The Work Force, 2000 December

CSEA’s 90-year history
in pictures and words.
_ Special Insert —

Photo of the Month

CSEA member Georgeann Stevenson, a consumer
advocate with the state Consumer Protection Board,
adds to a growing pile of New York State residents
who have called the “Do Not Call” hot line asking to
have their names removed from telemarketing lists
under a new program offered by the board.

Public services at risk
in Nassau County crisis

NASSAU COUNTY— As this edition of The Work Force went
to press, CSEA was pulling no punches in a fight against the
county executive's plan to cut county jobs through attrition.

“It appears after a first look at the County Executive’s
(Thomas Gulotta) budget that we have won the fight against
layoffs. We will however, continue to press the county
Legislature to eliminate the cuts that affect CSEA members’
jobs and the services they provide,” said Nassau County
Local President Tony Guistino.

Guistino was referring to an earlier proposal by Gulotta to
lay off 500 county workers that reneged on a deal CSEA
members made with the county to accept a pay lag.

County Executive Thomas Gulotta rejected the county
Legislature Democratic majority's budget, calling it
“unacceptable” because it included a 15.4 percent tax hike for
residents.

As of press time, the legislature had not acted on an
override of Gulotta’s veto.

More than 800 workers are leaving county service after
accepting the early retirement incentive.

“We cannot afford to lose more workers. The remaining
employees cannot deliver services with no support. Overtime
would skyrocket or departments would simply shut down,”
said Giustino.

“The CSEA workers are taxpayers, too. They will be sharing
the burden of the county deficit along with their neighbors,”
said CSEA Long Island Region President Nick LaMorte.

— Sheryl C. Jenks

THE WORK FORCE

December

Page 2

Ulster Co. workers picket

Earning far less than workers in
other counties, more than 600 riled
Ulster County
workers picketed
county offices to
demand equal
pay for equal
work,

The largest the
county has seen
in decades, the
protest followed
the release of a salary study that
shows county workers earn as much
as 21 percent less than their peers
in several neighboring counties and
the private sector.

“We demand that the employees
get treated with respect and to be
compensated fairly for the jobs that
they do,” said CSEA Ulster County
Unit President Kevin DuMond.

Glenda Sausserdamms, a 14-year
employee of the county’s social

services department,
said she is frustrated
with her low wages
because she is
helping support her
3-year-old
granddaughter.

“It’s so hard for

us,” she said.

“The other
counties pay their workers more,
but we're doing a lot more work.”

The study by a private company
surveyed similar employees in
nearby Dutchess, Orange and
Sullivan counties and the private
sector. Ulster County is similar to
those three counties in size and
budget.

— Janice Marra

CSEA
members
picket the
Ulster
County
offices
recently,
demanding
fair pay.

Fed hearing on Long Beach
health insurance rip-off set

LONG BEACH — CSEA is stepping
up the pressure on Long Beach
medical Center as the facility
management faces a federal hearing
over charges they ripped off CSEA
members over health insurance
costs.

The 500 CSEA members at Long
Beach are fighting for their first
contract against a stubborn, anti-
union administration.

The National Labor Relations
Board (NLRB) recently charged that
the hospital overcharged CSEA
workers for their health insurance
coverage in the midst of
negotiations.

The facility must answer the
charges in a federal proceeding

2000

scheduled for January and CSEA
will see them called to account.

“Many of us are struggling to
make the payments, Many more of
our members cannot afford to pay
and some have even dropped their
coverage altogether,” said LBMC
Local President Marcene Sutton.

CSEA Long Island Region
President Nick LaMorte said “The
workers are strong and they are not
giving up. CSEA is proud of their
perseverance and we will continue
to fight for a fair contract and fair
treatment.”

“The actions of the Long Beach
Management are disgraceful and
unacceptable,” LaMorte said.

We made the difference

irom Long Island to
Fiesta: CSEA

members pulled out all
the stops to Get Out the
Vote Tuesday, Nov. 7. From
phone bank calls to door-
to-door stops to rallies and
high visibility activities,
CSEA worked hard to make
a difference on behalf of
the union’s endorsed
candidates.

The Election Day
activities culminated
months of preparation and
legwork by CSEA activists.

“The value of CSEA’s
endorsement is in the
strength of our members’
commitment and the union’s
know-how,” CSEA President
Danny Donohue said.

“There are few

Clockwise jee
top, Bill Cosby
stumps with U.S.
Senator-elect
Hillary Clinton
in Albany; CSEA
volunteers staff
a phone bank in

organizations that have the the North
statewide network, Country;
experience and people campaigning for
power that CSEA delivers Hillary;

and we demonstrated that
loud and clear this election
day.”

campaigning for
Hillary at an
appearance by

Thousands of CSEA Congressman
activist volunteers walked Rick Lazio;
the districts, distributed Labor-to-
campaign material, helped Neighbor efforts

people get to the polls and
telephoned neighbors and
co-workers to make sure no
vote was taken for granted.
It was an impressive
showing.

in CSEA’s Central
Region; CSEA for
Hillary.

More coverage,
Pages 4, 16.

December 2000 THE WORK FORCE Prec}

i ; i

ISSN 1522-1091

Official publication of
CSEA Local 1000, AFSCME, AFL-CIO
143 Washington Ave.
Albany, NY 12210-2303
Danny Donohue, President

s PHEN A. MADARASZ
Communications Director & Publisher
STANLEY HORNAK
Deputy Director of Communications
RONALD S. KERMANI, Executive Editor
LOU HMIELESKI, Assistant Editor
CATHLEEN HORTON
Graphic Design & Support Services
RALPH DISTIN, Graphic Artist
JANICE M. KUCSKAR
Communications Production Coordinator
BETH McINTYRE
Communications Secretary

The Work Force (USPS 0445-010) is
published monthly by The CSEA Publication Office:
143 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12210.
Periodical Mail Postage paid at Post Office,
Albany, New York 12288.

