New York's teachers' union, the United Federation of Teachers, has moved to defend a pay rise for education paraprofessionals after Mayor Zohran Mamdani's administration launched a lawsuit to block it. The dispute is notable because the UFT endorsed Mamdani during his mayoral campaign, and the clash marks a public rift between the mayor and one of his key labour allies over an issue affecting some of the city's lowest-paid education staff.

The City Council unanimously passed the "RESPECT Check Act" in July, offering paraprofessionals bonuses of up to $10,000, some of whom earn as little as $32,000 a year. Mamdani, who once backed a version of the bill, argues it breaches the state's Taylor Law on collective bargaining rights and filed suit on 19 August to halt it; the UFT filed a motion to intervene, with union president Michael Mulgrew insisting the law was carefully drafted to comply with state rules. Council Speaker Julie Menin's office says the measure is both fair and fiscally sound, tied to reducing costly staffing shortages, while Mamdani maintains recent talks with the union have been "productive" and that he does not oppose a pay rise in principle.