Did Janus Embolden Teachers' Unions?

In 2018, the Supreme Court issued a ruling in Janus vs AFSCME, effectively creating "right to work" rules for every public sector union in the country. Pundits called this the death knell of government unions. Workers now are not compelled to pay dues to the union that represents them in bargaining with states and municipalities. If you don't HAVE to pay, the thought was, why would you?

Brad Mariano thought otherwise. The UNLV assistant professor in education policy and leadership, thought this was an opportunity for unions to grow stronger and attract more members. He and his colleague, Katherine Strunk from Michigan State, co-authored a piece that appeared in The Conversation arguing that the current Chicago teachers' strike represents the new union bargaining power.

Teachers in Chicago were offered an 16% raise. For someone making $50,000, that's a $8,000 more per year. But teachers rejected it, choosing to walk the picket line for smaller class sizes and hiring more school counselors and nurses and social workers. This was the same strategy that was employed last year in Oakland and Los Angeles. Mariano says it makes perfect sense: all of the CTU demands will result in more jobs, and more jobs means more potential union members.

Carrie Kaufman talks to Mariano about the Chicago strike, the future of unions, and the relative strengths and weaknesses of the teachers unions in Nevada.