September 25, 2008
NYC pays teachers without classrooms $74 million
With New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg ordering city agencies to cut $1.5 billion in spending, this might be the time to rethink a program that, this year alone, will pay $74 million to 1,400 teachers without permanent jobs.
The teachers lost their previous jobs when their schools closed or reduced staff. They are placed in the "Absent Teacher Reserve" at full salary and benefits until they find other jobs. In the meantime, they can be assigned to work as substitute or temporary replacement teachers.
In 2005, the teachers union and the city agreed to create the reserve in exchange for eliminating seniority rights for teacher transfers. As a result, principals can hire the teachers they want rather than being required to hire the most senior teacher seeking a job.
The "Absent Teacher Reserve" will cost the city $74 million this year, according to a report issued earlier this week by the New Teacher Project, a not-for-profit group that recruits and trains new teachers.
"The amount of money is too big to ignore," Timothy Daly of the New Teacher Project, told the Daily News.
Daly wants the Education Department to bounce teachers from the payroll if they can't find a permanent post within a year.
But Randi Weingarten, president of the United Federation of Teachers, questioned the report's merit, noting it was done by a group hired by the Education Department to recruit and train fresh, new teaching candidates.
The New York Times reports:
In 2008, 2,039 teachers were newly placed in the reserve pool, according to the report. The majority of them, 63 percent, found a new job at another school, were given a different job at their former school or quit, the report said. It also said that of the 1,400 teachers now in the pool, 637 have been without permanent jobs for at least a year.
On Tuesday, Bloomberg called for cutting school spending by $185 million.
Both the city and union recognize the "Absent Teacher Reserve" is ripe for change. However, the Sun reports, "The sticking point may be the idea of a time limit which would mean that teachers who cannot find positions would lose their salary and benefits."
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