Member Benefits
Why Join CTA
CTA is the state’s largest employee organization. It exists primarily to protect and advance the professional and economic interests of its members. With more than 340,000 members CTA is the strongest advocate for providing a free, quality public education to all children. Joining CTA ensures members a number of benefits.
Member Benefits Program
CTA membership provides economic clout, which allows members to take advantage of a number of valuable benefits, including low rates and substantial discounts on home loans, personal, life and car insurance, merchandise, travel and legal services.
Member Rights
A primary focus of CTA is ensuring your rights as an educational professional by helping your local association negotiate good contracts that improve teaching and learning conditions. CTA believes that education employees should be free from arbitrary and capricious decisions by their employers. When violations occur, CTA provides members the resources to defend their rights through appropriate legal or administrative channels.
Legal Protection
CTA members are automatically covered by a professional liability policy. Members receive up to $1 million in professional liability insurance, access to more than 40 different law firms offering free consultations and discounted fees on various personal legal services, and legal representation during reduction in force procedures and protection of due process rights.
Professional Development
CTA provides a comprehensive array of training programs on professional growth for members and local chapters. Statewide conferences include two Good Teaching conferences where teachers share best classroom practices. Other statewide conferences explore human rights, urban and rural issues, community outreach and educational leadership. Other trainings include information on collective bargaining, testing and accountability, English language learners, special education, classroom management, media relations and political action.
Education Voice
Most decisions on education policy and funding are made in Sacramento by legislators, the governor and bureaucrats. CTA is your strong and forceful advocate for public education and the teaching profession. CTA also coordinates an advertising campaign each year to promote and advance Association goals.
School Improvement
CTA is very much aware of the direct relationship between the revenue available for school districts and colleges and the economic security and well-being of its members.
Throughout its history, CTA has been the prime mover in advancing legislation and programs to improve the conditions of teaching and learning in our public schools. CTA successfully fought to reduce class sizes in the lowest grades and continues to fight to expand that program. CTA won passage of the law to guarantee minimum funding protections for public schools. CTA is constantly advocating for adequate retirement benefits for education employees. CTA has led effort to provide additional resources to our schools of greatest need.
Member Communications
CTA keeps in touch with its members through written publications and through frequent meetings at the state, regional and local levels where members can voice their concerns and keep up-to-date on Association programs and activities. All members receive the California Educator and NEA Today, monthly magazines designed to keep members informed about trends in education, policy decisions, legislative progress and Association accomplishments.
Retirement
CTA works continuously for improvements in retirement benefits for education employees, while also monitoring the administration of the retirement system to protect it against unsound management or attempts to use the funds to balance the state budget.
No-Cost Automatic Insurance Protection-NEW (2/15/08)
As a CTA/NEA member you are automatically eligible for two valuable insurance programs at no additional cost, the CTA Death & Dismemberment Plan and the NEA DUES-TAB. These plans are a no-cost insurance protection exclusively for CTA/NEA members. The CTA Death & Dismemberment Plan and the NEA DUES-TAB automatically cover you on September 1, following the date you become an eligible member, but even if you have just one year of credited membership, you will be eligible to receive a benefit.
You may name anyone as your designated beneficiary. Simply complete one beneficiary registration form for CTA and one for NEA. By doing so, you will not only ensure that your designated beneficiary is registered, you will have personal security that comes with your CTA membership.
The CTA Death & Dismemberment Plan is designed to provide a life insurance benefit that increases with each year of continuous CTA membership, until the maximum benefit is reached after ten (10) years. The NEA DUES-TAB maximum benefit is reached after five (5) years.
The CTA Well-Baby Program (2/1/08)
Provided by the CTA Economic Benefits Trust, the CTA Well-Baby Program is free to CTA members participating in the CTA-endorsed voluntary life or disability program. The program provides scheduled calls with a Mayo Clinic Pregnancy Advisor, a registered nurse who provides education and support throughout the pregnancy and three months postpartum. Access to the Ask Mayo Clinic 24-hour nurse line is also available.
Additionally, participants receive The Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy book, multiple pamphlets and brochures, a growth chart and a pregnancy calculator.
Please note the following plan enhancements to the Well-Baby Program:
Effective June 1, 2007, the eligibility requirements were enhanced to include spouses and domestic partners of eligible CTA members. Therefore, the following are the three requirements to participate in the Well-Baby Program:
1. Must be an eligible CTA member or the spouse/domestic partner of an eligible CTA member.
2. The CTA member must be a participant in either the CTA-endorsed voluntary life or disability plan.
3. In order to maximize your benefits under the program, we encourage you or your spouse/domestic partner to enroll within the first trimester. Please note that enrollment is only acceptable through the 20th week of pregnancy.
However, effective June 1, 2006, a one-time late enrollment enhancement was enacted. Therefore, if you are a CTA member or the spouse/domestic partner of a CTA member who is past 20 weeks of pregnancy, a one-time late enrollment opportunity will be accepted as long as the CTA member is within the first 120 days of employment.
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