Engage your chapter in our Fix Tier 6 campaign

Here is the Fix Tier 6 PowerPoint presentation that UFT President Michael Mulgrew made at this Wednesday’s Delegate Assembly. Please present it at your next chapter meeting to inform your members about the issue and engage them in our campaign. While having a guaranteed pension is a tremendous benefit, we are pushing state lawmakers in Albany to make key changes to Tier 6, including lowering the retirement age and improving how the final average salary is calculated. Also, make sure everyone in your chapter has joined our Fix Tier 6 campaign (the QR code to join is in the presentation). Remember, never give any pension advice to members; if they have personal and specific pension questions, direct them to a UFT pension consultant.

If you would prefer to have a pension expert from the UFT make this presentation for your school chapter, please fill out this online request form. We will do our best to accommodate as many requests as we can.

Go to the Fix Tier 6 toolkit

Ask George for quick answers in the hub

Starting in mid-February, George, our new Member Hub guide, will be available 24/7 on the UFT Member Hub to provide DOE-employed UFT members and retirees with answers to the most frequently asked questions. Our union reps and agents are still available during regular work hours to answer complex questions that require more time and expertise. But for simpler questions, George — named after George Altomare, one of the union’s founders — is available whenever members need assistance, and with mobile access from wherever they are. George can answer members’ straightforward questions about union membership, salary, UFT Welfare Fund forms, leaves and pension consultations, freeing up your time as chapter leader to focus on organizing and connecting with your members.

Watch this introductory video

Assist paraprofessionals with certification problems

The city DOE recently sent termination notices to paraprofessionals who have not completed their certification requirements. Please tell these paraprofessionals to carefully read the notice for next steps and then log in to their TEACH account on the State Education Department’s website to find out what they are missing. Paraprofessionals who received a termination notice because they lack college credits can apply between Feb. 1 and March 31 for the summer semester of the Career Training Program. The program pays tuition for three to six credits per semester for undergraduate study at participating colleges and universities. Participants also are given 2½ hours per week of release time and/or a summer stipend to support their studies. Paraprofessionals who have received a notice of termination and have specific questions should contact UFT certification specialists Monica Christie or Jeremiah Bornemann at 212-331-6311. Paraprofessionals with questions about CTLE requirements can find more information on the State Education Department’s website.

Assist pedagogues with certification problems

The city DOE recently sent termination notices to teachers, school counselors, school social workers and school psychologists who have not completed their certification requirements for their professional or permanent state certificates. These members should log in to their TEACH account on the State Education Department’s website to determine their next steps to become fully certified. Pedagogues can find more information on the State Education Department’s website as well as the certification section of the UFT website. Pedagogues who have received a notice of termination and have specific questions should contact a UFT certification specialist at 212-331-6311.

Three pension bills signed in December

In December, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed into law three state bills that incrementally improved UFT members’ pension benefits. The first bill provides for the automatic enrollment of eligible employees in the New York City Board of Education Retirement System (BERS). Going forward, all substitute teachers and substitute paraprofessionals will be enrolled in BERS. They can then transfer that service credit to TRS if they are appointed full time in the future. The second bill provides an increased death benefit for in-service members who are over age 60. If these members die while still working, their beneficiaries will now receive up to 20% more. The final bill allows city and state workers who accidentally joined two pension systems to retire under the pension system that best suits them. Before this bill, a city lifeguard who forgot he had joined the New York City Employees’ Retirement System and later had a long career as a teacher would have had to retire with a much smaller NYCERS pension. Now, that person can retire under TRS.