It's finally happening: New York City ATRs are suing the city Department of Education.
Members of the Absent Teacher Reserve, or ATRs, are getting fed up: fed up with the field supervisors doing bogus observations in classrooms teachers just encountered, principals run amuk, writing up veteran teachers for petty things so that the DOE can quickly lower salary costs and relieve a teacher of full pension, fed up with the blatant age discrimination, and OF COURSE, fed up with the union (the UFT) for saying the DOE's line that teachers could get real assignments, if only they polished their resumes and had modern skills.
The law firm of Glass and Krakower (www.ghnylaw.com) is taking up a class action lawsuit on the case. They are an established practice with successes in challenging cases of teacher abuse. As part of the case, the legal team is looking into ways that teachers that teachers have been abused in their particular cases.
Here is the link. There is a deadline of February 9.
www.ghnylaw.com/atrsuit
And a form, associated with the suit to fill out: http://teacherslawyer.blogspot.com/2017/12/asking-courts-if-fair-student-funding.html?m=1
The Union should also be sued for negotiating secret agreements not voted by ATRs, and by agreeing to flyby observations.
ReplyDeleteATRs can put a complaint for differential treatment with respect to other regular teachers. All teachers should have a regular program according to Article 7. The ATR pool has become a dumping ground for the most experienced teachers. ATRs are also observed under a different rating system despite not having a regular program, being setup for failure. Also ATRs are not getting per session, and are not being permanently placed. The DOE has taken the positions of these ATRs away, and has hired les qualified and inexperienced teachers. Because of the fair student act an ATR will never be able to find a permanent position again as he/she used to have. Also ATRs are subject to observations out of license, and observations on students they just met in circumstances that the UFT has agreed to that are not equiparable to a regular teacher, and are totally unfair. As an educator we know that we need to know our students and their learning styles to plan and prepare a lesson succesfully. The rating officer that rates ATRs are usually someone an ATR never met. Also the Field Supervisor may not have a license to teach the subject for which the ATR has, so how can the Field Supervisor help the ATR. The whole observation process agreed by our Union that was not voted for is geared to push and harass ATRs out of the system. A complaint should be filed against the National Board of Labor Relations against the UFT for not acting in good faith, and for negotiating behind the backs of ATRs. The UFT keeps looking the other way while they know Field Supervisors are harassing ATRs to quit or retire.This whole ATR pool has been discriminatory since its creation, and the UFT needs to start defending its most experienced workforce.
Deletehttps://www.eeoc.gov/
Only a class action lawsuit will stop the agency's age discimination and harassmen.
DeleteThis lawsuit should be filed by our Union but they are in the business of helping the DOE to get rid of veteran teachers.
ReplyDeleteThis suit/action is going nowhere. This is not an indictment of Bryan Glass who I feel is above reproach and I consider an excellent attorney and my savior. But rather anything with Portelos involved is will die. False Prophet=False Hope.
ReplyDeleteThis suit is a rare opportunity for ATRs to unite in shared interest, and to advance the issue of age discrimination and how the DOE is ready to sacrifice experience over the quest for cheaper teachers.
DeleteThe courts will resolve this on the basis of the case, not over controversies considering one person's personality. Don't let a rivalry get in the way of fighting back for common cause against the DOE.
Many Field Supervisors are rating ATRs unsatisfactory in very difficult situations. Once more our Union is in the business of getting experienced teachers out.
ReplyDeleteNothing in the contract about Field Supervisors. Our Union is not opposing ridiculous observations by Field Supervisors.
ReplyDeleteOnce more the UFT is silent about ATRs.
ReplyDeleteField supervisors have a blank check to go after ATRs, they know that the UFT will not challenge any type of observations on ATRs, or unfair circumstances. Out of license, in a bad class, students the ATR just met, ATRs having close to 8 days absent or excessive days absent.... Everything even unfair observations, and circumstances are good to terminate an ATR. Any reason is good to make an ATR uncomfortable.
ReplyDeleteAs long as these field supervisors can carry their dirty agenda on high expectations that are unreachable everybody is happy. At the same time they need to hire new inexperienced fellow teachers to replace all those experienced teachers that are becoming ATRs. It is a perfect plan designed by our leaders and Union. The plan is to make ATRs useless, overwhelmed and discouraged.
For the ATRs its bad enough that the DOE wants to terminate us but it seems the UFT leadership is helping the DOE thin the ATR herd by stabbing us in the back. That is why the DOE and UFT agreed to the field supervisors in 2012 as another chance to make the ATR problem go away. Again everybody is happy. Our Union knows everything is fine.