Postmaster: Send address changes to:
CSEA, Attn: Membership Department,
143 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12210.
CSEA on-line: The CSEA web site
can be accessed at www.cseainc.org

Readers:
Send any comments, complaints, suggestions or ideas to:
Publisher, The Work Force, 143 Washington Avenue,
Albany, NY 12210-2303.

COMMUNICATIONS ASSOCIATES

SHERYL C. JENKS Long Island Region
(631) 462-0030,
ANN CARROLL. Metropolitan Region
(212) 406-2156
JANICE MARRA Southern Region
(845) 831-1000
DAN CAMPBELL Capital Region
(518) 785-4400
MARK M., KOTZIN Central Region
(315) 433-0050
RON WOFFORD Western Region
(716) 886-0391
ED MOLITOR Headquarters
618) 257-1272

The Publications Committee

LONG ISLAND REGION Jofn C. Shepherd.
METROPOLITAN REGION Lamont “Dutch” Wade
SOUTHERN REGION Diane Hewitt
CAPITAL REGION Helen Fischedick
CENTRAL REGION Bruce Damalt, Chair
WESTERN REGION James V. Kurtz

\ABOR COMMUN Icy »
7]

SSERNATIONAL
——
Taeroossy SN

Egg, we
TeAFLCIOICLC +N COuagrag sat

SEA members. stood tall across New York on
Election Day 2000.

We stood tall and delivered on behalf of the
candidates who stood with us.

CSEA members stood up to be counted. Election
2000 will be remembered for many reasons. But for
CSEA it was memorable because this union once
again strongly demonstrated its statewide reach.

Looking back on the entire Year 2000, standing
up to be counted was a familiar theme.

CSEA state members stood up to be
counted in record numbers and it made a huge difference in
securing a good state contract. CSEA stood up for pension reform
that ultimately benefited all our members. CSEA and its retirees
stood up for a permanent Cost of Living Adjustment that will mean
good things for years to come.

In places like Nassau County, CSEA members stood up like
never before and told the county administration that we won't
accept their disgraceful attempt to scapegoat us for years of
administration incompetence and mismanagement. Members there
need to continue to stand and be counted.

In White Plains and Ulster County CSEA members have stood
up to be counted and are demanding fairness.

And then there is Long Beach Medical Center where an anti-
union administration has refused to settle a first contract and has
now been charged with cheating the employees over their health
insurance costs. The National Labor Relations Board is making
LBMC answer and CSEA will continue to stand up to be counted
with our brothers and sisters, who have already shown their
character and resolve many times over.

All of these activities should make us proud — they are the
signs of a vital union, CSEA will build on the success of the past
year and a future of better contracts, organizing more workers to
make us stronger, and improving our political action reach lies

ahead in 2001.
Ce

As

er ae THE WORK FORCE December

2000

oo

Mia

Above, CSEA member and group home
developmental aide John Kennedy at
work in a group home in Syracuse.
Kennedy recently told a state panel
that staffing levels have reached a
critical low-point in the group homes.
At right, CSEA member Ron Witt, a
Central New York DDSO worker,
testifies during the hearing as Central
Region President Jim Moore looks on.

CSEA gets grant to
study nursing home
staffing

CSEA was awarded an $81,000 grant
from the Federal Mediation and
Conciliation Services to try to solve
the problem of short staffing at county
nursing homes

The money will fund a Nursing Home
Labor/Management Committee which
will study the issues of
staffing/recruitment, retention,
upgrading and training.

Six CSEA members, representing
every type of nursing home job, have
been chosen to serve on the
committee. They begin meeting with
management representatives early this
month,

CSEA testifies against dangers
of mental health short staffing

UTICA — “State facilities are dangerous
places to work and the state is doing
nothing to improve the situation.”

CSEA Central Region President Jim Moore,
himself a former Mental Health Therapy
Aide from Utica, had that to say to state
legislators in a
recent public
hearing on
mental health
facility staffing
levels.

Moore was
joined by CSEA
members from
around the region in one of three hearings
around the state before the Assembly
Standing Committee on Mental Hygiene,

SEA REPRESENTS

Health Care
Services

%, at
90 worxens in TH18 WO

children’s services, both spoke about the
dangers of short staffing at their facility.
Bello said that the increased number of
client assaults leads to lost time for workers,
which leads to mandatory overtime, and
even greater risks. “It’s a circle that leads to
even more injuries,” he said.

Developmental Aide Ronald Witt, who
works at a group home in the Utica/Rome
area, noted that staffing ratios have been on
the decline in the last 10 years, and taking a
page from George W. Bush, said that his
agency practices “fuzzy staffing.”

“When I first started at my present work
site about 10 years ago, we had five
employees to 12 consumers. It was then
lowered to four. Then, if there was a call-in,
we could go down to three if the supervisor

Mental Retardation and
Developmental Disabilities.

The hearings focused on the
danger mental health workers face
due to short staffing and poor
staff-to-client ratios.

Lives affected

“No other issue has such a
dramatic impact on the lives of
both the employees and the
people they serve,” Moore said.

Client populations in both OMH
and OMRDD are younger, more
aggressive, and more likely to be
dually diagnosed and dangerous
to staff and other clients, Moore said.

He was joined by several CSEA members
in testifying to their own personal
knowledge of incidents resulting from not
enough staff being available.

Developmental Aide John Kennedy, who
works in a group home in Syracuse, told of a
recent example at another home which is
designated “secure” where an individual got
out of the house and struck several workers
and destroyed property in and out of the
house.

“Il would say they were understaffed
because the staffing ratio wasn’t right to
begin with,” Kennedy said. “They're
stretching the people that are there, instead
of adding the staff like they should.”

