This story comes from a member who has been treated harshly by an abusive principal in a school that shall go nameless.
This teacher had a pretty much open and shut case against the abusive administrator on a specific letter for file because it was written more than three months after the alleged incident that the administrator was writing about took place. That is an obvious violation of Article 21A1 of the Contract. This is a no-brainer grievance if ever there was one. The Principal would lose at Step II and would probably give in at Step I so as not to be embarrassed at the Chancellor's level. The member, however, would not file the grievance even after being encouraged by union leadership in the building.
When asked why not, the member said that winning the battle would be great but that the administration has taken anyone who has fought them and made their lives a living hell in retaliation. Those who oppose administration lose in the end and someone who has a family to support cannot take the chance so the member would rather just swallow the improper letter. As a union activist, this story just frustrates me to no end.
I am sure stories like this are told throughout the NYC school system. When the members have no confidence in the ability of their union to defend them, then that union must change how it does business to build the confidence in the union among the rank and file.
Unfortunately, I don't see that happening anytime soon in the UFT.
What the UFT needs is for their members to see some real victories at the local level.
12 comments:
This goes back to your previous post. Its over. We cant even stop and illegal act by a principal. Because we are afraid? Same reason we pass everybody, even though 10% deserve it. We dont want to get called in, berated, made to explain ourselves, and its just not worth the hassle. But dont worry, grad rates are at an all time high. I wish it wasnt the case, but it is. We get tortured but get our checks, UFT collects dues, Mulgrew makes $300K, kids all pass and end up being nothing other than criminals and feed off of government forever. Thats what it is...
No one I know trusts the union. It's rape with the tainted fruits of parsimony and patronage. No one would notice if it just disappeared, other than for the dues and increase in aberrant behavior from administration which would then have free rein to do as they wished. The UFT merely acts as figureheads and impotent representatives for the facade of negotiations and meetings. President Mulgrew stays for 15 minutes or less for his own Executive Board and is responsible for the last contract.
It is a shame how hard members of the past fought for the rights members and yet the current UFT Representation does not listen to it's members. We are abused daily by vindictive administrators (bullies)and yet when you advocate for the right to do your job. You are retaliated against. No professional should experience what many of our colleagues have experienced.
I used to work at one of the 20 schools Bloomberg targeted in 2012. It was horrible. Not the new normal horrible like 30 times worse... Seriously, unless you worked at one of those schools I doubt you know just how freaking painful this job can get. let me stop my PTSD is acting up. Anyway, my time in the Bronx, that was when I learned that the UFT was a joke. The UFT did nothing to help. The borough people they sent to placate use were patronizing and assinine. All the staff at the school had to reapply for their jobs. The UFT had a rep on the hiring committee. She was worse than the people from the DOE.
Sounds like Jinella Hinds at Grace Dodge HS with our Chapter Leader Ernie. A surreal and infuriating performance filled with lie after lie. "They have to hire a third of the Dodge staff". The minis that came in - Energy Tech Took none, Crotona took two and Computer tech took one, out of a staff of close to a hundred. We are all retired or are ATRs now, except for those three. Every assine thing that the four incompetent principals in four years wanted, Ernie told us to do - To save the school! Well Ernie are you still screaming that the school isn't closing? I'm sure you must be retired now. The fact that the UFT allowed Dodge to be set up and all those schools to close is the reason that I have no respect or belief in the UFT.
Ever since Mayoral control of the schools began back in 2000 it's been us against them. I worked for a decade prior to the centralization in 4 schools and it was a much more collegial relationship between administrator and teacher. Not perfect by any means but for the most part there was the sense that we were all a family. Schools received support from the district offices, not a constant barrage of criticism. That's how I remember it and boy have things have turned for the worse. Now it's just plain miserable for so many teachers. And at this time when we need an effective union more than ever, we have this pathetic do-nothing,self-serving,sister bureaucracy known as the UFT. What a disgrace.
I will be getting a letter to my file that I have every ground to grieve, because the premise of the letter violates the contract. My CL wants me to grieve and part of me really does want to. BUT- our administration is probably one of the most sick and twisted group of individuals that I have ever met. They are torturing people to the point where a couple of them have been recently hospitalized. Do I want to push back, or take the meaningless letter to my file? Is it worth the potential retaliation? I honestly don't know if I have the internal fortitude to withstand their vicious onslaughts.
Jinilla Hines is out of touch with the HS teachers she is suppose to represent. She speaks down to you and loves danielson and more observations. Read her testimony with eval when King was here.If the election wasn't rigged you would be our VP. I wonder what it would be like to have a HS VP who cared about HS teachers and actually worked to make things better. Maybe one day.
