Mulgrew Report Card -- Retireee ADvocate NEWSLETTER: Election is coming, VOTE UFC

 

RA NEWSLETTER: Election is coming. Vote for United for Change

 

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Join Retiree Advocate/UFT - Become a member: $20. Send check made out to Retiree Advocate/ UFT P.O. Box 22567, Brooklyn, NY 11201-2567 or click this link to pay with Paypal Retiree Advocate is a member of  UNITED FOR CHANGE Come and work with us on this historic election campaign!

RA hosted a successful Zoom meeting of 240 participants on March 7  Here is a link to FAQs and Information about the upcoming election and health care Issues for UFT and other municipal union members.

Ballots for the upcoming UFT Election will be mailed out the first week of April. It is very important to update/confirm your UFT mailing address asap. Here is how you can do this: https://bit.ly/uftaddress Ballots must be received by Monday, May 9th at 5 pm to be counted on Tuesday, May 10th at UFT headquarters

The Mulgrew Report Card 2019 - 2022                                                                                                   from New Action Leadership 2020 - Failed to close schools in a timely manner in March 2020, putting teachers and students at risk from COVID Leadership 2021 -  Failed to report ongoing failrure of the DOE in testing and infection rates of both staff and students in unsafe schools Support for Chapter Leaders - Failed to protect Chapter Leaders from abusive administrators, weakening the union Program for addressing abusive administrators - Abandoned the Principals In Need of Improvement Campaign 2014, allowing over 200 principals citywide to harass members Evaluations -  Allowed Danielson-based APPR to be weaponized to intidimate teachers.  Failure to restore the right of members to grieve unfair observations and letters in file Probationary Teachers- Failed to gain due process for probationary and fails to protect them from abusive tenure extensions and to restore jobs after discontinuations Health Care - Secretly negotiated to lower retiree health benefits in Winter 2021.  Currently developing a plan to lower benefits for in-service members. Pensions -  Stood by letting politicians and a corrupt governor form Tier V and Tier VI pensions for our active members and failed to improve the COLA (Cost of Living Adjustment) for retirees. Class Size - Failed to improve on 1960s class size contractual limits and failed to implement the CFE lawsuit to bring class size limits down to State averages. Only recently released TV ads during the election campaign but failed to deliver on legislation. Democracy - Abandoned the bipartisan organizing committee helping chapter leaders. Does not support the election of District Reps by the members. Doesn't support proportional representation in all Union Elections. Favors one party (Unity) control. United for Change Platform

Mayor Adams said he would appeal the Judge's decision even after he called the original MAPP a "bait and switch"  move.  Now the folks who sponsored the legal case have filed a counter appeal  To find out more, read the city's appeal, counter appeal and sign the petition.  click here.

from Len Rodberg, Professor Emeritus of Urban Studies, Queens College, CUNY. I don't know if substantive arguments are permitted in an appeal, but if they are, the ones the City is making on MAPP are simply false. Not only is MAPP not better than Medicare + SeniorCare, it is an inferior cut-rate product that will harm anyone unfortunate enough to get sick while in it. The City is simply wrong in thinking (a) that the federal government will make up for the reduction in what the City is spending and (b) that the private sector is somehow more efficient than the public sector. Both assertions are demonstrably false.  Here's the link

Well over 45,000 NYC retirees have rejected the MAPP by opting out to stay in their traditional free Medicare Plan in spite of the fact that they will have to pay a $200 a month premium.  Opt Out  GHI Senior Care Co-Pays:  Since the judge did not decide on the issue of the newly imposed Co-Pays, (once you meet your deductible, they will go into effect) please pay them and keep your receipts

Still wondering about MAPP? Read the PSC report on the first draft contract from last November The draft contract between the Alliance and the City is deeply flawed. First, it provides for little accountability to retirees or the City of New York (identified as the plan sponsor with the Municipal Labor  Committee) as to medical care, health outcomes, or cost. Second, the contract gives the Alliance wide  latitude to make changes in benefits, pre-certification requirements, and premiums charged the City. This draft contract should not be approved.  ie.  The Alliance asserts the right to “waive or modify any referral, authorization, or certification requirements, benefit limits, or other processes contained in the Evidence of Coverage [Plan] if such waiver is in the best interest of a Member or will facilitate effective and efficient administration of  claims.” (Section 13B, p. 7) Defining the "best interest of a Member" or what"facilitate[s] the  effective and efficient administration of claims" should be the subject of consultation and approval  between the insurer and the sponsor (NYC/MLC), not left to the Alliance alone.  Want Answers? Petition against Federal plan to privatize our healthcare automatically. FAQs from the NYC Retirees Organization Updated MLC FAQs Evidence of Coverage UFT Welfare Fund Prior Authorizations Court Documents  Message from United for Change We will fight to remove private greed from our profession, our livelihood, and our schools.  Reverse privatization of Medicare for NYC municipal retirees. No in-service healthcare givebacks. Support single payer public healthcare.  Rescind mandatory HMO enrollment for new UFT members. Bring back choice. End high-stakes testing. Replace with fairer forms of student assessment Fight the privatization of public education. Reverse the spread of charter schools in public education.                Retiree Advocate is a member of UNITED FOR CHANGE

Retiree Advocate Platform SAVE RETIREE BENEFIT Protect our Healthcare from being privatized Expand our Social Security benefits and ensure that they are not diminished or removed Win a (single payer) universal health program, support and organize for the NYHealth Care Act Increase our COLA (cost of living adjustments) PROTECT WORKING EDUCATORS and SAVE PUBLIC SCHOOLS WITH FULL FUNDING•UFT Take immediate steps to support teachers working under abusive administrators Fight for Pension Equity- tier 1 for all. Equal work deserves equal pensions Restore the Retiree Organizing Committee. Defend our public schools and take a more active role in preventing them from being privatized Say No to Charters, vouchers and any system that creates unequal worker tiers Reduce Class Size! Cut administrator costs EXPAND UNION DEMOCRACY Working members should have greater voting weight when electing union leadership Change the current “winner take all” election system using proportional representation for union slate Represent a variety of views and interests in our chapter. Diversity of ideas leads to better decision making (which results in a stronger union) FIGHT FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE FOR ALL We support The Black Lives Matter movement. End systemic racism and oppression We call for an end to police brutality, real police reform and the end of the militarization of police departments We support raising the minimum wage to at least $15 an hour. The federal government should institute a massive jobs program to address racial and economic disparity. Support economic and health victims of the pandemic Work to cut the excesses in the military budget and redirect monies to expand social services and benefits in local communities.

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