Thursday, November 03, 2005

UFT VP HINTS AT WAY VOTES WILL BE COUNTED: NO SCHOOL TALLY


In what appears to be the first indication of how the American Arbitration Association will tally the contract ratification vote today UFT Vice President Frank Volpicella announced last night at a high school committee meeting that providing individual school tallies will be “impossible” because of the nature of the voting process.

Numerous documented instances of improper voting procedures were uncovered over the last week indicating that the report of the vote today will be forever clouded in a shroud of impropriety. Of some of the more egregious instances uncovered include the systematic violation of Board of Education rules and grievance precedent in preventing opposition caucus members from distributing literature in staff mailboxes. Additionally “secret ballot” envelopes were hardly secret as votes were easily seen if the envelope was held up to a strong light leading many to conclude that negative votes were discarded. Additionallly enough information was provided to Chapter Leaders to allow for the easy voting tampering by submitting votes for members that were absent or refused to vote.

The vote tabulation begins this morning at the Election Department of the American Arbitration Association at 1633 Broadway, 10th Floor near 51st Street. Their phone number is 212-484-3224. Results will be published here as soon as they are received. Stay tuned.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, according to Maurice DuBois on CBS, the contract was ratified. What an absolute disgrace. I'll be out in a few years. Since 55% of teachers have 5 years or less, I say that you, all, will suffer what this contract will mean in the future for tenure, grievances, a 6th teaching period and job security. I voted no, but I will be part of the leisure class when things really get rough. Too bad so many of my brothers and sisters are so short sighted.

Anonymous said...

Hey Jeff why no comment?

NY Post 11/1/05
TEACHERS UNION BIG SUES
By DAVID ANDREATTA

The city is being slapped with an improper-labor-practice charge for allegedly ousting a teacher from his school because of his union activity, The Post has learned.

Teachers union president Randi Weingarten said the union is filing the charge with a state labor board on behalf of Jeff Kaufman, an outspoken critic of the Education Department who was kicked out of his school at Rikers Island this month.

The Education Department said he was removed because he ran afoul of Correction Department regulations. Kaufman, a union leader at Island Academy, claims the city wanted to silence him.

In addition to leading the charge for teachers to reject the city's recent contract offer, Kaufman last year testified to the City Council Education Committee that the city fails to transfer juvenile offenders to regular schools upon their release from jail.

Education officials at the time conceded that the system was inadequate.

"There's no doubt in my mind that this move was done to prevent my members from being represented and to silence me," Kaufman said.

Anonymous said...

Go Jeff go.

Anonymous said...

I am the husband of a teacher who voted no, on this contract. I am also the son of a former chapter leader who also voted no. The teachers who voted yes have helped start the process of busting up the union. How can a union which should be the most powerful in the city give back so much and get so little? The UFT leadership by using scare tactics that this is a good deal should resign. It is a discrace that 63% of my wife's co-workers in the city voted for this deal. My wife is a young energetic teacher who is going to look for a teaching job in the suburbs where they get paid a decent wage, and get the respect they deserve. Only then when the young good teachers leave the system for the suburbs will the city understand, that you can't treat professionals this way.

Anonymous said...

I agree with all who posted on this blog. I am a new teacher and am in my tenure year. I took the non-traditional route and subsequently find myself at 41 looking to flee to the suburbs or out-of-state all together. I feel let down by this union, 63% of its rank and file, and most importantly the very President who was supposed to protect us, yet sold us out. Good luck to the City of New York trying to attract new teachers into this crappy new system. I ask you Jeff would'nt we better with no union at all? I say yes since we practically do not have one anyway. I voted NO and can sleep at night knowing my conscience is clear. To the 63% who did not long may you have nightmares, and to Randi please lets impeach her.

Anonymous said...

anonymous,

Yes, at 41, i would say get out now. If you wait too long, it will not be worth it financially. There are some really nice schools in Westchester, Long Island and even New Jersey. Don't get locked into the NYC system. It simply isn't worth it. Start planning for Sept, 2006.