Americans for Fair Treatment v. Philadelphia Federation of Teachers
CASE SUMMARY
The Fairness Center represented Americans for Fair Treatment in a suit challenging “union work on school time”—Philadelphia Federation of Teachers’s (“PFT’s”) longstanding practice of taking school teachers and other school employees out of Philadelphia’s schools to perform full-time work for PFT.
The School District of Philadelphia (“District”) and PFT agreed, in their collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”), that the District must allow its employees to be “elected or appointed to full-time positions” with PFT and placed on “leaves of absences” by the District while holding those full-time PFT positions. Under the terms of the CBA, these employees continue to receive a District salary, retain District-provided insurance and benefits, accrue seniority as if they were employed by the District, and receive credit toward their pensions. PFT was not required under the CBA to reimburse the District for its expenses.
Currently, up to 63 District employees may perform union work on school time, and most of those employees working for PFT have been out of the classroom for at least 15 years.
Surprisingly, these full-time union work arrangements, sometimes called “release time” or “official time” provisions, are not uncommon among public-sector CBAs. Public employees on leave are used to staff public-sector union offices, to lobby for unions’ political causes and candidates, and to promote union membership at the workplace. But just because these arrangements are common does not mean that they are legal. The Fairness Center filed suit to expose Philadelphia’s union leave practices and to have this CBA provision declared illegal under Pennsylvania law.
Americans for Fair Treatment v. Philadelphia Federation of Teachers and School District of Philadelphia
In November 2016, the Commonwealth Court of Pennsylvania dismissed the case due to lack of standing.
Pennsylvania Bill Seeks to Amend Union Leave Regulations
June 14, 2016 |
Wolf plans to veto bill that would end ‘last in, last out’ for teacher layoffs
May 11, 2016 |
Philly Pays $1.5 Million to “Ghost Teachers”
April 28, 2016 |
Should Teachers Be Allowed to Ditch Their Classrooms to Work For the Union?
October 23, 2015 |
PA Republicans Fight ‘Ghost Teachers’ This Halloween
October 21, 2015 |
Philly Ghost Teachers Made More Than $1.7M Last Year
April 22, 2015 |
Letters: “Ghost teachers” haunt & cost us
April 21, 2015 |
Suit: teachers union officials are ‘ghost employees’
February 27, 2015 |
Lawsuit filed against Phila. school district and teachers’ union
February 26, 2015 |
Lawsuit Aims to End Schools Paying Teachers to Do Union Work in Philadelphia
February 25, 2015 |
Press Releases
PFT ‘Ghost Teachers’ Do Union Work on School Time
September 9, 2015
Will Court Ruling Bust Philadelphia Ghost Teachers?
September 9, 2015
‘Ghost Teachers’ to Continue Haunting Philadelphia Schools
November 22, 2016
Court Documents
Appellant’s Initial Brief
January 11, 2016
Appellant’s Reply Brief
February 18, 2016
Amended Complaint
March 1, 2016
Opinion
November 22, 2016