Sunday, July 01, 2018

THE ACTUAL PARENTAL LEAVE DOCUMENT

David Irons asked both the UFT and the City's Office of Labor Relations for the full Parental Leave Memorandum of Agreement. Guess who sent it to him? You would be wrong if you said the UFT. The city's Office of Labor Relations answered David's Freedom of Information Act request for the document. It is copied in its entirety below.

In David's examination and speculation about the Agreement that he wrote before he had the full Agreement, he called many things correctly while some of his fears thankfully were allayed by examining the Agreement. In the end, much of his critique is legitimate.

The twelve month return to work requirement or you owe your union money is definitely in the Agreement (see section XII). For some people, it is actually longer than 12 months. Don't go looking for a job in Westchester or Long Island if you are planning on going on Parental Leave. Also, Option B is all unpaid leave as far as the DOE is concerned. The UFT Welfare Fund is paying the member. The member during that time is not accruing service credit for tenure, pension, CAR balance or even summer pay.

On the positive side, the UFT cannot use the money they are getting from us by extending the contract two months and 13 days for anything but paying Parental Leave benefits and that amount will increase if and when we get raises. There's no slush fund here.

It is interesting to note that Mulgrew says the UFT Welfare fund will pay people a sum equal to the amount of their salary while on Parental Leave. However, I looked and looked but could not find it anywhere in this Agreement.

Here is what it says in Section I, Paragraph 2:

The administration of the program and the level of benefit provided is to be determined by the UFT and UFTWF. Any dispute or disagreement by a UFT represented employee regarding the UFT or UFTWF administration of the program or determination of the level of benefit provided shall be referred to the UFT for resolution by whatever process the UFT deems appropriate, and is not subject to the grievance or arbitration procedure in the applicable collective bargaining agreements.

The UFT decides how much you get and there is no recourse if you disagree with them. No wonder they didn't want anyone to see the actual text of the Agreement. They were afraid Delegates at the Delegate Assembly might be able to actually read.

To me this looks like the city and UFT couldn't agree on the cost of Parental Leave so in order to lower the cost, the UFT greatly limited the amount of city money involved in the deal which in turn would put a big cap on who can obtain the Parental Leave benefit. If too many people are eligible and the UFT underestimated the cost, it is anybody's guess as to what happens then. Lower benefits? People rejected? Money has to come from somewhere else in the Union because the city is not on the hook? It is not specified and since nobody outside Mulgrew's inner circle saw the Agreement, nobody could ask about this at the Delegate Assembly.

Once again it must be pointed out that New York City has an $8 billion surplus so we should have received this minimal benefit without postponing our next salary increase by 75 days.

Michael Mulgrew did not do any great negotiating here. He lowered the cost by limiting the benefit. State University of New York professors (UUP) aren't paying anything at all for Paid Family Leave nor are Seattle public employees. That said, let's concentrate on NYC.

Mulgrew apologists say DC 37 is paying more for Paid Family Leave (parents can use it to take care of newborns and others can use it to take care of sick relatives). They are paying more because it is a much greater benefit than the UFT is getting. We would have probably had to extend the contract for close to a year to get the wider paid family leave benefit or agreed to a tiny payroll deduction as per the state law in the private sector. A small payroll deduction for expansive Paid Family Leave is what DC 37 agreed to.

For those who are not trying to figure out the accounting and believe Mulgrew's great skill as a negotiator got us Parental Leave, I recommend watching Season 4, Episode 3 of the Odd Couple.


Both Oscar and Felix buy health insurance. Felix can't believe that Oscar is paying $200 while Felix is paying $400 for insurance coverage so Felix challenges him to a decathlon. At the end of the challenge when they are both exhausted, Oscar says he is glad he has $5,000 in insurance while Felix says he is paying for $10,000 in insurance. Of course Felix is paying twice as much. The UFT is Oscar. DC 37 is Felix. That is pretty much how bargaining in NYC is done. We are not getting anything more without paying more for it.

Unfortunately, it works that way because we are not organized as a rank and file that can obtain more of what we need from the city by collectively fighting for it. Please don't tell me if we all withhold our union dues then suddenly we will obtain a better deal from the city. If people leave the UFT, it will only worsen our situation unless they organize a better union.

At least now you don't have to rely on the UFT people to interpret Parental Leave. Thank you David for taking the time to do the FOIA.

