According to a report published by the Citizens Budget Commission the unassigned teacher pool which is also known as the Absent Teacher Reserve cost the city $136 million dollars last year.
Teachers are placed in the pool for disciplinary issues, school closures, and general incompetence. While assigned to the pool teachers are paid their normal salaries while being rotated to public schools throughout the five boroughs.
The Citizens Budget Commission has suggested either changing the bylaws of the costly program or abolishing it completely. The NYC Department Of Education has also offed NYC principles financial incentives to hire teachers who are currently in the unassigned pool.
Some teachers currently in the unassigned pool claim they have been unfairly banished from teaching for reasons that range from school politics to vendetta-waging principals.
The Citizens Budget Commissions report found that the teachers in the unassigned pool make an average of $98,000 dollars per year, while NYC public school instructors average just $84,000 per year.
According to an article published in the NY Post, a spokesperson for the Department of Education released a statement saying the Absent Teachers Reserve budget is shrinking.
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