There is widespread talk about how inevitable it is for the next Mayor to settle with the three unions when Bloomberg unwisely decided "to kick the can down the road" and forced the new administration to settle the issue. The question is how much will UFT members actually receive if all four years of retroactive pay is included? While I cannot predict what the term of the final contract will be, I am taking the UFT at their word that "full retroactive pay" will be their bottom line. Therefore, I did assume full retroactive pay in my calculations.
2009-10: There is a consensus that whomever is Mayor will "bite the bullet" and give us the "City pattern" which are two 4% raises. However, since these contracts are four years behind schedule and the average New York City inflation rate is 2.32% for the time period between 2009 and 2013, the City will need to cough up a 12.7% pay raise for each UFT member. However, we still owe the City 0.58% from the June 2009 agreement that traded the two days before Labor Day by having our TDA reduced to 7% along with other "givebacks". Therefore, accounting for the inflation rate, we actually owe the City 0.593%. Consequently, the City owes us 12.11% in retroactive raises for the 2009-10 contract.
2011-12: This contract is more problematic since it will depend on many factors such as the City's finances and the next "City pattern". However, I assumed optimistically that we will get a pact similar to the New York City inflation rate (2,32%) for each of the two years and with "retroactivity" factored in, we should receive a 5.5% salary adjustment for the 2011-12 contract period.
Consequently, the total "retroactive raises" for UFT members should be 17.6%. That means that a teacher at the top of the payroll scale would receive a raise of $17,685 for a top pay of $117,658 still far below the New York suburbs. While the "newbies" will see the starting salary increase from $45,530 to $53,543, in line with the surrounding suburbs.
Regardless of who is Mayor, these contracts will include "retroactive pay" and we should all look forward for the end of the Bloomberg destructive education policy and the demonizing of our profession. What better way to celebrate than with a much deserved significant pays raise that will go a long way to heal our wounds.