Michigan Teacher Finds It’s Not So Easy, or Cheap, to Become a Former Member of a Teachers Union
by Education Action GroupGRANT, Mich. – Ever wonder what it costs to quit a labor union?
For one Michigan educator, the annual costs of “non-membership” in the local, state and national teacher unions total $544.28.
But Andrew Buikema, 10-year teacher with Grant Public Schools, is willing to pay the price, just for the privilege of being seen as a true professional, instead of a union worker.
Michigan is not a “right to work” state, which means Buikema’s job is still affected by the district’s contract with the local teachers union, the Grant Education Association. The GEA is affiliated with the Michigan Education Association and the National Education Association.
Buikema has been trying to leave the union since last spring, when he realized that GEA leaders were uninterested in helping the district control costs, even in the face of a multi-million dollar deficit.
By refusing to make wage and benefit concessions, the union contributed to conditions that led to 27 teachers – including Buikema – receiving layoff notices. The district was also forced into making cuts to student academic and extracurricular programs.
Buikema’s job was saved at the last minute, but he was disgusted by the union’s selfishness.
The union’s intransigence convinced Buikema that “the union doesn’t care about kids.”
“They keep asking for more and more, even though the school district can’t afford it,” he told EAG. “They’re concerned about taking care of the adults and have no consideration for the kids. I don’t want to be part of an organization that says one thing and does another,” he said.
Buikema said he was “raked over the coals” by his local union leaders when he suggested the GEA could help alleviate the district’s financial woes – and possibly help save some teaching jobs – by switching from union-owned and operated MESSA health insurance to a less expensive carrier.
Buikema estimated that the district could save between $530,000 and $980,000 annually.
Not only did local union leaders not like Buikema’s idea, but they verbally attacked him for even suggesting it.
“The amount of flak I got, particularly from veteran teachers, was ridiculous to the point of being unprofessional,” he said.
Buikema was also put off by the NEA’s new $10 levy on members to help re-elect President Obama.
“It’s the principle involved,” Buikema said at the time. “They’re taking money to support a candidate that members may or may not support. That’s a very big deal.”
Unions bury dissenters in pile of legal documents
Last summer, Buikema decided to cancel his union membership altogether.
The MEA and NEA finally responded to his resignation request last month by sending approximately 150 pages of documents. The upshot of all those documents is this: Buikema can technically quit both unions, but he must still pay them $544.28 in “service fees,” which equals 67.7 percent of a normal union membership.
“Dear Non-Member,” the MEA letter begins, “You are employed in a bargaining unit represented by an affiliate of the Michigan Education Association. … Your collective bargaining agreement contains a provision which requires you to join the association or to pay a service fee.”
Another document explains that those service fees are based on “annual expenditures … incurred for the purpose of performing the duties of an exclusive representation of the employees.”
The unions claim the service fee only pays for activities that don’t involve an “ideological cause or political activity unrelated to collective bargaining, contract administration, grievance adjustment and lawfully chargeable employee representation.” A 64-page document breaks down all of the separate charges that go into the $544.28 fee, and explains how each is allowed under current law.
Yesterday, Buikema sent his own letter to the MEA:
“I am enclosing a check for $25 to the MEA, because that’s what I can afford to do right now. You will receive the remaining balance as I am able to pay. …
” … Forcing teachers to join your organization and pay dues is criminal. What happened to free will and the right to choose? I am trying to get out of the union because you don’t stand for kids.
” … You send this massive packet of … legal documents that I cannot decipher because I am not a lawyer … to do what exactly? Scare me? Intimidate me? What you are proving is that you will go to great lengths to get people’s money. …”
As a non-member, Buikema has the legal right to contest any of the “service fee” charges, but it entails a long and complicated legal process. And the MEA and NEA are well-represented by lawyers and accountants, as the stack of documents makes clear. The implication is obvious: It is futile for an individual teacher to protest the hundreds of dollars in fees.
“They’re just going to make you pay anyway,” Buikema concludes.
Buikema says some of his colleagues have expressed interest in also breaking away from the union, but are taking a wait-and-see approach.
“Most teachers like to be safe and stay in their comfort zone,” Buikema said. “I don’t care about that.”
Buikema has remained an outspoken union critic, and wants to be seen as a true professional whose worth is solely determined by his performance in the classroom, and not by his ranking on the seniority chart.
That won’t truly happen until Michigan becomes a right to work state, and union membership is no longer compulsory. Until then, Buikema chooses to be a “non-member” and will pay $544.28 for the privilege.
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67 Comments
A teacher that really cares about the kids. Amazing. I had a few of those when I was growing up and here I thought they were extinct. Andrew Buikema, you are certainly a true and caring professional.
