Teachers' unions and the Democrat Party have gone hand in hand for decades. If you are a teacher who's not a Democrat, too bad; your union dues go to Democrat candidates. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani enjoyed the support of many groups and organizations while running for the top spot in the Big Apple. Now, however, New York City teachers are finding out that their support for hizzonor may literally cost them.

The United Federation of Teachers is the city's largest teachers' union. In 2025, they endorsed him in the mayoral race. What has that endorsement gotten them? Mamdani is actively blocking a city-backed pay raise for education paraprofessionals, such as teachers' aides and other instructional assistants.   

In July, the New York City Council unanimously passed the "RESPECT Check Act." It would offer up to a $10,000 bonus to those paraprofessional employees. Mamdani initially supported a version of the bill, but now contends that it violates the state's Taylor Law. The Taylor Law protects public employees' rights to negotiate things such as compensation. The Mamdani administration also filed a lawsuit on August 19 to prevent the RESPECT Check Act from being enacted. On August 25, the relationship between Mamdani and the City's teachers deteriorated even more when the union filed a motion to intervene in the litigation. 

The pushback from Mamdani no doubt comes as a blow to the Teachers' union and paraprofessionals. They assist students with disabilities, but are some of the lowest paid in the education profession. Starting pay is around $33,000 and can go as high as $56,000, but only after 15 years. Mamdani claims he supports the pay raise, but wants it done through collective bargaining or contract talks between his office and the union, not the City Council.

Paraprofessionals are not the only group that depended on a Mamdani campaign promise, only to be disappointed. Most New Yorkers depend on public transportation. A key Mamdani campaign promise was free buses. There's just one problem: The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) is run by the state, not the city. Needless to say, buses in New York City remain something residents must pay for. 

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But the saddest part of potentially having to go to court to see that the lowest-paid employees who care for the most vulnerable students is the fact that teachers' unions across the country will continue to support the Democrat Party. Back in April, the watchdog group Defending Education revealed that teachers' unions across the nation have poured more than $669 million into left-wing political causes, advocacy groups, and campaigns since 2015. Zohran Mamdani may be breaking promises to the teachers' union, but once again, it's the students who get the short end of the stick.