By Jill Colvin
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS — Mayor Michael Bloomberg defended his plan to overhaul the city’s pension system and his relationship with city unions following sharp criticism from labor leaders over his State of the City speech.
Asked if he believed he would be able to achieve a package of reforms, including hiking the retirement age for new non-uniformed city workers and eliminating hundreds of millions in holiday bonuses, the mayor said he saw little choice.
"Yes it’s true that this is going to be a heavy lift, but we don’t have much choice," he said. "If we don’t get pension reform, we’re going to have to have a much smaller workforce. And in this day and age, smaller workforces don’t come about by attrition. They come about unfortunately, sadly, by layoffs."
Next year, the city expects to shell out $8.5 billion in pension payments, up from $1.5 billion when the mayor took office.
Bloomberg also defended a controversial proposal to change the rules for firing teachers. At present, teachers are fired in the order in which they were hired, with younger teachers given the boot first. The mayor is pushing to change this.
"'Last in, first out' just would create chaos in the school system," Bloomberg said. "Can you imagine the parents when we have to lay off some of the best teachers because of a law that says 'last in, first out' and you don’t look at merit?"
Bloomberg made the remarks at Columbia University at a press conference announcing a new Urban Technology Innovation Center that will connect companies developing green technology with building owners that can test them.
Some, including Public Advocate Bill de Blasio and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer criticized the mayor for taking too harsh a tone during his annual State of the City address, which de Blasio warned could alienate labor leaders and Albany lawmakers, with whom the mayor will have to work.
United Federation of Teachers President Michael Mulgrew slammed the section of the mayor's speech dealing with education, describing the suggestion that older teachers cost the city more as "disgusting."
"They didn't discuss any of this with us so obviously they don't choose to work with us. So we'll take it from there," a furious Mulgrew said after the speech.
But the mayor defended his tone.
"You don’t really think that just a smile is going to make a difference in negotiations," he said. "People say we should call everybody to the table. Yes, that’s what I did yesterday," he said.
He also brushed off claims that he has an antagonistic relationship with city union leaders.
"We have very good labor relations," he said. "The labor leaders understand … we cannot continue to do what we’re doing. Things are going to have to change."
