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The teachers union lost out on nearly all of its key demands during the bitter war over a new evaluation system that makes it easier to oust inept educators, city officials said.
And despite offering lukewarm support for the plan after its approval Saturday, the United Federation of Teachers’ core positions were left largely in tatters.
“Unfortunately, the UFT has fought a rigorous evaluation system nearly every step of the way, and they’ve done it for years, but yesterday Commissioner John King issued a decision that was a huge rebuff to the UFT’s obstructionism and a great victory for our students,” Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday.
The state denied the UFT’s attempt to be part of a committee that would oversee the plan’s implementation — arguing that the union’s inclusion would only delay the removal of poor performers.
The union, headed by Michael Mulgrew, also failed to block the use of student surveys in the teacher-appraisal process. They will account for only 5 percent of the rating.
The state Education Department rejected a UFT push to allow instructors to have the final say over what measures of learning would be used to rate them, and instead gave that power to principals.
The union also lost out on its demand to have the new evaluation system expire after two years and revert to the plan that’s now in place.
The system will remain in place for four years, and will change only when a new agreement is reached with DOE approval.
Union officials lobbied for an additional 100 days of arbitration to litigate grievances with the new system but were granted only 15.
UFT brass did score a handful of smaller wins.
They gained the right to appeal an “ineffective” rating to a panel rather than just the chancellor when the negative rating is due to a personal issue rather than a performance deficiency.
The state also sided with the UFT in requiring teacher permission to be videotaped in class.
The lengthy stalemate between the UFT and the DOE cost city public schools nearly $260 million in critical state aid.
“So now, we have a statewide evaluation system. It’s one of the proudest things that I’ve accomplished over the two years that I’ve served as governor, so I couldn’t be happier,” Gov. Cuomo said.