If I lived in Michigan I'd take his case pro bono. Even if he can't win he can cost the union a lot more than $500. If any Michigan lawyers are reading this, how about it?
The simple solution is to use your feet and move to a non-unionized, right to work state..
Just yesterday I had a fairly long conversation with some colleagues about unions. One of the participants was a life-long union member and a staunch supporter. As we bandied back and forth about the pluses and minuses of unions (and there are a few pluses such as worker safety and so forth) the one area that he could not argue was the level of corruption that is so prevalent in the hierarchy of many unions. He tried, but finally gave up because he knew a few of us spoke the truth and he had experienced enough of it to know we were right.
When we tried to discuss “right-to-work”, the conversation had to stop. He was having none of it. He was even a supporter of the NLRB’s attempts to block Boeing from opening the 787 factory in South Carolina. Even after it was pointed out (not by me) that the NLRB’s actions could very well cost SC several hundred high-paying manufacturing jobs, he was still not swayed.
It is very interesting to see to what lengths unions will go to so they can maintain the status quo. In Michigan jobs are being lost because the unions are not willing to concede anything and in SC job growth is stymied by the union’s puppy dogs at the NLRB and the White House.
This man should check out:
RELIGIOUS LIBERTY AND COMPULSORY UNIONISM
from the Mackinac Center in Michigan.
Instead of sending your dues to the commie union, send them to a charity.
This man needs an attorney and a way to get his story out locally. I'll bet he can't get local news coverage. How about some free legal help.
The funniest part is while the rank & file union member is freezing his or her tail off in Michigan, the union heads are wintering in SE Florida. Living large off the dues bilked from the taxpayer’s of Michigan.
Good for you, Andrew.
Fight the good fight.
Isn't it funny that when the unions are fighting for more money from the public, it's all about their "rights" and "freedoms".
However, when someone disagrees with the big bosses, they get harassed, buried under paperwork, and run around by the guy with the deeper pockets and access to on-call lawyers.
Yeah, like they really care about anything but the dues and the power.
I thought extortion was illegal, silly me.
Isn't that the truth.
I bet most union members (all unions, not just teachers) would be shocked at how much time and money the salaried union bosses and business agents spend at "Conferences" and " Planning Meetings" in nice warm sunny places with access to 4-star restaurants and golf courses.
James running away from injustice and not standing up is cowardly and would be abandoning the kids. A true teacher stands up for their kids/students.
Thank you Mr. Buikema. You are proving that there are still proud, independent and principled professional teachers out there. . . although they may be getting crushed under the weight of the corrupt union tactics. You are providing hope for a return to kid-centered education. All my support and gratitude.
This report on a Michigan teacher, and the previous one on the lamentable outcome of the Ohio SB5 fiasco, is like a one-two punch for me. I am a native Michigander. I love my beautiful home state. Yet, it is circling the economic drain, and too many of her people are unwilling to make the choice to stop the process. I factored this situation into a decision to not return their and accept a very attractive job opportunity. There were other considerations, but the leftist malaise in MI was no small factor.
Judging from the SB5 vote, the same infection lingers here in Ohio. My wife and I considered a move to SC, where good friends of ours have thrived, but with the federal interference in Boeing's attempt to place a factory there, I have put such consideration on hold, too.
Sigh.
Hey, it's Michigan. You know, where the former governor Jennifer (imacommie) Granholm signed a law that instantly forced owner/operators of day-care centers to join a union. Most of these people didn't even know there was a vote to unionize, let alone want to be in a union. I watched the UAW and other unions destroy my home state of MI many years ago, and they are one of the primary reasons I left. Once MI goes completely Tango Uniform maybe the few remaining sane people there will be able to turn it around – but don't hold your breath.
This teachers situation is exactly what Gov. Walker is fighting.
If we had a justice dept. this crap would never fly. ….$10.00 to re-elect the usurper. That is illegal but don't count on an investigation let alone any charges being filed.
SC won via a convoluted process (settlement). The Boeing plant in SC will open. In addition, several of the auto companies in SC are expanding. If you have those kind of skills, there are new jobs available.
How can it be legal to force members to pay for the election of any politician?
Bravo to this brave man! I wish more people would 'come out' and publically protest the union THUGS. I hope he can get some pro bono legal help, though it would probably have to come from a lawyer from a rtw state. MI lawyers would suffer the mighty wrath of the union THUGS and their buddies.
Building cars in Texas, a right to work state. Who would have thunk it back in the 1970s.
Democrat lawmakers.
…
Just throwing that out there.
