New Action – UFT

This spring United For Change (UFC) is running in the citywide UFT elections. UFC is running 400+ educators as candidates for convention delegates to the statewide NYSUT conventions and nationwide AFT and NEA conventions. UFC consists of members from several UFT-represented rank-and-file educator groups: Movement of Rank and File Educators [MORE-UFT] Caucus, Solidarity Caucus, New Action Caucus, Retiree Advocate, OTs and PTs For A Fair Contract, the Independent Coalition of Educators [ICE-UFT], and Educators of NYC.  

Our local UFT election will have an effect on national debates over education and labor tactics. New York City makes up such a large share of New York State, that if UFC wins the UFT elections, we effectively win NYSUT and can tackle these important issues at the state level. The UFT’s delegates also make up a significant plurality of AFT delegates. Therefore,  winning the UFT election makes it possible for our union to be authentically progressive at the national level.  

The Unity Caucus, led by UFT President Michael Mulgrew, is the foundation for the so-called “Progressive” Caucus of the national AFT, which is led by former UFT/Unity leader and current AFT president Randi Weingarten. UFT representatives form a large plurality of the representatives at the NYSUT and AFT conventions. If United For Change wins the election and removes Mulgrew from power, there would likely be a transformation in the approach and ideology of the state and national unions towards real grassroots democratic unionism and authentically progressive politics.  Weingarten and Mulgrew call their national caucus “progressive,” but it is hardly an accurate term. For example, just see this video of Mulgrew and Barr arguing at the national convention in support of the Common Core. 

NYSUT and AFT conventions work similarly to UFT Delegate Assemblies, just at higher levels: state and national union, education, and political questions, all of which have a major effect on schooling in NYC. Because conventions are not in NYC, delegates and representatives also get travel/lodging expenses to attend them (and a biannual conference about pedagogy). When in person, delegates and representatives at these conventions get to meet teachers from very different places and with very different levels of union activity, which can be enlightening. That should be a selling point, but unfortunately the UFT/Unity leadership of Mulgrew merely uses the conventions to promote the positions of the corporate wing of the Democrat Party held by Randi Weingarten and establishment politicians. 

  Nick Bacon, one of seven UFC candidates for the UFT High School Executive Board, was elected as a convention delegate in 2019 before he joined UFC. He says the following regarding the conventions: 

With the ‘Progressive Caucus’ in power, these events are much more scripted than even the UFT Delegate Assembly.  At the AFT convention in particular, a disproportionate number of speakers are UFT staffers (or staffers from another union). Most were literally reading papers in front of them. We were also sent out documents from the ‘Progressive Caucus’ that tell you how to vote. Last year, votes were closer than usual since no one was able to monitor us remotely (and so people, like me, voted our conscience without fear of retribution), but I’ve heard that when in person, these meetings are so monitored by UFT District Representatives that everyone votes the party line. Some cities (LA, Chicago, Baltimore…) do have ‘opposition’ representation, so there’s a bit more diversity in the meetings, but it’s still a minority. In particular, because university professors and graduate students are AFT members, you see a lot of graduate teaching fellows putting forth progressive ideas. But again, with the ‘Progressive Caucus’ in power, convention delegates are expected to systematically shoot down good resolutions.

If UFC wins, we won’t shoot down progressive resolutions – we’ll write them. Therefore, we’ll be able to do more to push progressive educational policy statewide and nationwide. Remember that many educational questions are decided at the state level – such as our pension tiers, tenure, and standardized testing. We can put an end to ‘symbolic’ resolutions there and start pushing resolutions that actually affect educators and students in positive ways. We can form national coalitions with progressive politicians who understand we can’t just try to improve school conditions and benefits for teachers – we need to improve and transform schools as a whole and society as a whole. UFC’s platform speaks to this in many ways. 

If UFC were to win the entire election this spring, it would have implications beyond just a changing of the guard in the UFT officers. It would allow a national movement to flourish that endorses progressive candidates, fights for progressive positions, organizes members for democratic input on convention decisions, and prepares national actions that increase pressure for education investment and labor respect. The fight starts here in our schools and communities. Vote UFC in the Spring 2022 UFT elections. 

