The U.S. Supreme Court's 2018 decision in "Janus v. American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees" (AFSCME) (referred to as "Janus" hereafter) prohibited state and local government worker unions from negotiating collective bargaining agreements with fair share fee arrangements. In this report, the authors…

Schools connect students with peers and mentors, channel youthful energy into productive pursuits, teach essential academic skills and knowledge, and give overwhelmed parents room to breathe and work. Adapting to the challenges of COVID-19 gives America's schools the opportunity to provide what is uniquely possible in the schoolhouse while seeking…

Creating smart, coherent education policy is painstaking work; there are technical, budgetary, and political challenges at almost every turn. But it is some of the most important work that state leaders can undertake. As Ohioans prepared to elect a new governor in late 2018, we at the Fordham Institute began rolling out a set of policy proposals…

Why are America's public schools falling so short of the mark in educating the nation's children? Why are they organized in ineffective ways that fly in the face of common sense, to the point that it is virtually impossible to get even the worst teachers out of the classroom? And why, after more than a quarter century of costly education reform,…

Governing public schools is one of the most important responsibilities a citizen can undertake. School board members work on behalf of all the families in their community, with fellow board members and with other community partners, to ensure that each student has equal and ample opportunities to reach his or her greatest potential. This guide…

In this policy brief the author shows that contracts negotiated by local teachers' unions and district administrations allow for more flexibility than conventional views suggest. CBAs (collective bargaining agreements) are quite varied in their contents, and many school boards and unions have used the flexibility inherent in contract negotiations…

Addresses the question of what to do when an organization has an agency shop. Introduces two articles that present, respectively, the views of management and of unions on the subject of agency shop. (MD)

Summarizes problems facing public-sector labor organizations in charging and collecting fair share fees for services rendered to nonmembers. (MD)

Reviews public-sector employers' problems with agency shop agreements from a management perspective. Emphasizes preventative approaches. In negotiating agency fee obligations, employers must anticipate constitutional and labor relations issues. (MD)

Analyzes the history and consequences of the "Enmons" decision, which held that union violence, if carried out in furtherance of a legitimate collective bargaining objective, does not violate the extortion and robbery provisions of the federal anti-Racketeering Act of 1934 as amended in 1946 by the Hobbs Act. (MLF)

This guide for state policymakers examines teacher involvement in charter school governance. Teacher involvement is defined to include the gamut of decision-making roles not typically afforded teachers in traditional public schools, including founding schools, serving on governing boards, and engaging in site-based collective bargaining. Different…

Offers guidelines for school districts interested in using win-win negotiation in which both sides come away as winners through a collaborative, problem-solving process. Both sides set the ground rules for successful negotiating. (MLF)

Negotiations through problem solving succeeds because everyone participates and feels good about the process and the product. Lists a step-by-step approach along with tips for arriving at resolutions if the talks falter. (MLF)

In this introduction to three articles on collective bargaining the author outlines concerns and questions about the proposition of public referendum as a means of resolving negotiation impasses. (MD)

Recent criticism of education is causing pressure for major educational reform. Change involves significant labor relations implications for both management and unions. Collective bargaining can help if its process and use are understood. (MD)