The American Federation of Teachers (AFT), founded in 1916, represents the economic, social and professional interests of classroom teachers. It is an affiliated international union of the AFL-CIO. The AFT has more than 3,000 local affiliates nationwide, 43 state affiliates, and more than 1.5 million members. Five divisions within the organization represent the broad spectrum of AFT's membership: teachers; paraprofessionals and school-related personnel (PSRP); local, state and federal employees; higher education faculty and staff; and nurses and other healthcare professionals. In addition, the union includes more than 170,000 retiree members.
