Can Unity Be Beaten in 2025 UFT Election? What was right and wrong with the UFC Coalition

Can Humpty Dumpty be put back together again? I say NO and let's start all over. We can't be hamstrung by having to wait for every caucus to approve every move. Let's move beyond caucuses and have key people from every interested party get together outside the caucus structure and move ahead. I am in the minority on this point within the oppo movement in NYC.

Wednesday, June 26

Already speculation has begun about next year's general UFT election where for the first time in it's over 60-year hegemony, Unity Caucus control of the UFT may be threatened.There is speculation that many Unity people, especially those with jobs, wouldn't mind seeing Mulgrew, who has become a millstone for them, decide to retire. (hose speculating he might replace Randi as AFT pres one day are barking up the wrong tree - he never had a shot. NYSUT president Melinda Person is Randi's replacement. Mulgrew is in the same position as Biden, where many Dems wish he didn't run. If Mulgrew does run and Unity loses, can the tar and feather be far behind?  

Who might Unity slide into Mulgrew's place and would it make a big difference? Randi, who seems to be popping up around her lately, may see her own control of the AFT threatened by a Unity loss, is probably involved in some ways. I hear names like Mary Vocarro and Elem VP Karen Alford. Losing Mulgrew might just distract enough people to give Unity the win.

But to me no matter what they do, Unity does not seem to inspire the loyalty it once did. Expect the Tier 6 issue, with 55% of current teachers, to resonate no matter how Unity tries to say they woke up after 10 years and allowing Tier 6 to pass without opposition. Endorsing the architect of Tier 6, Micah Lasher, won't help - but only if the oppo makes this an effective campaign item. It is not just Mulgrew but Unity Caucus that helped give us Tier 6. 

 

Jonathan applied the recent RA win numbers to the 2022 general election and we would have gotten 51% with those numbers. Retired Teacher election… What if? But as Jonathan has pointed out the retiree voting pattern in a general and chapter election is not the same, so for next year's election I wouldn't necessarily assume 63% of retirees would vote against Unity.

So the buzz is on about next year. RA people will be busy running the 70k chapter and there's a lot to do - like improving the food at RTC meetings and organizing our 300 delegates, which considering we recruited every former activist from the past, some of us who often disagreed, will be like herding cats. But oh so much fun.

Organizing a campaign against Unity will be like herding herds of cats. The excitement of the United for Change Coalition where 7 or 8 groups came together in Sept. of 2021, faded pretty quickly after the election. The big win was the 7 high school candidates which echoed the same win in 2016 with about 300 more votes, but still weak considering in the old days opposition in hs often topped 3k. But that was the only area of improvement. Every other division was stagnant from 2016 - except retirees hit 30%. While some celebrated the closing of the gap due to erosion of Unity votes, there was little sign of making a dent in getting active UFT members to vote for UFC. I of course was the Debbie Downer because so many of the newer recruits wanted to see the positive side.

Soon after the election, calls for UFC to meet fell on some deaf ears, especially MORE. Since UFC was founded on the sense of consensus of all groups even one major missing element threw a monkey wrench. But the HS group did meet regularly and worked together - for the first year. This past year things sort of fell apart with differences, some of which I can't make heads or tails about.

The problem with UFC was that each segment had veto power and for every decision, people said they had to go back to their caucus. Not much fun watching paint dry. 

Can Humpty Dumpty be put back together again? 

I say NO and let's start all over. We can't be hamstrung by having to wait for every caucus to approve every move. Let's move beyond caucuses and have key people from every interested party get together outside the caucus structure and move ahead. I echo the statement published today on the ICE blog: 

• ICE Calls For a Unified Effort to Replace Unity Caucus and Bring our Union into the Modern Age

Here's my problem with the process of creation of UFC. It was done in darkness with select reps from invited caucuses and some individuals who met for 6 months in dark corners of zoom to put the platform and slate together. UFTers beyond this inner circle were left out of the process and there was a lot of caution. Frankly, I feel many of the leading oppo voices who often go through analytical angst over the state of the membership actually tail the underlying militancy that exists in many schools.

Caucuses tend to move through their own process in whatever democratic manner, with a steering committee and or executive board that must meet to decide important issues and then possibly go through a general meeting or membership vote before moving ahead.

This time the process must be more open and inclusive and less caucus controlled. 

There have been some big changes in the original UFC. 

