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Don’t deprofessionalize our jobs! Respect those who teach and heal our students and our communities.
On Nov. 6, the Department of Education proposed a new framework of professional degree programs—one that strips advanced degrees for nurses, physician assistants, physical therapists, audiologists, architects, accountants, educators and social workers of their “professional” status within the department. This change could sharply limit access to available public, federal student loans. We must respect the healthcare professionals, higher ed faculty and public employees who teach and heal our communities.
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AFT Actions
Congress has failed to extend the Affordable Care Act tax credits, but with time running out this year, lawmakers are scheduling one more vote on making healthcare more affordable as early as Thursday, December 11. Your federal lawmakers need to hear from you.
On March 27, Trump signed an executive order stripping collective bargaining rights from hundreds of thousands of federal workers. The bipartisan Protect America’s Workforce Act would nullify Trump’s executive order and restore union rights for impacted federal workers. Urge your member of Congress to cosponsor the Protect America’s Workforce Act and pass it without delay.
If passed, the Paraprofessionals and Education Support Staff Bill of Rights would lift up the need for living wages, safe working conditions, respect and dignity. Our schools would not function without the work of school support professionals. It’s time to protect these workers, pay them a living wage, press for real solutions for staffing shortages, and provide our public institutions with a workforce our kids and communities need. Tell your lawmakers to pass it now.
The Trump administration’s plan to gut federal support for public schools and give tax cuts to billionaires at the expense of loans for students to make college affordable and health care services for those who need it the most (including disabled children) sends a terrible, symbolic message.
It appears Musk has hacked into millions of Americans’ personal information and now has access to their taxes, Social Security, student debt and financial aid filings. Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency was not created by Congress—it is operating with zero transparency and in clear violation of federal law. This is outrageous, and it must be stopped. Click "start writing" below to Congress and the Trump administration to stop Musk from stealing our personal information.
During his campaign, Donald Trump promised to stand with working people and tackle the challenges they face. He vowed to make housing more affordable, lower grocery prices—especially for basic staples like eggs—and reduce the overall cost of living.
But since taking office, Trump has failed to deliver on these promises.
Department of Homeland Security’s rescission of the protected areas and sensitive locations memo allowing immigration enforcement actions in schools, college campuses, hospitals, and places of worship is causing concern among our members and broader community. Members of Congress—regardless of party—should urge President Trump to end this terrible anxiety and cruelty by reinstating the protection of schools, hospitals and churches against ICE.
In Congress, Trump’s allies are trying to sneak a new voucher program into a bill about taxes. But this “tuition tax credit” is nothing more than a national voucher program that also allows people like Elon Musk and Betsy DeVos to turn a profit, personally earning millions of dollars from the scheme, while our public schools, which 90 percent of all students attend, are underfunded and undermined.