Posted:
Friday, March 30, 2018
Happy Easter and Passover to all of our members. I hope that you are all planning on having a fun and relaxing break next week.
State testing will begin in the middle of the month. Below I have provided some information from NYSUT about what your rights are as an educator and as a parent in regards to opting out of the tests. BTA has also crafted a letter along with the PTA and PTSA for parents. Please read this carefully.
Over the past few weeks, our union leaders came around to talk to you about the importance of sticking with our union in light of the impending Janus decision. I want to thank everyone who took the time to listen, voice his/her concerns and opinions, and who recommitted to our union to ensure our contract remains in place. Thanks to you, we will continue to be a strong local.
We have been notified by several affiliates about recent suspected activity sponsored by "Project Veritas." Project Veritas produces secretly recorded undercover audio and video encounters with figures and workers in union, academic, governmental and social service organizations, purporting to show abusive or allegedly illegal behavior by employees and/or representatives of those organizations. They are known to selectively edit videos to misrepresent the context of conversations and the subjects' responses, creating the false impression that people said or did things they did not.
Please:
- Report suspicious behavior or encounters in private and public settings to a BTA officer.
- Assume that someone may be recording your conversation and remain professional with any types of communication or interaction with people you may not know.
- End conversations that make you uncomfortable.
- Do not assume someone is who they say they are.
- Be cautious when having conversations in public settings such as coffees shops or bars.