James Eterno's death has hampered ICE and made the key communication agent, the blog, severely restricted. ICE is not a caucus and hasn't been one since it merged to form MORE in 2011. ICE has and continues to be open to all from any caucus and individuals connected to ICE are some of the major players in the opposition. ICE makes decisions by floating items on the listserve and seeking comments and modifications.

ICE members have and will support any moves toward a unified opposition but if there is fragmentation, ICE will meet and rethink its support.

With all this I am extremely proud of the work ICE has done over 20 years, whether as a caucus or not. We held 4 meetings in person this past year and all were invigorating. ICE must continue to function at any level it can and I expect many of its associates to be involved andl have input in next year's election.

Solidarity with Lydia gone has lost its great advocate and has not been very active, though there are some individuals who are in touch and we hope they will be part of a campaign.

That leaves New Action and MORE as the fairly active groups, along with of course Retiree Advocate, where I am part of the organizing committee that has proven to be so successful.

So fundamentally, there are major changes in what was UFC.

If the leading voices in the traditional opposition were to start, where exactly do they start working on organizing for the election? I have no easy answers - other than some people need to take the bull by the horn and JUST DO IT!

I am advocating for the key voices from the various groups to start talking outside their own caucus structure to reduce a formal caucus role but hopefully with the support of their caucus in the interest of winning.

While I was part of the process in creating UFC, I was uncomfortable with the slow pace. And the fact that there are loads of people out there who want change in the union but are not included in the process. We found out in the RA election that in recruiting 300 people to run and getting them involved we were a much bigger force. 

Of course RA is a caucus and the organizing committee did a great job. So am I talking out of two sides of my mouth?  Well, we had one major issue facing us - healthcare -  and we had to move fast and build alliances and most importantly, we were the only oppo game in retiree town and didn't have to build coalitions with internal competing groups but only with individuals and we certainly did with our 300 candidates.

Let's use that model as an example. We can run 750-800 people in the election next year. Let's reach out and get some more voices involved in organizing for the election and not stay behind closed doors until January petition craziness when it is already getting too late.

Peter Lamphere has some thoughts on next year on the MORE blog:

By Peter Allen-Lamphere

The electoral sweep by opposition forces in the paraprofessional and retiree chapters are nothing less than an electoral earthquake in UFT politics. By winning close to 2/3rds of the votes in these former bastions of Mulgrew’s UNITY caucus, the union activists in Fix Para Pay and Retiree Advocate slates have proven that it’s possible to electorally defeat UNITY’s 60 year control of the UFT. 

If the 2022 United for Change slate had received the same margin amongst retirees as in this years chapter election, we would have won by 51%

The retiree activists also have provided some new innovative and inspirational tactics and strategies we need to apply to our general union elections next year.

 Read if at What could a grassroots UFT election campaign look like?

----
Afterburn

This post will piss off some of my oppo colleagues but I will be in the hospital early tomorrow morning for a hopeful operation on my pancreas so I'm posting and running. You might not be hearing from me for a while so enjoy the best day of the year - the last day of school.

 

Why A NO Vote on UFT Contract is a NO Brainer, UFC Vote No Town Hall June 21

 

 

 

 

Wednesday, June 21 -- summer solstice - the longest day- and I'm off to Times square for a yoga class. And don't forget to check in on the UFC HS Ex Bd crew on the No Vote zoom tonight at 7:30 -

• EONYC - UFT Contract Town Hall - Wed, 6/21 at 7:30 PM: Why Voting 'No' Gets Us a Better Contract

And see some very cute NO vote videos on Tiktok: here, here, here, and here. 

Good Morning UFTers,

You are going to read lots of analysis on the contract from the VOTE NO crowd and I'm linking to resources below. Share these with your colleagues so at least they get the full view instead of just hearing from the Unity propaganda machine. My argument, as one who has voted NO for every contract since 1970, is just do it as a demonstration of unhappiness because even Unity (other than the hardest hacks) won't argue this is one of the greatest contracts ever. I will leave it for others to get into the contract nitty gritties. I urged a NO vote a year ago - VOTE NO on Whatever Contract Unity Negotiates/ Res...

I received some grief on twitter from a Unity apologist for calling for a NO vote a year before being able to read a contract. Hey, Unity is calling for a YES vote before giving people a chance to read the contract, so why not calling for a NO vote on principle alone? 

 
I know unity leadership for 50 years. They have been incapable of delivering a decent contract since early 70s that I could vote YES. It's just not in their DNA to fight hard enough. That would take even the hint of a possible strike but they trash any talk of that as scare mongering. Just the class size issue alone plus grievance process, real protection against abusive administration, etc for non-monetary issues as we've seen an erosion of teacher autonomy and increasing micromanagement. So as long as unity is in power my vote would be NO on non-monetary stuff alone since I  had a 2 income home without children, salary never my issue.

