members

Union Mourns Intern Killed in Car Accident

January 16, 2019 // 0 Comments

By DIANE W. WILLIAMS The AFSCME family is stunned and saddened by the tragic death of 21-year-old Nadia Mourtaj, a 2018 summer intern in DC 37’s Organizing Department. Nadia and her sister Zeyneb, 15, were in a car accident on Dec. 31, in Charles County, Md. Zeyneb was killed on impact and Nadia died nine days later. They are survived by their mother, Sara Ghebre, and father, Abdelilah Mourtaj. “Nadia was a bright star whose enthusiasm for life and the labor movement was contagious,” said DC 37 organizer Nichole Laing, who helped train the young activist seen in this union video. After Nadia completed the internship, Organizing Dept. Director Barbara Terrelonge said, “Nadia visited New York City in September, marching with DC 37 in the annual Labor Day Parade.” “There were many reasons why I chose Nadia for AFSCME’s program, but what stood out to me was her extensive [More...]

Activists Gear Up for the Jan. 19 Women’s Unity Rally at Foley Square

January 13, 2019 // 0 Comments

By GREGORY N. HEIRES DC 37 members will be among thousands of demonstrators expected to turn out for the Women’s Unity Rally on Saturday, Jan. 19. We will gather at 10 a.m. on Foley Square, at Lafayette and Worth Street, in downtown Manhattan. We encourage participants to come dressed in DC 37’s color–green. To register for the rally, go to http://bit.ly/2019Women. For more information, contact DC 37’s Office of Community Partnerships Director Raul Rodriguez by calling 212-815-1502 or emailing raulrodriguez@dc37.net. The mission is to raise women’s voices through education and activism. Stand with us arm-in-arm in defense of women’s and immigrants rights. The DC 37 Blog is an official online publication of District Council 37, AFSCME, which represents 125,000 public service workers in New York City and surrounding [More...]

Concerned About Your Personal Finances? Attend a Free ‘Financial Empowerment’ Course at DC37

January 12, 2019 // 0 Comments

By GREGORY N. HEIRES Are your credit card applications being denied? Are you having difficulty being approved for a mortgage? Are you being turned down for affordable housing even though you meet the income requirement? We are here to help. DC 37 is holding a personal finance course to offer members guidance on their finances so they will have excellent credit scores to qualify for lottery housing, credit and home purchases. About 70 people from the union and the community attended the first class, which was held on Jan. 9. Director of Community Outreach Paul Rodriguez encourages anyone interested in attending the remaining classes to register for the course. The second class will be on Wednesday, Jan. 16, in Rooms 2 and 3 at DC 37 headquarters at 125 Barclay St. in Lower Manhattan. The class will help you understand your credit and debt profile, the basics of borrowing, and how to [More...]

AFSCME Members Join Federal Workers in Rally to End Government Shutdown

January 11, 2019 // 0 Comments

AFSCME Pres. Lee Saunders and Janice Fridie (District Council 20). Photo Credit: Lorenzo Soto. AFSCME members today joined furloughed federal workers in Washington, D.C., to call for an end to the government shutdown. Altogether, thousands of people marched from the headquarters of the AFL-CIO in downtown D.C. to the White House, demanding that 800,000 federal workers return to their jobs and receive their paychecks. “This shutdown is hurting our families and our communities,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders. “Public health is jeopardized. Consumer protection is compromised. Many national parks are overrun with garbage. Food assistance for low-income families is at risk.” Saunders was one of two dozen speakers outside the AFL-CIO who urged President Trump and Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) to reopen the government. AFSCME represents about 3,000 federal workers. Janice [More...]

City Launches New Paid Family Leave Benefit

January 7, 2019 // 0 Comments

Today, the new paid family leave benefit is open for application in most agencies. The benefit–which the union won through negotiations for the 2017-21 economic agreement–is now available to nearly 100,000 DC 37 members who are covered by the contract and work at mayoral agencies, NYC Health+Hospitals, the New York City Housing Authority and the Dept. of Education. There are a number of ways to apply for the benefit. You should start by asking your human relations office which process applies to you. Members at mayoral agencies, NYCHA and H&H must fill out a form (PFL-1) and send it–along with the required documents–to an insurance company that manages the benefit. The insurance company will administer the benefit through an online portal called ABSOLVE. Here is the link to the Personnel Services Bulletin, which has information about the benefit. Members at [More...]

