If there was ever a moment that exposed the deep disconnect between union leadership and the workers they claim to represent, it is now.

 

In the past week alone, we witnessed one of the most visible faces of organized labor, Randi Weingarten, the longtime president of the American Federation of Teachers, resign from her post on the Democratic National Committee. Her reason? She is now “out of step” with the party she helped shape for more than two decades.

 

Her departure is just the latest symptom of a deeper problem. Union leaders are spending more time promoting fringe causes than protecting the everyday interests of their members.

 

This isn’t a story of Weingarten stepping away from politics. It’s a story of growing chaos, factionalism, and radicalism within the Democratic Party and the labor leadership that props it up, often using money, time, and staff drawn straight from the pockets of American workers who don’t share these political views.

 

Weingarten’s resignation followed the departure of another major union leader, Lee Saunders of AFSCME, who similarly declined to continue serving on the DNC. Both had backed a rival to current DNC Chair Ken Martin and now find themselves pushed to the sidelines. Add to that the exit of former DNC Vice Chair David Hogg after internal infighting over progressive litmus tests and primary challenges, and the message is clear: even among Democrats, union leadership has become too extreme, too divisive, and too unwilling to represent the full spectrum of their own members.

 

Let’s not forget: Weingarten’s AFT represents 1.7 million workers, including educators, healthcare professionals, and public servants across the country. Many of them are not Democrats. Many are centrists, independents, or conservatives. And yet their dues continue to support a relentless stream of partisan causes, political campaigns, and social crusades that often run completely counter to their own values.

 

In fact, more than 90% of union political contributions go to Democrats – despite the fact that union households are politically diverse. Roughly 41% of union members voted for Donald Trump in the 2024 election, while 57% supported Kamala Harris. The disconnect is undeniable: nearly half of union members are effectively subsidizing political causes and candidates they do not support.

 

In most states, public employees have little to no control over how their union dues are spent, even when that money funds political campaigns or advocacy that directly conflicts with their beliefs. They joined unions for workplace protections, not political activism.

 

From shutting down schools during the pandemic to staging political protests like the recent “No Kings Day,” where Weingarten delivered an animated, viral speech targeting President Trump, union leadership continues to blur the line between serving members and serving personal politics. In fact, footage of her Philadelphia rally, which has ricocheted across social media, was so over-the-top that critics dubbed it “another ad for homeschooling.”

 

Meanwhile, in Los Angeles, another union leader was arrested amid the ongoing anti-Trump street protests that have escalated in tone and violence. Is this really where union dues are going? Toward protests, political gamesmanship, and personal agendas?

 

It is long past time for accountability. We need to get union money out of politics.

 

The public should not accept union leaders using their enormous platforms and workers’ hard-earned dues to push extreme, one-sided political agendas. This includes direct cash support to Democratic candidates, in-kind staff time, and access to massive voter contact infrastructure, all funneled almost exclusively in one political direction. Not only does this alienate a huge swath of union members who don’t align with the far-left wing of the Democratic Party, it violates the basic premise of what a union is supposed to be: a fair, representative advocate for all its members.

 

If unions want to regain the trust of their members, and if the Democratic Party wants to claim it stands for working people, they must start by recognizing that the union movement has become less about work and more about politics.

 

Union members deserve better. They deserve representation that listens to their voices, not just the loudest ones in leadership. They deserve transparency about where their dues are going. And most of all, they deserve a union that works for them – not for a party, a protest, or a personal brand.