Thats completely untrue. You do not pay dues for an organization you dont join....unless Im missing something HUGE here.
But, once you decide to become a teacher and you sit back and watch the school boards shrink your salary, allow your classroom size grow to 35+ kids, make your pension disappear (which you contribute to each paycheck as a retirement source), impose higher medical benefits premiums, impose new testing standards which determine if you will come back the next year, and place you on the chopping block because tenure laws have changed......which is scary is you are a seasoned 20+ teacher at the top of your guide but the district wants to tighten up so they fire you and hire a fresh college grad at the bottom of the payscale.
That is what dues money goes towards. This system is 100% duplicatable for cops, firefighters, EMT, etc. If you dont wanna pony up, DONT COMPLAIN WHEN THESE THINGS HAPPEN TO YOU!
Its a no-brainer, an incredible return on your investment to join a union in these times. The problem right now in this country is somehow teachers & cops have been demonized by powerful right wingers who wanna come in and get a piece of the pie by privatizing the entire country so they can flip a big profit....even though they know NOTHING about the industry! Camden PD is a prime example. The state fired 75% of the police force...and now uses a team of US Marshalls who are completely under water and are treading water with the levels of crime. Its unreal.