As we enter a new school year, teachers should be aware of their rights to reasonable class sizes and basic instructional materials.

All UFT members — not just teachers — have the opportunity to transfer to a different school under the Open Market Transfer Plan. The open period for applying to transfer runs from April 15 to Aug. 7 each year.

Under the DOE-UFT contract, every school must have a safety committee and a safety plan created by that safety committee. As part of the 2018 contract, UFT-represented members have a new mechanism to report safety violations and resolve safety issues.

The union is ultimately only as strong as its individual chapters. Each chapter leader is tasked with building a strong and engaged chapter that has meaningful input in school-level decisions and participates in union campaigns to protect public schools and worker rights.

The UFT-DOE contract’s provisions regarding teaching programs and professional activity assignments give teachers a voice while providing for a fair and objective selection process.

You have the right to work in a healthy and safe school building. The UFT’s Safety and Health Department can work with you and your school if you encounter environmental health and safety hazards.

UFT-represented employees receive regular pay increases negotiated in each Department of Education-UFT contract as well as differentials, step payments and longevity increases based on level of education and years of service. 

If you are a paraprofessional, have you ever wondered what your rights are in terms of leave time and absence from work? You earn one sick leave day for every month in which you are in service for at least 16 calendar days. The maximum number of sick leave days earnable in a school year is 10 for September through June.

Here are some important things to know about IEPs, IEP team decisions, teacher assignments, ICT classes and self-contained classes if you work with students with disabilities.

Among the many meaningful rights and professional protections that your contract provides is time carved out each day for teachers to do professional work. Teachers are generally entitled to five prep periods per week. Prep periods are self-directed; teachers determine what to do during their prep periods.