We at New Action and in United for Change value our UFT staffers. The vast majority of them are highly competent individuals who do important work for our membership. Yes, because Unity Caucus almost exclusively hires their own people, we are critical of the apparent patronage system that exists to hire said staffers. But, if we win this election, we have no plans to ‘clean house.’ We owe it to our members to keep good unionists on the payroll, helping our educators. And when future staffers are hired, we’ll hire them based on their competency to do the jobs at hand–not their caucus affiliation. For some positions that are currently appointed (e.g. District Representatives), we will also let members decide who gets the gig directly through elections. This is all in our platform.

Indeed, what we really care about is restoring our union democracy. Recently, United for Change Chapter Leaders and Delegates have noticed that people on UFT payroll can sometimes disrupt the democratic process during the Delegate Assembly (DA). Specifically: (1) Staff without voting privileges sometimes take up seats that could be made available for volunteer delegates and chapter leaders with voting privileges. Remember, space is limited due to the pandemic, and you can only motivate a resolution if you are there in person. (2) At times, it has appeared that staff without voting privileges have vocalized support or applauded Mulgrew (and done the opposite for opposition), which sways the appearance of support for both sides. (3) Many paid staffers with voting privileges are repeatedly called on by Mulgrew to raise motions or other points on the floor. Opposition, on the other hand, is rarely called upon. Clearly, Mulgrew knows who he is calling on–the staffers literally work for him. (4) When a paid staffer is called upon by their boss to make a point or motion, there is a possible conflict of interest, so other delegates should have a right to know their UFT employment status – just as we already announce our school and title (Chapter Leader or Delegate).

To this end, we at United for Change worked on a resolution to improve the democratic conditions at our Delegate Assembly. Below is the text of that resolution, which we passed out at the December DA, but were never called on to motivate:

Resolution concerning the presence of paid staffers with and without voting privileges on the DA floor

Whereas safety during the ongoing pandemic requires social distancing, which has reduced indoor seating availability to a fraction of the usual number of in-person delegates at Delegate Assemblies, and

Whereas elected delegates should not be turned away to make space for paid UFT staffers without voting privileges, and

Whereas elected delegates to the Delegate Assembly volunteer their time in service to the members they were elected to represent and deserve to exercise their democratic duties in the union hall, free from outside influence from un-elected, non-voting, UFT employees, and

Whereas delegates who hold hourly, part-time PM Staff positions at the UFT are, rightfully, not permitted to cast votes at Delegate Assemblies if they are on-the-clock while the DA is taking place, and

Whereas some full-time UFT employees, District and Special Representatives among them, do enjoy voting privileges at Delegate Assemblies though they are salaried, non-hourly employees, and

Whereas some full-time UFT employees, District and Special Representatives among them, are not delegates and do not have voting privileges at Delegate Assemblies, yet sit among the voting delegates, and

Whereas paid UFT staffers, with and without voting privileges, have been recognized to speak or otherwise vocalize/gesture both for and against various resolutions and motions, potentially influencing the subsequent vote, and

Whereas there is adequate space and adequate options outside of the union hall for UFT staff to greet, direct, and help credentialed delegates, and as there is also space (19th floor) – and remote options – for UFT members and staff to listen to Delegate Assemblies, be it

Resolved, that non-voting UFT employees, except those engaged in the business of running the Delegate Assemblies or special invitees of the union (i.e., safety staff, technical staff, and speakers making special addresses from the podium) shall not remain in the voting room during assemblies, nor be recognized to move motions, speak for or against motions, resolutions or amendments, nor be recognized to raise points of order, information, or privilege, and be it further

Resolved, that salaried, full-time UFT employees who do enjoy voting privileges at Delegate Assemblies shall identify themselves as salaried employees of the union when they are called on by the Chair to identify themselves pursuant to questioning the Chair, moving motions, introducing resolutions or amendments, or speaking for or against motions, resolutions, or amendments.