Dear Brothers & Sisters:
While our Negotiations Team is working hard to exhaust every possible way of securing us a fair and equitable contract, the NTU remains active in defending our Union and your rights on several other fronts. We must fight these fights, alone if necessary, for what good is a contract without benefits and rights.
Our motion to appeal the trial court’s October 28, 2016 decision declaring the Supplemental Fringe Benefits Fund (“SFBF”) void was filed on November 16, 2016. We will continue to fight to overturn this decision, which we believe is fundamentally flawed. Remember, the SFB still maintains our Vision and Dental plans. And as much as we would like to have better plans, our hands are tied by an NPS hell-bent on destroying the plan altogether. These motions are tentatively scheduled to be heard by the Court on January 13, 2016. The SFBF will continue in effect until these issues are decided.
The NTU/AFT Motion to intervene in the tenure rights court case will be heard on December 2, 2016 in the Criminal Court building in Trenton. How appropriate. Our enemies are funded by the same group of billionaires that have attacked tenure unsuccessfully in other states, including most recently in California.
In is in this climate that I have the task of wishing you a Happy Thanksgiving and peaceful holiday season. The employer who is supposed to support and defend you, provide you with resources and lift your morale, is working in tandem and providing material aid and comfort to the enemy that seeks to destroy you and your lifelong career. In short, they are the enemy.
So, enjoy your well-deserved break safe in the knowledge that we have each other’s back.
In Solidarity,
John M. Abeigon
President & Director of Organization
Newark Teachers Union
Local 481 AFT, AFL-CIO