Unions

Read more about labor groups that organize teachers and other educators around workplace issues and negotiate contracts with districts
The Los Angeles Unified School District, LAUSD headquarters building is seen in Los Angeles, Sept. 9, 2021. The 1776 Project Foundation targeted in its lawsuit on Tuesday a Los Angeles Unified School District policy that provides smaller class sizes and other benefits to schools with predominantly Hispanic, Black, Asian or other non-white students. It dates back to 1970 and 1976 court orders that required the district to desegregate its schools.
The Los Angeles Unified School District headquarters building is seen in Los Angeles, on Sept. 9, 2021. The Los Angeles County Office of Education is warning that the district could be insolvent next year.
Damian Dovarganes/AP
School & District Management L.A. Unified School District Faces ‘Severe’ Signs of Insolvency
The Los Angeles Unified School District faces “severe” indications that it will be insolvent by November 2027.
Jaweed Kaleem, Howard Blume, and Kori McNair, Los Angeles Times, July 10, 2026
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5 min read
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Newly elected NEA President Princess Moss, photographed during the union's convention in Denver on July 6, 2026. Moss said she wants the union to improve its organizing capabilities.
Mark Makela for Education Week
Teaching Profession Q&A 'Organize, Organize, Organize': New NEA President Sees the Value in Everyday Engagement
The incoming leader of the nation's largest teachers' union focuses on engagement.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 7, 2026
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4 min read
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NEA staff and members are pictured on on stage during the union's Representative Assembly in Denver on July 6, 2026. Delegates have approved several new items related to AI and immigration.
Mark Makela for Education Week
Teaching Profession Teachers' Union Approves New Fund to Help Immigrant Teachers
It's aimed at teachers who came to the country before 2007 under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 6, 2026
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4 min read
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NEA President Becky Pringle is photographed backstage during the NEA Representative Assembly in Denver on July 5, 2026. 5,800 delegates from all over the country are participating in the four-day-long union convention.
Mark Makela for Education Week<br/>
Teaching Profession Q&A NEA's Outgoing President Reflects on a Turbulent Tenure—And the Need for 'Continuous Organizing'
The outgoing head of nation's largest teachers' union discusses how she's helped reposition it to respond to new challenges.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 5, 2026
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5 min read
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Princess Moss reacts after being announced as the new NEA President during the NEA Representative Assembly in Denver on July 5, 2026. The union's current vice president and a former elementary school music teacher, Moss will take the reins beginning in August. <br/>
Mark Makela for Education Week
Teaching Profession Music Teacher Princess Moss Will Lead the Nation's Largest Teachers' Union
Moss will steer the powerful National Education Association. She won just over 50 percent share of the vote.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 5, 2026
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2 min read
A look at the 2025 NEA Annual Meeting & Representative Assembly in Portland, Ore.
Thousands of educators turn out each year for the National Education Association's Representative Assembly; last year's, shown here in this July 3, 2025 photo, took place in Portland, Ore.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Teaching Profession Nation’s Largest Teachers’ Union Will Elect New Leader at Annual Confab
A primer to this year's nearly 7,000-delegate National Education Association Representative Assembly.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 1, 2026
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5 min read
BRIC ARCHIVE
K-12 teaching is among the most heavily unionized profession, but unions aren't monolithic—their strength is shaped by a multitude of factors. Teachers in Portland, Oregon gather to press the state legislature for more funding on April 10, 2019
Mark Graves/The Oregonian via AP
Teaching Profession How Powerful Are Teachers’ Unions? It Depends on the State
Teachers unions face challengers for policy influence as new state-level organizations emerge, adding additional voices to education debates.
Evie Blad, May 27, 2026
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5 min read
Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, calls for a ban on screens and limited artificial intelligence use in schools at the National Press Club in Washington, on May 27, 2026.
Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, calls for a ban on screens and limited artificial intelligence use in schools during a news conference at the National Press Club in Washington, on May 27, 2026.
Marvin Joseph/Education Week
Artificial Intelligence Teachers' Union's AI Plan Seeks 'Big Tech Tax,' Elementary Screen Bans
The American Federation of Teachers launches push to limit AI-based tools for students.
Sarah D. Sparks, May 27, 2026
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4 min read
Randi Weingarten speaks at a press conference at Murrell Dobbins Career & Technical Education High School in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 2, 2025.
Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, speaks at a press conference in Philadelphia on Sept. 2, 2025. Weingarten says that cuts to federal education funds by the Trump administration "are only hurting young people."
Rachel Wisniewski for Education Week
Education Funding ‘Terminated on a Whim’: The AFT Sues Trump’s Ed. Dept. Over Funding Cuts
The AFT and a Chicago-area nonprofit argue the cuts happened without following required procedures.
Lauraine Langreo & Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, December 30, 2025
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4 min read
Illustration of 2 hands cutting paper dolls with scissors, representing staffing layoffs.
iStock/Getty
Law & Courts Judge Halts Trump Admin.'s Layoffs at Ed. Dept. and Other Agencies
More than 400 workers at the diminished agency had been told their last day would be Dec. 9.
Brooke Schultz, October 15, 2025
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5 min read
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Ed-Tech Policy AI Is Changing Teaching, But Few Labor Contracts Reflect It
Classroom educators are using artificial intelligence to help with their work, yet union agreements have not caught up.
Sarah D. Sparks, August 26, 2025
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7 min read
Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, speaks during the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 22, 2024, in Chicago.
Randi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers, speaks during the 2024 Democratic National Convention in Chicago. She resigned from the DNC this summer over its need to broaden its focus, and urged teachers' unions to reach out to educators with diverse views.
J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Teaching Profession Q&A AFT’s Randi Weingarten on Kids' Screen Time, AI, and Engaging Conservatives
The head of the American Federation of Teachers discusses political and technological challenges for teachers.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 28, 2025
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5 min read
National Education Association President Becky Pringle delivers a keynote address at the NEA Representative Assembly in Portland, Ore., on July 3, 2025.
National Education Association President Becky Pringle delivers a keynote address at the NEA Representative Assembly in Portland, Ore., on July 3, 2025. Antisemiitism and the Gaza War were topics of debate at the convention.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Teaching Profession Teachers' Union Backs Away From Anti-Defamation League Boycott
The National Education Association faced public criticism for delegates' vote to exclude the organization's resources.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 21, 2025
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2 min read
Scenes from the National Education Association Representative Assembly on July 3, 2025, in Portland, Ore.
Scenes from the National Education Association Representative Assembly on July 3, 2025, in Portland, Ore. GOP lawmakers have ramped up attacks on the nearly 3 million member union.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Teaching Profession GOP Renews Push to Revoke Federal Charter for Nation's Largest Teachers' Union
Lawmakers announce repeal bill amid conservative protests against National Education Association.
Sarah D. Sparks, July 16, 2025
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5 min read