New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s administration has filed a lawsuit to block a City Council law that would grant bonuses of up to $10,000 to education paraprofessionals, putting him in direct conflict with the United Federation of Teachers, the union that endorsed him after he won the Democratic mayoral nomination in July 2025.
The City Council passed the RESPECT Check Act unanimously on July 16, 2025. The bill would provide bonuses of up to $10,000 to paraprofessionals, the school employees who assist teachers and work directly with students, including some of the city’s highest-need children.
Mamdani had previously supported an earlier version of the bill but later reversed course, arguing the measure conflicts with New York’s Taylor Law, which governs collective bargaining for public employees. On Aug. 19, his administration filed suit to stop the law from taking effect.
The UFT responded last week by filing a motion to intervene, setting up a court fight if the mayor continues to press the case.
“We knew this lawsuit was a possibility, and we were prepared,” UFT President Michael Mulgrew said. “The RESPECT check law, which was unanimously passed by City Council on July 16, was carefully drafted to make sure that it did not violate the state’s Taylor Law, which governs collective bargaining.”
Mulgrew added: “The City Council would not have introduced — let alone passed — this bill if it were illegal, and we would not have supported a bill that threatened our collective bargaining rights. This moment is an opportunity for Mayor Mamdani to create a new, fairer system and build the kind of city he said he wanted to lead. This administration must keep its promises, and we won’t stop until it does.”
City Council Speaker Julie Menin and Council member Carmen De La Rosa issued a joint statement defending the law after the lawsuit was filed.
“Every member of the Council, in a unanimous and bipartisan vote, supported the RESPECT Check Act because it is unacceptable that paraprofessionals who support some of our highest-need students are earning as little as $32,000 a year. This law is not only the right thing to do, it is also the fiscally responsible thing to do, helping address the staffing shortages that contribute to the City’s $1.5 billion in Carter case costs. The Council will vigorously defend the law.”
Mamdani has said his administration does not oppose raising paraprofessional pay despite filing the lawsuit. At a news conference last week, he described ongoing talks with Menin and the UFT as “productive.”
“The relationship [with Menin] continues as it’s been, and the talks [with the UFT] have been productive,” Mamdani said. “They’ve been productive because we have a shared understanding of the critical role that paraprofessionals play in our [public school system] and in our city.”
Despite that, the lawsuit puts Mamdani in a courtroom battle with a union that backed his campaign, over a bill that cleared the City Council without a single dissenting vote. The case will decide whether the RESPECT Check Act stands as written or whether the mayor’s legal challenge succeeds.
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