergarten to graduate school as well as school administrators, school support workers, retirees and students. In Illinois, the group has about 120,000 members.
The NEA's action comes as the 9 million-member AFL-CIO is recuperating from the civil war that erupted within its ranks last summer and resulted in the departure of seven unions and their creation of a competitor, the Change To Win Federation. The new labor group has about 5 million members.
For the AFL-CIO, which suffered a serious financial loss with the unions' departures, the NEA's action could mean new money flowing into the hands of the labor federation and its state and local groups.
But the biggest gain would be in terms of increased clout in lobbying on education-related issues and political action from cities to states across the United States, said officials from the AFL-CIO, the NEA and the 1.3 million member American Federation of Teachers.
"We'll have a solidarity we've not had before in Illinois," said Margaret Blackshere, president of the Illinois AFL-CIO. Blackshere, a former downstate teacher and head of the 90,000-member Illinois Federation of Teachers, said she would promptly reach out to NEA groups across the state.
Saying no great differences divide the NEA's affiliates from other unions in Illinois, Blackshere described the state's NEA groups as more likely to support Republican politicians and more focused on education rather than worker-related issues in Springfield.
Cornell University labor expert Rick Hurd said the NEA's partnership was a sign of the AFL-CIO's growing reliance on unions that represent white-collar workers. Still, more than half of the AFL-CIO's members are blue-collar workers, said officials from the labor federation.
Similarly, Hurd said the AFL-CIO's involvement with the NEA reflected its drive to "strengthen" its ranks after undergoing the breakup last year.
AFL-CIO President John Sweeney clearly wanted to present the image of the federation on the rebound, pointing out Monday the new membership of two independent unions. They are the 65,000-member United Transportation Union and the 10,000-member Farm Labor Organizing Committee.
Sweeney described the NEA's decision as "the most important step forward for the labor movement since the merger of the AFL and CIO in 1955."
Weaver said the decision by the NEA's executive board to open the gates for affiliates to link up with the AFL-CIO was prompted by several local groups. He named the Jefferson County, Ky., NEA affiliate as the most active in the effort.
"This partnership makes all of us stronger, and our collective voices louder," said Weaver. He added that his union would be seeking a similar partnership with the Change to Win federation.
AFT President Ed McElroy hailed the NEA's move, saying it would provide more clout for unions to stand up for education and worker-related issues. He pointed out that the AFT and NEA have joined ranks in Florida, Minnesota and Montana, and a similar merger is near in New York.
A drawn-out drive to bring the AFT and NEA together collapsed in 1998, when the NEA's membership voted down a merger.
Traditionally, the AFT, which was founded 90 years ago in Chicago, was viewed as a union with a more militant bent and broader agenda, since its represents workers other than teachers. The NEA was considered a more conservative organization, especially because it has administrators in its ranks.
But officials from the two groups say that the differences largely have melted away as the two have worked together on political campaigns and in lobbying.
As AFT officials also point out, the two recently organized faculty members at three universities in the state of Washington.
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