 

An overwhelming YES vote will send an awful message of "we will accept anything, so keep shitting on us." So I start with the idea that the contract will probably pass. But it 's a real difference if 40% vs 10% vote against. So go and vote NO and assume you will still get a few below inflation bucks anyway and get another shot in 4 years.

In fact, the greater the NO vote, the better the next contract.

But what if a miracle occurs like it did in 1995 when we rejected the contract and sent them back to the bargaining table? The biggest giveback in that contract was bumping the number of years to reach top pay from 20 to 25. Six months later they came back with 22 to top salary. So that NO vote has saved generations of teachers a lot of money by not accepting that 25 year max. Imagine retirement where you average your pension over 3 years with a 25 year top? No full pensions for a lot of people who took 55-25 option.

Another NO vote occurred in essence on the retiree health care plan, as the UFT leadership led by Mulgrew and Retired Teacher chapter leader Tom Murphy, tried to sell retirees a worn down model of the Emblem MedAdv plan in the spring of 2021 - according the Mulgrew, the greatest MedAdv plan in the world - and then it was in essence voted down by the court case in the fall of 2021, which led to Emblem dropping out and Mulgrew going to Aetna for what he's admitting and selling as a much new and improved MedAdv plan over what he tried to sell us originally.

So we have samples of forcing them back to the table and seeing a better deal.

Thus the essence of my argument comes down to:

VOTE NO even if you think the contract will pass and even if you think it is not terrible to put pressure on the union leadership and the city for the future and hope that the union does some strike prep for next time, at least to present a credible threat - but  that is still wishful thinking as a strike threatens Unity jobs and even their precious teacher center jobs through the loss of dues checkoff. The biggest fear Unity has is going back to teach in the dreadful conditions they've allowed to occur in so many schools

And expect that if the NO vote actually wins out, you will end up with something better, even if a slight adjustment of making more money pensionable.

You might want to read the analysis of a math teacher at Stuyvesant HS who crunched the numbers:

Jeremy Shahom, Mathematics Teacher at Stuyvesant High School breaks down the newly proposed UFT contract. The math ain't mathing!

Op-Ed: How the Proposed Contract Attacks Our Pension and Healthcare Benefits

The other day I chronicled how Unity tried to shut down debate and harass even those who called for reading the MOU - and we heard how LeRoy Barr and Mulgrew openly lied to the DA when they insisted the MOU was up on the web and how Unity thugs almost physically attacked Nick Bacon for calling them out on it.

 

To show you how much more repressive Unity Caucus has become, the 1967 contract was debated for 4 hours at DA (I had just started teaching) and the 1995 contract had a long debate at the DA - I was there as a CL - and Pres. Sandy Feldman even allowed Bruce Markens, the only non-Unity elected District Rep (Yes, Virginia, we used to elect DRs), a long speech in opposition and they even provided the video of the debates to the schools. Many of us who were around then have come to see Sandy as being considerably better than her successors.

But despite all the evidence piling up to vote NO and despite the lame Unity arguments for YES - (we go to the back of the line, the best we can do in bad times, city money is going to dry up --It's been drying up since I joined the UFT in "67), you won't see money for a while, $bonuses, $bonuses, $bonuses (non-pensionable), don't worry about bad para pay -- just think of yourselves, etc.), their funniest argument was that the future estimate of social security inflation bonus (this year over 8%) will be 2.9% in 2024 --- so see, we got you .1 over next year's inflation even it that turns out to be true - it won't and watch Saudi Arabia jump gas prices just in time to try to make Biden lose to Trump.

Mulgrew on Brian Lehrer yesterday -- first question from retiree - let us vote on healthcare. 75% would say no. Mulgrew who me? MLC handles that. Brian could have pointed out that he has 35% of the MLC vote so why doesn't he vote the way retirees would tell him to?

https://www.wnyc.org/story/teacher-contracts-charter-schools-and-more/

 

The first call was a retiree asking why he doesn't let retirees vote on healthcare changes and he was like, Who Me? It's the MLC. To listen to Mulgrew, one could get the impression that he doesn't control the MLC, that the MLC and the UFT are entirely two separate entities. Brian either didn't know or care to challenge him on the fact that if he listened to UFT members he could have voted NO.

