Here in New York, voters also had a chance to voice their disdain for vouchers by resoundingly electing Hillary Clinton to the U.S. Senate. It's time for the voucher vocalists to get the message that voters want to invest in public education for all. Our 925 locals are the threads from which we weave our union. Each is different. Members work different jobs and live in vastly different parts of the state.
Some unions are large, with thousands of members, while others have only a handful.
Back then, teachers, paraprofessionals and secretaries faced low salaries and no protections. Those were the days when a pregnancy meant an early, forced maternity leave. Collective bargaining changed all that. Now UFT members have living wages, secure retirements, professional respect and autonomy, even a duty-free lunch break. I also salute the UFT for becoming one of the strongest political forces in the nation, a force to be reckoned with.