UFT Leadership is complicit in this abuse. When they had a chance over the past year to truly get rank and file feedback on the new evaluation process, they ignored how thousands of teachers felt about it. Though standardized VAM testing tied to teacher evals is a crock, many of the current problems written above, could have been reduced with choosing two observations instead of the ridiculous four. But, no, without any input from the thousands of teachers they represent, they give in, and give up anything that's important to us.
Many Leadership principals know the UFT won't fight back. The UFT cheerleads for chapter leaders and teachers to fight back against abusive principals, while they acquiesce. "Do as I say, not as as I do" is a perfect motto for the crowd at 52 Broadway.
If Unity Party were really interested in the best interests of the educators they represent then a real discussion of how schools are represented should be held. I think the entire process as it is currently is, is so egregiously flawed that it needs to be scrapped. To ask the most vulnerable people to have to put a giant target on their backs to be easily picked off and attacked by the very people (administration) that are violating them is ridiculous. I would suggest that the chapter leader and consultation committee should not be meeting with the Principals alone. Once a month someone from the union should be scheduled to come and meet first with the CL and CC in order to learn about what is happening at the schools. After that the outside union representative should meet with the Principal. The person from the union is the actual point person who's role is to negotiate and argue contractual issues with the Principal not the vulnerable people subject to evaluation in the building by that same person. By having an outside person from the union who is not under threat of retaliation meeting monthly with the principal I believe would lead to a lot less shenanigans occurring in schools. The union representative could essentially come in with a checklist of questions regarding adherence to the contract and really keep schools in line. Under the current system I am amazed when ever I hear of anyone grieving anything. It takes real courage to grieve because the consequences are very high. If Unity really cared they would be open to an honest discussion about how to best accomplish adherence to the contract. I’m not going to hold my breath.
This happens at my school all the time. we have one particular AP here at MCKEE HIGH SCHOOL in Staten Island that is abusive to multiple staff members. He is hated throughout the building and abuses UFT and DC37 members all the time. HE IS STILL HERE! and the incompetent principal is still here in charge of her circus show and knows about all this. She is just as guilty as he is because she pretends to be the good cop. We ALL know it.
I am NOT an UNITY person, but after years of fighting and dealing with the retaliation and other mind numbing torture that goes on here.... I am starting to think joining UNITY is the only way to get some help here. People walk around this building defeated and sad and discouraged. We have NEW staff members already feeling the burn and they have only been here for half the semester.
The ONLY UFT leadership person to come here to fight was Bernstein and Coppola from the SI UFT office and UFT CTE... The rest of them do nothing.
We put on the dog and pony show all the time but when there is nobody, its a sad FAKE it till you make it kinda of show. The UFT rep we voted in we thought was going to be a bull dog and SHE has her own agenda. She is useless and clueless.... People are fed up with the incompetence, lack of care and abuse. Most just leave or go into this numb state of mind. It is reflected in the school environment when you have HALF of your senior population present for the first period of the day every day in your classes and nobody does a thing about it, that is sad. If you bring it up, admin here starts to torture you. We have people who are fearful because of little to know UFT backing. There has to be a revolution of some kind or a restructuring... SOMETHING HAS TO HAPPEN.... I know this describes multiple schools.
My time in the Bronx also showed me the joke... I was at Gompers and I was at the rally for Alfred E. Smith.... What a joke. We were told by UFT brass "we gotta work with these people"
Really!!!! The incompetent principal "JMK" and her former principal friend at Alfred E. Smith DESTROYED those two CTE schools. I mean destroyed. There was NO fight. Now help,
I hear Energy Tech which was formulated is a nightmare. Even new AP's. want to leave because of the current ridiculous principal. The sadness continues in the Bx. They crippled CTE education there and did NOTHING to help these kids. How can you teach computer repair and NOT have a screw driver!!!! WHERE IS THE FUNDING!!! WHERE WAS THE UFT!!! THEY KNEW! WHY DID THEY LET US SUFFER!!!
WE COULDNT HELP THE KIDS! WE JUST LET THEM GRADUATE... THEY KNEW NOTHING!!! THE CHAPTER LEADER ACTUALLY FOUGHT AND WAS NOT BACKED AT ALL!!! NO teacher should have to go through what we at Gompers went through. No teacher should have to go through what we at Smith went through.. WHY DOES THIS CONTINUE TO HAPPEN!!!
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