Out With the Old, In With the New
If Mayor Bloomberg has his way, New York City public school teachers will soon be signing “thin” contracts citywide, a move TC president Arthur Levine said could be “a real opportunity to build this profession.” But the city’s teachers’ union is a harder sell because many consider the current contract their only protection against a city education bureaucracy they regard as unwieldy and unpredictable.
"If the city and the union agree to revamp the contract,'' said Levine, "that would be enormous." Although the mayor's office has not spoken in great detail about the goal to scrap the 42 year-old, 200-page contract in favor of a 12-page document, Schools Chancellor Joel I. Klein recently highlighted aspects of the contractual changes during a meeting with business leaders. These include merit pay for successful teachers and bonuses for individuals who agree to work in struggling schools and in subjects that are hard to staff, like math.
The article, entitled "Mayor's Goal Is 'Thin' Pact With Teachers," appeared in the February 6 edition of the New York Times.
Published Sunday, Mar. 14, 2004