I consider myself a proud union member and greatly appreciate what an effective union represents to their members. At one time, under the effective Albert Shanker, teachers were able to negotiate adequate raises, a salary scale that reflected seniority, generous health benefits, and work rules that limited the amount of students in a classroom. This was a time when the City leaders were beholden to the powerful 81,000 strong teachers' union and came with hat in hand to curry union support and even a loan during the City's brush with bankruptcy in 1973. That was then and this is now.
Our present ineffective union leadership has provided little in the way for their members to be proud of They have negotiated inferior or subpar contracts, going back to Sandra Feldman and continuing through Randi Weingarten and now Michael Mulgrew. Just about every negotiated contract was short on money and contained various "givebacks". Be it time, additional duties, hiring rules, reduced due process rights dealing with discipline, and expanding the definitions on verbal and physical abuse (A-420, A-421). Just as important was the slow erosion of health benefits, both the eligibility at retirement and cost. In addition, UFT members saw 1.25% of their TDA interest disappear., thanks to our union leadership. While all other DOE employees receive 8.25% interest on their TDA balance, UFT members receive only 7%. Finally, our union leadership is strangely quiet while the media attacks the ATRs and allows the DOE's Fair Student Funding policy to discriminate against the hiring of veteran teachers.
Our union leadership had promised to go to PERB or file a lawsuit on the DOE's practice of placing a flag on any member that had a substantiated OSI or SCI investigation, even when the accusations were found not to be true by the independent State Arbitrator! I call this the Scarlet Letter. Did the union leadership follow through? The answer is no! Moreover, they allowed the ATR to become "a second class citizen" and refuses to include an ATR on their negotiating committee on ATR issues. Finally, the union leadership refuses to put member interests first. Rather, they use our COPE and dues money as they please without member input. See examples Here and Here.
I am a proud union member and will support unions that represent their members. However, in the last two decades, our weak union leadership seems to represent their own political and ideological interests rather than what's best for the members.
Chaz:
ReplyDeleteToo many of us feel the same way but its difficult to get the majority of members to do something about it.
my father was a teamster when he worked for anchor motor freight. my uncles and grandfather all worked for GM and were united auto workers. I remember my father coming home one day saying after 15 years I have seniority now I can work any shift I want. he seemed proud, that it was something he earned. the union helped him during the changeovers for new model year cars. he always wore a teamster ball cap. he put time and effort in and earned something in return. my union is the uft = Useless F@#$king Thieves. my union dues got me stress an atr label, being put into classrooms when I wasn't licensed to be a classroom teacher, newbie after newbie get jobs that I wasn't even considered for then in-certified teachers having jobs. what did they earn nothing, but according to the uft I guess I didn't either. to bad my father wasn't a principal! mulgrew can I have any of my money back!
ReplyDeleteremember the uft's paul egan who was tossed out of an albany restaurant drinking and spending our money for his own pleasures and benefit. T = THIEVES ! the uft should be dismantled "union free". when will the people wake up?
ReplyDeleteUFT is really more concerned about being a lobbying group and having a seat at the table - unfortunately whatever success they have with that doesn't translate to the membership very much. I guess they would say, without them all teachers would be screwed and they are fighting for us all the time. Maybe in the macro they do fight for some things, budgets, slow down the charters, protect the pension and retirement systems [we hope]. I have a decent job in a decent school and over 25 yrs in - so not here to complain - for myself I just hope, a clear path to retirement, maybe a nice raise in the next contract, and please protect the retirement package lol. For the rest - UFT is minimally helpful as a resource for teachers - and honestly Tier VI is really bad, and whatever follows is worse, so we are living in the twilight of this profession that is being turned into a privatized temp job slowly but surely. Also like most organizations UFT does not encourage healthy dialogue or dissent any more from what I hear and read.
ReplyDeleteNew teachers may soon face a choice - to join the union or not - I expect many won't want to pay the dues and fees - and I wonder if we become a right to work state, whether teachers will be given the right to opt out of the pension and health care and self-fund, since that way they can have a higher salary. If so, most newbies won't join.
7:05,
ReplyDeleteThe majority of members don't seem to care because they aren't ATRs, yet. Even if they did what could they do? Dues are still mandatory and no one at the UFT wants to hear anyone's complaints. "Everything is great - teacher choice is $250!" Now ATRs are going back into the classroom and it should be celebrated by the UFT like a raise in teacher's choice, but the UFT is strangely silent. Even when we're attacked as criminals, Mulgrew's response is come visit a school (like Randi said to DeVos). Pathetic.
The UFT did not make mention in the UFT newspaper (dated August 3, 2017) of the agreement that was made without ATR input. Not one word. The previous UFT newspaper mentioned the severance package in the back upper right hand corner (small article). So sad.... This is not a good agreement for ATRs due to the shameful climate of age discrimination and attack on veteran staff in the DOE. Instead of educators working together in NYC, administrators attack their staff. Absolutely shameful. CUNY professors know it, other educators in other institutions know it. NYC should be ashamed of themselves.
ReplyDeleteThe members of the UFT are one step from joining the ATR pool themselves. There are different scenarios that would place a person into the ATR pool. Wake up union members. This struggle, fight or whatever you want to label it as is everyone's business! Divide and conquer tactics have been utilized and those that are gullable or think it cannot happen to them are very naive.
