The UFT Must Mobilize Immediately to Fight Budget Cuts
Mayor Adams is at war with our education system, plundering it of an unprecedented $547 million right in the middle of the school year. Adams has no reason to cut the budget. While he claims that the migrant crisis is so expensive to the City that we now need other cuts to public spending, the [&hel
UFT Delegates say NO to Cease Fire Language in Humanitarian Reso – UFT Delegate Assembly, 11-15, 2023
Quick Summary and Analysis: Tonight was the second DA of the year. While eventful, this was also the second DA in a row this year in which we failed to debate even one resolution about our own working conditions. NAC released a ‘working conditions’ challenge to encourage delegates to bring worki
Introducing the Working Conditions Challenge!
Our union has a delegate assembly (DA) problem. In the last three years alone, DA resolutions seeking substantive policies to improve the working conditions of our membership have been outnumbered 3:1 by purely symbolic proclamations and political endorsements. In 2021, only a single resol
An Uncharacteristically Brief Meeting – UFT Executive Board, 11-6-23
Tonight’s UFT executive board lasted just 30ish minutes. Of that half hour, 10 minutes went to the open mic period, in which 4 people spoke well on why they thought UFT leadership had made the wrong choice to remove Amy Arundell from her post as Queens Borough Rep. Michael Mulgrew, perhaps still w
Out-Negotiated, Again: How Other Unions’ Recent Contracts Outperform the UFT’s
UFT members have our new contract. Mulgrew’s Koolaid vendors will tell you it’s the best deal we’ve ever had. But, the truth is that it’s a snore of an agreement, complete with inflation-adjusted pay cuts despite very few gains and even some losses. Other teacher contracts over the course of
Why Don’t UFT Staffers Have Due Process? – UFT Executive Board Meeting,10-23-2023
Summary/Analysis: The main topic of tonight’s executive board meeting was Amy Arundell. I have to give Amy credit. Despite everything, she came to the meeting tonight and sat through it all. And there was a lot. During the open mic, several speakers spoke at their dismay about Amy’s reassig
UFT: Are you ready to lose GHI-CBP?
On Wednesday, October 11th, following an audio leak of internal talks about the Request For Proposal (RFP) to select new healthcare insurance providers, UFT President Michael Mulgrew told us more about the pending healthcare switch than he has in a long time. Don’t get me wrong—that is
UFT Healthcare Changes, Teachers Choice, and the Conflict in Israel/Gaza – UFT Delegate Assembly Notes, 10-11-2023
Summary/Highlights: At today’s DA, we learned a few things: Informal minutes follow. Mulgrew: Welcome to first DA of the school year. A lot of stuff to do today. There was a big press conference here today. In 2011 when there was a really algorithm and started messing with children and making a de
What should the UFT do in the midst of climate/weather emergency?
New Action / UFT has been busy lately, with Marianne Pizzitola and Kate Connors joining us last week to discuss healthcare, and with three subcommittees meeting later this week to discuss organizing (Oct. 3 at 5:30 PM), abusive administrators (Oct. 4 at 5:30 PM), and Tier 6 reform (Oct. 5 at 5:30 PM
Back to School Heat Wave: How Should UFT Respond?
Heat surged to record levels yesterday, just as New York City’s students reported for the first day of public school. In a functioning City, schools would effectively also be cooling centers. Students could escape the heat, learning new content under the comfort of reasonable temperatures. But, fo