ATRs, the unrepresented -- no elected representatives in the UFT

"The right of voting for representatives is the primary right by which other rights are protected.
"To take away this right is to reduce a man to slavery, for slavery consists in being subject to the will of another."
Thomas Paine, First Principles of Government


Tuesday, March 17, 2015

"I don't care about ATRs. I don't deal with ATRS and this is not my problem."

In the DOE we're supposed to be respectful to each other, working collegially. Unfortunately, some feel free to dish it out on ATRs, taking an attitude we'd expect more from Leadership Academy grads.

So after checking with my district rep and with Amy Arundell, I confirmed that the teacher's choice forms do, in fact, go to the payroll secretary at our current school and that this fact was relayed in the Principals' Weekly mailing. 
So I once again took the envelope down to the payroll secretary and told her as much. She said, "I don't know what you want me to do with that. You're not on my list. But if you insist, I'll take it and just put it in a drawer here and keep it. But I'm not going to do anything with it." 
So I said, "But if it just sits in a drawer, I'm going to have money deducted from my check, right? " She said, "Probably". So I said that she needs to find out where my stuff is supposed to go so that doesn't happen. 
And she said, "Listen. I don't want you to tell me anything. I don't want anything explained to me. I don't know about ATRs. I don't want to know about ATRs. I don't care about ATRs. I don't deal with ATRs and this is not my problem. I'm not calling or emailing ANYWHERE because this is YOUR problem, not mine. I don't have to deal with ATRs, so don't tell me anything, because I'm not interested. I'd rather not even know your name." 
So I emailed Amy and my district rep with a CC to the principal and included her quotes. And I ended by saying that I hope she doesn't speak to parents like that, and that I find this unprofessional and degrading.

4 comments:

  1. Welcome to the world of the ATR. Arundel will tell she'll look into it and you never hear from her again. The borough rep will tell you to speak her again, and again, and again.

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  2. For lack of a better word I would call her jerk off plain and simple...A hopeless, useless human being....shame on her not understanding we are all in this together.

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  3. Similar situation happened to me. A secretary didn't want to process my Drs note/absence from my last day at another school. I spoke to the principal who took care of it. Secretaries are generally very helpful, but some are so miserable with their own lives it effects how they treat the most vulnerable.

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  4. I would have told him/her off as well....maybe not with any vulgarity, but I sure would have given him/her a piece of my mind

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