UFT President Michael Mulgrew told members at a virtual union town hall on Aug. 22 that one item the union will not bargain on in contract talks expected to begin sometime this fall is longer workdays in return for larger pay raises.

Asked by one UFT participant whether such a proposal would be considered, Mulgrew said union members deserve decent wage increases not tied to givebacks.

“We are not swapping time for money,” Mulgrew said.

He noted that while most city employees are already working under expired contracts, the UFT pact does not expire until Sept. 13. Under state law governing public employees, the terms of an expired deal stay in effect until a new agreement is reached.

The Adams administration has not yet sat down with the union’s delegation, but UFT preparations for rigorous negotiations have moved forward. The union’s 500-member negotiating committee began meeting in March, and steps have been taken over the summer to create subcommittees for key areas and each functional chapter.

A survey conducted for the union by the national polling firm Hart Research Associates pegged to topics approved by the committee produced 32,000 responses from union members in May. The priorities identified by the rank and file will be reflected in the UFT’s bargaining strategy when talks begin.

Mulgrew said the UFT negotiating committee would resume meeting shortly after the start of school.

He said Mayor Eric Adams was inaccurately maintaining that the municipal cupboard is bare. Because of federal funding meant to help the city recover from the pandemic that remains unspent, the UFT leader said, “This mayor has more money than any other mayor previously.”

Mulgrew said he and other city union leaders would soon begin “raising the level of intensity” for negotiating new contracts.