The entire agreement:
Parental Leave

I. Introduction
Parental Leave (PL) means the right of an Eligible Employee represented by the
United Federation of Teachers (UFT) employed by the Board of Education of the City School District of the City of New York ("DOE") or the City of New York ("City") to take an approved, unpaid leave, not to exceed six weeks, under the circumstances and rules described herein. During the period of the approved, unpaid leave, the DOE or the City will continue the employee's health insurance without interruption, but all other accruals of benefits (including pension, salary and service credit accrual) cease. The approved leave will be unpaid leave, but for the duration of the unpaid leave, the UFT will provide, at its discretion, a benefit to these employees through its Welfare Fund ("UFTWF").

The administration of the program and the level of benefit provided is to be determined by the UFT and UFTWF. Any dispute or disagreement by a UFT represented employee regarding the UFT or UFTWF administration of the program or determination of the level of benefit provided shall be referred to the UFT for resolution by whatever process the UFT deems appropriate, and is not subject to the grievance or arbitration procedure in the applicable collective bargaining agreements.

The City/DOE's exclusive financial obligation is to provide the unpaid leave as set forth herein and to make a contribution to the UFTWF in the annual amount of $50,786,534. This amount shall increase with future across the board wage increases beyond the expiration of the 2009-2018 collective bargaining agreements. This amount is to be funded by extending the 2009-2018 collective bargaining agreements by an additional 2 months and 13 days and is to be used solely for the administration of the parental leave program by the UFT and UFTWF. Parental Leave will be granted to all UFT-represented Eligible Employees, regardless of gender, in the event of a birth of a child, adoption of child, or the placement of a child in foster care with the employee (the "Covered Event").

II. Effective Date
The first date an employee will be entitled to Parental Leave shall be September 4, 2018. An Eligible Employee who has a Covered Event prior to September 4, 2018 shall be entitled to PL during the portion of the leave that would occur on and after September 4, 2018 based on rules below. For example:

(1) For an August 14, 2018 non-Caesarean birth, the non-birth parent would be entitled to PL starting on
September 4, 2018 and continuing through September 24, 2018;
(2) For an August 14,
2018 non-Caesarean birth, the birth parent may use CAR days starting on the first day
 of school and continuing through September 24, 2018, and then a full 6 weeks of PL;
(3) For a July 3, 2018 non-Caesarean birth, the birth parent can be on sick leave/CAR status for 6 weeks until August 13, 2018 and then would be entitled to PL starting on September 4, 2018 and continuing through September 24, 2018.

III. Definitions
For purposes of this Agreement only, "Active Status", shall mean an Eligible Employee is on (i) payroll, using CAR days or sick time, on annual leave, on a paid leave, on parental leave, (ii) unpaid leave for a pregnancy related condition, (iii) a leave pursuant to the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act ("USERRA") or another statutory leave and/or (iv) unpaid leave due to a medically disputed line of duty injury ("LODI") for up to three months.

In the event that an employee files for parental leave and has an unpaid, administratively disputed ("administrative bar") leave for a line of duty injury (LODI) that impacts her/his eligibility for parental leave, the DOE shall notify the UFT within 5 school days, if the DOE intends to disapprove the parental leave as a result of the disputed line of duty injury. The UFT and DOE shall meet within 5 work days to attempt to resolve the issue. If the issue is not resolved, the matter will be scheduled on the next scheduled arbitration date before the regular arbitration panel for a final and binding decision. A hearing can take no more than one day and an arbitrator may hear up to three such cases per day. The parties will jointly ask the arbitrator for an expedited decision. The parties will ask any arbitrator who hears such a case to schedule a make up date as soon as possible.

If the employee's dispute is medical and she/he is not on payroll, up to three months of disputed LODI days (that are not part of a statutory leave) count as Active Status and on Payroll for purposes of this Agreement.
"Statutory Leave" means time on any unpaid leave that the employee is entitled to by law, including, but not limited, to pursuant to the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Americans with Disabilities Act ("ADA"), NY Workers' Compensation Law, NY Disability Benefits Law (Short Term Disability), NY Military Law, NY Labor Law (Military Spouse), New York Penal Law (Crime Victims Leave), NY State Human Rights Law and NYC Human Rights Law. A "non-statutory leave" is any other unpaid, approved leave to which the employee is entitled.

"Special Circumstances" shall include, but not be limited to, a medical condition of the employee or the employee's family member, a death in the family, a premature birth, or reasonable travel necessary/ to adopt the child. The determination as to whether special circumstances exist shall be made by the DOE and is subject to the grievance procedure including binding arbitration.