Here are some more sources.

NICK AT NAC

New Action Caucus has gone over the good, bad, and middling parts of the 2022-2027 tentative UFT agreement. Ultimately, we agreed that this is a contract members would be better off voting ‘no’ on.

Largely, our decision came down to sub-inflation wage ‘increases,’  including a disappointing new precedent of converting a percentage of our pay into unpensionable bonuses, as well big unanswered questions on healthcare. But we also agreed that this contract draft is disappointing in other ways that could be corrected by going back to the negotiating table. It’s not just that we didn’t meet a single of the 5 demands released by New Action in collaboration with the rest of the United for Change coalition, not to mention the demands of our larger caucus-specific list. It’s that we don’t see improvements even in places that we expected – such as special education, where we had implicit leverage but inexplicitly failed to make any major gains. It’s that one of our only workplace wins–the ability for teachers/paraprofessionals to work from home for parent engagement time–is conditional on new micromanagement and the ability for principals to take that ‘privilege’ away at a moment’s notice, without due process (a troubling new precedent).

Sifting Through the Propaganda

CONTINUE:

New Action/UFT Suggests Voting No on the 2022-2027 Tentative Agreement

 

 ----

Reasons to VOTE NO on the UFT Contract: MORE UFT Caucus

MORE UFT shares 5 big reasons to say "NO" to this tentative contract. Share these with your UFT friends and colleagues.

------

From MORE

• Feel free to join some of the great organizing that's happening. There are two great ways to get plugged in this week: 

  Tuesday, June 20th, 7pm

  MORE Contract Committee

  It’s crunch time! Come help us organize against Unity’s bad TA and organize for a better contract. Register here!

  Wednesday, June 21st, 7:30pm

  United For Change Townhall: Why Voting No Gets Us a Better Contract

  Come here from the opposition members of the UFT executive board and talk about why voting no will win us a better contract. Register here!

  Let's send the UFT leadership back to the bargaining table and win a better contract!

  Link to MORE's FAQ about the Tentative Agreement. Consider printing this out and leaving it in your chapter's mailboxes: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1duePs88vJ0R6J-eTVw6JtQydbqHGavSq/view?usp=sharing
• Link to MORE's one-pager with the top FIVE reasons to vote no on the contract: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NtyzQPbTtlH5NiRlOkOC1JrrNpre3EjmbcV0LZEOCDE/edit?usp=sharing
• Link to a folder including multiple VOTE NO resources: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1rv6sW4QwNoBGzk73kxiRedcOJuQvGUMK
• Link to Monday's segment from the Brian Lehrer show where multiple educators spoke critically about the poor contract: https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/bl/segments/teachers-weigh-tentative-contract-deal
• Slideshow from MORE's 6/15/23 General Meeting: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1IzkRyPUbSHwZUBaxOvkYMztEK_o5Uf0dh0rqoBcyF4c/edit?usp=sharing
• Multiple articles explaining why to vote no, including from current executive board member Nick Bacon, current executive board member Ronnie Almonte, and former executive board member Arthur Goldstein. 
• A series of short explainer videos from MORE on Tiktok: here, here, here, and here.

======

Excellent article by Wendell Potter for The Lever on the current (grim) status of health care Inbox 

https://www.levernews.com/the-system-makes-patients-sick-and-ceos-rich/?utm_source=newsletter-email&utm_medium=link&utm_campaign=newsletter-article

Wendell Potter (a 35 year health industry expert) on why the for profit health system makes patients very sick and CEO's very rich.

 

VOTE NO, Unity Caucus Bullying Ramps up attacks on critics, major target Nick Bacon hits the Pentafecta - 5 times heckled in two days

The heckling needs to stop! Educators wouldn’t allow this in a classroom but here in the DA it’s condoned. Whatever, anyway I did buy a car without reading the contract, and you know what it mostly turned out okay!.. Mike M comment on NA blog

Yes, imagine a world where unionists were allowed to speak and honestly debate our contract. Imagine a world where the UFT staff members who we pay to protect our rights didn’t try to tear down working teachers for having even the slightest critical thought. Ha! on your car... BaconUFT: June 14, 2023, DA Votes yes to Send out Contract without a Copy: UFT Delegate Assembly – 6-13-2023 - comments

I'm not surprised that paid union staffers are heckling me (heckling increases) ---- Nick Bacon at Monday contract meeting

They are unanimous in their hate for me—and I welcome their hatred. --- FDR, 1936 Madison Square Garden speech, what Nick Bacon may be thinking about Unity slime.

