Request a UFT representative to speak at your school

Do your members have questions about Welfare Fund benefits, certification or school safety and health? Would they like to have a conversation with the UFT vice president from their school division? UFT officers and union reps from various departments are available to visit your school and speak with the members of your chapter. Select "Request a School Visit" under Forms in the Chapter Leader Hub.

Request a visit

Report class size data to your district rep on Sept. 24 and Oct. 1

We are addressing the class size issues that school chapter leaders reported on Days 6 and 10. The next key reporting days are: Day 14 (Tuesday, Sept. 24) and Day 19 (Tuesday, Oct. 1). These contractual class size limits are separate and apart from implementation of the state's class size law. Please obtain your school's RACL (elementary or middle schools) or Master Schedule Final (high schools), which indicates class sizes on these dates. For most schools, the oversize classes that remain unresolved by Day 14 (Sept. 24) will go to your district representative and superintendent to tackle. On the 21st day, unresolved cases escalate a step higher to the central class size labor-management committee.

The 2018 contract created a special additional step for schools that are chronically out of compliance, defined as having oversized classes for four of the past six school years. These schools are escalated to the Class Size Labor-Management Committee once the overages are reported to the union. If the Class Size Labor-Management Committee cannot resolve the issue, the case is scheduled for expedited arbitration as soon as 10 days later — and no later than the 34th school day of the term. The arbitrator can issue a binding remedy within five school days that the DOE must implement in five school days.

ACTION YOU NEED TO TAKE: Send the class size data for your school on days 14 and 19 of the school year to your UFT district rep. Reach out to your district rep if you have any questions.

Help for members struggling with student debt  

If you have colleagues who are worried about how they will manage their monthly loan payments, our Student Debt Relief Program, only for UFT members, can help them navigate the options and apply for the right federal student debt relief program. UFT members are invited to attend a 90-minute introductory webinar. Sessions that provide an overview of the range of programs available are held twice a week from Saturday, Sept. 21, through Tuesday, Oct. 29. After attending an introductory webinar, a member may make an appointment to speak by phone with a loan specialist to discuss their individual needs and create a free action plan.

Learn more

Celebrate Teacher Union Day on Nov. 3

The power of our union is in all of its members. We have accomplished a lot over the last year, and at Teacher Union Day we will be celebrating the school-based leaders who deserve much of the credit. Our chapter leaders and our Chapter Action Teams worked diligently to implement the contract in every school, to fix Tier 6 of the pension system and to push the city to take its first concrete steps to fund class size reduction. Our work as school-based union leaders is hard, and Teacher Union Day gives us the opportunity to recognize and celebrate one another. We invite you to join us for this year's special event on Sunday, Nov. 3, at the New York Hilton Midtown. There will be a continental breakfast and post-awards reception. Cost: $40 if you register before Oct. 7 (early bird discount); $50 after that date.

Register now