Framing the debate over teacher unions

The power of teacher unions in the U.S. has waned since the 2010 mid-term elections. The convergence of business conservatism and teacher accountability ideologies has led to an intense targeting of public teacher unions as a problem, both economically and educationally. Using the target audience framework of Schneider and Ingram (1993), I break down the framing used in the present anti-union movement and explore a local example of anti-union legislation in Pennsylvania. The analysis reveals a socially constructed dichotomy in which victimized children are pitted against greedy teachers. To stem this wave of anti-unionism, teacher unions must recognize their position as public contenders and rearticulate their message using child-first rhetoric.