I love Nick Bacon --- delegate from MORE exiting the DA

Sunday, June 18, 2023

I was leafleting at the end of the emergency Delegate Assembly on Tuesday as people emerged. After hearing the stories about the two days of Unity heckling Nick Bacon because he wanted to see what he was voting for, I was loudly calling for a "stop the Unity bullying campaign." 

 

Two young female delegates I didn't know asked for leaflets and as they walked away, turned around and said, "we were just talking about the bullying and it was very upsetting to us." Unity is turning Nick Bacon into a folk hero - and providing fuel for his fire.

Unity Caucus is more and more becoming the Trump party of the UFT. And like Trump, they have no shame, which at one time they at least seemed to have. They've reached the stage where for the first time I am doubting they would run an honest election. Their desperation to hold onto all power is calling on them to resort to desperate means. To me, their increasing undemocratic tactics is a sign they feel they are losing control. 

 

As you can see, while the bullying may energize the union hacks, there are independents who are turned off. I heard even some Unity were turned off. The attacks also energize the opposition. I hope they keep it up - they are organizing for the opposition.

 

The Unity Caucus machine has ramped up attacks on critics - not just on the contract, but on any criticism at all. Don't dare say something bad about the tie Mulgrew is wearing. You will be vilified. For some in the opposition, these type of attacks is working to make them somewhat gunshy. But for Nick Bacon, it is fuel.

Now, I loved these attacks when they came at me. It shows they are feeling the pinch. All authoritarian regimes revert to bully tactics when they have no real answer to critics and feel a threat to their control. Just watch the dirty tactics to come in chapter elections next year and in the 2025 general election. 

Nick received an ovation from 25 oppo people on Tuesday when he emerged from the UFT Delegate Assembly at 6PM - he was heckled and booed at the 2PM contract committee, the 3PM Exec Bd and the 4PM DA -- the trifecta. And this after facing the same reaction from the Unity serfs on Monday at the 4PM contract committee and 6PM Exec Bd meetings. Nick set a 2 day record for Unity hatred with this Pentafecta.

 

Nick, a Unity defector two years ago, seems to irk Unity slugs more than anyone in the opposition. Fundamentally, he is being attacked for his outrageous demand to be able to read beyond a UFT/Unity press release on the contract. He asked for the MOU and both Mulgrew and Barr lied and said it was online. It wasn't. 

Nick noted in his notes: when will the MOA even be on the website? I ended up being the only person allowed to speak against, though many other hands were up, and that paragraph is towards the bottom.

 

Nick is purposely being allowed to speak to help make him a target and also to keep him from making his often cogent points.

Here is his full statement:

Sorry to even be in a position where I have to speak against this, but I’m on the negotiating committee, the executive board, and the DA and have not seen this MOA. We don’t even know when it will be on the website for our members to see. You don’t buy a house based on a PowerPoint the realtor showed you, or a used car based on the PowerPoint your used car salesman showed you. You look at the contract. There were issues with the last PowerPoint – not because anyone was trying to lie, but because it’s hard to see fine print in a PowerPoint. We need to see the fine print before we tell our members this is a deal worth voting yes on. *Around now, being heckled by UFT staffers* It’s OK, I’ve been being heckled all day, mostly by UFT staffers. We’ve also mostly heard from UFT staffers about why we should vote for this contract. They haven’t read the MOA either, and they also don’t have to live with the consequences. Working teachers – and other titles – will have to live with the consequences. We need to know what’s in this contract before we vote on it.

Here's where we really miss James Eterno's real time DA minutes because the burden falls on Nick to be active and take notes.

One of the more outrageous comments came from UFT VP Mary Vaccaro, who misused James Eterno's history of opposition to Unity by claiming he trusted the leadership. If not for James' condition, that would be an LOL moment.

 

 Here's an example of James' trust for the leadership re: the 2018 contract:

UFT MISLEADS MEMBERS AS RAISES IN PROPOSED NEW CONTRACT WON'T BEAT EXPECTED INFLATION PROJECTIONS

Here is an excerpt from a UFT bulletin trying to sell the proposed new contract by saying raises will beat inflation.

New salaries: Raises of 2%, 2.5% and 3% produce a three-year compound rate of 7.7 percent, above expert predictions of inflation of 6.2 percent (Federal Reserve Bank) and 6.8 percent (International Monetary Fund)

UFT spin, spin, spin=mislead, mislead, mislead.

