Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, tells Axios on HBO that states should prioritize teachers for vaccinations as part of the reopening of schools for personal learning.
Between the lines: Weingarten did not want to say about who teachers should be prioritized.
- “When we say that it is important to prioritize personal learning, the teachers and bus drivers who work in places that reopen should be put first,” she said.
- In previous statements, Weingarten said that teachers, along with others in the 1-B priority group, should be vaccinated.
AFT is the country’s second largest teachers’ union, representing 1.7 million members in cities such as Boston, Chicago, Los Angeles and New York.
- Weingarten told Axios in September last year that she would support a requirement that teachers be vaccinated before returning to classrooms.
- She later stepped back, arguing that although she supports vaccination, she also admits that some teachers were deterred by misinformation.
- According to a recent survey, 67% of AFT teachers said they had been vaccinated or were planning to be vaccinated as soon as possible. Sixteen percent say they have no plans to be vaccinated, or that they are not sure yet.
Editor’s note: This story has been updated and adds Weingarten’s previous statements that teachers in the 1-B priority group should be vaccinated.