Increasing number of assaults
CSEA Mohawk Valley Psychiatric Center
Local President Harry Bello and one of his
members, Sue Chapman who works in

was on duty. Now, we
can go down to three
when we don’t have
the supervisor on
duty. It’s fuzzy
staffing,” he said.

In his testimony,
Moore noted that
another common
concern of CSEA
members was the
amount of forced
overtime and their
lack of ability to use
leave accruals.

He closed asking
the state to reassess its staffing policies for
OMRDD in light of changing populations,
and to enact staffing ratio legislation for
OMH that was introduced last year and for
which CSEA has been lobbying.

— Mark M. Kotzin

Velees the Work Fore:

6 e need more
Wietatting to
care for the clients
and to allow us to

get time off with our
own families. 99

E ” — Rose MacBlane,
Licensed Practical Nurse, Elmira
Psychiatric Center

December 2000 THE WORK FORCE [etre

CSEA members work to help keep
Lakeview Shock marching along

BROCTON — A statue of a huge bulldog
wearing a Marine Corps drill sergeant’s hat
greets visitors to the Lakeview Shock
Correctional Facility, giving a hint of the
serious attitude inside the gates.

“You might think this was a military boot
camp, if you didn’t know better,” said Sam
Seger, Local president. “Or a college
campus, maybe. But the way groups of
inmates are moved around here, is by
marching in military formation. Our
members are not the corrections officers
here, but some of us supervise groups of
inmates while working, and when it’s
necessary to move to another location,
they are required to march, rather than

regular

regular

better here
than at a

prison. And
with good
behavior,
they can be
out of here in
a matter of
months, instead of years. They are

straggle. And if someone gets out of line or

acts up, we have the authority to make

them drop and do a number of push-ups.
“Non-

cooperation can get them sent toa
prison, and the smart ones know

they have it

laundry, electrical and mechanical service
shops,” said Seger.

Seger, a principal stores clerk and
11-year state worker, serves on a statewide
labor-management committee studying

Department of

eV someone gets out of line or acts up, we
have the authority to make them drop and
do a number of push-ups. ??

Corrections
(DOC) transfer
policies.

Local
member
Bonnie Long,
an 11-year
employee,

Sam Seger
Lakeview Shock Local president

supposed to be non-violent
offenders, but we support workers
have no way of
knowing what the
sentence.”

The state's
shock facilities are
an alternative to
the familiar high-
walled middle and
maximum-security
prisons. The
shock facility
houses mostly younger, non-
violent, first-time offenders.
Training, marching, drilling,
physical therapy, and classroom
instruction, aimed at achieving at
least a general education degree
are standard.

“Our 84 members work in
various support roles from various
clerical jobs in the offices to the

) state (clothing) shop, commissary,

Former Lakeview Shock Local President Sam Seger
stands outside the correctional facility next to a
sign that helps explain the facility's philosophy.
CSEA members do not guard inmates at the
facility, but work closely with them and are
permitted to motivate the inmates with push-ups
when required.

Pe THE WORK FORCE

December

SEA REPRESENTS

andi Faw) )
Enforcement

78, et
700 WorkERS in THIS WY

supervises the
facility’s laundry, overseeing 16 to 20
inmates — a job she said she enjoys.

“I like working with the inmates,” said
Long. “They're mostly
younger people and | like
encouraging them to take
pride in their work
because it should help
them when they get out.
For many of them, it’s the
first job they've had in
their lives.”

— Ron Wofford

Editor’s note:

Since being interviewed for this article, Local
President Sam Seger has taken a job transfer
to Wyoming Correctional Facility, an offer he
said he “couldn't refuse.” He will be
succeeded by Local Vice President Dianna
Coddington, a seven-year calculations clerk.

6¢Tlike the help I get from co-workers,
corrections officers and civilians.
Everyone's cooperative. 99

S of the Work Force

— Michelene Washy, stores clerk,
Lakeview Shock Facility

2000

Want to be elected?

Keeping candidates honest,
the campaign process pure

ALBANY — As the days get
shorter, the shadows grow
longer, and the leaves hurry by
with purpose in the crisp
autumn air, the state Board of
Elections becomes a hive of
activity as CSEA members gear
up for their important day.

While they live and breathe
elections eight hours a day, the
dozen union members must
steer clear of outside political
activity to keep the election
process impartial.

Sure, they vote. But they
can’t say for who.

“We can’t even put up lawn
signs in front of our homes,”
said CSEA Local President John
Vinson, a stores clerk who’s
been with the board for 17
years.

On the job though, these
CSEA members have a hand in
almost every aspect of the
election process, from
registering voters to processing
candidate petitions to auditing
campaign contributions.

Page by page
Whether they’re running for
governor, Congress, the state

SEA REPRESENTS

hy

& “UER “
200 WorKens iw THis WOO

_| The Board of Elections
mailed 2,660,034 voter
registration forms last year.

_] New York has registered
9 million new voters under
the Motor Voter Act — 1.9
million this year alone.

_| Nationwide, the

percentage of registered
voters who actually vote
has dropped every year.

Senate or the Assembly,
candidates for statewide office
don’t get on the ballot until
Principal Clerk Lisa Shaw
approves their nominating
petitions.

ud

Shaw has
processed
thousands of
petitions in her
21 years with
the board, but
said one
candidate
stands out.

“When Ross
Perot ran for
president, he
filed one
signature per
(nominating
petition) page,”
Shaw said.

Hope Hardwick processing voter registration
forms that come in from more than 2,000
“Motor Voter” locations across the state.

“If your petition is
challenged, and something
happens to that page, you can
throw out all of the signatures
on that page. So it’s safer to do
it one signature per page
because if there’s something
wrong with that one page, you
only lose one signature,” she
explained.

“There must have been 50
boxes that came on a bus with
Perot’s supporters,” laughed
Vinson. “And they asked us for
copies.”