ReplyDeleteI think age discrimination is definitely an issue now and going forward, and FSF makes it worse. Sue away!
ReplyDeleteThe NYT had an article this week about the difficulty of suing for age discrimination. It can be done, but it's not easy.
ReplyDelete7:05 You have only scratched the surface. I would LOVE to see another party in power or at least some (several) "checks" be in the place to reign in the current leadership.
ReplyDeleteI am a UNITY member. It's a become an absolute monster and has been for some time.
1) no more that 3 Caucus Meetings into MMs 1st "go" as president a 6ft5 in. hump backed man saw fit to get up and SCREAM at those of us assembled (again the members who chose to or were roped into joining the UNITY Caucus) that if we "didn't like what MM was doing or would have to do, 'we' should LEAVE!" 2) I was told over lunch, by, FOUR people who were full timers in the Central Office that MM was "not to be trusted" and "sick"....and this was in July of 2010. Almost all of them are still in place and everything that they said over lunch (a lot was said) has come true. 3) At a NYSUT conference we (again members of the "ruling party") were LOCKED in the hall where general session was held, told step by step by step how and WHO we had to vote for, as well as to NOT seal our "secret ballot" envelopes until they were checked - - as in checked that we voted for the right NYSUT presidential candidate (and MM and UNITY no longer wanted Dick Ianuzzi to be pres. so mote it be) and once they were checked (mine was examined by Eagan) we were ALLOWED to seal the secret ballot envelope and then put it in the second envelope. BTW this is how it has been done ever since.. Magee was elected...twice...via that method and recently OUSTED and Pallotta elected by this same disrespectful method of "not so secret ballot"
You may ask why I remain a Unity caucus member....I've been disillusioned by the caucus for so many years...being a member allows me to be "in the room" when they slightly "open up" to those of us who they think will bring their tripe back to our schools. I - - sometimes - - get to hear some of what they are (sorta) up to (though only the tip of the iceberg because they really only trust their own incestuous little group) and I bring back to my colleagues those comments. I NEVER tell them how to vote and never will but if they ask me how I'm voting...I tell them honestly.
Sadly a few after hearing that refuse to vote at all saying "oh well, my vote won't change anything..." which completely misses the point.
Unity is very very strong but it's also very very very cocky and thinks it can't be defeated I hope that MORE or ICE or TJC or a combination of them any/all three kick the crap out of UNITY next time around...I don't even care if I'm not re-elected delegate for NYSUT/NEA/AFT...really I mean it. As long as MY REAL colleagues choose to re-elect me I'll sere and happy report back what I hear for them to hopefully listen to and make of it what they will...but,honestly, I've never met a filthier bunch than most UNITY folk. And as long as they think we are doing their dirty work, they keep us around...folks who don't got to Years and years and years and years of meetings folks who never pay party dues, folks who, as long as they're allowed a weekend or two away in a different town and have their skins saved when they screw up on the job but will happily vomit the UNITY pablum back at the masses UNITY keeps them around. UNITY is made up of about 100 hard core soulless folk and scores of deranged foot soldiers and maybe about 25 disgruntled people who have their eyes open and are just waiting,hoping for an opportunity to gain some momentum and support to make a change....because even though it seems like there are a few parties (New Action is Unity Lite and still very UNITY-like) there really is only one. Thank God the past few years of newbies in my building have no interest in any party...
1:22 PM
ReplyDeletemmhmmm heard about it as I was a young teacher coming up...now that I'm "old" I see it's a very real thing...
I freaking wish someone would offer to buy out my last 8 years....So many years teaching under my belt and being punished - -in every way possible, some I never even thought existed - - all for being dedicated, intelligent, caring and moral. Used to love to go to work...have not felt that way for nearly 10 years... never believed in "teacher burnout" before...
10:23 AM
ReplyDeleteI've seen it both ways.
I can't tell you how many ATRs I've met with 15 20 years experience and SEVERAL more to go before they can retire (be it age wise or whatever) who have shortage licenses and who have told me FLAT OUT that they "don't want to have to work so hard" again. Just last year I was told this by a bilingual Math teacher, an English teacher who had licenses (NOT certificates but full licenses) in both ESL AND Special Ed as well, and a Chemistry teacher who was bilingual but had an ESL license to boot.
I've also met plenty of ATRs who were fantastic, loved, appreciated and not hired in schools in which they served like pack animals for several months and in two different cases an entire school year.
The ATR contract was a slap in the face but I'm telling you some ATRs out there (and it's not just a few) are really really really making it hard for the rest to be made whole...
6:35 AM
ReplyDeleteKnow a woman who knows a former colleague who did it at Flushing High school. Not easy at all....
12:07 PM
ReplyDeleteabsolutely! Any UFT member - - with exception of the Exec. Board - - could easily be an ATR soon...though the district and special reps don't believe it... I believe in supporting the ATRs even those who I have heard with my own ears who don't want to have to go into regular appointed teaching jobs...No reason to throw the baby out with the bathwater...
8:35 AM
ReplyDeleteYup went on a rampage a quail in each hand.
this of course was prior to his stomach stapling surgery
hgh salary made it easy for him to pay for cosmetic surgery...
although now he's rumored to be quite the fitness buff
all that time on his hands ...not teaching...