Unions………………hey you sound like Al Capone and his protection racket!
Proof the ACLU is exist for the sole prupose of attacking the Constitution!
Wha a case for individual rights!
If he were Muslim ACLU would jumop on this1
It depends on how you look at it, I see your point, but you didn't look at mine. Those kids have already been abandoned by the teachers union and forsaken by a state that only sees TAX MONEY and not children or its future when it looks at the state population , you can't fix that, you can only replace it and that is going to be a battle that requires the voters of the state to do, something that seems unlikely in Michigan…
Why not, and this was my point, move to a nonunion state, where you CAN stand up for your students, be the best educator you can, while working with the people in Michigan at the grass roots level to fight, defeat and remove the corrupt unions that are running the state which will let the people of Michigan, "be free at last"..
This is so true:
Buikema says some of his colleagues have expressed interest in also breaking away from the union, but are taking a wait-and-see approach. Most teachers like to be safe and stay in their comfort zone.
For anyone that says a person doesn't have to join a union and that they have a choice, this is proof that their claim is bogus. This has got to stop. It is ruining our education system and putting our children into debt. Full retirement pensions and a retirement age of 52 is just not right.
Unions = Higher cost
Unions = Lower quality
Unions = Less production
Unions = Political extortion
Unions = Less jobs
Unions are the number one problem with our economy!
END ALL PUBLIC UNIONS NOW!!!
Many thanks and best wishes to Andrew Buikema. There are many people, sir, who will stand in support of you. Perhaps a fund can be started for fellow liberty minded folk to contribute to his legal costs to escape the union?
Union rep, Joyce "Jaws" Piranha: "Nice job you got there, Mr. Buikema – be a shame if anyfing were to – yanno – 'appen to it. Fings break, donney?"
The teachers are waiting to see if the big union beast will rip off Mr. Buikema's head and poop down his neck…
Yup, I have to pay that "agency fee" to the union where I work. Total last year was 642.60. They constantly send out political activism stuff. I finally sent all their email to "junk."
Oh and, of course, though the union name would make you think it was a small, relatively unknown union, it is just a minor tentacle of the larger BIG unions. Lots they care about me!
Sad, The unions used to be pro America, now they are destroying our country. My daughter teaches in a non union state, laughs when she talks about union representatives at teacher meetings, I quote " sit in back with 1000 suits, no intrest in anything we say, like mafia dons". Unfortunately, with the current administration, we. Americans have a tough fight to get our country back
“But Andrew Buikema, 10-year teacher with Grant Public Schools, is willing to pay the price, just for the privilege of being seen as a true professional, instead of a union worker.”
It is amazing! Why any teacher prefers to be treated like unskilled labor is beyond me.
I would just not pay. Let them sue and I would still not pay. It's not like they can throw you in jail.
I see your point, but quite often people cannot move due to financial, family or other issues. What if you (or your partner) have sick parents that live there and don't want to move, you cannot just abandon them.
It's too late – this state is doomed.
OK, "what if" is a straw argument in any debate you try it in and is invalid here anyway, BECAUSE in my original post I said that "THE SIMPLE SOLUTION"; not the ONLY solution, not the BEST solution, but the SIMPLE solution is to move to a state that is a nonunion right to work state. Of course if you have financial, family or other issues; question, would laziness qualify as an issue,, In everything you do in life you must stop and think about what is best for you and everybody involved and make the best choices you can..
I think that the most important thing that is being overlooked in your post is that in America if you don't like the way things like unions, schools, gay marriage, taxes and the DMV are run in your state, you have the right to disagree and move to a different state that shares your views on these and other issues.. Being a Libertarian it goes against everything I believe in to move into a neighborhood or state for that matter and try to force my beliefs upon them when I could go elsewhere and surround myself with like minded people..
I wasn't arguing with you, I was just saying that simple solutions don't fit every situation. And yes, I would put laziness as an issue, it's not a good issue or reason not to move but it is a reason.
To live HONESTLY, have your DIGNITY, and live with INTEGRITY, and NOT live with extortion, $544.28 is a small price to pay. Not to mention, it is probably less than his union 'dues' AKA criminal extortion. $10 for the designated political campaign of the lawbreaker-in-chief – I'm sure THAT'S legal! LMFAO!
Unfortunately, it is a requirement of employment. If you want to work, you let them deduct it from your check. Otherwise, you look elsewhere for a job. I'd love to get out from under being a state worker, but unfortunately in my field if you don't have experience doing my job for the business world, you just don't find a job (not to say I'm not trying to get that experience working freelance!).
