Ruling in spring-break arbitration dispute

The independent arbitrator who awarded vacation days to UFT members who worked during the 2020 spring break has issued a subsequent ruling to settle a dispute between the Department of Education and the UFT over how to treat members with negative CAR balances. The DOE gave members with negative CAR balances only four CAR days and three vacation days when they worked seven days over the spring break. The UFT strongly disagreed with that policy and asked the arbitrator to intervene. The arbitrator ruled on April 26 that members with negative CAR balances on May 1, 2020, are entitled to two CAR days for every CAR day that the DOE originally gave them since the new vacation day the arbitrator created is worth more than a CAR day. Under the new ruling, members who had a negative CAR balance on May 1, 2020, will receive three vacation days and then have their CAR deficit reduced on a two-for-one basis. If the negative balance is eliminated before the member has been fully compensated for time worked over the spring break, the remainder will be given as additional vacation days. This decision has no impact on those members who already received their seven vacation days.

Friday is final day to get a replacement ballot

The UFT election is in full swing. Ballots must be received by May 9. If one of your members missed the April 25 deadline to request a duplicate ballot from the American Arbitration Association by phone or email, the member may still go in person with a photo ID to the AAA at 120 Broadway, concourse level, in Manhattan, to request a ballot and vote in person on Friday, April 29, between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. Members on leave who are not paying UFT dues are ineligible to vote in the union election. See the caucus statements and other election information in the UFT Elections 2022 section of the UFT website. 

Show your appreciation for teachers and nurses

Teacher Appreciation Week begins on Monday, May 2. National School Nurse Day is May 12. It's a chance to acknowledge these hard-working members. If you are organizing an activity next week to show appreciation for your school's teachers, please send your best photo (large-size resolution) with caption information, including your school, neighborhood and borough, to uftphotos [at] gmail [dot] com (uftphotos[at]gmail[dot]com) so we can share it on the UFT's social media platforms. Use the hashtag #ThankATeacherNY when posting Teacher Appreciation Week photos on your own social media accounts. 

UFT’s “Listen Up! The reality is…” panel shares its expertise

Our UFT panel of eight educators, drawing on classroom experiences, talked frankly about the challenges they face during an April 14 panel titled, “Listen Up! The reality is…” They advocated for smaller class sizes, teacher autonomy, staff increases — especially school counselors and other clinicians, special education services and more. Schools Chancellor David C. Banks, state Board of Regents Chancellor Lester Young and other key education policymakers intently listened to our members’ well-articulated, blunt assessments and recommendations. City Council Education Committee Chair Rita Joseph, a former Brooklyn teacher and UFT member, moderated the discussion.

Watch the discussion