More register, fewer vote
The so-called “Motor Voter
Act” combined with stepped-up

voter registration drives and
CSEA’s efforts, keeps clerk
Hope Hardwick busy.

Hardwick works with the
more than 2,000 locations now
offering on-site voter
registration under the National
Voter Registration Act (NVRA).

“I think it’s great that NVRA
has registered all these people
and the number of registered
voters has definitely gone up
but, unfortunately, the turnout
(on Election Day) has gone
down,” Hardwick said.

Election mania
Not surprisingly, fall is their
busy season, marked by

Lisa Shaw checks signatures on
one of the more than 450
petitions she received for
review this year.

deadlines and a heavier
workload. A presidential race
adds more pressure still.

The workers said it’s all
worth it when Election Day
dawns.

“When you go into that
voting machine on Election Day
and you've had something to
do with those names being put
on that voting booth, that’s
rewarding,” Shaw said.

“Il like when the election is
over,” said Vinson. “Don’t get
me wrong, we always have
something to do, it’s just not as
hectic.”

— Ed Molitor

66

hen Grandpa Al Lewis (from the TV

series The Munsters) was running
for governor, I rushed in from vacation to
come in here and see him and he never
showed up. | was heartbroken. | wanted to
see Grandpa Munster so bad.99

— John Vinson, stores clerk,
state Board of Elections

December 2000 THE WORK FORCE DtWA

Watertown set to fight contracting out

of trash hauling

WATERTOWN — They’ve been talking
trash in the city recently. Contracting-out of
trash and recycling collection, specifically.
And to CSEA, those are fighting words.

The mayor and City Council have started
the process of requesting bids to take over
the city’s refuse and recycling collection
service, said CSEA City of Watertown Unit
President Brenda Harwood. It’s a decision
that would affect the jobs of about a dozen
CSEA-represented employees, and the union
is gearing up for a fight, saying there’s far
more at stake.

City workers provide services that go
above and beyond what private haulers
would be able or willing to do, including
picking up yard waste, collecting trash from
the porches of elderly or disabled residents
homes, cleaning up buildings at the request
of the City Code Enforcement Department,
and picking up Christmas trees, said CSEA |

Public service, public employee — CSEA
member and Watertown employee Louis
McCormick keeps an eye out on the job
for the elderly and handicapped residents
along his route, and even keeps a store of
bones for dogs. It’s those personal touches
he said the city will lose if it contracts out
its garbage hauling operation.

Page 8 THE WORK FORCE

December

(SEA REPRESENTS

member
Timothy,
McConnell, a
motor
equipment
operator who
works in
refuse/recycling collection.

“I'm proud of the job we do and I don’t feel
the private haulers would give the people,
especially the handicapped and elderly
people we serve, the service they need.”

As an added value, the workers often
volunteer to work on other DPW crews,
helping with vital plowing services.

McConnell said he worries that a private
hauler would low-ball a bid to get the city’s
business, and then wield their power to raise
rates once the city can no longer provide the
service.

“Maybe the first three years they may
have a low bid, but once we get rid of our
manpower and our equipment, we’re at their
mercy,” he said.

Motor Equipment Operator Louis
McCormick, who’s worked in the department
for 29 years, agrees that the City work force
goes above and beyond the call for City
residents.

“I think we do a better job than the private
haulers,” he said. “Our customers keep
saying we're doing a great job, and to just
keep doing what we're doing.”

In fact, even some city managers are
speaking out against contracting-out. Refuse
and Recycling Collection Supervisor Bernie
Love knows the work that his people do, and
has his own doubts that

90, ale ts tf at
200 workens in THIS WO

he floor — CSEA
member Timothy McConnell works amid
piles of glass, just one of the many
hazards Watertown trash haulers face
doing their job.

And McConnell says that as much as
they're appreciated by city residents, it’s the
dogs that really love them.

“We have lots of dog friends. They know
when we're coming. We keep bones in our
trucks for them. We know most of them by
name,” he said with a chuckle.

And Unit President Harwood said that the
union is not willing to give those personal
touches up without a hard fight.

— Mark M. Kotzin

private haulers could
improve services.

McConnell, a 15-year
veteran of the department
said that he and his
co-workers may not have a
glamorous job, but they take
pride in their jobs and the
work they do, He said they
also do a job that many don’t
want to do.

“Rain or shine, hail or
sleet. I can recall one
morning where it was thirty
below zero, and we were out
on the street picking up
trash.”

66 ‘A lot of people around town
don’t realize we actually do
the work. The city has skilled
artisans on staff to do every job.
Our knowledge, skills and
education are the best now, and I
don’t think the public realizes
this. 99
— Jack Hopkins,
skilled laborer, City of Saratoga

Springs, who built his house and his mother’s house

2000

“He did a magnificent job.” — NYS Police

CSEA bus driver’s split-second
reaction saves pupils’ lives

KINDERHOOK — CSEA member Edgar
Hernandez gamely jockeyed his most
precious cargo off the road and into a
driveway, avoiding two large trees, a house
and a garage.

In an instant, the big yellow school bus
he was driving abruptly stopped in the
back yard of a startled homeowner, a trail
of car wreckage strewn nearby.

Hernandez, a member of CSEA’s Ichabod
Crane School
District Unit in
Columbia
County, is
being credited
by State Police
as a hero who
saved 26
children —
including two
of his own — from serious injury after a
speeding car ran a stop sign and plowed
into Hernandez’ bus recently.

“He did a magnificent job,” State Police
Senior Investigator Gary Mazzacano told
reporters about Hernandez’s driving skills.

“He avoided many obstacles and

ose BEPRE SETS

sl
“00 Wornens i IW THIS co

66" Whe best things about
my job are that I love

Photo by Robert Ragaini/Hudson Valley Newspapers.

