In our last issue we ran comments by educators from Oakland and Berkeley criticizing union meetings on Zoom. We received several local reports and a comment in favor of continuing  Zoom meetings.

BFT  We had a discussion in our Berkeley Federation of Teachers Executive Board about moving our meetings to in-person.  I was especially in favor because BFT meetings also have closed chat to only the president and VP.  People’s arguments for keeping the meetings online were for convenience only.  We have meetings only once per month, so I don’t think the convenience argument is very good.  I think we are much better reps and better organized if we are in person.  I always think these things are probably by design – keep us disorganized and it’s better for the top.

Emily Gilden (she/her)

UTR We voted at United Teachers of Richmond Rep Council to continue doing Rep Council via Zoom. What’s good  is that the executive board members and Rep Council members decided democratically what their preferred solution would be. Many points were brought up by people commuting from Marin County, Solano County and further east in Contra Costa County who said they wouldn’t be able to attend if it’s in person because they’d have to rush home and wouldn’t make it. Also, people mentioned child care concerns and the price of gas for those who would have to spend a lot of time in traffic going to the Rep Council meeting. Parking issues were also mentioned. It was often hard to find parking when Rep Council was back in person. The idea that you lose a personal feeling and networking opportunities from Zoom is also true.

The proposal we voted on at Rep Council was to do Rep Council on Zoom except for 3 (or 4?) in person meetings this year. This was amended to say those 3-4 in person meetings would be social events (so people can have the in person interaction to network and organize) but that all Rep Council meetings this year would be on Zoom. This narrowly passed. It was very close; just a few votes difference. 

MDEA Last year, the Mt Diablo Educators Association conducted all of its site rep meetings remotely. This year the plan is that half of site rep meetings will be conducted remotely and the other half will be conducted in person (alternating by month). So far we’ve had two meetings in person and one remotely. The two in person were better attended than the remote meeting and there was more discussion. Remote meetings are more convenient to attend, but in-person meetings are better meetings.  

  Aaron Hackett

The Pandemic Isn’t Over

I understand all the arguments mentioned in favor of in-person union meetings and agree with the problems which can be presented by the format. However, I’d also like to offer a counter to the conclusion that in-person meetings are best. These problems of a lack of democratic practices are structural issues in many unions and did not start with Covid-19 and Zoom meetings. Meetings in person or on Zoom can be anti-democratic or democratic. Union leaderships need to be held accountable to run democratic unions regardless of format. If Covid ever leaves us, these structural problems may still be around and still need to be dealt with. 

To consider the question of in-person vs. Zoom meetings, I think we need to put things into context and remember why we started meeting on Zoom in the first place. Our Zoom meetings are the last vestige of institutions caring even slightly about Covid and trying to prevent the spread of this virus. Covid-19 was a leading cause of death in 2020, 2021 and also this trend looks to be continuing into 2022. We’ve had over 8k Covid deaths in October. The lack of action to mitigate Covid-19 has been a war on the working class and communities of color. America’s Covid policy at this point is literally “as long as our hospitals and morgues aren’t overflowing, who cares”. 

Where are the air quality standards for all workplaces? Why haven’t all workplaces, especially public schools, had upgraded HVAC filtration and air purification systems put into place? Why isn’t that a central goal of our unions and progressives in general? None of what is going on in our country, states, cities and schools is inevitable, normal or acceptable. 

There’s many people who haven’t gotten Covid yet through common sense actions like wearing masks indoors and doing as many meetings as possible on Zoom. Not only is it safer but it’s more convenient for working people, for parents, for commuters and anyone who is busy in general. It’s also cheaper on gas money and it removes the stress of trying to find a parking spot at a crowded meeting. I hope that anyone who advocates for in-person meetings would also advocate that those meetings require masks. We all have the right and the reasonable expectation to attend work and union functions without worrying about getting sick with a virus which we have no idea of the long term consequences of even mild cases. 

I’m confident educators can handle Zoom meetings, even if they miss in-person interaction, or in-person meetings with a piece of fabric on their face for a few hours. Many of us are craving in-person social/networking opportunities. There’s plenty of opportunities for in-person social events or even the chance to figure out how to do hybrid meetings. As Bernie Sanders said it’s about “Not me, us”. 

Member of United Teachers of Richmond (UTR)