Educators across the state are exercising their rights, with 12,000 fewer public school employees sending dues or fees to teachers unions today than before the Janus v. AFSCME ruling.

More than 6.7% of employees represented by Illinois Federation of Teachers in Illinois are no longer paying dues or fees to the union.

Government workers’ union dues are passed on to state and national affiliates, which spend millions of dollars on political activities and lobbying every year.

SB 2838 was meant to aid school districts – and students – by providing a means for schools to recruit substitute teachers. But government union lobbying transformed it into a pro-union, pro-strike bill that hinders educational opportunities for students during teacher strikes.

Government unions claim providing workers with a choice whether to pay fees to a union will result in "free riders" - but that claim is disingenuous.

Government worker unions can use their members' dues in any number of ways. The most recent federal filings of one of Illinois' largest teachers unions reveal millions of dollars directed disproportionately to Chicago and to political causes with which their members may disagree.

In East Aurora, Illinois, the District 131 school board has approved a proposal to provide bus transportation for students, but the teachers union has balked at a quick implementation of the plan.

Unionized teachers in East Aurora demonstrate that unions are willing to put their own agendas above the wellbeing and education of students.