Arthur shows how trusting UFT leaders ends up:

http://nyceducator.com/2023/06/vote-no-on-uft-contract-here-is-why.html

Juliwoo too:

Under Assault: teaching in NYC

It's all about trust, ain't it. -

 

A no vote sends a strong message to leadership on healthcare. It sends a reverberating message that our rank and file want it improved and not diminished.

 

 A comment from a delegate - corrected-

I was at the DA meeting over the phone. This is what I DIDN'T hear being talked about:
1. Healthcare.
2. Why our raises don't meet or exceed current inflation.
3. Why they added 25 minutes to the instructional workday. It was 6 hours and 20 minutes and in the tentative contract at a glance it says it is 6 hours and 45 minutes. Mulgrew said there were no givebacks or concessions. This doesn't look like what he said.
4. Fixing of Tier 6. I'm tier 4 but I feel for Tier 6 and believe it needs to be fixed.

I already know I will be voting NO.

The UFT bureaucracy’s avoidance of strike-readiness undermines the union’s bargaining power. 

 

Other unions seem to get it:

 

 

More links:

UFT Contract PSA: Beware of Distracting ‘Perks’

UFT Tentative Agreement Online (Mostly) – Not as Rosy as Mulgrew’s Presentations

Examining the 2023 UFT contract draft – a ‘tentative’ analysis

Return to the Bargaining Table with a Strike Plan

Vote "No" on the UFT-DOE tentative agreement, and call on the union to leverage its power for more

RoNNIE ALMONTE

 

As expected, the agreement veils pay cuts with sub-inflation raises and non-pensionable bonuses, and improves only a narrow range of non-economic issues. Therefore, I encourage us to send the Negotiating Committee back to the bargaining table. The Mayor sits on enough money to concede more. When they arrive at your school, vote “No” on your ballots. Persuade your co-workers that there’s room to augment the gains in the tentative agreement. Convince them the UFT should renew its contract campaign with transparent demands and a plan for strike preparation, because only strike-ready unions threaten employers enough to grant costly concessions. 

 

 

See a UFC vote no video.

 

United for Change UFT 2022 Election Complaint Filed June 6 - Time runs out for Full UFT response - Is Department of Labor next stop?

I wrote back in June:

Will the threat of going to Dept of Labor force reforms? Probably not, but by publicizing among UFT members, it will raise the idea that Unity is an entity of lack of democracy.

So why are we documenting these violations? There may come a day where the oppo is close enough to win and the Unity machine will actually attempt to steal the election and this document is a cease and desist order and also blueprint for the future where my hope is the oppo lays all this out up front before the election begins.

Sept. 6 the 3 month time limit the UFT had to respond to the United for Change election complaint ran out and according to Department of Labor rules, we have one month to go to the DOL to lodge the complaint. James Eterno, a major player in the complaint process, posted an update on the ICE blog where James has posted a list of complaints:

UFT BLOWS OFF MOST UNITED FOR CHANGE ELECTION COMPLAINTS THAT WERE FILED JUNE 6

You might recall that on June 6, 2022, United for Change filed 32 complaints with the UFT about violations of federal labor law and regulations in the recent UFT officer election by Unity Caucus -UFT. We reported on it here on June 10. We didn't say Hugo Chavez was hacking into election machines or that dead people were voting en masse. 

Right on that. It was all paper ballots despite our attempts to get electronic voting, opposed by the leadership because there is danger to have more people voting - call it Trump light. We observed the election counting process and while I have had issues with the way the process run by the AAA, we didn't spot anything in the actual counting process to raise any objections to in the complaint, which was about the campaign and the misuse of UFT resources to favor Unity Caucus. In other words, we are not claiming "The Big Steal." Unity has enough cheating opportunities in how they structure the election:

• The Cheat Goes On - UFT Democracy/Election Outrage...

Did enough votes get swayed by the actions we listed in the complaint? I will share my thoughts after the case is decided - if we go to the DOL. My personal goal is to affect future elections - stop district reps from using our resources. On the other hand, Unity leaflets are so lame and probably cost them votes so it's not a big deal to me.

On June 6, 2022 (celebrating my 51st wedding anniversary), I and other members of the United for Change election committee, filed a 75 page election complaint with the UFT. After 3 months, if we haven't received a final response from UFT & AFT, then we have a one month window to file with DOL. If we don't file, the internal process (UFT & AFT) just continues and we have the opportunity to file with DOL after we do receive the final response. 

