The Wilkinsburg (Pennsylvania) School Board's decision to hire Alternative Public Schools, a private company, to manage a failing elementary school has alienated the teacher union and many town residents. If teachers lose their court challenge, Turner School will become the only U.S. public school to be both privately staffed and managed. (MLH)

Both sides claimed victory when a deeply divided Supreme Court ruled in a case that had been expected to determine how college faculty's union fees should be allocated among national unions and local affiliates for activities related to or not related to collective bargaining. (MSE)

Business, labor, and education representatives from Canada and the United States exchanged positions on workplace literacy. Discussed were the need for a consumers' guide to workplace literacy, labor's stake in literacy, educators' negotiations with businesses in providing services, and program evaluation. (JOW)

Data from two surveys of manufacturers (325 of 650 responded) suggest that those with quality improvement programs jointly administered by labor and management achieve significantly greater improvements than those with no programs. Those with programs administered solely by management fared no better than those with no programs. (Author/SK)

Compared to the United States, German employers make more systematic, long-term investments in worker training, especially through the cooperation of industry associations that pool training costs and benefits. Encouraging U.S. firms to participate in shared training requires sustained government support. (SK)

Presents an interview with the chairperson of a regional committee of the Soviet teachers' trade union. Includes comments on the role of the trade union during perestroika, the development of union independence from the government, and an experimental program replacing some city committees with councils of trade union committee chairpersons. (DK)

Trade unions closely monitor the impact of structural adjustment programs on employment and the industrial relations system, particularly as they affect wages, collective bargaining, and the exercise of union rights. (JOW)

In "Lehnert v. Ferris Faculty Association" the Supreme Court agreed that local unions can charge nonmembers for some parent-organization expenses not directly related to bargaining. Contends that the decision weakens the academic freedom for college and university faculty members who do not wish to voluntarily support union activity. (21…

Data suggest that it is premature to conclude that management has succeeded in appropriating workers' knowledge, accountability, and responsibility for work. The labor market has become fluid and dynamic and no longer conforms to the traditional construct of an internal labor market. A refinement of labor process theory is in order. (JOW)

An effective campaign to recruit members to student organizations must use contemporary marketing strategies. Market positioning involves understanding the prospect's thinking, simplifying the message being conveyed, being first in the prospect's mind, and finding a market niche. The organization should be treated as a product, the potential…

Besides endorsing a children's bill of rights, teachers at this year's annual National Education Association meeting urged a moratorium on most standardized testing, opposed a federally mandated national test, urged teacher study programs to include courses promoting multicultural education, agreed to a many-sided analysis of Christopher…

Participants at this year's biennial meeting of the American Federation of Teachers deviated from the conference's quality education standards theme to trounce President Bush's America 2000 plan advocating private school choice. According to AFT president Albert Shanker, private school students perform no better than their public school…

Reports on action research project conducted by major labor union and university department of social work to assist dislocated workers. Notes that partnership of union-trained peer counselors and social work faculty and students combined research study with providing direct service to displaced workers, assisting in organizing project, and…

Advises school superintendents who sit at the negotiating table to develop personal detachment and remain quiet if the session is open to the public. Quotes several collective bargaining experts who say school boards are courting disaster if they allow superintendents to negotiate with teacher unions. (MLF)

The rapid technological changes and competitive pressure of Western economies are breathing new life into efforts to establish partnerships between workers and management. A lower union membership rate, less government regulation, and outmoded legislation may hinder such arrangements to a greater extent in the United States than in Europe. (Author)