"CAR Days", for purposes of this Agreement only, shall refer to sick days, annual leave, and "cumulative absence reserve" days in accordance with the applicable collective bargaining agreement. As used herein "CAR Days" also includes any "frozen/vested" annual leave in any applicable collective bargaining agreement.

"Grace Period" shall mean the 30 calendar days a regularly appointed pedagogue is entitled to remain on payroll after exhausting her/his CAR and borrowing days while maintaining her/his health insurance. During this period, employees receive payroll deductions for each workday.

IV. Covered Events
The following are each a Covered Event for which an Eligible Employee, female or male, can take Parental Leave:

A. Birth of a child (or children) of an Eligible Employee;

B.  The adoption and placement of a child (or children) under the age of six in the home of an Eligible Employee; and

C. The foster care placement of a child (or children) under the age of six in the home of an Eligible
Employee.

V. Eligibility for Parental Leave

A. The following shall be considered Eligible Employees:

1. Full time employees;
2. H Bank and non-pedagogical employees who work a regular schedule of 20 hours per week or more inclusive of lunch, including but not limited to Occupational Therapists and Physical Therapists;
3. Adult Education teachers who work a regular schedule of 20 or more hours per week; and
4. Hearing Officers — Per Session who worked more than 960 hours in the 12 calendar months prior to the Covered Event.

  B. Initial Eligibility:

To be eligible to take her or his first PL, an Eligible Employee must have:
(i) been on payroll for a total of 12 calendar months during his/her DOE employment commencing from the Employee's most recent date of hire, which need not be consecutive, and for purposes of eligibility under this section B(i), time on an unpaid leave, except pursuant to USERRA, does not count toward the requisite 12 calendar months.
(ii) been in Active Status for 12 calendar months immediately prior to the Covered Event exclusive of any time on a non-statutory approved leave without pay of up to 12 months. (i.e., An employee is not eligible for parental leave until she/he has returned to Active Status for an amount of time equal to the length of her/his non-statutory leave without pay or for 12 consecutive months, whichever is shorter.)

For example: an employee who has served for 10 years takes 6 months of an approved leave for an adjustment of personal affairs. Upon return, the employee must serve 6 months in Active Status to take PL. The 6 months the' Eligible Employee served in Active Status immediately before the leave without pay and the 6 months the Eligible Employee served in Active Status immediately after the leave without pay satisfy the requirement for 12 calendar months in Active Status.

C Eligibility for Another PL:

An Eligible Employee who has taken a PL may only take PL again after the employee has been in Active Status for 10 calendar months following the Covered Event, exclusive of any time since the Covered Event on a non-statutory leave without pay of up to 10 months. (i.e., An employee is not eligible for parental leave again until 10 calendar months have passed from the date of the Covered Event and she/he has returned to Active Status for an additional amount of time equal to the length either of her/his non statutory leave without pay or for 10 consecutive months, whichever is shorter.)

D. For employees who work a school year, PL shall not extend beyond the end of the school year. For part time Eligible Employees, the length of the PL will be six weeks (42 calendar days).

E. In the event that an employee has a documented due date for the birth of a child (or children) after the required time period (i.e., 12 or 10 calendar months) for PL eligibility, and the child (or children) has a medically documented premature birth prior to serving the required time, the employee will still be eligible for parental leave.

VI. Options for Birth Parents

UFT represented employees who work for the DOE and deliver a child (or children) will have two options with respect to Parental Leave after the birth of a child:

A. Option A — immediately following the birth of a child (on the day of the birth), the delivering parent can use available CAR days to go on maternity leave, and, if eligible, borrow CAR days and use the Grace Period, for a period of up to 6 weeks (8 weeks if the birth parent has a Caesarean section). If Option A is selected, there is no additional Parental Leave available for either the birth parent or non-birth parent.

B. Option B - immediately following the birth of a child (the day of the birth), the delivering parent can use available CAR days without the ability to borrow CAR days or use Grace Period, for a period of up to 6 weeks (8 weeks if the birth parent has had a caesarean section). Following the use of CAR days for up to 6
or 8 weeks, the delivering parent would be able to use Parental Leave for a period of up to an additional 6 weeks. The non-delivering parent will be eligible for up to 6 weeks of Parental Leave, to commence upon the Covered Event.

