Is it just me or is the timing of the email below from Michael Mulgrew just a little strange in the middle of a pandemic? I never recall getting an email from President Mulgrew, President Weingarten, or President Feldman about keeping my beneficiaries updated in case "tragedy strikes unexpectedly." It is important to have current beneficiary information on file but why send this reminder out now? Why is it coming from the UFT President instead of from someone at the UFT Welfare Fund? This looks like very poor timing to me.
What is especially puzzling is this email was sent to active members. I did not get an equivalent one as a retiree.
Ensure your beneficiaries are up to date | Dear ________,
If tragedy strikes unexpectedly, we all want our loved ones to be protected. We can do something important now that will protect those closest to us in the future: designate them as our beneficiaries.
It's heart-breaking when a UFT member dies and the loved ones left behind suffer unnecessary financial hardship because the late UFT member did not designate a beneficiary or did not keep the beneficiaries up to date after a change in marital status, the birth of a child or another life milestone.
Please take a moment this week to make sure your beneficiaries are up to date with the following three systems: |
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- The city Department of Education
- The Teachers’ Retirement System
- The UFT Welfare Fund
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This email will guide you through how to make those updates for each system. |
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Update your beneficiaries with the DOE | If a UFT member dies while employed by the DOE, the member's beneficiaries are entitled to a cash benefit representing some or all the employee's unused annual leave or accrued sick leave. The beneficiaries may also receive a death benefit if the employee's death results from an injury occurring in the course of employment that is not the fault of the employee.
To add or change your beneficiaries with the DOE, you must log in to the NYCAPS Employee Self-Service account. See this ESS Login Guide to determine your ESS username and password. |
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Update your beneficiaries with the pension system | If you die while in service, your designated beneficiary with the Teachers' Retirement System may be entitled to your accumulated pension contributions with interest, a death benefit and any Tax-Deferred Annuity contributions. Read this Secure Your Future column about TRS death benefits for more information.
You can add or remove beneficiaries or change the percentage you leave to each beneficiary by logging into the TRS website. You can also view the personal information on file for your beneficiaries — and update that information as needed. |
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Update your beneficiaries with the UFT Welfare Fund | All in-service members covered by the UFT Welfare Fund are eligible for the death benefit. The benefit starts at $30,000 for those under age 40 and gradually decreases to $1,600 for those age 70 and older.
You designated beneficiaries when you initially enrolled in the UFT Welfare Fund. To change your beneficiaries, you can log in to the UFT website and use the Welfare Fund's online change of status form. Please note: Divorce does not remove the designation of a former spouse for this benefit. |
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| Thank you for taking the time to make sure you have designated the appropriate beneficiaries for each system. It is an act of love.
Stay safe and healthy. |
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Sincerely, |  | Michael Mulgrew |
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8 comments:
The boss has spoken,
Randi Weingarten
@rweingarten
Our new poll shows that America's teachers want to return to the classroom with safety guardrails
https://www.aft.org/press-release/new-poll-shows-americas-teachers-want-return-classrooms-amid-growing
We have been told time and time again that NYC public schools are the "gold standard" for COVID testing. We were told that NYC now has the capacity to test middle schools, therefore it is safe for middle schools to open. Then we get this email today. What message is this supposed to send? As a middle school teacher, I am livid that this is what I pay union dues for. This email should have just said, "Make sure you get your affairs in order before you return to school in case you get COVID and die. P.S. Thanks for the $62 per paycheck!"
Well queue up the crazy dramatic comments about how we're being sent in die... take it away everyone...
Btw our union sucks for a whole different reason. The constant whining about working in the schools even when potentially vaccinated has turned the public completely against teachers.
Just don't pay dues. It is the best option.
It was all about the 2020 election. Now that it's over, schools can open. You're an idiot if you didn't see this coming.
Mulgrew basically said the same thing not that long ago and I paraphrase - ‘Get those wills ready folks.’ He was blasted for it, so this is him saying the same thing because there’s a good possibility everybody’s going back to school soon. Read between the lines for heaven’s sake. What should upset you even more is that there is no consultation with the members as to when, if, how and/ or why teachers would be going back to school or more importantly if members agree to do so.
So we have to be consulted on if we are willing to do our job?
Yes, especially under emergency circumstances, which is what we’ve had with the pandemic. No other large city in the United States unilaterally sent any or all portions of their member teachers back into the classroom without consulting them. Membership dues should assume and ensure, at the bare minimum, consultation and input over such an important decision.
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