Are teachers Unions leftwing?

As next week’s presidential election approaches, teachers across the country should take a moment to consider how unions have been spending their hard-earned money in this time of heightened political division. Teachers unions like the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT) are actively engaging in political activities, taking from teachers’ paychecks to influence election outcomes.

The NEA, with over 2.8 million members, allocates a considerable portion of its resources toward political action. In the 2022-2023 fiscal year, over $50 million was directed to political activities. This funding goes almost exclusively to left-wing candidates and organizations. So far in the 2024 election cycle, 98.96% of NEA’s contributions have gone to Democrats, totaling $3,098,592. Republicans have received just $32,599, or 1.04% of NEA’s election spending.

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CountScrofula · 41-45, M

Of course unions are left wing what the fuck is a right wing union.

The very foundational concept of left vs right wing is baked into the relationship between workers and employers.

That said I don't think unions should donate to political parties. My union doesn't. But unions are explicitly left-wing organizations. It is impossible for a union to be right wing.

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@CountScrofula I agree with most of that, but in some instances, it's in union's interest to get involved in electoral politics. Obviously, someone from a 'labour-left' tradition would say this.

One of the reasons that the Circumstances got so heavily purged from the labour party is that the unions did nothing to stop it. The more knowledge erate unions were co-opted by Starmerism and Unite (the most leftwing one) elected a leader who hates every facet of the labour party.

They stayed silent as socialists were kicked out of the party on false accusations I'd anti-semetism. Now they have a labour government that is (at best) agnostic to unions and will probably be at war with them in a year or so.

Sadly, electoral politics does matter. It's not the whole cake but it's part of it.

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CountScrofula · 41-45, M

@Burnley123 Yeah and I appreciate the argument there because unions function as a kinda counterbalance to wealthy interests when it comes to who sends money to political parties. Their involvement in politics is hugely influential and matters.

I don't support donating to political parties because my entire ethos is about worker power over electoralism and see a lot of potentially useful energy focused entirely on making we get a higher class of boss, rather than just taking power from the boss in the first place.

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@DogMan His party has a big majority and doesn't have to fight and election for four years.

However, the polling is dire. I predicted before he came to office that he wouldn't last the term. It will be like the Canadian liberals getting rid of Trudeau but on a shorter time frame.

Kwek00 · 41-45, M

@CountScrofula Serious question... The Christian Democratic Union (which excists btw)... are they left-wing?

CountScrofula · 41-45, M

@Kwek00 The CDU is a political party - I'm specifically speaking about labour unions.

I can find exceptions but unions are intrinsically left wing organizations and for one to work against the basic left wing interests of power to working people is anomalous.

Kwek00 · 41-45, M

@CountScrofula I'm aware, I'm talking about a labor Union that follow a Christian-Democratic Ideology. Like for instance ACV in Belgium.

EDIT: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confederation_of_Christian_Trade_Unions

CountScrofula · 41-45, M

@Kwek00 Looking up anything beyond the brief wikipedia summary I'd need to learn more before I judged much.

But at a glance they could be what we call scab unions which one of the types of anomalies I referred to. There's the Christian Labour Association of Canada (CLAC) for example.

Their game is to enter workplaces that are likely to unionize, and weaponize labour law to sign a deal with the employer to prevent a better union from getting in. They then provide mediocre service to their members.

I don't know if these unions are like that but at a glance that seems the case.

Kwek00 · 41-45, M

@CountScrofula Why would this be an "anomalie"? These organisations just have a diffrent ideological stance, they however do try to advance labor rights and working conditions. The intensity/radical nature of the organisation, shouldn't really be an issue here. Did you ever hear of "Rerum Novarum"? Because this is a thing in certain catholic circles.

And it's not only the Catholics. Don't forget that on the Far-Right, those pre-enligentened conservatives, there isn't always much love for the capitalist system and what it does.

An other exaploe is George Sorels form of syndicalism, for instance, I would not classify as left-wing. And during the interbellum, you had more far-right writers that were trying to better working conditions, but not out of some sense of equality but instead to maintain a specific hierarchie that protects the vision of some form of harmonious organic nationalism.

CountScrofula · 41-45, M

@Kwek00 Well, and again, I am no expert in European unions so I'm going to talk about what I know.

Labour is a movement. Although individual unions may or may not get along there are shared concepts of solidarity and the notion that all working people have a common interest because we all want the same thing from our employers.

Unions which breach the boundaries of that movement and move to instead entrench the interest of capitalists are anomalous. They exist, but they deviate from what is normal.

Police unions are another example. Yes, they defend the individual interests of their members, but they actively work to entrench capitalist interests since that's the whole point of the police. They exist, but they are hated by other labour unions because they serve capitalist (i.e. right wing) interests.

You can point out exceptions all day, but they remain exceptions. Anomalies.

Kwek00 · 41-45, M

@CountScrofula I find it very strange that someone sets a "norm" here and then treats the rest as "abnormal". When we are talking about ideas that have been around for a long while and some of them aren't even in the margin in current times. The Christian-Democratic inspired union out here, is the largest of our country. And this isn't just a Belgian thing. Rerum Novarum is an official document from the pope from 1891, this wasn't a marginal thing either.

I also don't understand when a police-man becomes a member of a social-democratic union... this suddenly becomes a right-wing thing. I mean you have to be looking trough some radical left-wing lense to come to that conclussion. Comparible to how people on the far-right of spectrum identify the center as a bunch of lefties.

CountScrofula · 41-45, M

@Kwek00 I explained and if you don't understand I can't help you.

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@Kwek00

I also don't understand when a police-man becomes a member of a social-democratic union... this suddenly becomes a right-wing thing.

Look into the US police unions and you will get it. Or you won't. So it goes.

Kwek00 · 41-45, M

@CountScrofula I understand all right.

If a labor union isn't radical enough for you, they aren't "true labor unions". Therefore they don't count.

All swans are white, but if I see a black one... then that's anomalie and doesn't challenge the rule at all. 🤷‍♂

Kwek00 · 41-45, M

@Burnley123 So you have an organisation, that has police officers as a member. And that organisation, tries to bargain (collectively, for the entire group) for better working conditions and better wages for it's members. But it's a right-wing thing, because the police uphold the capitalist system. Therefore, they aren't left-wing. But also you:

Organising for the interests of workers against bosses is the very definition of leftwing.

And then we haven't talked about what the organisations drive is to do what they do. What kind of society they are trying to push for.

Burnley123 · 41-45, M

@Kwek00 Because the world is not black and white and there are exceptions to the rule.