James wrote:

Christina [Gavin] ended up being frustrated with me because I was rushing her to be timely with this action as the election is fading from memory. She wanted to be thorough and I think she succeeded while still managing to be timely. We thank her for her efforts.

I had a lot of back and forth between James, an old hand like me, and Christina over how to proceed.

Christina, who had never been involved in UFT politics until she pitched in to help with finalizing petitions in mid-February, led the way and James jumped on board. Over the past month Sheila Zuckowsky from Retiree Advocate lent her relentless analytical skills to the forensics. But it was Christina who brought an entirely new perspective to those of us who have been doing this for decades and just accepted the Unity machine would play with the election. She wouldn't accept the status quo. We had a lot of fun in this election. Kudos to her.

And of course working with James is always fun even if we fight a lot - which we have over the past 2o years - but it never gets personal.

And let me note that working with Christina since I first met her in mid-February added new insights into the election process for an old hand like me. She is reliable, relentless, demanding and meticulous in her work and as someone who had little experience with internal UFT politics, an amazingly quick learner. And is now on the MORE steering committee, which is a plus for MORE.

Before I proceed, let me go over key dates:

Feb.-March 2022 - AFT Candidate Christina Gavin contacts Department of Labor for advice on process for election complaints, the first time opposition forces explored this process as a way to curb Unity violations. She reports the UFT has 3 months to reply from date of complaint. Upon reply, the next step is to go to parent body, the AFT for appeal. DOL says we should follow the complaint process as set out in UFT by-laws. We find there are no bylaws. Only mention is in UFT constitution which states Ex Bd decides. Only candidates can lodge complaints.

March-April 2022: Individual election complaints filed. Unity Exec Bd rules. Christina comes under attack by Unity.

• Stop UFT/Unity Persecution of Christina - Sign an ...
• Christina Gavin Defends Her Reputation Against Fal...

Addendum: Since the election, Christina has continued to work hard in helping the union organize librarians and fighting budget cuts. She continues to not illegally use union resources or harass/behave aggressively towards anyone.

Christina does the work at John Liu Town Hall

Wed. Mar. 16 - At a meeting Christina and I had with Leroy Barr and UFT lawyer Beth Norton, she told us the UFT appeal process (which is not encoded anywhere - they make these up as they go along.):

1. contact UFT

2. LeRoy and Beth investigate

3. LeRoy presents a Report & Recommendation to the Executive Board

4. The Executive Board votes to approve or disapprove

5. Appeals to the AFT ATTN: Fedrick Ingram and David Strom

6. AFT appeals go to the DOL

May 11-12, 2022: UFT election officially ends with vote count.

May, 2022 - Christina Gavin compiles complaints into a 75 page document, with input from James Eterno.

Read the full complaint Christina put together (if she didn't do it no one would have to this extent): 

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PvfYaxh7990D1J1J7uQ2WKCp67fH_YIXZ56JTKUsMh8/edit

June 6: UFC Election committee files complaint

(Note: There are still weeks to go until summer break and UFT Ex Bd still meets in June.)

July/August, 2022: James Eterno touches base with DOL officials asking for advice if UFT doesn't reply. He is informed that both the UFT and the parent body, the AFT, have 3 months to reply. James begins to point out that if we don't get a reply or get one very late, the AFT will run out of time on Sept. 6 as will the UFT. DOL surprised there are no by-laws.

August 26: Despite not having received a reply, we send a letter to the AFT informing them we have not yet received a reply from the UFT and urging them to get involved, giving them notice they are held to the same 3 month time frame as the UFT. We ask them to begin their own investigation. There is some confusion as to how we are appealing when we haven't gotten a reply to appeal yet?  We request that Randi Weingarten and 3 other AFT Council members recuse themselves since they ran on the Unity slate.

It is clear that we should have asked Unity caucus candidates in the UFT to recuse themselves too. We didn't.

Sept. 2, 2:45 PM: We receive a response from Leroy Barr which I don't see until 6PM.* 

Sept. 3: UFC sends an appeal to the AFT, following up on its Aug. 26 email.**

Technically the email we sent is not properly an "appeal" because we have not yet received a final reply. 

Sept. 6: 3 months DOL time limit expires for both UFT and parent AFT according to DOL rules.

Sept. 12, 19: UFT Ex Bd meetings - Possibility complaint will be reported and voted on.

Oct. 6: Deadline to go to DOL.  At this juncture (prior to receiving a final response), if we don't go to the DOL now, we can still go within one calendar month of whenever UFT & AFT complete their responses. 

