[ RELATED: DeSantis: Don’t let union dues come out of teachers’ paychecks ]
Governor Ron DeSantis struck again, trying to destroy teachers’ unions.
He glossed this over by saying teachers currently don’t have the opportunity to decide whether they want to unionize. He wants to force them to write a monthly check to keep a piece of the union.
Why does he only target teachers? We are not the only union in Florida. Many other unions in the state collect their dues through employer paychecks, but he wasn’t attacking police officers, firefighters or anyone else. You wouldn’t be targeted if your union supported him, but teachers’ unions fight for teachers’ rights, which he doesn’t support.
I know Florida is a “right to work” state that does not allow teachers to strike, but if this law is passed, I call on all teachers to strike. What would DeSantis do if 100,000 teachers resigned? There are not enough teachers in our current positions, and there are not enough college students majoring in education.
The teachers just want a union to represent them. It’s bad enough that they are underpaid and given extra work and responsibilities outside of their profession. Now the governor wants to be able to disqualify teachers’ unions if membership falls below 50%.
This is just another example of DeSantis retaliation against organizations that oppose him. He won by a landslide, but that doesn’t mean he should be able to manipulate the law to hurt his opponent. He took advantage of the fact that teachers would forget to pay monthly union dues, creating bookkeeping horrors for local unions.
Teachers will probably never strike because they care too much about their students. DeSantis knows this.
Hal Kranz, Coral Springs
The author is a longtime executive board member and steward of the Broward Teachers Union.
Editor’s note: The latest version of the bill, HB 1197, Passed in the House in 2022, died in the Senate.
Holiday night drives along Las Olas Boulevard, Fort Lauderdale’s crown jewel, have been disappointing seasons. Building blockages, orange cones and detour signs are made uglier with almost zero holiday decorations.
Who is in charge of landscaping this time of year? I hope the mayor, city manager, or someone else can explain.
rusty maple, fort lauderdale
writer james hammers North Lauderdale (Letter, Dec. 23) says he proudly supports a traitor (Donald Trump) to this country and its Constitution. There are no more words to express the tragic events that have taken place in this country.
Randy Leafshotts, fort lauderdale
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Pompano’s Holiday Flea Market: What a place to shop and enjoy. We’ve been there many times and have never been disappointed. It’s the only place in Broward where you can get those famous New York pickles straight out of the barrel. I also purchased a mobility scooter that was working fine three years later. This place is fun and great to walk from one end to the other.
Please bring back all the old stores. They are great.
Mattiment, pano beach