State senators dealt a blow to unionized teachers in Idaho Wednesday morning after passing a last-minute bill restricting their operations.
The measure was thought to be dead for the year when a Senate committee declined to give it a hearing. But supporters hijacked a different bill on Monday and replaced it with something very similar to the version sitting in a desk drawer to leapfrog the committee.
The proposal would ban school districts from collecting union dues and letting members take paid leave to lobby the government, among other things.
Union members could participate in these activities using paid leave, but school districts would invoice them to recoup the costs.
Sen. Ben Toews (R-Coeur d’Alene) said teachers don’t need to be distracted while doing their primary job.
“Now more than ever we need our teachers directed and focused on teaching literacy, on making sure the next generation is competent in mathematics – not lobbying, not working on social issues,” Toews said.
Opponents of the bill said unionized teachers benefit the entire public education system through offering training and collective bargaining over contracts.
Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking (D-Boise), a retired public school teacher, said this bill unfairly punishes teachers in an anti-union state. That’s despite educators giving their lives to protect students across the country in recent years.
“Teachers have stood in the line of fire to shield your children and they would do it in a heartbeat because those kids in that classroom, they’re ours. They’re ours, too,” Ward-Engelking said.
That last statement has been rejected for years by Republican lawmakers who see parental rights as absolute.
“Children do not belong to teachers or a teachers union at any part of the day,” said Sen. Josh Kohl (R-Twin Falls).
The bill passed 20-14. House members still need to approve the changes before the matter could be sent to Gov. Brad Little.
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