Some don't think the process is even worth it. Others do. This decision must be made by the various groups in the UFC coalition together. 

My position is to wait to see what the UFT and then the AFT come up with. 

I will do a blog on the pros and cons of going to the DOL and the potential political fallout.

Here are the Sept. 1 and Sept. 2 docs.

Halabi should be HSVP - But Unity Cheats Like Republicans in UFT version of gerrymandering -

Halabi: I am challenging Unity’s moral compass. This is one of many seats they control. But because they might lose it in a fair election, they made the rules unfair so they can continue to control it. 

If this were a borough-wide election, and the Bronx was going the “wrong way,” would Mulgrew try to change the rules to get Manhattanites to participate in Bronx elections? Because that’s kind of what he does when he has elementary teachers vote for the HS VP..... Jonathan Halabi, https://jd2718.org/2022/06/29/how-many-union-offices

We've done a number of articles matching Unity policy of control and repression to the Republicans controls enforcing minority rule and suppression of the majority. 

• The Cheat Goes On - UFT Democracy/Election Outrage...
• UFT Elections 2022: United for Change Files 71 pag...

Unity rigs elections beforehand -- 20K HS teachers disenfranchised

While we can't say that about the union as a whole, we can definitely say that about the high schools with its 20 thousand teachers. Dems rail about the fact that out of the past 20 years, only once has a Republican president received a majority of the votes. For the UFT, we can say that over the past 30 years, only in 2019 and 1993 has the Unity HS VP candidate received a majority. This is the Electoral college in spades.

So while we filed out 70 page report (still unanswered) on 2022 election violations, there are a lot more pre-election violations in the way Unity has controled the structure of the UFT.  30% of retirees voted for UFC both in this year's election and last year's chapter election. We get not one of the 300 delegates to the DA not does this 30% get a glimmer of a voice at the AFT/NYSUT conventions or on the Ex bd.

Then there are the non-election of district reps since Randi changed the rules 20 years ago because non-Unity Bruce Markens dared to get elected Manhatten HS DR for a decade -- she knew if she tampered while he was still there there would be howls of protest so she waited till he retired to abolish DR elections.

 

Jon Halabi looks at HS details in his piece about his history on union offices he's held. https://jd2718.org/2022/06/29/how-many-union-offices. 

Would the UFT and high school teachers be better off by having a Halabi like diverse voice on AdCom? Hell yes!

High School Vice President

High School teachers chose me to be their Vice President in May. I got most of their votes. But I did not win. Let me explain.

This Spring I ran in the United Federation of Teachers election. I ran for High School Vice President. I lost. The Unity Candidate, Janella Hinds, received 66%. I got 34%. That’s a little less than two-to-one. Actually, it’s a pretty good result for a non-Unity candidate, perhaps the best… since… hmm.

So you can see the numbers. I see the numbers. How can I claim I got more votes? Actually, I don’t claim I got more votes. I claim I got more high school votes. I did.

In 1985 Michael Shulman of New Action beat the Unity candidate, George Altomare, for High School Vice President. When Unity took the seat back they started playing with the constitution. And eventually what they came up with was what you see above – we do not run for “HS Vice President” but for “Vice President At-Large/High School (Academic)”. That “At-Large” business is so that elementary teachers participate in the selection of the HS Vice President. Elementary supports Unity. (or at least it has, up to now). High School does not support Unity.

So among all voters – mostly not high school voters, I received 34%. But in the high schools?

There were 2,508 slate votes for United for Change in the high schools. Most of those are academic high schools. And most of those votes are mine. Unity had 1,981. Most of those are Janella’s. There were perhaps a total of 200-250 non-slate votes. Those would not have made a difference. I got more high school votes. I got around 56% of the high school vote, and lost to someone who got about 44%.

I’m not challenging the election results. I knew what the rules were going in. Unity followed correct procedures in transforming the VPs from representing a division, to being “at large.” But I am challenging Unity’s moral compass. This is one of many seats they control. But because they might lose it in a fair election, they made the rules unfair so they can continue to control it.

If this were a borough-wide election, and the Bronx was going the “wrong way,” would Mulgrew try to change the rules to get Manhattanites to participate in Bronx elections? Because that’s kind of what he does when he has elementary teachers vote for the HS VP.

This is a naked power grab. They know the rules are anti-democratic. They know this is essentially the same garbage the republicans pull all over the country. It is an internal union equivalent of voter suppression. Taking what is not yours because you can and no one can stop you – no need to characterize that.