UFT Leadership Says No to Strike Readiness; Adds Symbolic Reso to Fight for Lost Calendar – UFT Executive Board Notes, 6-12-2023

Note: Most of tonight’s executive board meeting was an executive session, as is customary for the final executive board meeting of the year. Therefore, I have only reported on that business which was conducted when we were out of session.

Summary: In tonight’s executive board meeting, the last scheduled meeting of the 2022-2023 school year, we heard two resolutions. One dealt with the calendar—specifically with UFT pushing to add two Passover days and Easter Monday to the observed holidays of the school year. The other resolution dealt with strike readiness. The former resolution passed; the latter failed. Let’s analyze:

• The first resolution, motivated by Mike Schirtzer, successfully confirmed that the UFT would work to get the DOE to get back three days that are traditionally observed. These days are important to observant Jewish and Christian groups, respectively, and especially in the former case will require many to take religious observance days—at considerable financial expense. Meanwhile, even secular workers and workers of other religions take issue with extra days on the calendar when historically they are indeed taken off. UFC had two amendments, one which failed and one which passed.
  •  I motivated the first—failed—amendment, which advocated that UFT support a petition that had already gathered many thousands of signatures from teachers, parents, and community members to have those two Passover days restored. See here and here to see some of the publicity. My rationale for motivating this amendment was that UFT had already failed to get a fair calendar using our traditional methods, and that simply passing a resolution to use those same methods would merely be symbolic. Why not also join and help buttress a successful community-originated method that we haven’t yet tried? You can look at Unity’s arguments against below, but ultimately I think the real reason is that an opposition unionist—Melissa Williams of OT/PTs for a Fair Contract—did the bulk of the organizing.
  • Ilona Nanay motivated the second amendment, which advocated the addition of Eid to the calendar. This amendment passed, as did the resolution itself. There are still more days we should add to the list of course, but it’s a step up that at least the UFT recognized Eid as being worth a calendar fight.
• The second resolution, brought to the table by the High School Executive Board, was motivated by Ronnie Almonte, and subsequently endorsed by Alex Jallot, myself, and Ed Calamia. We sought—not a strike, which we concede the UFT is not ready for—but rather a strike readiness campaign, so that we could be ready for one if it came to it. Unity spoke against the resolution, with all sorts of outlandish sophistry ranging from ‘we don’t need it, because we already have it,’ to ‘if we really needed to strike, we would just strike,’ etc, etc, etc. These arguments, are of course, absurd. The whole point of strike readiness campaigns is that it takes months to years of preparations for unions to be ready to strike. For a union who hasn’t struck since 1975, and who has publicly spoken against the right for teachers to strike, we’re clearly lacking the infrastructure to strike if we ever need to. That’s something the City knows all too well when it hands us over a 3% pattern, then prevents even a mediocre contract from coming out in time for the next school year. And if we were even ready to strike, we’d have more luck at the bargaining table. On that note, I’ll close by saying I think Lamar Hughes gave the most honest Unity take of the night, when he said that  ‘I am a firm believer that if you hang around the barbershop long enough you will get a cut. If we keep talking strike, members will say “whens the strike.’ I think, this is the truth. Unity fears a strike. We’ve heard Unity be anti-strike enough to know that they fear the idea that, once educated, membership might actually want one. I appreciated Lamar’s argument for its earnestness and lack of sophistry – even though I strongly disagreed. Ultimately, I hope we can get past this Unity anti-strike mentality so antithetical to what unions—especially unions with gains—are about.

Informal notes – minus the session portions—are shown below.

Minutes approved:

Mike Schirtzer: motivates inclusion of Easter Monday and Last Two Days of Passover in the 2023-24 NYC DOE Calendar: Calendar showed DOE doesn’t care about us. As a practicing Jew, this is a problem for me. There’s precedent for Easter Monday. Had the DOE collaborated with us, we would have told them we need these days.

