OTs and PTs Deserve Better—And We’re Done Waiting
Nat Hookway OTR/L, Occupational Therapist - Executive Board Candidate, A Better Contract
For years, Occupational and Physical Therapists (OTs/PTs) have been fighting an uphill battle, not just with the DOE, but with our own union leadership as well. UFT leadership has too often treated us, at best, as a contractual afterthought. At the worst, they don’t even think of us at all. While we spend our days making a direct impact in every school we enter, working one-on-one and side-by-side with students who depend on us, we’re the ones who see what no test score can measure: We help kids to stand so they can use the bathroom, build strength so they can hold a tray to collect their lunch in the cafeteria, give them tools so they can regulate and understand their own sensory needs, build self awareness so they can self advocate, and support them being able to fully participate in their education both in and out of the classroom. We are there when a student needs to climb the ladder in the playground, learn how to take a subway for the first time, and learn to navigate a world that isn’t built for them. Every breakthrough, every small victory, is the result of our expertise and dedication.
Yet despite all this, the powers that be at both the DOE and the UFT have too often refused to recognize us for what we are: educators. We are not extras, not some add-on to the “real” business of teaching — we are the ones who help make learning possible for so many of our city’s most vulnerable students. But year after year, we’re made to justify our existence to bureaucrats and union leaders who act like our role is not essential, who derail our demands, and who fail to see the direct link between our work and student success.
It’s long past time for both the DOE and the UFT to stop treating us as afterthoughts. Our work is essential. We are educators. And we will not accept being written out of the story any longer.
I’ve had enough of the excuses and the “maybe next contract” routine. I’m tired of being scolded by union leadership for daring to vote down a contract that didn’t respect our worth — not once, but twice. Each time, we’re told to be quiet, take what we’re given, and accept the crumbs left over after everyone else has been fed at the negotiating table. And when we stand up for ourselves and insist that “this isn’t good enough,” we’re punished — not with solutions, but with threats: accept less or get nothing. This isn’t collective bargaining; it’s collective gaslighting.
I’m exhausted by the constant need to defend my work and my colleagues’ work to people who should be our champions, not our gatekeepers. We shouldn’t have to beg to be seen as essential to the education of our city’s children. But every time we organize, speak up, and try to educate the very people elected to represent us, we’re met with rolled eyes, contempt, and the same tired talking points about how “change takes time.” I know I’m not alone. There’s a whole chapter of us who are done being treated like a problem, when we’re part of the solution.
That’s why I’m running for the UFT Executive Board with A Better Contract. It’s the only slate with the guts to actually listen to therapists, put our needs front and center, and commit to real, substantive change. Last week, A Better Contract held one of the most productive meetings I’ve attended in years. OTs/PTs were not just “given the mic”, we owned the room. Therapists shared their vision for our chapter: what we need, what we deserve, and what it will take to get there.
What impressed me most was that this wasn’t another leadership photo-op. The ABC candidates, Amy Arundell in particular, listened. They were asked tough questions. In their answers, they challenged us to think bigger, not just about wage justice, but about how we are seen and valued within the union and the system. It wasn’t lip service. It was strategy, solidarity, and hope.
A Better Contract understands that therapists aren’t add-ons to the school system. We are educators. We make a difference every single day, and yet our contributions are too often invisible and certainly ignored at the bargaining table. We’ve largely been written out of the story of public education in NYC. That must end now.
I am optimistic for the first time in a long time, not because change is easy, but because I am part of a slate of candidates who actually believe in us, who are ready to fight alongside us, and who won’t take No for an answer from DOE leaders or UFT leadership.
And here’s the bigger picture: It’s not just OTs/PTs who’ve been sidelined by the current leadership. Under the incumbents, no chapter is truly moving forward. Progress is something we build together, across chapters, school chapters and functional chapters. Real union power means knowing each other, standing up for each other, and demanding better for every member and the students we serve. That’s the future I see with A Better Contract: a union that lifts us all, not just a select few.
If you’re tired of being told to wait your turn, if you’re ready for a union that fights, it’s time to act.
Vote for A Better Contract. Let’s build power together.
Thank you for this, Nat. The way Mulgrew and Unity twisted your chapter’s arms during the last contract negotiation was beyond disgraceful. I am so proud to be running with you!
Nat, you shed light onto an important point— UFT leadership sidelines OT/PT as well as other chapters. We all stand together or we fall together. Current union leaders ignored your chapter’s needs not once but twice which is a decision they chose to actively make.
So what will WE members do this UFT election? Who will we vote?
For me, ABC stands with rank and file members, and I am honored to run with Nat.