Current:Home > NewsTennessee ban on paycheck dues deduction to teacher group can take effect, judges rule-LoTradeCoin
Tennessee ban on paycheck dues deduction to teacher group can take effect, judges rule
View Date:2024-12-24 09:21:32
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Tennessee can now begin banning a professional teacher advocacy organization from deducting membership dues from those educators’ paychecks, according to a court ruling.
A panel of three state court trial judges decided Friday that the recently enacted law targeting the Tennessee Education Association no longer needs to be blocked in court.
In late June, the judges initially sided with the Tennessee Education Association by stopping the provision from taking effect on July 1. Yet at the time, the judges said that they weren’t making a “determination as to the merits” of the plaintiffs’ claims.
The association sued the state in June over the two-pronged law, which also gradually raises the minimum teacher salary up to $50,000 for the 2026-27 school year. Republican Gov. Bill Lee pushed for the dual-purpose bill with the support from the GOP-dominant General Assembly this year.
The challenge calls for a judge to keep the pay raise, but block the deductions ban. The association says the ban will cost the group money and diminish its own revenues, which come entirely from member dues.
In their Friday decision, the judges ruled against the association’s arguments for a temporary injunction, saying that combining the two changes into one bill does not violate a single-subject requirement for legislation under the Tennessee Constitution. The judges also decided that the bill’s caption — commonly known as a short summary — sufficiently covers what the legislation does.
Additionally, they found that the law doesn’t substantially impair contracts between the Tennessee Education Association’s local affiliates and school districts that include provisions about deductions; and other agreements between the association and teachers.
The judges acknowledged that the ban “will cause some headaches” for teachers, the association and its local affiliates. But the judges said that the plaintiffs’ “valid concerns” don’t rise to the level of a contracts clause violation. They also noted that there are other ways to pay dues, including a statewide effort by the Tennessee Education Association to move to an EZ Pay system, which collects dues through recurring payments.
“It is likely that not all members will make the change in time,” the ruling states. “Some may forego paying dues altogether. And those that choose alternative methods may take on increased costs in the form of credit card and bank processing fees.”
Three affiliates and two member teachers joined the Tennessee Education Association as plaintiffs.
Teachers who choose to join a local affiliate of the Tennessee Education Association agree to be a member of and pay dues to the state association and the National Education Association, a group that conservative opponents of the paycheck dues deduction have criticized as too progressive.
Lee and the Tennessee Education Association have at times butted heads, including over his school voucher program. The group is influential among Democratic and Republican lawmakers and has a well-funded political action committee.
Payroll dues deductions are optional for school districts. Teachers also don’t have to join the Tennessee Education Association, or any professional organization. Additionally, advocates noted that certain state employee groups use paycheck deductions.
Lee has argued that the law removes the collection of dues for teachers unions from the school districts’ payroll staff, and guarantees “taxpayer dollars are used to educate students, and not fund politics.” The association has argued that the dues deductions come with “no appreciable burdens or costs” for school districts.
The Tennessee Education Association has also said it’s not a union — it’s a professional organization that advocates on a wide range of issues for educators. The state has already stripped key rights associated with unions for public school teachers.
A 2011 state law eliminated teachers’ collective bargaining rights, replacing them with a concept called collaborative conferencing — which swapped union contracts with binding memorandums of understanding on issues such as salaries, grievances, benefits and working conditions. Additionally, Tennessee teachers lost the ability to go on strike in 1978.
veryGood! (62977)
Related
- A herniated disc is painful, debilitating. How to get relief.
- Successful evacuation from burning Japan Airlines jet highlights dogged devotion to safety
- NFL stars sitting out Week 18: Patrick Mahomes, Christian McCaffrey among those resting
- New Mexico considers setback requirements for oil wells near schools and day care centers
- The Daily Money: Mattel's 'Wicked' mistake
- Jen Shah Speaks Out From Prison Amid Explosive RHOSLC Finale
- What does 'lowkey' mean? The slang that helps you describe things subtly.
- A hiker is rescued after falling down an Adirondack mountain peak on a wet, wintry night
- Biden, Harris participate in Veterans Day ceremony | The Excerpt
- Fox News host Sean Hannity says he moved to 'the free state of Florida' from New York
Ranking
- Just Eat Takeaway sells Grubhub for $650 million, just 3 years after buying the app for $7.3 billion
- Map shows the states where E. coli concerns led to recall of 7,000 pounds of beef
- Police seek shooter after imam is critically wounded outside mosque in Newark, New Jersey
- Next Republican debate will only feature Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis
- New Mexico secretary of state says she’s experiencing harassment after the election
- New Mexico considers setback requirements for oil wells near schools and day care centers
- Books We Love: No Biz Like Showbiz
- Like it or not, Peanut Butter and Bacon Cheeseburger debuts this month at Sonic for limited time
Recommendation
-
King Charles III celebrates 76th birthday amid cancer battle, opens food hubs
-
Who Is Gypsy Rose Blanchard’s Husband? Everything to Know About Ryan Anderson
-
Older Americans say they feel trapped in Medicare Advantage plans
-
Golden Bachelor's Leslie Fhima Hospitalized on Her 65th Birthday
-
Conviction and 7-year sentence for Alex Murdaugh’s banker overturned in appeal of juror’s dismissal
-
New Mexico regulators reject utility’s effort to recoup some investments in coal and nuclear plants
-
Young voters in Bangladesh dream of a future free from political chaos as the nation votes Sunday
-
We Found the Tote Bag Everyone Has on Real Housewives of Beverly Hills