ALBANY — Last in, worst out.

Half of all New Yorkers favor scrapping the current “last in, first out” teacher job protections and using both merit and seniority to pick which teachers to lay off, according to a poll released yesterday.

The statewide Quinnipiac University survey found 50 percent of voters prefer using some combination of tenure and performance during mass teacher firings while another 40 percent back using performance alone.

Only 7 percent want to keep the state’s seniority-only layoff law, while 3 percent remain undecided on the issue.

The findings come as Mayor Bloomberg negotiates with the United Federation of Teachers over layoffs, a process playing out throughout the state as districts absorb a historic $1.2 billion cut in state education aid.

Bloomberg is planning for as many as 4,600 teacher layoffs.