VII. In the event that both the birth parent and non-birth parent work for the DOE and are represented by the UFT and the birth parent has elected Option B:

A. In this instance,' immediately following the birth of a child, the delivering parent ("birth parent") can use any amount of available CAR days in her/his bank for a period of up to six weeks following the birth (eight weeks if the birth parent has had a Caesarean section) without the ability, if eligible, to borrow CAR days or use the Grace Period. Thereafter, the employee may, if the employee chooses, take a Parental Leave. The employee may also forgo the right to use CAR days and immediately start PL. If the birth parent uses less than 12 weeks (14 weeks if the birth parent has a Caesarean section), when the birth parent returns to work (whether after the use of CAR days or PL), the non-birth parent may choose to start her/his Parental Leave at that time.

B. Nothing in this section VII shall limit the non-birth parent's right to take PL concurrently with the birth parent starting with the birth of the child. In no circumstances may the two parents together take more than 6 weeks of Parental Leave combined per Covered Event.

 C. In no circumstance may the combined, total elapsed time period for both parents together, for use of CAR days and Parental Leave, exceed 12 weeks (84 calendar days) immediately following the birth or 14 weeks (98 calendar days) in the event the birth parent had a Caesarean section.

D.

VIII. Birth Parents 

A birth parent who elects Option B can elect to use any amount of available CAR days for a period of up to 6 weeks starting on the day of birth (8 weeks if the birth parent has had a caesarean section) without the ability to borrow CAR days or use the Grace Period.

B. Thereafter, a birth parent who has selected Option B may take 6 weeks (42 calendar days) of Parental Leave Immediately following the end of the period of time that the birth parent uses CAR days, but starting no later than on the 43rd calendar day after the birth (57th calendar day after birth if the birth parent has a Caesarean section) and ending no later than the last day of the 12th week after birth (14th week after the birth if the birth parent has had a Caesarean section).

IX. Non-Birth Parents

Non-birth parenÉ may take six weeks (42 calendar days) of Parental Leave starting on the day of the Covered Event and ending no later than the last day of the 6th week after the Covered Event, except where both parents work for the DOE and the birth parent has elected Option B.

X. Notification of Leave and Return from PL

A. Eligible Employees who submit an application for PL 15 calendar days or more prior to the anticipated date of the Covered Event will receive payment of the PL benefit promptly after all necessary documentation has been submitted and the 10 day period to amend or modify the application (see section E below) has expired.

B. Employees must notify the DOE of the Covered Event as soon as possible but no later than 10 calendar days following the Covered Event, unless special circumstances prevented the employee from doing so.

C. Absent special circumstances, payment will be significantly delayed if the employee submits the application fewer than 15 calendar days prior to the   anticipated date of the Covered Event and/or provides the DOE with notice more than 10 days after the Covered Event.

D. Absent special circumstances, for birth parents, failure to submit an application 10 days after the Covered Event will result in the birth parent being placed by default on Option A (with no ability to borrow or use the "Grace Period" or take PL). Absent special circumstances, for non-birth parents, failure to submit an application 10 days after the Covered Event, will result in non-birth parent being ineligible for PL.

E. Eligible Employees must provide timely documentation of the Covered Event to the DOE. The type(s) of documentation that will be accepted and the deadline for submission, absent special circumstänces, will be jointly determined by the DOE/City and the UFTWF.

F. The DOE shall provide the UFTWF with the application and any amendments and the notice of the Covered Event within 2 business days of receipt. Within 10 business days of receipt of the application, the DOE shall notify the UFTWF whether or not the leave has been conditionally approved. As soon as possible but not later than 4 business days following notice of the Covered Event, the DOE shall notify the UFIWF whether or not the leave has been finalized, absent unforeseen technical circumstances, in which case the DOE shall provide the information as soon as the technical matter has been resolved. Within five business days of receipt of the documentation of the Covered Event, the DOE Shall notify the UFTWF whether the documentation is adequate to verify the Covered Event. Should the UFTWF request a copy of the supporting documentation, it will be provided promptly.

G. The application shall indicate either (i) the date the employee will return to work ("Return Date") (e.g., following the use of CAR days and PL, FMLA or child care leave) or (ii) that the DOE employee will be taking, if eligible, a child care leave and if so for what period of time. The application shall also include any other information that either the DOE/City or the UFTWF needs in order to effectuate this Agreement.

H. All Eligible Employees are required to adhere to this requirement to submit an application unless an employee can demonstrate special circumstances.

I. An employee may amend or modify the application through the 10th calendar day following the Covered Event.

J. Except as provided below, following the end of PL the employee will be restored to her/his previous school/worksite and given either her/his previous assignment or an equivalent one, with no diminution in her/his pay, benefits and employment status. If the Employee is eligible and elects to take childcare leave or any other leave following PL, the existing rights, rules and procedures with respect to taking and returning from such leave(s) shall continue to apply.

