Texas AFT Member Survey Results Working Conditions, Funding Fights in Legislative Session

On the eve of the 89th legislative session, Texas AFT released the results of our most recent member survey on Monday. As has been the case for the past three years, an overwhelming majority of our K-12 and higher education members report they have considered leaving the profession and harbor deep concerns about the threat of private school vouchers to their classrooms.

After a tumultuous year for public education, Texas AFT returns to the Texas Capitol with a list of demands for lawmakers, developed by our members and reinforced by this year's survey results.

Last session, Gov. Greg Abbott's ill-fated push for vouchers sacrificed long overdue school funding increases. School districts that had counted on the state to make them whole now found their budgets in dire straits, forcing mass layoffs and campus closures across the state. Stagnant pay, poor working conditions, and ever-growing workloads have led to widespread burnout, with many educators wondering if they should leave the profession altogether.

The Texas Legislature can't fix what's broken unless lawmakers are willing to listen and understand what teachers and support staff experience every single day in the classroom. That's why Texas AFT asked our members what they need right now and then, together, we built our Educator's Bill of Rights agenda around it.

"Lawmakers from both parties made plenty of promises to educators on the campaign trail - promises we now expect them to keep. Governor Abbott's voucher brinkmanship left billions of dollars languishing in the state coffers while districts laid off staff and closed beloved campuses. It's hardly exaggerating to say that Texas educators and their public schools cannot survive another two years of starvation by the state," said Zeph Capo, president of Texas AFT. "As we begin another legislative session with a multi-billion dollar budget surplus, Texas educators expect lawmakers to put their money where their mouths are and invest in public schools, in educators, and in the students we serve. Texas AFT is coming into this session ready to work with anyone who is serious about supporting public schools."

Texas AFT member Tara Day-Aleman, a special education teacher, discusses why she's considered leaving the profession.

Key Takeaways from K-12 Members

• 68% percent of K-12 educators surveyed said they have considered leaving their job in the last year, and 77% have experienced burnout.When asked what would make them stay, top responses included pay increases (52.9%), changes to workload and duties (23.4%), and more support from campus and district administrators (7.7%).
• 80% of K-12 educators surveyed are concerned about the negative impacts of charter schools and private school vouchers on their public school. Most educators share these concerns across all partisan backgrounds, with 90% of Democratic educators, 88% of Independent educators, and 60% of Republican educators voicing concerns about privatization.
• On school safety, educators are most worried about large class sizes that make classroom management impossible (71%), a lack of resources to treat student mental health concerns (53%), and understaffing in special education classrooms (44%).
• As Texas moves forward with cutting $607 million in special education funds for students with disabilities, more than 1 in 4 special education teachers and paraprofessionals surveyed feel they are not at all able to effectively meet their students' needs given the current state of special education in Texas.

Key Takeaways from Higher Education Members

55% percent of higher education employees surveyed said they have considered leaving their job in the last year, and 56% have experienced burnout.When asked what would make them stay, top responses included pay increases (42.3%), greater voice in state policymaking decisions about higher education (15.8%), and more support from administrators (13.8%).

These results strongly reflect the actions of the 88^th Legislature in 2023, which passed Senate Bill 17, the state's so-called "DEI ban," and Senate Bill 18, which endangered tenure protections. We have seen the fallout from this attack on academic freedom and shared governance over the ensuing two years, with lost research funding, increased difficulty in recruiting and retaining faculty, and universities meddling in course content to over-comply with SB 17.

These issues are poised to ramp up once again in this legislative session, with Sen. Brandon Creighton (R-Conroe) announcing his intent to build on SB 17 and expand its interference in content and curriculum.

What Comes Next

These results made headlines this week, as they have done before. But we know the visibility of our concerns is not enough. The Legislature needs to act with substantive legislative to fully fund our schools - like Rep. John Bryant's HB 1257 - and improve the day-to-day working conditions of our school employees. The only way they'll do that is with consistent pressure from their constituents.

Can you commit to this shared fight for schools that thrive?

1. Sign on to the Educator's Bill of Rights and show your support for improvements for K-12 and higher education employees, as well as retired educators.
2. Find out who represents you and email, call, or request a meeting with their office to tell them why the Educator's Bill of Rights is so important to you.
3. Talk to your colleagues about the Educator's Bill of Rights. And if you want help with how to do that work, join us on Jan. 23 for Organizing Texas.
4. Stay up to date on education news from this Legislature with our livestreamed legislative updates. The next one is Feb. 6.

Click here to view a presentation on the 2024 Texas AFT membership survey results.

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