CSEA member Edgar Hernandez’ school bus finally came to a safe stop after Hernandez
used his driving skills to avoid trees, a house, a garage and, most importantly, serious

injury to any of his young passengers.

minimized any further injuries,” the
trooper said.
The car’s driver was killed in the crash.
Property owner Bob Foster told
reporters Hernandez quickly tended to the
upset students and kept them near the bus

and away from the injured car driver and
mangled vehicle.

Five children were treated at a local
hospital for minor injuries.

— Daniel X. Campbell

Each year,
CSEA members ...

the people I work with, love
the business and diversity of
what I do and love the
contact I have with the kids.
One frustrating thing is when
you're not given the
information you need. When
this place gets busy and
there’s not enough staff to
cover it, things can get
stressful. 99

— Mary Miguez, 17-year CSEA member, school

secretary and Unit president

I drive 840,000 kids
to school;

LL} serve 138 million
school lunches;

_] teachers aides help
1.7 million students;

_1 university staff
process 300,000
records.

Photo by Robert Ragaini/Hudson Valley Newspapers.

Rescue workers carry off one of five
students who received minor injuries.
None of the 26 passengers were seriously
injured.

December 2 THE WORK FORCE Page 9

long and drawn out history

or more than 30 years, the history of
CSEA’s contract and public policy fights
has been chronicled in CSEA

publications through cartoons by the union’s
award-winning graphic artist Ralph Distin.

Distin’s straightforward style has
lampooned the high and the mighty; applied
common sense to some of the most
controversial issues and brought into focus : g
many of the challenges CSEA members face ~~ eueeee aha Annual hack Up

every day. eK | CHART? a ms

Distin’s work has been a near annual
award winner in the International Labor
Communications Association competitions
representing recognition among the best of
the best in labor journalism. This past year
was no exception.

As CSEA celebrates its 90 years of d = "OK. Go ne ot

A ; ren ‘Donne have yeu fed the exe hart ore tare
achievement, a review of Ralph Distin’s
cartoons provides one of the most insightful BIG TARGETS - Governors Nelson Rockefeller, Hugh Carey,
and entertaining ways to revisit CSEA’s Mario Cuomo, and George Pataki have all been skewered with
growth and character, including many dead-on accuracy by the pen of CSEA artist Ralph Distin.
characters encountered along the way.

WILL IT BE ANOTHER
NE OF THOSE SEASONS?

[YOU KNOW, THIS GUY REMINDS ME OF SOM‘ Vee

Occupational safety and health laws for

Contracting out public services ‘al pa
New York's public employees 9 3 Equal pay for equal work

to private contractors

Page LO THE WORK FORCE December 2000

The 1988 attempt by the Internal Revenue Service to

tax public workers’ leave accruals

Deinstitutionalization or “patient dumping”

WHAT'S THE BIG ISSUE -
Whatever the important
issues CSEA has confronted
since the 1970s, Ralph
Distin’s cartoons have been
a staple in telling the story
and making the union’s
position understandable. A
sampling is offered here.

The horror in Oklahoma City

~

But. all we aoked for wos 2 COLAY

The impact of the 1995 congressional
budget on New Yorkers

Cost-of-living adjustments for
New York's retired public employees

December 2000

Public schools using “official” school
clothing produced by sweatshop labor

THE WORK FORCE onl

Lack of rubber safety mats in
Manhattan Psychiatric Center
kitchen is apparent here.

OSHA ergo law caught in budget flap

Hell’s kitchen at
Manhattan Psych

When it’s too hot in the
kitchen, they can’t get out.

Sweltering temperatures,
severe short staffing,
exhaustion, dangerous working
conditions and management’s
inaction fray the nerves and tax
the constitution of Manhattan
Psychiatric Center workers as
they cook 1,500 meals daily in
an unsafe, hellish kitchen.

CSEA members are working
to the edge of exhaustion
because of severe understaffing
and dangerous working
conditions that include broken
equipment and the lack of
safety equipment, union
leaders said.

“Our members are busting
their rear ends, and the sweat
is just pouring off them,” said
CSEA Safety and Health
Specialist Dan Morra.

Managers admit they need a
new kitchen ventilation system,
but claim they have no money,
he added.

Portable air conditioners
brought in to maintain a

tolerable temperature do not
cool the 125 x 50-foot kitchen
with 12-foot high ceilings, union
members said.

A recent tour of the kitchen
showed only one portable air
conditioner was working
properly and there were no
safety mats on the kitchen floor
to help workers avoid slipping
on wet tile floors.

Heat, exhaustion take toll

Ella Jackson, a food service
worker at the center for 15
years, barely survived the
danger of her workplace.

“Tt was after lunch, around 2
p.m. and it

was real
hot,” said
Jackson.

“Il was
preparing
cole slaw
when I got
pains in my
chest. They

said I was

overworked. Jackson

“{yOCAL 1000 AFSOME
oo Ao

765.000 mempens STRON

I was in Mount Sinai Hospital
for three days; I got a $6,000
bill. My doctor said to me, ‘I
know you like to work, but
you've got to stay home and
rest. 7

Workers said seven people
are needed on the line to do
the job properly. Today there
are four, they said.

According to Morra and
Local President Maxine Rice,
management claims they give
employees time for breaks to
compensate for the sweltering
conditions, but Morra and Rice
say there is no extra time off.

“For 16 years I've been
getting up at 3 a.m. to come
here, but they have no
consideration for your years of
time,” said Jackson.

“As long as you're doing the
work and getting it done, your
supervisor should let you get
five minutes to catch your
breath,” she said.

— Ann Carroll

CSEA is urging its members to contact
their elected representatives in Congress
and tell them the time is now to act on
legislation supporting an Occupational
Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
ergonomic standard,

OSHA's draft ergonomics standard was
the subject of intense debate between the
White House staff and members of
Congress during the last week of October.

The proposed rule, which is designed to
protect workers from repetitive strain
injuries and other musculoskeletal
disorders, has become one of the major
sticking points in negotiations to complete
the federal budget for the fiscal year that
began Oct. 1.

