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Senate Bill 78 is part of a national push by billionaire-funded think tanks to make the unionization process needlessly complicated and to suppress union membership. If passed, the legislation would put administration in charge of the membership process for the first time in Florida’s history and prevent union members from automatically renewing their membership, endangering your union protection.

Leadership in the Florida Senate is pushing this union-busting legislation in the middle of a pandemic. This legislation not only sets a dangerous precedent, but it is also an insult to the working people keeping Florida functioning (like educators and first responders, who oppose this move).

Call your senator and tell them to vote no on SB 78. (Simple “I oppose Senate bill 78” messages are the most effective.)
Click here to look up your state senator.

Sign -up for this virtual event, hosted by NEA, Jan 28 @ 6pm:

https://www.mobilize.us/nea/event/373215/?utm_source=NEAHE

The first FUSA meeting of the Spring 2021 semester will take place virtually on Friday Jan 22nd at 9am. Details and Zoom link to follow via email.

From Andrew Spar, President of the Florida Education Association (FEA):

We need your help. We need members who have some time to volunteer for one of our days of action in which we will call friendly union members to remind them to vote. This is all done virtually, so members can call from the comfort of their own home. All anyone has to do is sign up and we will contact them.

Click here to sign up: https://forms.gle/5huacvPnhnXjUjUHA

For more information on the FEA, NEA or AFT days of action, visit:

• https://feaweb.org/member-center/voter-toolkit/
• https://educationvotes.nea.org/
• https://www.aftvotes.org/

Being a member of FUSA means you are a member of United Faculty of Florida (UFF). See how you can contribute to the UFF-PAC by clicking on the link or the image below.

Click to View/Download the infographic

For those interested, Florida Education Association has published a helpful Voter Toolkit that includes resources and information to assist you in the voting process such as registration information, key dates, planning your vote, and a voting guide with FEA endorsements. Also included are links to affiliates NEA and AFT as well as a Vote-by -mail Q&A.

Voter Toolkit

It goes without saying that the 2020 election is critical for not just the nation but for Florida and for education. To quote Becky Pringle, President of the National Education Association (NEA), speaking at the United Faculty of Florida (UFF) virtual Senate meeting this week:

“We need a new president. We need a new president. And elections run through Florida. I need you to step up in this moment and be the strong voices that you are. Social Justice is on the ballot.” And with regard to education, “All that Betsy DeVos has done to education is on the ballot…I have talked to Biden and Harris both. They are committed to our public schools and higher education…I’m asking you to show up in this election and to bring people with you. We can not have four more years of Betsy DeVos. Our students are depending on us to be worthy of them and I know that we are.”

In addition to voting for candidates that support public and higher education, UFF urgently needs funding to continue the fight by lobbying and supporting Florida politicians that support our educational interests. The recent primary season really drained the UFF-PAC fund. UFF is asking for your contributions. Here is how you can contribute:

• One time contribution to the UFF-PAC
• Recurring contributions to the UFF-PAC
• HCC Payroll deduction
• Pay by Check / mail (address in link below)

Read more information on the UFF-PAC and how your contributions are put into action!

You can now follow United Faculty of Florida (UFF), of which FUSA is a local chapter, on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/UnitedFacultyofFlorida/.

The new UFF website is located here: https://www.unitedfacultyofflorida.org/.