Why Did The UFT Agree To Suspend Teachers Without Pay & Health Benefits?

We all know how terrible the October 2005 contract was to the classroom teacher. However, from my point of view the worst part of the 2005 contract was the UFT agreement of the “probable cause” section for teachers subject to the 3020-a process. To refresh your memory the “probable cause” section of the 2005 contract allows the DOE to suspend teachers without pay or health benefits for up to three months simply on hearsay testimony. Hearsay testimony is as simple as one student accusing the teacher of misconduct and getting his/her friend to agree it happened without the friend being there. that is all it takes for a teacher to spend the next three months without pay or health benefits. Do you think this is fair? I don’t.Randi Weingarten told the delegate assembly that the only teachers subject to the “probable cause” provision of the contract are ones that are arrested and subject to felony charges.

Listed below is “Appendix H” that explains all.

Teacher Contract 6/1/2003-11/12/2007On October 2, 2005 the following understanding was reached regarding probable cause hearings:

“The UFT will conduct a meeting of lawyers who represent UFT members in 3020-a proceedings to inform them about the new procedures regarding offenses involving sexual misconduct with a student or minor not a student. During that meeting there will be a discussion of what would constitute probable cause including that we agree that in a probable cause hearing the hearing officer may accept hearsay as evidence of probable cause, and that a criminal complaint and corroborating affidavit of the SCI report is sufficient evidence to create a rebuttable presumption of probable cause”.

If you wish to read the entire article click the link: http://chaz11.blogspot.com/2008/03/why-did-uft-agree-to-suspend-teachers.html