The negotiations focus on a clause in the
budget bill for the Department of Labor
that forbids OSHA to issue an ergonomics
standard before Oct. 1, 2001.

President Clinton has said that he will
veto any Labor Department budget that
stops the ergonomics rule, On Oct. 29, the
White House and members of Congress
agreed on a compromise: the president
would sign a budget that included a
provision that would allow OSHA to
promulgate the standard, but delay any
enforcement of it until June 1, 2001.

The next day, before the compromise bill
could be voted on in Congress, the
Republican leadership refused to go along
with the agreement, which scuttled the
budget for the time being.

On Oct. 31, House Democrats denounced
the action of the Republicans in a series of
speeches on the House floor, which are a
remarkable expression of congressional
support for safety and health enforcement.

Electrical equipment safety
Ips:

© Regularly inspect tools, cords,
grounds and accessories.

Q Use safety features such as
three-pronged plugs, double-insulated
tools, safety switches.

Q Don’t touch water, damp
surfaces, ungrounded metal or any
bare wires if you are not protected.

Q Don’t wear metal objects (rings,
watches, etc.) when working with
electricity. They might accidentally
make you a ground and could cause
injury.

page 12 Ea December 2

In every journey
there is a beginning...

On Oct. 24, 1910, a group of New York
State employees came together

B , State Civil Service
\ Employees. Their
{fu purpose was simple:
: To improve the
working lives of
New York State
employees

From that humble
start, those pioneering
public employees launched the organization
that was to become one of the strongest,
most influential forces for working people
the world has ever seen

Literally hundreds of thousands of
individuals, events and actions shaped
sEA’s decades of accomplishment. The
story on these pages simply touches on some
of the benchmark accomplishments and key
leaders. The real heroes are CSEA’s
members who believed in their union and
acted on that belief.

Our 90 years of
history are a legacy
of achievement and
growth and a
testimonial to
dedication and

perseverance

SL Eh

to form the Association of

ur early years were a
concerted effort to
meet the objectives
stated in our first
Constitution: “To uphold
and extend the principle of
merit and fitness in public
employment, to maintain
and promote efficiency in
public service and to
advance the interests of all
civil service employees.

William M. Thomas
CSEA President
1910-1918

Under the leadership of our first president,
William M. Thomas of the Department of Law
who served from 1910 to 1918, we lobbied for
improvement of civil service administration
protection of career tenure, adequate salaries
and sound retirement provisions.

Roaring into the 1920s

the

ie first of

s a result of years of effor

yciatior ssfully reached t

suece

nany milestones with the establishment of the

New York State Retirement System, signed into
Al Smith in 1920

law by Gov

gS LCN UEC

Activities continued throughout the 1920s
and there was slow but steady growth and
achievement.

Hard Work in
Hard Times

The Great
= 2 ee ae | Depression‘of the
1930s was a difficult time for all of America, but
we persevered
and achieved

results

WThe official [I i tm
nonthly
publication, Th

Employe i

the establishment

of the first St

Employee (

Union

We
institutional employees

abolished th 1our work week for

Sick leave was first
established for departmental

employees — 12 days per
year, cumulative to 150

@ The motto: “We
Serve” was adopted

@ Beulah Bailey Thull
was elected as the first
woman president of the

Association Bailey

in 1994

But perhaps the Association's crowning
achievement to date was the 1937 enactment of
the Feld-Hamilton bill which established a
definite state salary plan with provisions for
appeals.

“You are the most efficient and
loyal group any state or any private
industry ever has had in its employ.”

“I have never seen a body of
employees so willing to give of
themselves than you people in this
state’s service. The success of the state
depends on you — its personnel — not
the executives alone, but upon them
with the cooperation and unity of all
the cogs that make up the machine
from top to bottom.”

— Gov. Herbert H. Lehman
quoted in the Feb. 25, 1933
Knickerbocker Press on the
occasion of Association
President Beulah Bailey Thull’s
birthday and annual union
dinner at the DeWitt Clinton
Hotel in Albany.

According to the newspaper, “The
governor declared that he has grown
increasingly interested in the work of the
the Association and was roundly cheered
when he mentioned the restoration this
year of the salary’slashes (which were
made two years earlier).”

Swingin’ into the 1940s
The 1940s opened a whole new era :

a We secured competitive classification for
the first time to nearly 12,000 employees of the
Mental Hygiene institutions.

mAs the United States entered into World
War Il, the Association gave full support to
defense measures and worked to ensure legal

safeguards were
enacted to protect job
and pension rights for
state employees
entering military
service.

@ On the homefront
the Association
conducted a contest
seeking suggestions
for “Better Business in
Government” with
prizes totaling $300 in
War Bonds.

The end of the War
brought forth a new
beginning in so many
ways:

CSEA Headquarters dedicated in
1949 at 8 Elk St. in Albany

In 1946 we officially became
the Civil Service Employees
Association, Inc. and changed our
constitution to open membership
to all public employees throughout
New York. Westchester County
employees joined first and it was
just the start of an extraordinary
growth that continues to this
day as we represent workers in
We (ile every community in this state!

SOUIITT.

Earlier, CSEA had been
instrumental in the
establishment of the Fite
Commission to develop rules
and procedures to bring
employees of counties, cities,
towns, villages and districts under the civil
service merit system. This paved the way for
enormous growth. The association's former
president and general counsel were both
appointed members of the commission.

Rockin’ in the 1950s

Enormous growth and reach marked CSEA
activities throughout the 1950s.

As the nation’s economy exploded into a
new era of prosperity, CSEA made steady
progress improving the wages and working
conditions of its members.

It was in this decade that CSEA even
pioneered radio and newspaper advertising and
modern public relations techniques to make its
points and build public visibility.

@ Payroll deduction of Blue Cross/Blue
Shield premiums for state employees.

