Committee on Civil Service and Labor meeting
March 9, 2026, 1:00 PM
The committee held a hearing on Int 0692-2026, a bill that would establish workforce stabilization payments for school paraprofessionals.
What was discussed
- Chair Aldebol and sponsor De La Rosa introduce the paraprofessional 'Respect Check' (Int 692) Council Member Shirley Aldebol, Chair of the Committee on Civil Service and Labor, opened the hearing on Intro 692, and sponsor Council Member Carmen N. De La Rosa described the bill—'the Respect Check'—as addressing pay disparities for Department of Education paraprofessionals, who sit one-on-one
- Office of Labor Relations testifies on Int 692 Daniel Pollak, First Deputy Commissioner at the Office of Labor Relations, testified that Intro 692 would require DOE to give eligible paraprofessionals annual non-pensionable $10,000 workforce-stabilization payments, but argued the bill conflicts with the Taylor Law because compensation is a
- Can the Council legislate paraprofessional pay, or must it go through bargaining? Council Member Frank Morano pressed on the roughly 1,000 paraprofessional vacancies (out of about 25,000) and whether the Council can set compensation. Pollak maintained that compensation is a mandatory subject of bargaining, said he was unaware of past Council-legislated compensation programs, and
- What is blocking better pay, and could the contract be reopened? Chair Aldebol asked why compensation has not improved and whether the contracts allow a reopener. Pollak said the UFT has not requested to bargain this midterm, that under pattern bargaining OLR weighs the total cost of a unit's agreement, and that OLR has previously reopened contracts without
- Has paraprofessional pay kept pace with the cost of living, and would $10,000 aid recruitment? Council Member Mercedes Narcisse questioned wage history and retention. Pollak said wage increases over the past decade averaged about 2.5-3%, deferred to DOE on attrition and recruitment data, and acknowledged that adding $10,000 would help recruitment while cautioning that money is not always a
- Given the special-education mandate and $1 billion in Carter cases, why not fund this? Council Member De La Rosa argued that because the city is legally mandated to provide special education and spends about $1 billion a year on Carter cases, there is both a legal and fiscal argument for the bill. Pollak said OLR does not contend the pay is adequate but maintained the issue must be
- UFT leaders back the bill and decry pattern bargaining UFT President Michael Mulgrew and paraprofessional-chapter leaders Priscilla Castro, Anthony Barnes, John Kamps, and policy advisor Michelle Herman testified in support of Intro 692, saying pattern bargaining has trapped roughly 26,000 paraprofessionals at about $33,000 a year—leaving some homeless
- DC 37 backs higher pay for family-support paraprofessionals Donald Nesbit, Executive Vice President of DC 37 Local 372, testified in support, describing family-support paraprofessionals who bridge home and school for high-need and homeless students, and said that despite bargaining for benefits like childcare payments, the pay still does not match the work
- A parent describes his daughter's bond with her paraprofessional Julian Morales testified by Zoom in strong support of Intro 692, describing how his nonverbal autistic daughter Charlotte communicates through her bond with her paraprofessional, Tara Lawson, and urging the Council to value the workers who make his daughter's education possible.
Agenda
1 item
- Int 0692-2026 A Local Law in relation to workforce stabilization payments for school paraprofessionals, and providing for the repeal of such local law upon the expiration thereof Hearing Held by Committee