Thursday, May 22, 2014

LONG ISLAND EDUCATORS PROTEST AGAINST CUOMO IN MELVILLE

There was a tremendous vibe outside the the State Democratic convention in Melville yesterday as Arthur Goldstein and I joined what looked like close to a thousand educators from Long Island for a very spirited rally.  Do you think Governor Cuomo is noticing?





Francis Lewis HS's Arthur Goldstein talking to Port Jefferson Station Teachers Association President Beth Dimino along with Rockville Center Principal Carol Burris and her husband (a retired UFT member)!

Unionism looks to be alive and well east of the city.

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great job on LI, now vote no here in NYC.

Anonymous said...

Just asking. Is that Beth Dimino? Is this what the MORE leadership in Port Jefferson got in their contract? Wow, they increased their healthcare contributions! That's not a back? And a 0,1,1,1... Is that good? Oh, my, my. Mr. Goldstein MUST be very proud!!! Beth...do your job!

Read on please.


The Port Jefferson school district has reached a four-year contract agreement with its teachers that keeps their current salaries in the first year but bumps up annual pay by 1 percent in years two through four, school officials announced Thursday.

The agreement between the district and the Port Jefferson Teachers Association runs from July 1, 2013, through June 30, 2017.

The contract, approved by the Board of Education Tuesday, includes a 2.85 percent step increase in the first year, half-step increases in years two and four and a step freeze in year three. Step increases are based on accrued years of service and are separate from the overall salary increase.

lso, one-time payments of $650 will be made to all teachers in years two and three, and teachers who are not eligible to move up a step on the salary schedule in year one will receive a one-time payment of $1,300. "The negotiation process from start to finish -- it was respectful, collaborative and reflective of the economic challenges our community and all communities are facing," said Kenneth Bossert, superintendent of schools.

The district will realize a savings of about $850,000 over the four-year term of the agreement with its approximately 120 teachers, as compared with the expired contract language. Bossert said the district will be able to preserve its programs and staffing as well as stay within its 1.43 percent tax levy increase cap proposed for the upcoming school year.

The new agreement also calls for an increase in teachers' health insurance premium contributions, a freezing of stipend rates and an adjustment to bereavement days.

Beth Dimino said...

Beth Dimino, President PJSTA
I am doing my job Sir and I have no comment on the Port Jefferson Teachers Association Contract because I am the president of the Port Jefferson Station Teachers Association.

Anonymous said...

So go and negotiate your contract then! What that heck are you doing here?

Anonymous said...

If Unity gets four years of zeros as they just did here in NYC, then you think it's a great deal oh dear Unity hacks.

James Eterno said...

Do you really want to start comparing Long Island contracts to what we have in the city? Let's not go in that direction please commenters. The rally was such a great event Wednesday with an outstanding feeling in the air. How you can make it into an attack on a union leader who has done so much for all of us statewide by accusing John King of child abuse with common core as Beth did? If you still want to compare, Long Island districts are living under the property tax cap and we are not in the city. It's apples and oranges. Apples to apples is the evaluation systems which each district had to negotiate. In NYC we have an overly complicated, not so wonderful evaluation system imposed on us by John King. Our union thought King would be a good arbitrator and agreed to submit our impasse to the Commissioner. My guess is we will have more than 1% rated ineffective unlike the rest of the state which had only 1% get that dreaded rating.

Anonymous said...

Maximum class sizes Port Jefferson Station high schools:28 subject classes and phys ed: 40

NYC Maximum class sizes: 34 subject and 50 for phys ed. Who's doing their job?

Anonymous said...

Unity wants to do salary comparisons? Let's go
2007-08 Port Jefferson Station--3.4% increase
Top Salary: $109,942
2008-09--3.3% increase
Top Salary: $113,569
2009-10: 3.3% increase
Top Salary: $117,317
2010-11:3.2% increase
Top Salary: $121,071
2011-12: 3.2% increase
Top Salary: $124,945
2012-13: 0% increase
2013-14: 1.5% increase
Top Salary: $126,819
2014-15: 1.5% increase
Top Salary: $128,721

Also if a teacher has a load of over 135 students, they get paid extra to take on more students.

Mikey Mulgrew is getting us up to $119,000 in 2018. If Port Jefferson Station gets all zeros between now and 2018,they will still be almost $10,000 ahead of the city at top salary.

As for the low increases in the latest three year contract, this is what Beth Diminosaid to the local newspaper.

PJSTA President Beth Dimino said in a phone interview Tuesday morning that the union membership unanimously approved the new agreement. "So that tells you how my membership felt about the deal," she said. "The important word is that it's an agreement. What we all did is try to put aside our differences and our desires in order to do what was best for the community, including the teachers, the students and the taxpayers."


The contract also includes a clause regarding job security. For the duration of the contract, the document says, no teacher hired as of Sept. 4, 2012, may be terminated from that position for budgetary reasons.

"Teachers took less for [job] security — that's fair," Dimino said.

Unity please stop embarrassing yourself and don't bring up Long Island contracts as this is not the way to make your point.

Anonymous said...

You ungrateful UFT members. Mulgrew has you going back in the fall making only $27,000 less than your Long Island colleagues and all you do is complain and vote no.

Anonymous said...

What did Mulgrew get for zeros? Easier firing for ATR's.