Teacher unions are increasingly perceived as principal stakeholders in determining the overall effectiveness of school systems. This paper presents findings of a study that explored how teacher union leaders construct meaning about teachers' self-interests and education interests. Data were collected through interviews with 18 teacher union…

Education bargaining in the future is unlikely to be marked by the absence of conflict or by the declining use of power tactics, but by an increased capacity for cooperation and a more sophisticated use of power that is inherent in the structure of educational systems. (IAH)

After attaining a collective bargaining contract with New York City in 1960, the United Federation of Teachers worked successfully to improve salaries and working conditions. But in the aftermath of the 1975 fiscal crisis, the more equitable participation of teachers in policymaking has emerged as a clear goal. (KH)

A central feature of the emergent pattern of educational reform is exemplified by alterations in the ways in which leaders of teachers' unions perceive themselves, their roles, and the relationship of their organization to their school district. Data for the study described here were derived principally from visits to and interviews with selected…

Provides excerpts from the six-part history of the United Federation of Teachers, New York City to show that most of the day-to-day rights and dignities teachers now take for granted once had to be wrested from a reluctant and uncooperative system. Suggests that the struggle to maintain these rights is continuing. (GR)

This report focuses on social protections of teachers in Europe, synthesizes responses to a questionnaire by 18 European members of the World Confederation of Organizations of the Teaching Profession (WCOTP), and provides an overview of a variety of situations in European countries. The report includes a list of organizations/countries which…

This book was designed to help school administrators, board members, and teachers improve effectiveness and cooperation at the bargaining table. It charts the history of collective bargaining and discusses changes now taking place in education that will likely affect negotiations. Following the overview of collective-bargaining history in chapter…

Results of a study involving 450 teachers in three California school districts show that two sets of standards exist for judging the effectiveness of teacher unions. For union leaders, legitimacy means keeping promises to teachers by winning concessions from management and, at the same time, working toward a more credible and cooperative…

This book analyzes the unionization of elementary and secondary school teachers in a variety of nations. Following the acknowledgments, foreword by Charles T. Kerchner, and introduction, 16 articles are presented from different countries on international labor relations in education. Each chapter contains an overview and exploration of the…

In France, the National Education Federation (Federation d'Education Nationale (FEN)) and its major constituent union, the National Union of Elementary and Middle School Teachers (Syndicat National des Instituteurs et des Professeurs d'Enseignment General de College (SNI-PEGC)), are examples of "intelligent trade unions," i.e., unions…

An intensive two-phase study of teachers' unions in three small school districts in southern New York State over a 10-year span investigates the changes within the union movement and assesses the impact of unionization on the school systems. The study discloses that teachers' organizations and the collective bargaining process are subject, over…

Reports on proceedings of the 1986 conventions of the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers. Both conventions focused on the endorsement of the Carnegie report, on the professionalization of teaching, on programs to fight rising dropout rates and teacher shortages, and on the success of union leadership. (IW)

Essays argue that (1) unions can translate professional concerns into action; (2) unions need to concentrate more on the professional concern of improving education; and (3) only a national teachers union has the membership, staff, and strength to deal effectively with the multitude of concerns facing contemporary education. (MM)

During 1973, the broad issues characterizing the majority of court decisions concerning school employees were the constitutional and statutory rights of teachers and the relationship between these rights and the authority of the employer to act. Due process, both procedural and substantive, continues to receive extensive court consideration along…