"and a retirement age of 52 is just not right"
Even if the person started teaching right out of college (age 22 in most cases) and worked for 30 years? Also take into consideration, a beginning teacher may be hired at a lower cost to take the place of the retiree.
Just for the record, I'm all for teachers paying a reasonable portion of their salaries towards their health care premiums and pension fund. When I was a teacher, I was active in my local union but I was appalled at the shenanigans in Wisconsin and Ohio last year.
Unions are obsolete. They won't be around much longer.
Think of Die Meistersinger which was a sort of singer's union. No such guild like this exists today. I'm a member of the American Guild of Musical Artists which is the closest thing to it. But it's very different. David in the first act sings Sach's praises because he beats him less than the average apprentice is beaten.
Workers have organized since the pyramids. Most of the time such organizations have gleefully oppressed their membership. Modern day labor unions are less opressive than formerly but only because the greater society won't stand for it.
I'm not trying to be confrontational, just asking for people's opinions. Would it be fair for a teacher, like this man, not to pay anything in union dues but still be able to partake of the benefits and perks negotiated in a contract? Many might consider that freeloading.
A school system is not going to treat non union teachers differently from union teachers when it comes to terms of and conditions of employment. The non union employees will be paid the same and be covered under a contract the same as the union teachers. A school system is not going to draw up separate agreements with individual teachers who aren't members of the union.
The Indiana House is attempting to get a Right to Work referendum on the Nov ballot. The Speaker is threatening $1000/ day fines if Democrat lawmakers walk out. They already walked out of the committee hearings, then complained when they couldn't offer debate or amendments after the committee voted on the bill and sent it to the floor without them.
Hopefully here will be a REAL lawyer who thinks about the greater good and will not be cowed by the backlash of the "system."
Although not every can do this, and no one should have to, the fact is that a lot of people have been moving out of Michigan and other socialist dystopia states and moving to evil capitalist states like Texas. Here in tiny little Mississippi, we just opened a massive Toyota plant; when was the last time that anyone opened a massive auto manufacturing plant in Michigan — the birthplace of the automobile industry?
Ding, ding, ding we have a winner…
"lthough not every can do this, and no one should have to, the fact is that a lot of people have been moving out of Michigan and other socialist dystopia states and moving to evil capitalist states".
Or as my AMERICAN dentist in Juarez Mexico says about his office there; "I became a dentist to help people and because of insurance fraud, malpractice insurance fraud, over regulation of the industry and the general cost of doing business in America, I can help a lot more people here in Mexico".
GOD bless this teacher of value…I mean…America…if there were only millions like him who would stand up and speak out…for the children and not their pocketbooks!
Freedom and Liberty is not free…it comes with a price…and millions who came before this generation paid that price…and we must continue to do the same…if we are to continue those freedoms and liberties!
MICHIGAN SEIU STEALING MEDICAID PAYMENTS FOR UNION DUES!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4g9ILNUr_8&fe...
GET YOUR UNION DUES REFUNDED IF THEY ARE NOT USING THEM PROPERLY…Republican Saul Anuzis (a former member of the Teamsters) announced the launch of a new website specifically designed to give union members assistance in getting refunds for the portion of their dues used on politics. It is not “anti-union,” it is a site with one purpose—to help union members who do NOT want their dues money used on politics, regardless of party.
http://www.unionrefund.org/
BANISH THE UNION ‘GOONS’ – BOTH PUBLIC & PRIVATE
IS YOUR STATE “RIGHT TO WORK”? – http://www.nrtw.org/rtws.htm
You know what I'd like to see? I'd like to see there be a requirement that all unions be required to post a notice to at each facility where they represent employees about how they can decertify the union. Think about it – various federal and state agencies require employers to post notices about their legal protections and how they can sue their employers and all the programmes government offers – why shouldn't there be an obligation on unions to notify employees about their right to be non-union?
There's a legal process through which employees who're dissatisfied with their union can "fire" the union, but it's the secret that no one ever talks about or writes about.
Here's a brief description of that process:
http://www.unionfacts.com/union-member-resources/...
So I guess being 'skilled labor' in your definition means being in a union? I have been 'skilled labor' for almost 30 years and have never been in a union. I work in the computer industry and we are some of the highest paid skilled labor you can ever higher.
You see, real professionals do not have to rely upon union bullies to get forced pay raises and benefits. Real professionals rely upon their own skill and knowledge to get that done for them. Since we have real skills and useful knowledge people GLADLY pay for our services.
Ever wonder why most of the computer industry is NOT unionized? I don't. I know the people that comprise the industry and we are all too smart to fall into the union trap.