XI Procedures in the event of a material change in relevant circumstance after the time to modify the application has passed.

A. Once the 10 day period of time to amend or modify the PL application has passed, an employee must adhere to the Return Date indicated on the employee's application unless she/he can demonstrate that relevant circumstances materially changed on or after the 10th calendar day following the Covered Event and the employee notifies the DOE and the UFT Welfare Fund immediately or as soon as possible following the change in circumstances. "Relevant circumstances materially changed" means a medical or unforeseeable material change in circumstances, including but not limited to a medical condition, death in the family, material change in family income, or a material change in circumstances related to child care. The determination as to whether "relevant circumstances materially changed" shall be determined by the DOE and is subject to the grievance procedure including binding arbitration. Nothing herein shall limit any legal right an employee has to return from an FMLA leave under applicable law.

In the event that it is determined that "relevant circumstances materially changed," that will result in a change in the employee's Return Date, the employee will have the same right to use CAR days, PL, and leaves for which she/he is eligible as any other employee and the use of such shall be subject to the terms of the applicable collective bargaining agreement.

In the event that it is determined that "relevant circumstances materially changed," and result in an employee returning to work during the school year on a different date than originally specified on the application the employee will be given their former assignment or another appropriate assignment in their school, in accordance with the applicable collective bargaining agreement and any applicable provisions of the FMLA, for the remainder of the school term.

B. Eligible Employees whose applications state that they will be taking a child care leave and who commence this leave are subject to all of the rules concerning returning from child care leave including, but not limited to, teachers being  subject to the requirements set forth in Article 16(J) of the UFT-DOE Collective Bargaining Agreement covering teachers.

C. An electronic notification system and online submission of documentation shall be used to the greatest extent possible with respect to the manner in which the employee notifies the DOE and UFTWF of a material change in relevant circumstances and provides supporting documentation.

XII Return from PL

A UFT-represented employees must return from Parental Leave to Active Status for a total of 12 calendar months which need not be consecutive following Parental Leave.

B. An employee who does not return to Active Status for a total of 12 calendar months, which need not be consecutive, following Parental Leave (or other approved leave(s) taken consecutively after the Parental Leave) will be required to pay back the Parental Leave benefit, unless special circumstances, as defined herein, prevented the employee from returning for some or all of the time.

C. Notwithstanding the requirement to return for a total of 12 calendar months, an employee may take an additional Parental Leave when the employee has been in Active Status for 10 calendar months following the Covered Event in accordance V (C) of this agreement.

If an employee takes an additional Parental Leave prior to having returned to Active Status for a total of 12 calendar months, the employee must still return to Active Status for a total of 12 calendar months following their final Parental Leave.

Failure to return to Active Status for a total of 12 calendar months will result in the employee being required to pay back the most recent PL benefit the employee received.

D. The UFT and DOE/City shall work together to collect any amount to be paid back. All funds collected shall go to the UFT Welfare Fund. The DOE/City and/or UFT Welfare Fund may withhold any other payment due and owed to said employee to effectuate the repayment, in addition to any right it otherwise has to recoup under the law.

XIII. Parental Leave General Requirements

A. PL has to be taken continuously rather than on an intermittent basis.

B. For the sole purpose of the lump sum payments pursuant to Section 3(E) of the 2009-2018 Memorandum of Agreement and the 2009-2018 Implementation Guide between the parties, employees on Parental Leave shall be considered to be active and continuously employed for the time they are on PL. An employee who is on PL on the day of a lump sum payment payout and returns to work by the last day of February will receive her or his lump sum payment on March 15th. If the employee does not return by the last day of February, she or he will instead receive both the lump sum payment she/he missed and her/his next lump sum payment on the day of the next lump sum payment payout. Employees who are on child care leave on the day of a lump sum payment payout shall have their lump sum payments made on the deferred schedule in accordance with the Implementation Guide.

C. An employee is not permitted to work for the DOE, City or any other employer while on PL.

D. PL runs concurrently with any FMLA leave the Employee is eligible for.

E. In the case of the birth of multiple children from one pregnancy, all children are treated as one Covered Event. In the case of multiple children being adopted or placed in foster care, all children being adopted or placed in foster care on the same day are treated as one Covered Event. In the cases of multiple qualifying events for the same child by the same employee, the Eligible Employee will be entitled to only one instance of PL.

F. Individuals who work F status are not entitled to PL under any circumstances nor will time worked F status count towards eligibility to take PL.

