In its biggest election triumph since the United Federation of Teachers won bargaining rights for New York City teachers nearly 40 years ago, the AFT scored a resounding victory in November by winning exclusive representation rights for more than 37,000 teachers and education professionals in Puerto Rico.

In an election where the victors had to gain enough votes to total a majority of the entire unit (not just a majority of those who voted), the AFT-affiliated Federacion de Maestros de Puerto Rico (FMPR) received 22,156 votes--or 73 percent--to 8,024 for the island's National Education Association affiliate. Turnout was a remarkable 85 percent.

"We're very happy with the result," says federacion president Renan Soto Soto. "It has been a lot of hard work and a lot of sleepless nights, but I'm happy to see the support that the federacion got from the teachers. They realize the importance of being able, for the first time, to bargain collectively and be represented by a strong union."

Salaries, working conditions and involvement in decisions that affect their jobs were key issues for Puerto Rican teachers. Salaries there--which start at $18,000 and average $23,000--are lower than in Mississippi, but the cost of living is comparable to New York City, says Nancy Morales, the AFT national representative who coordinated the campaign. Teachers were also concerned about large class sizes, a lack of books and other supplies, security in schools, the poor conditions of buildings--familiar frustrations to many of their counterparts in mainland urban districts.

In addition, Puerto Rican education officials have a history of imposing education reform from above without consulting with the educators in schools--something the FMPR is looking forward to changing. "By teachers having a direct voice for the first time," Soto Soto says, "we can have real education reform rather than what's happening now. We will be able to negotiate a contract to represent teachers' issues and change the education system," which will ultimately benefit the students.

"Collective bargaining will enable teachers to press for a more rigorous curriculum, better teacher training, safe and modern school facilities, and adequate supplies for students," says AFT president Sandra Feldman.

Teachers showed great determination in getting to the polls in such large numbers, not only in the vote to choose a bargaining agent but also last May, when they voted overwhelmingly to endorse collective bargaining. With only one polling site per school district, many teachers had to travel up to an hour to distant polling sites and wait in long lines in unseasonably warm weather to cast their ballots. The island, which is the size of Connecticut, includes virtually every kind of geography--from big cities to rural areas to mountains--often connected by dirt roads.

The campaign received widespread support from AFT affiliates as well as assistance from organizers from other AFL-CIO unions. Spanish-speaking teachers, retirees and union staff came from AFT affiliates in Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, New York, Pennsylvania, Texas and the Virgin Islands. As AFT organizing director Phil Kugler points out, many AFT locals include a lot of teachers from Puerto Rico and their schools enroll many Puerto Rican students, so there are strong connections to the island. ÒA lot of our members have a very keen interest in the quality of education there," he said, noting that some teachers took a semester off to help with the campaign. "This is truly a team effort in support of teachers and other employees in Puerto Rico."

Once the election results are certified, the FMPR should enjoy a big boost in membership over its already impressive numbers. All educators in the unit will automatically become members unless they individually opt out in writing within 30 days. Under the law, the union will start bargaining with the education department some time in January.

Merged AFT-NEA local wins in Texas

The merger of the AFT's Austin, Tex., local with its NEA counterpart has lifted the spirits of school employees in the Texas state capital. It also has been credited with setting the stage for Education Austin's successful bid to win exclusive consultation rights in October for the district's 9,500 teachers and classified employees.

This summer, members of the AFT-affiliated Austin Federation of Teachers/Allied Education Workers and those of the NEA's Austin Association of Teachers voted to merge and form Education Austin. "Teachers and school support staff in Austin wanted a strong, united organization, and we've given them that in Education Austin," says Julie Bowman, who served as co-president of the AFT affiliate.

Each local's decision to merge stemmed from the spirit of cooperation that came out of the merger talks at the national level, Bowman says. "We began working on small projects together and saw how much more effective we were when we worked together. That made us realize that we should probably be doing everything together."

Now co-president of Education Austin, along with Louis Malfaro and Brenda Urps, Bowman says the most challenging aspect of the merger was "getting beyond the myths and stereotypes that each organization had about the other" and putting together a governance structure that would ensure that the merged union's various constituencies had a voice in its decision making.

Merger was just the first step in strengthening the voice of Austin school employees, however. The second step was winning exclusive consultation rights, which the newly formed Education Austin did on October 28, beating a "cheap dues" independent organization that opposes collective bargaining and is dominated by administrators.

Bowman says that school employees looked at the reputations of each organization in deciding whom they wanted to represent them in talks with the school district. "Together the AFT and NEA affiliates had a strong record of advocacy on behalf of teachers and classified school employees." During the past year, the two unions successfully lobbied the state legislature and the school board for substantial pay raises for Austin teachers and classified employees.

The unity theme was key in winning the consultation election, says Bowman, a member of the AFT's PSRP program and policy council. The new local had a huge jump in membership--close to 1,000 new members--following the vote to unify, says Bowman.

The Austin merger marked the second time in less than a year that an AFT and NEA affiliate officially merged. In October 1998, the AFT executive council approved the merger of AFT and NEA state affiliates in Minnesota. Eight years in the making, the formation of Education Minnesota established a unified voice for 65,000 educators in school districts across the state.