Costly Consequences Surface in Revamped Hiring System

New York City teachers who have been unable to find new jobs in the district under a new hiring policy, but remain on the payroll, will cost the city $81 million by the end of this school year, a report says.

The New Teacher Project , which partners with the city’s education department on teacher recruitment, prepared the report, which lauds a “mutual consent” hiring system put in place in 2005. The system, established under a contract with the city teachers’ union, did away with the practice of allowing teacher transfers on the basis of seniority. School administrators now directly hire teachers they believe are a good fit. The district also abandoned the practice of letting senior teachers “bump” less experienced teachers from their positions.

Dan Weisberg, the chief executive for labor policy and implementation for the 1.1 million-student district, described the new system as “a quantum leap ahead for...