UFT Leadership – Before You Sue Someone in Our Name, Ask.
Today, ‘the UFT’ took a position against congestion pricing, which, if introduced, would force hefty tolls for drivers entering Manhattan anywhere in a zone that runs from upper Midtown to the Financial District. I (Nick Bacon, not necessarily New Action) happen to agree with the stance, which I
THE BELL TOLLS FOR WE: COULD THE VIRTUAL LEARNING CLAUSE IN OUR NEW CONTRACT BE A DEATH KNELL FOR OUR STUDENTS AND OUR PROFESSION? – By David Ginsberg
The odds of virtual learning destroying the teaching profession are not nearly as remote as you may think, thanks to a provision in our new contract. Buried in pages 14-18 of the Memorandum of Agreement (link: https://files.uft.org/contract2023/DOE-MOA.pdf), a legitimate threat to our profession and
With time running out to reverse budget cuts, UFT leadership opts to mobilize lawyers, but not members.
Over a month ago, I penned a piece entitled “The UFT Must Mobilize Immediately to Fight Budget Cuts.” I argued that, with draconian budget being forced through, we had to specifically mobilize UFT members and not just rely on the usual non-militant methods. Despite Mulgrew’s rhetoric of going
UFT Town Hall Analysis, Summary, and Informal Minutes, 12/19/2023
Summary/Analysis: For those of us who go to lots of meetings, the notes from tonight look very similar to the most recent executive board meeting and the Delegate Assembly before it, though the details on budget cuts were a bit more specific. Unfortunately, while there is more detail about our schoo
Pension News / Data on Abusive Admin- UFT Executive Board 12/18/2023
Summary/Analysis: Tonight was a quick meeting. Turnout was low – a combination, I think, of the mayoral control hearing in Queens and weather-induced work-from-home decisions for some UFT staffers. Most of the news came in the question period when Tom Brown answered my inquiry about the new pensio
Mulgrew’s Healthcare Presentation was Bologna – Here’s an Analysis
At this week’s DA, Michael Mulgrew put forth a used car salesman pitch presentation about why our healthcare is about to change. His speech itself is in my minutes, and the PowerPoint that displayed behind him can be found here. There wasn’t much new here, and my most recent article on hea
UFT Healthcare cuts – Delegate Assembly – 12/13/23
Summary/Analysis: That’s enough summarizing I think. I’ll leave the rest for standalone articles. My informal minutes follow. President’s Report DA starts late at 4:20 PM Someone asks for a FT pom pom hat, Mulgrew responds he’ll look into it (retro collection) Last DA of 2023. Healthcare rep
Why join UFT’s New Action Caucus (NAC/UFT)?
On Tuesday 12.12.23 at 5:30 PM, UFT’s New Action Caucus (NAC/UFT) will come together as we ramp up our education/advocacy efforts around healthcare, pension, and working conditions for UFT members. To join NAC: http://newaction.org/join To register: http://register.newaction.org The Unit
Tier 6 Members are Losing Millions to Subsidize Tier 4 – UFT Executive Board Meeting, 12-4, 2023
Summary/Analysis: For the rest, read my unofficial minutes: Open Mic: Norm Scott: A number of issues that the UFT has let us down. Healthcare. We hear the word choice – somehow we don’t have the choice because of lawsuits. But choice with a price. The choice you can have is you stay in Medicare
NYC Teachers Just Took an Inflation-Adjusted Pay Cut – Why are Pundits Pretending We’re Bankrupting the City?
Betsy McCaughey, the Republican politician who thankfully served only briefly as the former Lt. Governor of New York, wrote an appalling piece in the Post this week. In it she makes the pretend argument that labor contracts, particularly labor contracts for teachers, are causing New York City’s fi