With the June 2018 Supreme Court 5-4 decision on Janus v. AFSCME ending “fair share” revenues, many locals were prepared to lose members, and organized to stop that.
“Some people will find it attractive to save a few hundred bucks, so we have to develop a new culture of unionism and union activism,” Community College Council President Jim Mahler told the delegates, encouraging them to greet new workers on campus. “We say, ‘Hi, here’s where the copy machine is, here’s the bathroom, and here’s the union card.’ We’ve got to be membership driven.”
Because of these efforts, the losses from Janus have not been devastating, said CFT Secretary Treasurer Jeff Freitas.
Freitas first recognized the locals who organized to grow their membership by a significant percentage.
- Solvang Federation of Teachers increased membership by a whopping 124 percent.
- Antelope Valley College Federation of Classified Employees by 26 percent,
- Ventura County Federation of Pareducators increased by 23 percent.
Bigger unions that were able to get large numbers of new members by organizing were also recognized.
- Los Angeles College Faculty Guild with 487 new members
- UC AFT with 305 new members
- El Camino Federation of Teachers with 123 new members