G. The DOE shall provide the UFT Welfare Fund with the following information electronically as soon as practicable but no later than two business days of receipt of an application, absent unforeseen technical circumstances in which case the information will provided as soon as the technical matter has been resolved:

1. A "snap shot" of the Eligible Employee's last paycheck at the time PL is applied for/approved,

2. The Eligible Employee's annual salary at the time PL is applied for/approved, and

3. Any other information that the IJFTM/F needs to implement this Agreement provided such request is reasonable, related to the administration of the PL Program, and not unduly burdensome to provide.

H. The UFTWF will provide the DOE/City with the following information at least quarterly:

1. The names, identifying information and the total number of individuals currently on PL,

2. The amount the individuals are being paid by the UFTWF while on PL,

3. The total amount expended by the UFTWF on the Parental Leave Program to date,

4. Any other information the DOE/City may request provided such request is reasonable, related to the administration of the PL Program, and not unduly burdensome to provide.

XIV. No Modification of Existing Benefits
A. Nothing herein shall alter or limit the right of an Eligible Employee to take a childcare leave following Parental Leave, if eligible, under existing collective bargaining agreements, policy and practice in the same manner as they may currently do so. It is understood that the DOE is under no obligation to allow an employee who requests to extend or return early from childcare leave (as the result of a material change in circumstances) to return until the beginning of the next term.

B. Nothing herein shall alter or limit the right of an employee to use CAR days or any applicable leave, if eligible, as a result of illness prior to or following parental leave, including but not limited to pregnancy related medical conditions, under existing collective bargaining agreements, policy and practice in the same manner as they may currently do so.

C. Employees who are not eligible for Parental Leave may continue to use whatever leave, if any, is available to them under existing collective bargaining agreements, policy and practice and applicable law.

D. Employees will continue to be paid during the summer in accordance with existing collective bargaining agreements, policy and practice. Therefore, time spent on PL or any other unpaid leave during the school year will result in a diminution of summer pay owed by the DOE.

E. For purposes of this Agreement, a person who becomes a child's parent as a result of surrogacy shall be treated as in the same manner as a person who adopts a child. They are eligible for Parental Leave. Surrogates themselves are eligible for maternity leave, not Parental Leave.

F. A labor management committee consisting of an equal number of representatives of the UFT and DOE shall develop procedures for implementing parental leave for those employees who work Chapter 683, starting with the summer of 2019, with the understanding that employees who work Chapter 683 are entitled to parental leave during that time and to return to their return to and/or retain their Chapter 683 position on the same terms as they would have had they not taken parental leave. There is no change to the existing rules regarding per session.

G. Any arbitration dates used as a result of an arbitration held pursuant to this Agreement regarding "special circumstances" and/or "material change in relevant circumstances" shall not count towards the contractual limit on the number of arbitrations dates per year. Likewise, any arbitration dates used pursuant to the LODI provisions in Section III above shall not count towards the contractual limit on the number of arbitrations dates per year.

H. It is understood that July and August following a school year that a 10 month employee has worked all or part of the year are considered to be calendar months in Active Status and/or on payroll, however July and August do not count for the purposes of additional time requirements to be worked to make up for an approved leave without pay pursuant to Section V(B)(ii) above. For Example: (1) An Eligible Employee who has worked for the DOE for 5 years and never taken a PL goes on an approved unpaid non-statutory leave from March through May and returns June 1st. This Employee must work from September through October following their return to complete 12 months in Active Status immediately prior to the Covered Event to take a PL; (2) An Eligible Employee who has worked for the DOE for 5 years and never taken a PL goes an approved unpaid non-statutory leave from May through October and returns November 1st must work from November through February to complete a 12 months in Active Status immediately prior to the Covered Event to take a PL; (3) a 10 month Eligible Employee who works from September through March and goes on approved unpaid non-statutory leave for the rest of the school year, then returns in September, will have to work from September through November to complete a year of Active Status.

It is further understood that only work as an Eligible Employee counts towards meeting the 10 or 12 month requirement set forth herein.

I. Nothing herein shall limit any right that an employee has under federal, state or local law.

J. Except as expressly provided herein, nothing in this Agreement shall constitute a modification of, limitation on, or waiver of any provision of any collective bargaining agreement between the parties or past practice.

