When schoolchildren start paying union dues, that’s when I’ll start representing the interests of school children.
— Albert Shanker, former president of the United Federation of Teachers

I wrote about this before, how the truth is that CTU, WEAC, and all other teacher’s unions have a fiduciary duty to the union members.  The union cannot do anything which would advance the interests of non-members (i.e. children) to the detriment of the members (i.e. teachers.)

This is a very simple legal principle that most educated people easily understand.

Of course there’s the greater philosophical discussion that should take place as to whether of not unions of government employees are to anyone’s benefit.

The process of collective bargaining, as usually understood, cannot be transplanted into the public service.
— F.D. Roosevelt, in 1937 to the National Federation of Federal Employees

The idea being that when private sector employees collectively bargain they can overplay their hand only to their own detriment as well and to the detriment of their employer.  Another company will be the beneficiary of the higher wages (and cost of goods/services) of the first.  This is not true in government where there is no competition.

Anyone seeking more and more from the public coffers should be considered with extreme skepticism.