Let's fight for the respect we deserve
Over the decades, the pay gap between the highest-paid school-based titles and the lowest-paid UFT members — our paraprofessionals — has grown appallingly wide. Our RESPECT check would give every UFT-represented paraprofessional a recurring annual payment of $10,000.
UPDATE: Thanks to the support of City Council Speaker Julie Menin, the RESPECT check bill was introduced on Feb. 24 by City Council members Carmen De La Rosa, Lynn Schulman, Rita Joseph and Virginia Maloney. We knew we would make it happen with this new administration, and now we are on the way to finally taking this over the finish line.
More importantly, the bill, now called Intro 0692, has an improvement: new language in it that creates a path for the city to eventually make this money a permanent part of our contract.
Read the full legislation.
Next Steps:
- Continue to sign up sponsors
- Get the legislation passed by the full City Council.
In the few short weeks since new City Council members were sworn in, we’ve hit the ground running. Our paraprofessionals have had meetings with at least 45 members of the City Council so far, and more appointments have been scheduled. UFT borough political action coordinators (PACs) have been making sure our paraprofessionals’ concerns are being heard and asking our legislators to sponsor our RESPECT check (see below). We will not stop until our RESPECT check legislation is passed.
Council members who have sponsored the RESPECT check bill:
- Shaun Abreu
- Shirley Aldebol
- Joann Ariola
- Alexa Avilés
- Chris Banks
- Gale Brewer
- Selvena Brooks-Powers
- Tiffany Cabán
- Carmen De La Rosa
- Eric Dinowitz
- Elsie Encarnación
- Harvey Epstein
- Oswald Feliz
- James Gennaro
- Jennifer Gutiérrez
- Shahana Hanif
- Ty Hankerson
- Kamillah Hanks
- Shanel Thomas-Henry
- Crystal Hudson
- Rita Joseph
- Shekar Krishnan
- Linda Lee
- Farah Louis
- Virginia Maloney
- Christopher Marte
- Frank Morano
- Mercedes Narcisse
- Sandy Nurse
- Chi Ossé
- Vickie Paladino
- Lincoln Restler
- Kevin Riley
- Yusef Salaam
- Justin Sanchez
- Pierina Sanchez
- Kayla Santosuosso
- Lynn Schulman
- Althea Stevens
- Sandra Ung
- Inna Vernikov
- Jumaane Williams
- Julie Won
- Phil Wong
- Susan Zhuang
*We will continue to list additional members as more sponsors sign on.
Contact your City Council member
If you have a new City Council member leading your district, whether it’s where you work or live, please reach out to them and make sure they know how important this bill is to you.
The proposed legislation before the City Council, if passed, would begin to undo some of the damage that the unfair practice of pattern bargaining has caused members of the Paraprofessionals Chapter. Substitute paraprofessionals would receive a prorated amount based on the number of days they work.
The pay disparity needs to be addressed now, and over 100,000 New Yorkers agree. It’s a matter of equity, fairness and RESPECT.
Our special education survey in the fall spotlighted the serious shortage of paraprofessionals in New York City public schools. Without offering more money, the DOE cannot hope to retain and recruit enough paraprofessionals.
Please join us in the fight ahead to pass this legislation. Together, we can win.