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Lawrence TU Group 100- 360

PreK-12 Teachers

More than 1 million members strong, the AFT's Public Education unit has become a major force for preserving and strengthening a national commitment to reclaiming the promise of American education. It all began more than 100 years ago: A group of Chicago teachers, reasoning that theirs was a noble profession, organized themselves to share resources and build respect for the invaluable work they were doing. Those early efforts led to the birth of a national teachers union in 1916 that has been in the vanguard of every major advancement in American public education ever since.

Berklee Group 1000 360

Higher Education

The AFT represents higher education faculty (including both full- and part-time), professional staff and graduate employees, in all sectors of higher education—public and private, two-year and four-year institutions of higher education. The AFT Higher Education division's mission is to help our affiliates and their members prosper in the face of political, economic and technological forces challenging the most basic assumptions about the union's role on campus.

MLSA 1000 360

Public Employees

As a union of professionals, AFT Public Employees division is committed to improving the quality of government services we provide to our communities. Reclaiming the promise of high-quality public services is about fighting for first-rate public services that our support communities and keep them safe, healthy and vibrant. It’s about fighting to ensure that our communities’ tax dollars are properly invested back into the community, and that those resources are used responsibly and safely. Finally, it’s fighting to make sure public employees are well-prepared and supported so they can provide our communities with the high-quality services the public needs and deserves.

NB PSRPs

Paraprofessionals & School-Related Personnel

The AFT has organized paraprofessionals and school-related personnel since the early 1930s, when the first PSRP affiliate, the Education Secretaries of Chicago, was founded. Today, the AFT PSRP division sets a foundation for high-quality education by supporting meaningful professional development, promoting health and safety in the workplace, and demonstrating the importance of a strong and just work ethic in a bully-free environment. Most important is its commitment to safe and welcoming schools and colleges for students who deserve high-quality food programs; reliable school buses; clean, secure buildings; efficiently run offices; and well-trained staff.

News from AFT Massachusetts and President Tang - October 2026

October 2026

Even during what is shaping up to be a very busy campaign season, AFT Massachusetts is all hands on deck for our locals and to ensure workers across the Commonwealth get the benefits, respect, and protections they deserve. We are excited to announce that we have some new AFT Massachusetts union siblings: employees at the Peabody Essex Museum are unionizing with AFT MA! Last week, Peabody Essex Museum Workers United delivered a petition to recognize their union to Acting Executive Director & CEO Kurt Steinberg, signed by a supermajority of staff. Over the last year, workers have built power through conversations with every single PEM staff person across multiple worksites and cities. We are proud to support PEM workers in their efforts to unionize for a stronger, fairer workplace. Click here to learn how you can support PEM Workers United!

We’re also maintaining our active presence on Beacon Hill—speaking with elected officials, staff, and policy leaders about key priorities that we must get over the finish line before next session. Those discussions continue to be fruitful, as we saw when the close-out budget passed by the House last week included $1 million we’ve been advocating for to support and expand our Community Schools (known in Boston as Hub Schools) throughout the state. This follows the announcement for Boston Mayor Wu at her State of Schools speech that BPS will be expanding Community Hub Schools to five more schools

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AFT Massachusetts Calls On Governor Healey to Protect Public Education

AFT Massachusetts logo with blue border

Whether you call it a voucher or a scholarship or a savings account, the result is the same—publicly-subsidized private schools. 

Funneling $50 billion in public funds each year to dole out scholarships for the few while waging a multi-step campaign against public schools is not about choice. Ninety percent of parents choose public schools, which serve students from all backgrounds and all abilities. The only ones with choice in this scheme are the private school admissions offices allowed to pick and choose who to admit and privately-run organizations allowed to choose where to send the money with very little oversight. 

“With states banned from implementing standards or guardrails to ensure public money supports students in need, participation is nothing more than an investment in accelerating segregation and widening opportunities gaps in education.

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