UFT Prez Michael Mulgrew wrote us today about how terrible Bloomberg's recent speech in Washington was.Sure enough, he talks a good line about ATRs, rubber rooms and test scores, but who can believe what these union managers say anymore?
When the ATR pool was created, he says, the union had "warned the DOE that faulty implementation of the process would leave hundreds or even thousands of teachers without permanent assignments."
There is no better example of the Department of Education’s mismanagement and failed leadership than this group of dedicated and experienced teachers.Sure looks to me as if he's denying the union's role in negotiating a contract that handed us the ATR situation on a platter.
Let's be clear about this. Randi Weingarten, backed by her indefatigable Unity Caucus, signed a deal that gave principals the right to pass over any or all excessed teachers.
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Unity management works behind our backs and lies to us.
As nice as Mulgrew's letter sounds — and it does sound better than Weingarten's claptrap — I don't believe anything Unity says anymore. Not one word.
The above are excerpts from a superb piece that exposes Unity (and don't forget their allies New Action- see if any of their literature is in any way critical of the UFT on so many of these issues - and they joined Randi at her wine and cheese party screwing the ATRs as Under Assault refers to).
I agree that Mulgrew is skating on his use of less cloying language than Randi. But the ice is getting thin and do not expect him to deviate one iota from her policies. He will get away with this for a time, certainly through the upcoming UFT elections, where many Randi-haters will argue they should give him a shot.
They shouldn't.
Read the full piece: MM Pinocchio
Michael Mulgrew is not very different from Randi Weingarten....it's not the words he says, but the actions he takes. As a union, we should have vigorously opposed mayoral control when it was up for renewal in the Legislature. We should have vigorously apposed Michael Bloomberg during this year's election--he might have lost!!! But the union is too busy spending our dues on themselves, forgetting its mission as a union to protect its members and figuring out ways to deflect fault from the poor decisions they have made. If Mulgrew truly wants credibility, he needs to come clean with Unity's mistakes over the past few years. There is a growing tide of anger from the membership and the once apathetic staff in my school is all going to vote him out of office in the next election. We are sick of the Union's laissez-faire attitude, lack of interest in its members (they forget that they represent us teachers!) and poor or even malicious decisions.
ReplyDeleteOne slightly angry letter is not going to appease the membership anymore--especially when it takes so long to respond (why wasn't this letter released within hours of Bloomberg's speech???)
The membership wants real action and real leadership and not another (here's my prediction for Mulgrew's strongest action) candlelight vigil.
When Mulgrew admits that sitting on the sidelines during the mayoral elections was a mistake and that not fighting against mayoral control of schools was a mistake, and when he admits that he and his cronies were outfoxed (yet again)by Bloomberg and Klein, then maybe with a clean slate, we can start to believe him. Otherwise, it's just hot air.
I don't know when the next elections are (and why aren't they now since he was never voted into office? Don't we have a democracy in the union???), but I know that in my large high school he will lose by a large margin--and in the past our membership either didn't vote or voted for Randi....
The elections are about to take place. ICE/TJC is running a slate against Unity/New Action. Don't be fooled by New Action claims to be an independent caucus as they owe their 8 seats on the ex bd to Unity votes and their main purpose is to keep the ICE/TJC slate from winning any seats.
ReplyDeleteOur best chance to win seats are the 6 high school seats which we won from New Action in 2004, which led to the co-slate run by Unity and New Action in 2007.
That is why the voted for the high schools for ICE/TJC are so important.
You and people in your school are welcome to run with the ICE/TJC slate by contacting us. We have plenty of room.
We certainly need your help in giving out our lit and explaining to people in your school about the Unity/New Action alliance so they don't vote for New Action by mistake.
In March when the ballots go out to your homes, we need people on the ground to remind people constantly to send in their ballot.