® The state Health Insurance Plan was
established.

@ CSEA gained the right to disciplinary
hearings for competitive class employees.

The Age of
Aquarius

As the 1960s
began, CSEA
secured
improvements for

local government
employees:

@ Successfully
lobbied for an Albany DMV office in 1962

expansion of the state health plan to include
local governments.

@ Established grievance procedures for local
government workers.

@ Gained significant pension improvements.

Like the decade itself, CSEA’s reality was
about to explode into a whole new world.

On Sept. 1, 1967 the CSEA-backed Public
Employees Fair Employment Act — known as the
Taylor Law — took effect.

CSEA's Headquarters Building at 33 Elk St. in Albany,
dedicated on Sept, 17, 1968 5

Gov. Rockefeller signing the “Taylor Law” in 196
At far lett is CSEA President Joe Feily. At far right is
then CSEA Vice President Theodore C. Wenzl

At the stroke of Gov. Nelson Rockefeller’s
pen, CSEA gained the right to negotiate contracts
with the force of law and a whole new era began
for the union,

Growing by Leaps and Bounds
in the 1970s

The 1970s marked a time of unparalleled
growth for CSEA.

New and better contracts were negotiated.
More and more units joined the union, legal
precedents were set, staff and benefits were
added and we became stronger and stronger.

@ The Easter Sunday strike of 1972 brought
state contract talks to a swift conclusion.

@ CSEA’s own newspaper, The Public Sector
was established.

@ CSEA established a Women’s Committee to

address issues such as comparable worth, child-
care initiatives and equality in the workplace.

Two legislative victories were especially
important: First CSEA gained a mandatory
agency shop law requiring free-riders

represented in
state
bargaining
units to pay
an agency fee
equivalent to
union dues if
they chose
not to join the
union.

New DMV office in
Albany, 1972

Second, after an intensive
roots lobbying campaign,
A was instrumental in the

passage of the Public
Employment Safety and Health
Act, ensuring that all public
employees in the state would
have a right to safe worksites,

AFSCME Affiliation

The late 1970s also marked a turning point in
CSEA’s history. In a bold move CSEA at once
became the largest affiliate of the fastest growing
union in the country, the American Federation of
State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME).

For AFSCME, the addition of more than
200,000 new
members in
one fell swoop.
was one of the
most dramatic
events in its
own history
and
immediately
pushed
AFSCME to the
forefront of the
organized
Labor
Movement
nationally.

AFSCME International President Jerry
Wurf, left, and CSEA President Bill McGowan,
following the signing of the historic
1978 affiliation agreement.

CSEA not only added a whole new dimension
of access to AFSCME services, resources and
benefits, but also gained new status as a full
partner in the Labor movement and for the first
time secured the protection of AFL-CIO
membership against raids from rival unions.

Achieving Resuits
in the 1980s

In the 1980s, in partnership with AFSCME,
CSEA made dramatic strides in championing
issues such as comparable worth for women,
pioneering Labor-management problem-solving

and
building
the
union’s
political
and legislative
muscle.

® CSEA is
widely credited
with providing the
grassroots
organization that
enabled underdog
Mario Cuomo to
win the 1982
Democratic
primary for
governor and then
move on to success
in the General Election.

1979 Tax and Finance Office

® Established our own
Occupational Safety and
Health Department and
took on a leadership role
» fighting for worksite
F protections — including
landmark VDT and
© ergonomics standards.

@ Changed our constitution and began
organizing workers in the private sector with a
community of interest with our existing
members.

® Began massive public education
campaigns to fight attempts to contract out
public services to privateers.

® A CSEA grassroots petition drive generated
more than 100,000 signatures to Congress to stop
cold an ill-conceived Internal Revenue Service
attempt to tax unused public employee sick
leave and vacation time.

CSEA also established and improved its own
Employee Benefit Fund, using its size to
negotiate better coverage on dental, prescription
drug, eyeglass and other benefits.

system and established legal
precedents to protect the
funds.

@ Increased our efforts
to empower our
membership by
industry and
boosted our
commitment to
organizing in
the private
sector for
greater strength.

é @ Assumed
INSET: GSEA President Joseph McDermott, Treasurer Mary Sullivan and Executive increasing leadership in both

Vice President Danny Donohue lead angry members protesting state cutbacks C
eae eran at cea Bes AFSCME and the AFL-CIO.

Building a Stronger Union The New Century

in the 1990s The years 1999 and 2000

brought one of the most
dynamic and ultimately,
successful periods in CSEA’s
history!

The 1990s brought CSEA the best of times
and the worst of times.

Stronger than ever before,

we spent the early part of the
‘ As we prepared to greet the new century,

CSEA faced up to some of the greatest
challenges

decade fighting cutbacks and
downsizing in state and local
government. We mobilized

I it her : Above right, President Danny Donohue fires up the wi
members like never before to . during the state contract fight. Top and above left: the
: 2 ® Mobilization of thousands of members for Sot the Power’ demonstration, January 200¢
save jobs and services 5 ; ‘
the state contract showed CSEA at its best
every level i" :
across the state CSEA faces many challenges in the
There were other successes years ahead r
wenty thousand union nore member
i members surrounding the Capitol ntracts c
@ Secured Local Government Agency Shop :
000 sent tremors through 1 ) emb
offic t i li
@ Successfully ch ‘ ork State ‘i
to raic iblic empl retireme i 3 ‘ ee
r ’ | 1 20:1 ratic
1 1 trong
@ The state contract yield and with a history of accomplishmen
agreement on pension reform ike ours, CSEA members are proud t

extended to all public employees say: CSEA — That’s me!

result of CSEA’s leadership

@ CSEA’s long-sought goal of a permanent
Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) for the

pension system became a reality as a result of

CSEA's persistence

CSEA leads the way on Solidarity Day 1991 in Washington, D.C:

DRORN, oN

outhern Region

CROSSR

A

* A supplement to The Work Force * December 2000 Vol. 4 No. 1

2000 -A
Year of
Success

CSEA won dramatic
pension improvements
for public employees. We
also won permanent
cost-of-living
adjustments (COLA) for
retirees.

