Teachers Union Threatens Action If NYC School Reopening 'Unsafe'

NEW YORK CITY — New York City's teachers union threatened to take action — and even hinted at a strike — if it deems the city's plan to reopen schools to be unsafe.

United Federation of Teachers officials on Tuesday unveiled their own school safety plan for returning to classrooms in the fall amid the coronavirus pandemic.

Schools should not reopen if the city doesn't meet the demands, they demanded.

The union's President Michael Mulgrew upped the ante further by predicting the planned Sept. 10 reopening will "one of the biggest debacles in history" — a statement the UFT's Twitter account blasted into a growing confrontation between the city and educators.

"The minute we feel the mayor is trying to force people into a situation that is unsafe, we go to court; we go to job actions," Mulgrew said.

Mayor Bill de Blasio hasn't wavered from his push to make New York City the largest school district in the country to go back to classrooms as the pandemic continues.

But de Blasio's increasing reassurances haven't tamped down concerns. Unions called for a delay, remote learning sign ups jumped by 40,000 students in a week and Gov. Andrew Cuomo warned that any reopening would depend on parent and teacher buy-in.

The UFT plan and threat is just the latest wrinkle.

Officials argued schools would only be ready to open if they meet the plan's safety criteria. Those include requiring coronavirus tests for staff and an estimated 750,000 students before school begins. Schools should also be verified to have sufficient PPE and ventilation, officials said.

Not meeting the standards will result in action, they said.

Teachers are barred from striking under the state's Taylor Law, but Mulgrew seemed to show a willingness to challenge it.

"If a court determines we are breaking the Taylor Law, so be it," he said in another statement amplified by the union's Twitter account.

De Blasio expressed surprise Tuesday at the UFT announcement and claimed the union never mentioned mandatory coronavirus testing. He responded to a reporter's question about a potential teacher sick out or strike by saying city officials cared more about students and parents than "games."

"Any union leader that talks about doing something illegal should really think twice about what he's doing," de Blasio said.