An Inquiry into Legal Status of Teachers under Labor Laws in the United States

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The purpose of this research project is to clarify (1) the history of teacher unions' activity under the labor laws for public school teachers (2) and recent legislative reforms of the labor laws after 1990s.(1) At the first year, the project focused on the states labor laws for public school teachers, which strongly affected to the subsequent activities of teacher unions. Under the new legislative frameworks established in 1960s, teacher unions made their organizations more like industrial labor unions whose policy focusing on collective bargaining and strikes.(2) At the second year of the project, reporter focused on recent legislative reforms of labor laws in 1990s through the analysis on the amendment of the Michigan Public Employment Relations Act (PERA). Through the findings of the project, reporter pointed out that the particular legislative frameworks for teachers are needed to secure their professional work lives and to convert teacher union into professional organization taking responsibility for both teachers' rights and public education.