Why I am voting for UNITY

Bruce Zihal, UFT Representative for District 28 in Queens

Those who know me, know the passion that I have for unionism. As I always express to the members of District 28, it is absolutely crucial for them to be involved in union work as it is about the working conditions we experience every single day we walk through the doors of our school buildings. It is about our livelihoods, which are not only essential for us, but are also essential for the well being of those we care deeply about at home. It is UNITY caucus members who work day and night for the betterment of these working conditions and our livelihoods and who have the strength, fortitude, knowledge and experience to achieve this.

It is UNITY caucus members who put their own livelihoods on the line to form our great union, the UFT, and have fought for and earned all of our workplace rights and benefits ever since. Anything you can name that we have as UFT members is all due to the UNITY caucus members and leadership achieving these rights and benefits from job protections for every job title, to duty-free lunch, to preparation periods, to premium free health care, to parental leave. It is achieving an optical benefit that we can use every year with an increase in the amount covered. Most recently it is using the strength, fortitude, knowledge and experience of UNITY members as they currently fight to achieve a $10,000 income increase for paraprofessionals. The examples of the workplace rights and benefits achieved by UNITY members are countless. Under Michael Mulgrew's leadership, there have been no contract givebacks and only gains with hundreds of UFT members participating in contract negotiations. It is also UNITY caucus members who have forged our union through numerous very tough periods in our history including the financial crisis of the 1970s and campaigns to crush unions such as during the Michael Bloomberg years.

It is in UNITY that we stand, that we protect our great union, our rights, our benefits and our livelihoods and will be able to continue to improve our lives and the lives of those we most care about.

For all of these reasons, in the upcoming union election, I will be voting for UNITY.