Dave Kazankzky: Want to stand in support of this resolution. Passover is a big holiday – there are many.

Nick Bacon: Support, but motion to amend. Would like a second amendment too but will start with one since it’s 3 lines.

Be it resolved, that in the spirt of collaborating with our community groups, the UFT will publicly support the “Restoration of Passover Days” letter, which is already undersigned by thousands of New Yorkers, including teachers, UFT leaders, parents, and religious leaders.

Here is a copy of the letter with all 4,000+ signatures. The reason I support this amendment is because we’ve already tried negotiating with the DOE It didn’t work, that’s why we have this calendar. Joining with community groups to gain back that time is a strategy that might work. It’s also an opportunity to work with the community—parents, teachers, union leaders, and community members–towards a goal we share.

Michael Sill: Speaks against the amendment, although not particularly strongly, could be convinced otherwise. This is a community issue and we should make it a community issue – but I think there’s a way to do that without adding it to the resolution. Reason why I think this is so is because this is would be our first official response outside of the negotiating committee. We need to smack back against the DOE. Important on religious grounds. If the DOE thinks they can put out a calendar without our approval, they’re going to do it again. Next year, they’re going to do it again. We can’t let them do it. Not familiar with the letter – might be great, but shouldn’t be following on this issue, but leading.

DeShana Barker: Stand against amendment, because the first draft we saw was inclusive of the Christian community. I may be a backsliding Christian, but I’m a Christian. Find this divisive. Original resolution.

Dave Kazanzky: Never met a Jew that likes Bacon more than me. Haven’t seen this letter, it’s bad form to sign onto something against the amendment.

Ilona Nanay: Second amendment – addition of Eid to the amendment. To be inclusive for all religious communities.

Janella Hinds: Favor of the second amendment. I think we should add to the first clause. It is of critical importance that we build on ways that we honor and respect the different parts coming up.

Be it resolved that the UFT will also support the addition of EID to the school calendar. Passes.

First amendment fails.

Resolution itself passes.

Ronnie: This isn’t a resolution about a strike right now. This is a resolution about being prepared if we ever have to strike. Strike should not be carried out haphazardly. Saw Chicago teachers prepare in 2021 took a lot of time convos fundraising trying to get through member concerns about what a strike is what it is not. It has been mentioned we are not ready for a strike. I agree we are not. The only way we get ready is by preparing, I think we are at a moment where we need to start the process. We have not had a strike in decades lack organizational culture. We need to take the lead on this. 1.Hold workshops (like SF) where they educate members about laws around striking. 2.Encourace CL and Delegates to turnkey workshops. 3. Be able to bring those with strike experience here to help mentor us.

Lamar Hughes (opposed) I don’t disagree, however I am a firm believer that if you hang around the barbershop long enough you will get a cut. If we keep talking strike, members will say “whens the strike” Instead of ‘strike’ we should say ‘organized’ we should organize around what a union is and our collective power. If principal sees that you are organized that is more powerful than a strike. If we are truly organized we may not even need strikes.

Adam Shapiro (opposed) I feel like we are already doing that. Teachins grade-ins etc etc actions. It feels good to sign up for the marathon but I have no training. We need to move gradually to build the members up through the actions we have been taking.

Alex (support) We have done much since Feb. I don’t think this resolution opposes anything we have done so far. It strengthens what we have already been doing. Across the nation other teacher unions have put in the months of preparation and it has paid off. This is a chance for us to be educated on what a strike is and why it is important particularly in a city hostile to teachers. We know who the Adams admin is they don’t respect us.

Nick (support) We have come a long way doing many of the CAT strategies, but the City is not bargaining with us in good faith even after we implemented those strategies. That is not to say we won’t win with other strategies, but I think it will help us if the DOE knows we are strike ready. They know we have not had a strike in decades. We need something more specific than what Shapiro proposes. Members need to understand the difference between striking and other actions, need to be prepared for the consequences. This is not about a strike tomorrow, I hope we never need one, but if the DOE saw us preparing for a strike they would fear us more.

