Teachers’ unions and speech-language pathologists (Lugo, 2025)

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of teachers’ unions for school-based speech-language pathologists (SLPs) and their perceptions of the benefits and barriers to union membership.

Method: A 44-item survey was used to solicit information about the perceptions of and participation in teachers’ unions of 320 school-based SLPs. Directed content analysis of 70 district collective bargaining agreements was also conducted to explore the presence and content of SLP contract provisions.

Results: Results confirm that teachers’ unions collectively bargain on behalf of SLPs as they are often recognized as bargaining unit members. SLP provisions pertaining to salary supplements, caseload and workload caps, opportunities for professional development and mentorship, and alternative evaluations were uncovered. However, SLPs’ perceptions of teachers’ unions and collective bargaining were mixed. Frequently cited benefits of union membership included improved working conditions, legal and professional protections, and collective bargaining. Common barriers were misunderstandings about the role and responsibilities of unions and monetary costs.

Conclusions: The findings of this study suggest that teachers’ unions are not a widely used support structure for school-based SLPs. Despite the barriers highlighted by participants, unions can collectively bargain for provisions that could improve the living and working conditions of practitioners, such as salary supplements, caseload caps, and professional development. Although unions could improve outreach to SLPs in the schools, SLPs may benefit from additional training and professional development opportunities to support the degree to which they advocate and engage with their bargaining units.

Supplemental Material S1. The distribution of participant responses on items related to roles and responsibilities of teachers’ unions in the affirmative.

Supplemental Material S2. The distribution of participant responses on items related to roles and responsibilities of teachers’ unions in the negative.

Supplemental Material S3. The Leximancer (2020) concept map and thematic analysis of free-text responses related to the significant benefits and barriers of teachers’ union membership nominated by participants.

Supplemental Material S4. A snapshot of district collective bargaining agreements and speech-language pathologist provisions across the state of Florida.

Supplemental Material S5. Full survey.

Lugo, V. A. (2025). The role of teachers’ unions for school-based speech-language pathologists: Preliminary findings from Florida. Language, Speech, and Hearing Services in Schools, 56(1), 206–224. https://doi.org/10.1044/2024_LSHSS-24-00064