FAQ on the proposed City Council legislation

Thanks to the support of City Council Speaker Julie Menin, the RESPECT check bill was introduced on Feb. 24, 2026, by City Council members Carmen De La Rosa, Lynn Schulman, Rita Joseph and Virginia Maloney. Read the full legislation.

This proposed legislation is part of our ongoing work to give paraprofessionals the respect and money they deserve for the valuable work they do for our most vulnerable students. See answers to questions you may have about the proposed legislation below. 

What is the paraprofessional “RESPECT check” legislation?

The proposed bill would put an additional $10,000 into the pockets of paraprofessionals annually and begin to undo some of the damage that the unfair practice of pattern bargaining has caused members of the UFT Paraprofessionals Chapter. Substitute paraprofessionals would receive a prorated amount based on the number of days they work each year.

The payment would be separate from a paraprofessional’s regular salary and would not be pensionable. The bill is part of our ongoing work to increase pay for paraprofessionals and end a practice that has harmed our lowest-paid members.

Why was this bill created?

The city of New York has experienced persistent difficulties in recruiting and retaining school paraprofessionals, resulting in staffing shortages and turnover that impair the continuity of educational and student-support services, including critical services for students with disabilities. Maintaining a stable school paraprofessional workforce is necessary to protect student safety and to ensure the effective delivery of instructional and support services in schools. These temporary workforce stabilization payments are necessary to address these emergency conditions until these conditions are rectified through collective bargaining; and this law is intended to provide these  payments in a manner that does not limit or diminish our collective bargaining rights.

What's going on with the bill now? 

Thanks to the support of City Council Speaker Julie Menin, the RESPECT check bill was introduced on Feb. 24, 2026, by City Council members Carmen De La Rosa, Lynn Schulman, Rita Joseph and Virginia Maloney.

Next Steps:

• Officially sign up sponsors.
• Get the legislation a hearing with the City Council Committee on Civil Service and Labor.
• Get the legislation passed by the full City Council.

Our conversations are confirming that the overwhelming support for this RESPECT check is still there and stronger than ever. The difference? We now have a speaker who does not want to block it. The path forward is clear, and your work matters.

Stay tuned for more communication as this unfolds. We’ve said it before, and we will say it again: We will not stop until our RESPECT check legislation is passed.

How bad is the pay gap for paraprofessionals?

Our paraprofessionals have a starting salary of just under $32,000, which is impossible to survive on in this city. The city’s insistence on pattern bargaining, in which all city workers get the same percentage increases, has done incredible damage to the lowest-paid employees. The fact is the same 3% increase translates to a much higher dollar amount for higher-paid DOE employees than it does for our paraprofessionals.  A 3% increase for a starting paraprofessional is roughly $900, while for the highest paid principals, it is roughly $6,500. Due to decades with  this broken system, the pay gap between the highest-paid principals and the lowest-paid UFT members — our paraprofessionals — has grown appallingly wide.

How much money will I get if this bill becomes law?

If our bill becomes law, every full-time paraprofessional would receive a check for $10,000 each year. Substitute paraprofessionals or those who did not work a full year would receive a prorated amount based on the number of days worked.

Why is the money not pensionable?

Salaries, which are pensionable, must be negotiated through collective bargaining. With this proposed legislation, we can give paraprofessionals immediate financial relief this year, rather than waiting until 2027, when we will begin negotiations on a new contract. Moreover, we are not financing these payments with the finite sum available to us for all members in collective bargaining. Finally, the City Council is legally not allowed to change worker salaries or working conditions, but this payment would fall outside the terms and conditions of our contract.

Why did we use a bill instead of the contract?

We will continue to negotiate pay increases for paraprofessionals and all UFT titles through collective bargaining, but our current contract does not expire until 2027. We are going outside the collective bargaining process because pattern bargaining, in which all city workers get the same percentage increases, has failed our paraprofessionals. The fact is the same 3% increase translates to a much higher dollar amount for higher-paid DOE employees than it does for our paraprofessionals, so paraprofessionals fall further and further behind. We would never be able to get this large and immediate amount of money for paraprofessionals within the constraints of collective bargaining without other union members giving up their own raises. It is the city’s responsibility to give paraprofessionals the money we know they all deserve. It’s unacceptable to us for the city to say that other UFT members are responsible for giving paraprofessionals a raise. We will not allow the city to pit members against members.

Would these payments ever stop?

These payments would continue until the city agreed to a contract in which paraprofessionals received a compensation increase that was at least equal to these payments. At that point, the bill would cease to exist and the payment amount would be part of our contract.

How would I receive this payment if the proposed legislation passes?

Payments would be made by August 1 of each year. We would work with the DOE to figure out how this payment would be distributed. It might appear as a supplemental check similar to our May bonus checks.

How would this money be taxed?

This payment would be taxed as supplemental wages, the same way the May bonus payments are. Because of this classification, a higher amount of tax may be withheld initially, but your final tax rate at the end of the year would be based on your total income (salary plus bonuses and other earnings). If the amount withheld ended up being more than what you owed for the year, you would receive a tax refund from the IRS when you filed your return.

Why would paraprofessionals receive this payment and not other UFT titles?

This payment to paraprofessionals would address the pay gap that has increased over the decades as across-the-board percentage increases negotiated in each contract yield more money for higher-paid titles. Our paraprofessionals deserve to earn a living wage for the valuable work they do.

How would this proposed legislation be funded?

The payments would come from the city’s general funds, not from the collective bargaining reserve. Between November 2024 and January 2025, the city “found” over $8 billion in additional funds to cover municipal expenses.