Rashad (oppose) our members are not here yet. Financial implications are not included in this plan. We would need to get ready on the financials. When we start using strike like we use the word ‘the’ it desensitizes the management.

Patty Christino: (oppose) Lived through the Bloomberg years, and the members have to be angry. Think we’re underestimating the effects of the strike. How long are the details? Not that wrong. Afraid they’ll hear 2 days pay – once they hear that, it won’t matter. I ask for now that you vote this resolution down.

DeShana Barker: Contract rallies, while successful, we know how difficult it was to get people out. We’re still dealing with the aftermath of COVID and trying to get people in to do things in person. If we have 140,000 members, 10% is 14,000. That’s a lot. Everyone is watching us. We have to be careful – we’ve been dealing with fake news. My sister and I are fighting, I don’t think we expose her. I appreciate Ronnie – last point, we’ve been building muscles with this. Strikes sound nice, but we can’t be the only ones ready to strike.  Table for when time comes.

Sean Rockowitiz: calls question.

Ed Calamia: Requests some leeway so that he is able to speak.

LeRoy Barr: Can I do that in Robert’s Rules?

Ed Calamia: If you say so, then why not? (Laughter – Ed allowed to make point).

Ed Calamia: Everyone has made good points. At a certain points though, if this becomes necessary, if we aren’t prepared, we’re going to get steamrolled. Even if it’s a mustard seed in the earth, we need to make that step.

Fails (Unity votes against, UFC for).

 Full text below:

Resolution to Educate Our Chapters and Communities for Strike Readiness  

Whereas, the City has shown evidence of negotiating in bad faith, releasing a calendar without negotiating with the UFT, and keeping us working for almost a year under an expired contract.

Whereas our current campaign strategy has helped organize our members and awaken the public to our plight, but has left the City unmoved to give us the fair contract we deserve.

Whereas more disruptive tactics such as job actions have been linked to the most dramatic union gains in recent labor history, as also demonstrated by wins by public educator unions in Los Angeles, Oakland, and Woburn; and by private-sector nurses here in New York.

Whereas, while the Taylor Law states “no public employee or employee organization shall engage in a strike,” public-sector unions have successfully defied this prohibition in the past, and have either payed out the specific penalties for job actions (such as the “2 for 1” penalty) or have bypassed them entirely.

Whereas, the UFT had previously gone on strike and won many times, but, in part because of the Taylor Law’s draconian provisions, has not gone on strike since 1975, and as a result has lost much of its infrastructure to be ‘strike ready,’ such that we are not at all ‘strike ready’ today.

Whereas, in the event that further disruption is required to advance negotiations in our favor for this contract or for future contracts, it is essential that we are definitively strike-ready, as only a well-prepared union can win a strike in such a way as to offset or bypass Taylor Law penalties.

Whereas, being convincingly strike ready would increase our bargaining power with the employer, even if we opted not to actually strike. 

Be it resolved, the UFT will organize “strike prep” workshops to educate chapter leaders and delegates on how to organize for strikes and run them, as well as what are the laws around strikes and why we should advocate amending them.

Be it resolved that the UFT will call on chapter leaders and delegates to hold “teach-ins” to turnkey those strike trainings to their chapters. 

Be it resolved that the UFT will coordinate with other teachers’ unions who have had recent successes using job actions to increase their bargaining power.

Be it resolved that the UFT will establish a strike readiness committee to monitor and oversee efforts, and to report on progress to the Executive Board.

Be it resolved that the UFT will coordinate with our allies in the community so that we have the support of parents and residents in the event a strike is ever deemed by the Delegate Assembly to be necessary.

Alex Jallot   Illona Nanay   Ibeth Mejia   Luli Rodriguez     

Ed Calamia   Ronnie Almonte   Nick Bacon