XV. City Employees
All UFT represented employees employed by the City shall have rights comparable to UFT-represented DOE employees as set forth herein, including, but not limited to, 6 weeks of parental leave provided they meet the eligibility requirements set forth herein and the use of any sick days or comparable leave by a birth parent prior to taking parental leave provided they have such a right to such sick time. A labor-management committee consisting of an equal number of people appointed by the UFT president and the Commissioner of Labor shall determine the City/agency equivalent of DOE rights and develop procedures for implementing these rights, including, but not limited to, application, notification, what happens when both the birth parent and the non-birth parent are employees of the City, and procedures for providing comparable information on a comparable timeline to the UFTWF as the DOE is doing. The committee will be responsible for creating an implementation guide for City employees no later than August 1, 2018 so that these rights can be utilized as of September 4, 2018. It is understood that an alleged violation or failure to implement the provisions of this paragraph and/or the implementation guide shall be grievable and arbitrable under the relevant UFT-City collective bargaining agreements.

XVI. Examples to clarify the rules set forth above pertaining to the summer.
•Non-birth parents can take PL for 6 calendar weeks from the date of the covered event.

       • If those 6 weeks run into the summer then the PL is truncated to end with the last school/work day (e.g. a June 1 birth could be on PL through the last work day of the school year).
      • If those 6 weeks begin in the summer then the PL could start with the first day of the school year but only extend until 6 weeks from the event. (e.g. for an August 1 birth the non-birth parent could begin the school year on leave but would return on Sept. 12, 6 weeks from the event)
   
 • For birth parents who begin PL less than 6 weeks from the end of the year, the same theory applies as above.
      • If those 6 weeks run into the summer then the PL is truncated to end with the last school/work day (e.g. a June 1 birth could be on PL through the last work day of the year)

For birth parents who give birth over the summer the following applies:
       -There is a period of 6 weeks or 8 weeks, if a Caesarean birth, where the birth parent would be on sick leave/CAR status.
      • The birth parent can begin their PL within or immediately after that 6/8 weeks period.
      • In no case can the PL extend beyond 12 weeks/14 weeks from the birth.

      >For an Aug. 1 non-Caesarean birth, the six week period would extend to Sept. 11. The birth parent would receive summer pay from the DOE and could begin the school year on PL, if the birth parent has no CAR days, or on CAR days and could start PL after that as long as PL begins by Sept. 12 and ends no later than six weeks later which would be not later than Oct. 23.

       > For a July 1 non-Caesarean birth, the 6 weeks would end on August 11 and the 6 week PL period would begin then and expire on Sept. 22. The birth parent could start the school year on PL, which would end on Sept. 22.

This agreement is entered into pending approval by the UFT Delegate Assembly.
WHEREFORE, we have hereunto set our hands and seals this 20 day of 2018
District of
Richard A. Carranza
Chancellor of The Board of Education of the City of New York

Michael Mulgrew
President
United Federation of Teachers Local 2, AFT, AFL-CIO

Robert W. Linn
Commissioner Office of Labor Relations

33 comments:

Anonymous said...

How do we opt out? You're right it's terrible. Now do us all a service by telling us how to stop paying.

Anonymous said...

You’re already out.

Anonymous said...

Those who argue that opting out of paying UFT dues (because of "freeloading") are completely WRONG. On the contrary, it is unethical to continue to pay dues to the corrupt, incompetent UFT. Those who pay dues to Mulgrew and his ilk are enabling the continued malfeasance of the UFT. YOU ARE UNETHICAL!

Anonymous said...

What a bad agreement. I'm glad to hear I'm already out. Why should I have to pay for people who want to have babies? They had no right to do that.

James Eterno said...

Ok so how are you going to make anything better by not being in union?

Anonymous said...

We won't be supporting Mulgrew and his crew. How do we opt out?

Anonymous said...

I'm ready to stop paying. Screw them.

Anonymous said...

Don't you get it? You have to opt in - so stop bothering us about how to opt out. If you can't figure this shit out then you are too dumb to be a teacher. Do us a favor and get out. My bet is that many of you will get cold feet when the time comes. Even a lousy insurance policy is better than none.

Anonymous said...

Have a feeling 99% of the people who say they aren’t going to pay their dues are basement living trolls paid to break up unions.
Shame on you for taking blood money.

Anonymous said...

You guys are a bunch of suckers. Go ahead and pay the blood money. I don't care. I'm keeping it.

Anonymous said...

Selfish fool.

Anonymous said...

Go ahead and pay Mulgrew to write more of the crap you read about right here. Not my problem.

James Eterno said...

It will get worse if you leave unless you help organize something better.

Anonymous said...

Better not to spend my money on deals like this one. I can't believe no one else is writing about this. Better info here than you'd ever get from UFT.

Anonymous said...