I'm a teacher in Ohio- we are forced pay around $780 a year to our union- I went through the steps to become an agency only member and I still have to pay $770 a year in fees!! It's so ridiculous. There's a movement in Ohio just beginning to push us toward being a Right to Work state and I can't wait!!
I pay that agency fee, too! Such a waste. And you're right- they don't care about the teachers, just their nice fat paychecks that they receive thanks to us working our butts off!
There's a group called National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation. I found them by searching for information online. They have lawyers willing to work for free to help union employees struggling to protect their rights against union bosses. I used them to help me become an agency only member and they were wonderful!
In the 1970s GM had a plant in Arlington TX, I know people who worked there.
I too left Michigan (in 1976) because I couldn't find work after military service. First day in Texas I had two jobs to chose from, never looked back. Go back now and then to visit the folks… now I'm retired in Arkansas, loving the Ozarks.
I don't give two sh its if someone worked 30 years at the same place. Public employees shouldn't be getting generous tax-funded pensions and a starting retirement age of 52 when the rest of the public (in equal or higher qualified positions) have to work past the age of 65. How does that make any sense? Teachers should have to save for their own private retirement and start collecting that when they have enough saved up, period.
Considering the huge amount of money unions bleed from districts who can't afford it, the opportunity to save money by negotiating individual contracts or setting a separate standard contract/pay scale with merit-based raises and promotions would provide more than enough incentive for the district to do so.
This teacher, and I suspect many others like him, suggested taking a cut in benefits and that the union take pay cuts to save the district from further budget woes, so its reasonable to assume that in an individually negotiated contract he would take such concessions. The effect would be a contract substantially different from those of union members, and he is no longer a "free-loader". I see no reason why teachers who voluntarily leave unions can't agree to or receive considerably different employment conditions to justify not paying dues. Obviously some rules, such as set breaks for lunch, etc would be unrealistic to change for a few teachers, but if a teacher leaves a union and agrees to his own contract without other work-rules, tenure, etc then how could he be considered a free-loader? And what, besides forced dues and union membership, is stopping either the teacher or the district from doing so? School saves money, kids get a good teacher, and the teacher gets a loosened work-environment and to be the professional he wants to be. Win-win-win.
The only way the "freeloader" argument applies is in states with forced union-membership. In Right-to-Work states, if both union and non-union teachers were treated effectively the same, union-members would likely jump ship to escape union dues that they would pocket as non-members while not losing any of the "perks". If union membership falls low enough to strip the union of its power and the district can fix its budget while providing the same or adequate employment conditions, then more power to them everyone but the union is better off. If, on the other hand, the district throws teachers under the bus and cuts compensation and benefits while making it a poor working environment for teachers, then they are free to organize or join a union. That's what's great about Right-to-Work, employee's get to CHOOSE.
So would you also be against deferred compensation plans(where both the employing school district and the teachers contribute) taking the place of pensions? I believe these are present in the private sector.
Thanks for your thoughtful response. You make some good points. Maybe part of the solution would be for a separate type of standarized contract be offered to teachers who didn 't wish to be part of a union. As long as the union could not be forced to represent them in grievance and disciplinary matters, that might be a compromise.
There are legions of leftis lawyyers who do these things for free — National Lawyers Guild, ACLU. Perhaps we need something similar on the right?
Or maybe there is already an organization like this?
Can we find 50 honest lawyers in America?
How about 45?
How about 30?
How about 20?
How about 10?
It may be more important than we think!
Time to Boycott ALL unions & union products!
Why are Government Employees Unionized?
The immense safety hazards? The 75hour work week? The measly, below market-level pay rates? The capricious way they're fired for no reason at all?
It's also time, and past time, to De-Unionize ALL government jobs! L.S.F. (local, state, & federal)
Didn't know about those. Were they killed off like Saturn was killed by the Unions?
I'm for reforming the system and gross amount of money wasted on teachers who can retire over a decade before equally employed counterparts. More responsibility needs to be placed on the employee to save. The government can't just promise an amount out of thin air and try to pull it our of their ass 30 years later when it doesn't exist.
I know teachers that giddily just count down the years until they can retire in their early 50s. When someone in their late 40s says, "I've only got 4 more years to go!", there is a problem. It's got to stop.
So is slavery. And forcing people to join a union (and support Obama) is a form of slavery.
As I recall the workers at that South Carolina Boeing Plant did just that – decertified the union themselves.
Obama and the NLRB were not pleased.
Kind of hard to boycott your local school district when you are forced, by law, to send your kids to them (where there are no charter schools allowed). THAT is the evil of public unions.
Not sure what happened to it.Haven't been in Arlington since 1980, the year a graduated from UT Arlington.It was just south of I-30 east of town.
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