The two most powerful unions in New York City are the Police and Teachers. However, the union leaders have dramatically different approaches in dealing with the City. Patrick Lynch, the president of the police union fights tooth and nail for his existing members. The result? Four consecutive 5% pay raises in the last four years, ending July 31st 2006. Their givebacks were mostly put on the "unborn". Less salary, vacation days, and more flexible time limits for their patrol duties. While only minor givebacks were associated with the existing members. Lynch's hard-nose negotiations has made the City look bad with fewer and fewer police recruits willing to join the police force.
By contrast Randi Weingarten has taken the opposite approach. She has negotiated contracts that contained many givebacks by her members while buying into the City's recruitment over retention policy. Randi's pathetic negotiation committee only achieved raises that were marginally more than DC 37 (22% for the last seven years or 3.15% per year) and well below the 20% raises the police achieved in the last four years, despite the UFT giving back significant time and duties for it's existing members . I have previously identified these givebacks and won't waste time listing them. However, you can find many of these givebacks here.
The union educrats bring up that a union should not "eat it's unborn". However, a union's main goal is to protect it's existing members first. In the UFT's case, that didn't happen. Hence, the ATR crises, overcrowded "rubber rooms", and teacher disrespect. Is it any wonder that in the last year over 4,600 teachers resigned, double the average in previous years? It seems that Patrick Lynch, has represented his members a whole lot better than the pathetic Randi Weingarten has her members
Nice piece, Chaz, but for the record, his name is Patrick Lynch. But you got everything else right. He's tough and has one goal...the welfare of his members.
ReplyDeleteanon:
ReplyDeleteoops! I don't know why I thought it was John Lynch. Thanks for the correction.
In fact, the 27/55 program, which is what it will be for the vast majority of those who use it, is a mandatory salary cut for the "unborn," the majority of whom will never see any advantage whatsoever from it.
ReplyDeleteMs. Weingarten does what is convenient for Ms. Weingarten. This is an integral part of leading the United Federation of Randi Weingarten. In fact, she's done such a bang-up job of following that prime directive that she'll soon be leading the American Federation of Randi Weingarten.
Doubtless Rod Paige will rejoice.
Starting salary for teachers in 1972 was 8500.
ReplyDeleteGo here and plug in the numbers and things may look even worse.
http://minneapolisfed.org/Research/data/us/calc/
I usually agree with most of what you and NYC Educator write. However, your analysis is a little too general.
ReplyDeletePatrick Lynch took the last two PBA contracts to arbitration at PERB and did not settle through negotiations. The UFT used PERB to set the paramaters for two of the last three Contracts and lost big in 2005. That does not make Patrick Lynch a hard nose fighter.
In the final analysis, the Police pay is still behind the surrounding areas just like the teachers. Neither Lynch nor Weingarten has really shattered pattern bargaining so expect us to still be compared to DC 37 and not surrounding areas. It's just a question of who has given up more to get a pay increase that beats the pattern. Whether it's selling out the unborn or those in service now, they still are givebacks.
Only real militancy can help us and Lynch and Weingarten have no idea what militancy means.