UFT retirees, including retired school counselor Peggy Becker (at right), phone-bank for the upcoming election at UFT headquarters in October 2024.
Membership in the Retired Teachers Chapter confers many benefits — from supplemental health insurance to member-only discounts — but retirees must sign up to remain UFT members and enjoy the perks.
RTC membership keeps retirees active and engaged in the union, RTC Chapter Leader Bennett Fischer said. “Whether it’s by meeting new friends and learning new things in a Si Beagle course, or by supporting our labor partners through the RTC Labor Solidarity Project, or by phone-banking and canvassing for UFT-endorsed candidates, RTC members keep our union vibrant and alive,” he said.
Supplemental health care: The UFT’s Supplemental Health Insurance Program (SHIP) reimburses retirees for 16 types of medical expenditures, including dental benefits, hospital deductibles and prescription drugs. About 90,000 UFT retirees and their spouses or domestic partners take advantage of the $120-per-year program that supplements what New York City health plans provide. Retirees must enroll in SHIP during their first year of retirement. For more information, call 212-228-9060.
Member discounts: RTC members, like their in-service counterparts, are eligible for an array of UFT discounts and promotions, including on clothing, entertainment, restaurants and travel. Member-only discounts are also available from state affiliate NYSUT and the AFT.
Information: The UFT keeps its roughly 80,000 RTC members well-informed through regular chapter meetings (retirees can attend in person or online), the UFT website, email and the New York Teacher newspaper.
UFT retirees also benefit from the following three retiree programs operated by the UFT Welfare Fund.
Social services: Social workers and caseworkers in the UFT Welfare Fund’s Retiree Social Services Department assist UFT retirees in multiple ways. Through the Nationwide Telephone Reassurance Program, staff make weekly phone calls to members who are going through a difficult time in their lives. Members who sign up for the Nationwide Hospital Stay In Touch Program receive daily phone calls during a hospital stay and assistance with rehab, discharge planning and other needs. Social Services Department staff can guide retirees on how to evaluate and choose a nursing home, how the admissions process works and what to expect after admission. The department also provides short-term counseling and referrals for additional counseling or to support groups. For more information, call 212-598-6880.
Cultural and educational programs: Thousands of UFT retirees take advantage of the UFT Welfare Fund’s Si Beagle Learning Center classes, seminars, day trips and dine-arounds at borough offices, in Florida, through the RTC sections in New Jersey and Nassau, Suffolk and Westchester counties, and online. The Si Beagle catalog is posted on the UFT website and mailed to RTC members in January and July.
Legal services: The UFT Welfare Fund provides a legal plan benefit with an elder law supplement for retirees. All UFT retirees are automatically enrolled in the UFT Welfare Fund Retiree Legal Plan, which provides free or discounted legal services to retired members and their spouses or domestic partners and their parents and in-laws. Free services include telephone and office consultations, document reviews, and drafting wills, health care proxies and powers of attorney. For more information, call 212-598-6880.
The UFT and its members, in partnership with NYSUT, the AFT, the AFL-CIO and the Alliance for Retired Americans, lobby all levels of government to protect benefits like Social Security and Medicare.