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The President's Report - June 2016

6/27/2016

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Picture
GNTA President Sheila Henchy is retiring at the end of this school year. This is her final President's Report:

As many of you know, in my years BGN (Before Great Neck) I taught in private schools, where joining a union was not an option. This didn’t trouble me greatly, because I was naïve enough to believe that good teachers didn’t really need a union, other than to negotiate contracts. Then I ran afoul of a new administrator, having dared to raise my voice against his injustice toward several colleagues, and I faced professional ruin as a result.

It took me two years to overcome the repercussions of that event, and it changed me forever. When I came to Great Neck and joined GNTA twenty- seven years ago, I finally understood what union is all about. Yes, negotiating contracts is an important responsibility, and it’s always good to know that you’ll have union representation if you need it. But a union-YOUR union-is so much more than that. It guarantees you a voice in just about every aspect of your professional life (think BCG, SDM, selection committees). It protects your right to respond to perceived unfairness or inaccuracy in the evaluation process and disciplinary matters (think BRC). It provides you with opportunities to participate in political activity to address the issues that affect you as a teacher: APPR, the tax cap, threats to unionization (think Political Action Committee) and the governance of GNTA (think the Delegate Assembly, the Elections Committee and the Contract Improvement Committee...and stay tuned). It creates opportunities for building bridges between our profession and the community at large (think the Internal Organizing Committee...and stay tuned there, too!). Your participation in any of those committees or its events is participation in your union.

The last two years have been incredibly challenging for GNTA. Our contract negotiations, in particular, were difficult and created far more turmoil than we’ve ever experienced before. To some degree, we are a microcosm of the nation as a whole: in the face of economic hardships and professional concerns, we do not always have consensus about how to handle the issues we face. For a brief time, after the contract ratification vote last November, I was deeply concerned that our divisions would prove to be irreparable. Instead, there are signs that-UNLIKE the nation at large-positive member engagement has increased. There’s always a spike in Delegate Assembly attendance during negotiations, but this year that spike has been sustained all year. Delegates continue to ask questions to increase their awareness of how our union is run and make thoughtful suggestions for our future. Many buildings have reported that not only are more people volunteering for BRC: in many cases, BRC elections are contested. GNTA Executive Board offices have been contested, too, and- unlike the Presidential race in the nation at large-these races have involved courteous discourse about ideas, not attacks by candidates on each other. Participation on the Elections Committee and the Internal Organizing Committee have been higher than ever before.

These are signs of our health as a union, and I know that the Executive Board will continue to work hard to develop more opportunities for GNTA members to be active. Perhaps you don’t have time to join one of the groups mentioned above. That’s fine-at least, for now! But don’t make the mistake of perceiving “the union” as being your building BRC or the Executive Board. Don’t make the mistake of believing that GNTA is an entity separate from yourself. Your union is you, and your union needs your thoughts, your energy, and your perspective. Give of yourself in whatever way you can.

The poet Gwendolyn Brooks could have been speaking of unions when she wrote, “We are each other’s harvest; we are each other’s business; we are each other’s magnitude and bond.” As I rapidly approach retirement, I want to thank you all, from the deepest part of me, for the opportunities you’ve given me through GNTA to experience your magnitude and bond.

- Sheila Henchy, GNTA President 



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The President's Report - Do One Thing!

10/22/2014

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PicturePres. Sheila Scimone
There was a time when I believed that the strength of teachers’ unions was so great that we could withstand every attack. Then along came Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin, who stripped the teachers’ unions in his state of their collective bargaining rights. And along came Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Rolf Treu, who ruled that tenure protections for California teachers are unconstitutional, because they deprive disadvantaged, mostly minority students of an education equal to that afforded schools with higher-income students.

While I would love to believe that these things couldn’t happen in New York, we’re seeing alarming evidence that they can. Two cases in point:

  • The Attack on the Triborough Amendment: As you’re well aware, the Taylor Law prohibits New York public employees’ unions from striking during a protracted series of contract negotiations. To keep the playing field level, the Triborough Amendment protects us by ensuring that all the terms of an expired contract remain in effect (including raises built in to existing salary schedules) until a successor agreement is ratified. Many voices are calling upon the governor and the state legislators to abolish the Triborough Amendment, reasoning that it reduces the motivation of unions to bargain in good faith. There is currently a bill in the Assembly to this effect: at present, it has only one sponsor and two co-sponsors. However, the clamor continues.
  • The Attack on Teacher Tenure: Two lawsuits have been filed in New York State seeking to abolish teacher tenure on the grounds that they deny students the right to a sound basic education. The first, brought by the New York City Parents Union on July 3 and the second, Wright v. New York (supported by former CNN anchor Campbell Brown) on July 28, are being combined in the courts.

What is NYSUT doing about these assaults? Your VOTE-COPE money is used by NYSUT for political action: to identify and support candidates for state office who agree with NYSUT positions on these two issues (among others) as well as to support lobbying efforts by NYSUT, particularly in the legislature.  As for the lawsuits, State Supreme Court Justice Philip Minardo recently granted a motion by NYSUT to intervene in the defense of current teacher tenure rules. Many people feel that the suits will not be successful here in New York...but should they fail, the next step will surely be to seek legislation to weaken or abolish teacher tenure protection, which brings us back to lobbying.

What is GNTA doing? For many years, we’ve actively participated in lobbying: Vice President Jennifer Snyder has been our representative to Albany on the “Committee of 100." Political Action Chairs Michelle Sorise and Patti Crisafulli have organized a number of initiatives for GNTA members in the last couple of years; they also work to create partnerships with other locals as well as community members. Finally, as your President, I’ve met several times with our local legislators to discuss matters of concern to us as educators.

But NYSUT and GNTA are nothing without our members. Our strength is in direct proportion to your visibility when it comes to issues affecting teachers. And so, this year, we ask you to do at least one thing to make your voice heard politically. Details about our Do One Thing campaign can be found on gnteachers.net. The stakes for our profession—in fact, for public education—have never been higher, and we are all responsible for our future.

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Great Neck Teachers Association
NYSUT, AFT-NEA, AFL-CIO #2686 | The Cottage • 343 Lakeville Road • Great Neck, NY 11020 
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