I feel sorry for the CLs who have to deal with all these whiners who opt out when they can't vote for chapter elections and SBOs. I don't agree with a lot of what our union does, but I do know I'm better off with it than without it.

Anonymous said...

James, a minor correction:

New York’s local public access to records law is the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL).

That’s the law which David should have cited in his request.

The Federal law which applies to all Federal agencies in the entire US is the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA).

A lawyer experienced in negotiating contracts should read the entire MOA to pick up on all the possible pitfalls.

Anonymous said...

I guess we know where you’ll be spending your dues, hiring lawyers for the rest of us.

The UFT can’t even hire lawyers that have brains. Remember when they had to reopen the contract because they didn’t put enough money in for retirees. And a second year law student could see the problems with creating ATRs.

The UFT hides the facts, like that if you die or leave employment you lose your retro. The fact that 2009 dollars paid in 2020 have lost 60% of their value, etc. A hundred teachers looking over the documents can do a lot and is the best we can do.

Anonymous said...

Total incompetence. This is why we are going to opt out. so many reasons.

Anonymous said...

James, stop telling us to opt in. You are a UFT troll. Always pushing an agenda. This website is such a joke now. I'm glad Janus passed, no more UFT and this ridiculous propaganda blog.

James Eterno said...

First time I have ever been called a UFT troll. New one.

James Eterno said...

Thank you for the correction 1:40. Since David got the document he requested from OLR, he must have done something right.

Anonymous said...

If you think that we cant have a strong union unless we continue to feed this BEAST, well then you are just plain stooooooopid.
We don't need these SELF SERVING career FATCATS in order to negotiate a contract and protect members rights.
We need a union run by teachers, who are still in service, and for a small stipend, will do the work. Not this corrupt, sister bureaucracy of the DOE we are now suffering with.
I am not going to support corruption, with a union that first cares about itself. I am out until I see change.
And by the way, I wouldn't ever want a corrupt UFT lawyer defending me.
STARVE THE BEAST

Pete Zucker said...

James, a UFT troll? Surely you jest. It must be so safe to hide behind the shield of anonymity. Even better, hiding behind the whining whilst sitting on your hands having none nothing for “the cause”.

Anonymous said...

Withholding dues is doing something for the cause

Pete Zucker said...

That’s what you’re going to do. What have you done?

Anonymous said...

Stupid question. Members were powerless for so long, held captive by the tens of thousands of ignorant NYC "brightest" who kept unity in control. Now we have the power to walk and I intend to use it.

Anonymous said...

If you notice the language being used on this board as of late there is a difference.

This board has always been the home to negativity but was always pro-union negativity. Good folks, crazy 😜 opinions, but good working men and women.

There is a new crowd, with a different writing style. Teachers notice those things.

There is also more activity.

Therefore, I am going to assume there is a crowd of outsiders here who know nothing about the UFT, who are up to no good.

Pete Zucker said...

No. Not a stupid question. Again, what have you personally done (in the past) for “the cause”?

How much longer you going to hide behind anonymity?

Anonymous said...

I'm very conflicted on withholding dues. I've been teaching for about 7 years now, and I can't honestly say the UFT has done much to benefit teachers. Tier 6, raises that are below inflation, delayed raises with no interest/fired and deceased members not getting earned retro money, no help during discontinuances, four Danielson observations, abusive administrators roam in HUNDREDS of schools, discipline code changes/dangerous students allowed to run amok even more so than before, ATR screwups, Fair student funding remains, parental leave (not family leave) that gives away a raise and has a bunch of conditions, worse health care benefits, etc. The UFT is living off the benefits accrued in negotiations decades ago that not even Mulgrew could give away in negotiations. Paying $1500 a year is a lot for them to do nothing, many members aren't the political, marching in the street type, and if they're unhappy, what should they do? Just keep paying the dues for no service, out of fear that we will turn into Wisconsin in 3 months' time without funding the UFT? Not paying is a way of protest and showing that the service stinks, just like it would be for any other paid service.

Anonymous said...

James, do you have a copy of David’s letter of request?

He should have mentioned the Freedom of Information Law.

But even if he mentioned the Freedom of Information Act, the Records Acess Officer would have likely processed the request regardless.

Anonymous said...

https://nypost.com/2018/01/07/teachers-union-spent-more-than-100k-on-bagels-pizza-last-year/

James Eterno said...

He got the document so he did it correctly. End of story.

Anon2323 said...

Pathetic that they closed loop holes for married doe teachers and disallowed those married teachers to give 2 car days for 1 to help their spouse. Great ethics and morality!