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OP 44: Application for Termination Pay for Pedagogues
Upon resignation, termination or retirement, pedagogues are entitled to receive half of their sick leave balance (up to 100 days).
Obituaries
We created the UFT Honors site for memorials to the cherished UFT members we lost during the pandemic. All previous obituaries have also moved to the new site.
UFT hosts "Teach-ins" for educators to galvanize union membership for contract negotiations
The UFT's 1,600 school-based union leaders held "teach-ins" across the city this week to engage educators in upcoming contract negotiations.
Using art as a form of therapy
Art can be a way of expressing our thoughts and feelings when words come up short. In this episode of Classroom Café, we explore art as a way to alleviate stress, help us process trauma and get to know ourselves better. Listen in as our special guests Caitlin Hanvey, a creative art therapist, and Asha Hanna, a Brooklyn-based artist, discuss their experiences using art as a form of therapy for both children and adults.
Elementary School Division
Welcome to the UFT Elementary School Division hub!
Excused absences
Find out about excused absences — occasions aside from personal illness — when UFT members (teachers, appointed pedagogues and other titles, such as paraprofessionals) are entitled to be absent from work but still get paid without using their CAR, or...
Unafraid to speak up and speak out
UFT members share first-person accounts recounting their success resolving issues through the special education complaint process. The process is a powerful tool to safeguard students' welfare as well as members' workplace rights and members should...
Member Resources
See resources for members on contractual guidance and other important information for middle school UFT members.
File a claim for GHI Senior Care copays
A recent class action settlement with the city and EmblemHealth will give Medicare-eligible retirees in GHI Senior Care a reimbursement for copays they paid between January 2022 and February 2023. We wanted to follow up with you to let you know more...
Required minimum distribution date changed
The Teachers’ Retirement System has moved up the timeline to October for when required minimum distributions from tax-deferred annuities will be paid.
Union eyes ‘voucher’ fight
In the last Delegate Assembly speech of the 2025-26 school year, UFT President Michael Mulgrew extolled union victories on Tier 6 reform, Foundation Aid funding gains and more, while warning members about a coming battle over federal tax credits for...
The big lessons of smaller class sizes
Three teachers in Queens — the New York City borough with the most overcrowded classrooms — drive home the benefits of the state's class size law, which mandates smaller numbers of students per class, by sharing their experiences from the front lines...
Always Connected, Increasingly Alone: Young Men, Technology, and the Intimacy Crisis
Despite unprecedented digital connectivity, many young men report increasing loneliness, social anxiety, insecurity about their physical appearance, disconnection from the opposite sex, and difficulty forming meaningful romantic and interpersonal relationships.
C-3: Employee’s Claim
You must fill out this form to initiate your Workers’ Compensation claim. You should retain one copy, file a second with the Board, and provide a third to your legal representative.
Request a payment increase
These forms are for families who already enroll subsidized children and are requesting a Market Rate increase. The 2024 Market Rates are effective October 1, 2024. If your cost of care has increased, please submit one of the following attestation...
Cultivating joy
Find out how to cultivate joy on a daily basis and create an antidote to feeling miserable.
Members win right to organize freely
UFT members at PS 35 in Hollis, Queens, won a hard-fought arbitration decision against a principal engaging in union animus. The decision confirms members’ rights to conduct union activity without interference or retaliation.
Medicare Part B and IRMAA 2025 reimbursements
What Medicare-eligible UFT retirees need to know about Medicare Part B and IRMAA 2025 reimbursements.
Making moves to boost mood
Whether it's creating a dance troupe of educators at JHS 157 in Rego Park, Queens, or a walking club at PS 4 on Staten Island, teachers are creating opportunities for joy and self-care for themselves and their colleagues.
UFT Contract Negotiating Committee to convene in June
The UFT Contract Negotiating Committee, made up of over 600 members, will begin in June to chart union strategy for negotiating the next DOE-UFT contract.
Switching schools
Ready to apply for a new opportunity or wish to transfer to a new school? This Q and A explains what educators need to know about the Open Market Transfer Plan.
Members push back against principal
Educators at Flushing High School called on the UFT and took a stand when the principal initiated a program that resulted in isolating ELL students. Instead addressing students' learning and language issues, they were isolated in two windowless...
Dental care
The UFT Welfare Fund offers dental benefits through two programs: the Scheduled Benefit Plan, which provides services through either a designated panel of dentists or a dentist of your choice, and Dentcare, a no-cost dental HMO.
Earnings rules governing work after retirement
Whatever the reason a retiree may decide to take a job after retirement, they need to follow specific rules to avoid jeopardizing their pension or Social Security benefits.
Guidance for members on rating appeals processes
Learn how to file a rating appeal and the process for review.
SHIP Frequently Asked Questions
See the FAQ below for answers to common questions about the SHIP program for retired members.
Bring a Scientist to Class (It’s Easier Than You Think)
STEM has a long history of being exclusionary, and some students have a hard time imagining themselves in such roles. Bringing real scientists into the classroom, especially ones who share students’ backgrounds, helps expand that vision, middle...
Finding a counselor
There are many reasons to seek counseling. But no matter what is motivating you to seek support, here are things to consider when finding a counselor who fits.
Your TDA options at retirement
More than 120,000 in-service members and retirees participate in the UFT’s Tax-Deferred Annuity program. When you retire, you have three choices for handling your money in your TDA. Learn about all your options in this month's Secure Your Future.
Per-session activities
Learn all the rules and know your rights with regard to "per-session" activities done outside regular classroom hours.
Medical arbitration
Medical arbitration is the process by which a pedagogue appeals a decision made by the DOE medical office. Members may be eligible for medical arbitration once they have been denied a Line of Duty Injury (LODI) for at least 20 consecutive days.
Cultivating love
In this Valentine's Day season, it is worth remembering that there are various types of love around us all the time, all worthy of celebration. Rather than being dependent on a romantic partner, love is something each of us creates from within, every...