Rank-and-file members of the National Education Association rejected a bid by the union’s leadership to give a bigger role to nonunion liberal activists by creating a new membership category called “community ally.”
In a tense vote, roughly two-fifths of the union delegates in Minnesota at the NEA’s annual convention opposed the move to amend the union’s bylaws, denying it the two-third majority needed to pass.
The NEA leadership’s proposal would have allowed people who supported the union but were not directly involved in education and therefore not eligible to join under the existing rules to, nevertheless, become dues-paying members. The leaders argued that this would bolster the union’s strength, but many members feared it would allow outside groups and deep-pocketed donors to come in and effectively take over.
In an attempt to mollify those concerns, the amendment specified that the community allies “shall not have the right to vote, nominate candidates for elected office, or hold elected or appointed positions within the Association.” This didn’t do the trick, however, and the proposal failed.
“Does my union card mean something or not? Bill Gates should not be able to buy one,” said Marshall Thompson, a Minnesota delegate, during the debate Tuesday, according to the Intercept.
The idea of nonmember members had been proposed in previous years by the NEA’s President Lily Eskelsen Garcia, and other unions have considered it as well, seeing it as a way to bolster the movement’s long-sagging membership. The idea gained new momentum over the last year, as the union movement braced for the Supreme Court’s ruling in the case Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
The ruling, delivered late last month, said it was unconstitutional to force public-sector employees, such as public school teachers, to financially support a union. Such requirements are a common feature of union-management contracts and were previously allowed under a 1977 precedent called Abood v. Detroit Board of Education.
NEA has said it expects to lose 14 percent of its membership due to the ruling and has announced a $28 million cut to its annual budget to compensate. Community allies, including people who marched with teachers during walkouts in Arizona and Oklahoma, would in theory help to make up for the shortfall.
“They looked to us as the voice and strong advocate for public education. And, they asked over and over again, ‘How can we be members of NEA?’” the leadership said in a FAQ sent to members. “Adopting the proposed Constitution and Bylaw amendments will allow us to enhance communications and engage public school supporters to grow our movement and build the schools students deserve.”
Mike Antonucci, director of the website Education Intelligence Agency, argues there was a different purpose: to circumvent campaign finance laws. Union-run political action committees cannot take contributions from nonmembers. Creating a special new category of members would let them take in donations from wealthy liberals.
“They’ve tried this three times before and always for the same reason: to collect additional PAC money. The general objection is that it opens a can of worms not worth the extra cash,” Antonucci told the Washington Examiner.
A spokesperson for the NEA could not reached for comment.
