Throughout the pandemic, we were abandoned by our leaders and left to fend for ourselves. We were overworked in the before-times but with the pandemic, our workload and stress levels hit new highs.
Teachers are resilient and so we adapted. We supported each other. But our leaders did not support us. Instead of amplifying the activities that were working like virtual communities, our leaders told us to cease-and-desist, put our trust in yet another strongly worded letter, or wear red. They had no plan or clear strategy to make our lives better.
And while our leaders watched from the sidelines, launching only one major campaign in two years, our health was jeopardized; we lost guidance counsellors, central staff were reassigned, jobs were unfilled, preps lost, and many were forced into teaching hybrid.
Only a strong, unified union that has the interests of its members FIRST can change the quality of our working conditions. It starts with a plan for on-the-ground organizing, school-by-school, member-by-member. It looks like a union that doesn’t stand in the way of its members but brings the best forward. We can’t endure mediocrity anymore.