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Updated: Done Deal

No layoffs: Union agrees to concessions in budget deal

Plans to lay off 4,100 teachers were averted late Friday evening as part of a deal struck between the Bloomberg administration, the City Council and the teachers unions.

At least two union concessions and restoration money from the City Council were negotiated into the deal in order to save the jobs.

The first concession is that all one-year teaching sabbaticals are suspended for the 2012-2013 school year. The sabbaticals allow teachers to remain partially-paid while they take an extended leave of absence. The agreement will not apply to the health restorations.

A city aide confirmed the deal and estimated that the suspended sabbaticals would save the city $17 million.

The second concession is that teachers in the Absent Teacher Reserve, or ATR, will be redeployed to fill substitute teaching positions, which are currently filled by teachers who work on a per diem basis. The daily rate for substitutes is approximately $154.97  (and $180/day for subs who have filled in for longer than 30 days). That money would be saved because the ATR, a pool of teachers without full time positions who remain on payroll, would be able to replace those spots. Under the agreement, each week teachers from ATRs can be sent to a different school in their district.

Put together, the concessions are expected to save the city a total of $60 million.

“I want to thank all the parties involved in this agreement for their willingness to come together to prevent the harm that would come to our students from a massive loss of public school teachers,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew said in a statement. “In particular I’d like to cite the key role played by Council Speaker Christine Quinn and her members and staff, along with Chancellor Dennis Walcott and the DOE officials who worked with us to find ways to prevent what could have been a disaster for our schools.”

The budget deal also found money to keep open 20 firehouses that were slated to close under Bloomberg’s budget. More than 1,000 jobs in non-uniform and non-pedagogical titles could not be saved from the deal, however.

It’s not immediately clear how long the agreement would last, or whether it requires approval from then entire union membership. A press conference with UFT President Michael Mulgrew is scheduled in downtown Manhattan at 10:30 p.m. tonight.

Chancellor Walcott emailed principals later Friday night to inform them of the budget agreement and said to expect their budgets by Monday afternoon. He alluded to the anticipated cuts, which he called “difficult, but necessary, decisions.”

“Each school will face difficult choices, but I am confident that you are the best group of principals in the history of New York City’s public schools and will meet these challenges head on,” Walcott wrote in the email. He did not specify the percent of the cuts.

The City Council still needs to vote on the final budget, which it has until Thursday, when the 2011 fiscal year ends.

  • Unfairly blaming the teachers

    This is probably an attempt at “gallows humor” — poor command of English, cliche motto at the end, and all. (I’m surprised there is not yet a mini-school called the “I Believe I Can Fly and Touch the Sky Academy” somewhere in one of those former large high schools or middle schools….)

    The only problem is that it’s not really very funny.

  • John G

    No definitive word, but it doesn’t sound like something I will have a choice to vote no on. 

    The union typically makes arrangements with the DOE that the rank and file don’t need to approve (things like school year start and end dates and (believe it or not) our new evaluation system, whenever that comes out, are things we don’t get to vote on .. unless they’re part of an overall contract vote. 

    That’s the negative side tocollective bargaining

  • ed in the apple

    looks like a Delegate Assembly Tuesday … only contract approval requires a membership vote.l  School budgets to Principals Monday PM … webinar Monday 11:30 ,,, ask your Principal to let you sit in …

  • Crowland

    Our retirement benefits are not taxed by NYS because our contributions were taxed (414h), unlike 401k contributions. NYS can either have it’s taxes up front or later. It chose the former.

  • orangecrush7

    Man that was so funny BUT TRUE!!  The sad thing is that for months and months the Daily News and Post kill us AND THEN this happens and there’s no media showing how powerful the UFT is.  So freakin’ funny!

  • Unfairly blaming the teachers

    Furthermore, when the contributions are taxed up front, while the employee is not yet retired, the taxes paid are probably higher than if they were taxed as retirement benefits (after retirement).

    Why?  Because while one is not yet retired, they are usually earning more income than when they are retired, hence they are more likely to be in a higher tax bracket when the contributions are taxed up front.

    Econ. 101….

    Larry, who are you, that you are so quick to demonize the teachers as getting away with somehow robbing and/or cheating?  I’m not trying to defend every aspect of the teachers’ contract with the NYC DOE, but you’re awfully quick on the trigger!  If you are so unhappy with the fact that NYC teachers are compensated under a union contract, just remember that it takes two to tango: perhaps your negative energies would be better spent at targeting for defeat those politicians who signed off on these contracts with the teachers.

    And I’m no union shill, either, believe me — I’m not happy at all with the way the union is not really reliably there for its members when trouble arises on the job, but they’re sure good at making their presence known when there are politicians to court and with whom to make deals.

  • Tiredofyou

    The deck was stacked from the very beginning. This was but a small victory.  The post and the news are licking their wounds but they will be back trying to destroy Education and the Union in New York. Big money is behind them and they want control. Lots is at stake but they will never win. 
    Reformers do not have a clue all they have is money and a mayor who will be gone soon. Enjoy the day but be ready for the next round.

  • michael

    Before you blow your horn too loudly, please do something about your grammer. If you are such a great teacher why all the errors in your post. How can your students learn anything if their teacher can’t spell.

  • Jonathan Webber

    Aside from the fact that this person is clearly a troll, you might want to spell check before deriding someone’s “grammer” or grammar. 

  • Jonathan Webber

    Aside from the fact that this person is clearly a troll, you might want to spell check before deriding someone’s “grammer” or grammar. 

  • Nycsubs

    What about the substitute teacher members of the union! The put us under a bus! Thoise day-to-day assignmnts will continue to be taken by ATRs and long term assignmnts can no longer be filled by subs. If those schools close, more ATRs will be subs. Try to find a sub job now! Not one word was spoken on our behalf.

  • Nycsubs

    And 2,600 jobs were lost to attrition. No teacher can fill those assignments.
    Subs just lost most of their jobsbein replaced ny ATRs in this agreement. This is horrible. Why would anyone agree to this? The UFT should have fought this until the end because 4,100 jobs were actulally not on the line. It was a ploy to get the UFT to blink. blink..DC-37 members gone ..Blink..Sunstitute teachers..gone gone, the DAMAGE DONE…

  • Nycsubs

    And 2,600 jobs were lost to attrition. No teacher can fill those assignments.
    Subs just lost most of their jobsbein replaced ny ATRs in this agreement. This is horrible. Why would anyone agree to this? The UFT should have fought this until the end because 4,100 jobs were actulally not on the line. It was a ploy to get the UFT to blink. blink..DC-37 members gone ..Blink..Sunstitute teachers..gone gone, the DAMAGE DONE…

  • A former Teacher

    And subs pay union dues.  And  again I ask, what for????

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