All aboard! Holiday Trains are a favorite at NY Botanical Garden

December 27, 2018 // 0 Comments

By DIANE S. WILLIAMS Under a canopy of verdant tropical flora, the annual Holiday Train Show is in full bloom at the New York Botanical Garden. The exhibit features 175 Lilliputian landmarks, ferries and famous bridges, all under the watchful eyes of Local 374 Quasi-Public Employees at the famed Bronx cultural institution. The NYBG staff of maintainers, attendant guards, custodians, and gardeners and others work behind the scenes to help make this traditional holiday display, unveiled in 1992, one of the most successful cultural exhibits in the city. The collection includes 25 G-scale trains and trolleys that travel over a half-mile of tracks through a cityscape built to rival any Pixar animation. This year children thrill to see a train’s caboose whiz past replicas of the Freedom Tower and the Oculus of Lower Manhattan, the latest models in the Botanical Gardens’ growing collection [More...]

Local 372 Calls Upon Governor Cuomo to Sign Pension Bill

December 23, 2018 // 0 Comments

Leaders of Local 372 are calling for Gov. Cuomo’s signature on a bill that would automatically enroll about 17,000 part-time, temporary employees in the Board of Education Retirement System (BERS) after they pass 90 days of employment. “This legislation would solve a widespread problem that hurts our most vulnerable workers – the loss of years’ worth of valuable retirement benefits that they were legally entitled to,” said Local 372 President Shaun Francois I. The way the system now operates, workers known as “optional employees” can opt-in to BERS, but unless they explicitly express their desire to do so, they are out of the system by default and accrue no benefits. And that’s been a source of financial pain for many of these employees, whose annual salaries average $25,500. “Many members mistakenly believe they are automatically enrolled in the pension system, and [More...]

Pension System to Adopt New Investment Strategy as Fossil Fuel Divestment Moves Ahead

December 21, 2018 // 0 Comments

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Comptroller Scott M. Stringer on Thursday, Dec. 20, announced the next big step in the New York City pension funds’ action to address the risk posed by climate change by divesting from fossil fuel reserve owners – an unprecedented process and the first-of-its-kind in the United States. A request for proposal (RFP) released today seeks advisers to analyze, evaluate, and recommend prudent fossil fuel divestment strategies for the New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS), the Teachers Retirement System (TRS), and the Board of Education Retirement System (BERS). Together, the three pension systems representing 70 percent of the total assets of the city’s $200 billion pension funds. The RFP will result in a comprehensive analysis of the city pension funds’ holdings and the risks the fossil fuel industry poses to pension assets. This [More...]

CUNY Members Overwhelmingly Approve New Contract

December 19, 2018 // 0 Comments

By GREGORY N. HEIRES Members at the City University of New York voted by more than 98 percent in favor of a 52-month new contract that provides a raise of more than 8 percent with no givebacks. The contract–which covers 10,000 members–includes a new paid family leave benefit, which will go into effect in 2019. “It’s a good contract,” said information technology assistant Anthony Chambers, a Local 2627 shop steward. “It’s in line with what the other city workers got, it’s equitable.” “We are proud to have negotiated a no-giveback contract, with a decent wage increase, that protects our benefits and provides a great new benefit,” said DC 37 executive director Henry Garrido. He expressed his appreciation to the union’s negotiations committee and staff for working hard on the contract. DC 37 and the City University of New York reached agreement in [More...]

A Local 768 Member’s Grievance Leads to Promotions and Higher Pay for Coworkers

December 18, 2018 // 0 Comments

By DIANE S. WILLIAMS A victory for one advanced an entire unit of Local 768 members when NYC Health+Hospitals promoted nine Lincoln Hospital Social Workers to Level 2 and paid them over $20,000 collectively. The promotions and pay increases resulted from the settlement of an out-of-title grievance filed by a Social Worker Level 1 who stood up for a promotion and back pay. ‘I was feeling underappreciated and that I was not being taken seriously,” said Alyson Helfand, a Lincoln Hospital Social Worker Level 1 since 2015. “I explored my options for help with getting the appropriate compensation for the level for the responsibility I have in overseeing projects and carrying a very large caseload for two years.” Senior Council Rep Janine Thomas filed Helfand’s out-of-title grievance in March 2017. “A promotion is not up to the immediate supervisor,” Thomas explained. “If a [More...]