re: Who here is in a union? Do you feel it helps or hurts?

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Has any OTers ever actually benefited from being a union member?

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Yes. I wouldn't work in education without one. Especially with the insanely frivolous lawsuits that parents will try to file or the school districts who will try to throw you under the bus to cover their own asses. I was saved a lot of money in a suit a parent filed over her child having "severe neurological damage" due to a piece of pencil graphite that got stuck in the palm of his hand at the end of the school day. She filed suit because we didn't remove it (the district policy is you don't due to liability issues from another parent lawsuit). We attempted to contact her multiple times by phone but all of her numbers were either disconnected or went straight to voicemail. So we put a bandage over it, sent him home with a note to the parent, and put him on the bus. She filed suit and called CPS claiming neglect. My union represented me (and the teacher's union represented the teacher involved) and the case was quickly dismissed. My union dues paid for my representation.

My union also was created due to the lack of paid sick leave, lack of medical benefits for non-teaching employees. We didn't have those pre-union.