Rebecca Friedrichs has certainly dealt with many battles with unions in her decades of teaching but now there is hope in the air as the Supreme Court issued a ruling to roll back union control over education.
The ruling won in a 5-4 favor of plaintiff Mark Janus in Janus vs. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
Friedrichs, who is now retired from teaching, was previously the lead plaintiff in Friedrichs vs. California Teachers Association, but was not granted a rehearing after the death of Justice Antonin Saclia.
“When I was 22 years old and serving under a mentor teacher ... I tried to report a teacher who I thought was abusive because she picked on and grabbed six-year-olds,” Friedrichs said. “My mentor teacher sat me down and said ‘Rebecca, today is the day that you learn about teachers unions and teacher tenure.’”
Friedrichs began experiencing some bullying during meetings getting called a "radical right-winger" because she pushed back against the union for a 'graphic sex-ed 5th-grade curriculum they helped institute with Planned Parenthood.'
Friedrichs has previously emphasized that the teachers unions are the root cause of what is impeding improvement in education and that some unions would threaten young teachers by claiming to remove their professional liability insurance if they did not join the union.
There are steps being taken in the right direction now that a decision has been made in favor of Janus. Union control over educators and public sector employees will soon be loosened and they will have the power to choose whether they want to join a union or not.
John Schilling, president of American Federation of Children, issued a statement on the ruling, saying, "Today is a win for families and educators across the country. We're glad to see that educators will be able to keep more of their hard-earned money ... educators shouldn’t be forced to give their pay to union leaders whose self-serving political agenda opposes giving parents the right to choose the best school for their children.”
Friedrichs will soon publish the book, Standing Up to Goliath, which includes interviews with 40 teachers and parents about their experiences with unions.
Listen to John and Ken today at 3pm to hear Rebecca Friedrichs talk more about the case.
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