Additionally, CSEA was instrumental in the
passing of a generous state workers’ contract
that will help our members improve their lives.

These victories are among the biggest that
lour union has seen in a generation, and all of
them happened during this millenium year.

As 2000 draws to a close, I am pleased about

hese successes. However, CSEA did not easily
in these improvements from state lawmakers.

The union achieved these goals only with

obilization by its members. Together, CSEA
istormed the steps of the Capitol building in

egion Officers Installed

Albany in January, and demanded that the
state show our workers respect. Our demands
for fairness and respect continued with every
contract negotiation this year. Together, we
won. Yet, many of our members wonder just
what it is that CSEA officers, activists and
staff do for them every day.

Without the hard work that our officers,
activists and staff do, whether it be
distributing literature about a political
candidate or issue or negotiating for fair
workers’ contracts, CSEA wouldn't be the
strongest, most effective union in not only New
York State, but the country. We fight daily so
that your work sites aren’t privatized or
downsized. We work hard to elect candidates
who will fight for working people. But CSEA
can’t successfully fight without your help.

The fight for workers’ rights never stops, and
we need more people to help us give you fair
salaries and improved working conditions. Join
your Unit’s negotiating committee, or help your
Local by making telephone calls on behalf of a
political candidate. If you want to take on a
leadership role in CSEA, run for an officer’s

AN ULs
~ *,

i ce

©) ° Your Union Newsletter

A Message from Southern Region President Carmine DiBattista

position at any level of the union. These are

only three of the ways that you can volunteer
your time, but there are countless other ways
to maintain your union’s strength and power.

Yes, I mean your union. Officers and staff
may do much of the work and make many of
the decisions, but CSEA is ultimately your
union. You elect the officers, you compose
CSEA’s strength in numbers and you are the
ones who will decide our union’s future. Only
you can decide whether CSEA will maintain
and grow in its strength and effectiveness, and
you will decide that with the effort that you
put into your union. As 2001 approaches, it’s
time to ask yourselves — and each other — a
serious question about CSEA’s future: “What.
are you prepared to do to keep your union
strong?”

Finally, on behalf of the officers and staff at
CSEA’s Southern Region, I wish you and your
families a joyous and safe holiday season and a
happy, successful 2001!

Carmine DiBattista
Southern Region President

CSEA’s Southern Region recently celebrated its own spirit and

nergy at the region’s Installation Dinner.

With nearly all of the region’s Locals attending, officers and
members jumped into the union spirit as they celebrated continued

legion success at the recent event.

The dinner honored continuing — and new — Southern Region
fficers who were elected to four-year posts earlier this year.
Statewide President Danny Donohue was on hand to welcome all

lhe new and continuing officers.

Region President Carmine DiBattista, who began his second term

office, urged members to continue their hard work and undying spirit

is he led the installation ceremony.

al

President
Danny
Donohue
| installed
new and
re-elected
| Southern
Region
officers at
the recent
installation
ceremony.

otf

as the region’s Secretary and Diana Harris, who remains the

“The members who participated were very happy about the event
d appeared to be proud of their officers,” he said. “The officers

Fceived good feelings from the members, and the officers felt this was a
pod team of activists and leaders in the region that could achieve our
pals.”

Also installed in the ceremony were Diane Hewitt, who continues
Is the region’s Executive Vice President; Irena Kobbe, who has become
lhe First Vice President; George Henry, who was promoted from Third
‘ice President to Second Vice President; Chris Mumma, who continues

region’s Treasurer.

While DiBattista, Hewitt, Kobbe, Henry, Mumma and Harris are
continuing as officers, the dinner also marked the arrival of a new
region officer.

Westchester Local 860 President Gary Conley was elected the
region’s Third Vice President earlier this year. Conley replaces Jimmy
Schultz, the former Second Vice President, on the board.

Please See Install on Page 4.

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Southern Region 3

Southern Region members help make Breast Cancer

Awareness Walk a success

CSEA members in the
Southern Region recently
took on a leading role in the
fight against breast cancer.

Members from many of
the region’s Locals and
Units participated in Breast
Cancer Walks throughout
the area Oct. 15. The walks,
which were held throughout
the country, are intended to
raise awareness about
breast cancer — and funding
for cancer research.

Westchester Local 860
has served as a flagship
sponsor in the Breast
Cancer Walk at
Manhattanville College in
Purchase for three years.

Local 860 is one of the
only CSEA Locals in the state that actually serves as
an event sponsor. More than 100 of the Local’s
members showed up for the walk. CSEA made its
presence at the race prominent with a sponsor tent
that included information, T-shirts and food.

Mary Miguez, the Local's third vice president,
organized the union’s efforts in this year’s race

“I was happy to get the participation that we did,”
she said.

“It was gorgeous weather, and we couldn't have
asked for a better day.”

CSEA members in Orange and Dutchess counties
also turned out in large numbers for the Breast
Cancer Walk at Woodbury Commons in Central
Valley.

Sabina Shapiro, executive vice president of the Orange County
Local, said that more than 60 members walked, while many more
helped to raise money.

“We're not just an organization in the workplace,” she said. “We all
have private lives and breast cancer touches so many people. It’s
important for CSEA to provide support.”

Miguez also feels that CSEA should be involved in the cause.

“Breast cancer affects every family. This seems like the perfect
cause for our union to get involved in,” she said

Southern Region President Carmine DiBattista said that CSEA
members in the region have always been actively involved in
community efforts.

“Our community action committee is very proud of these efforts
and the region is energized about this,” he said.

One of the Orange County Local’s most active fund-raisers this
year is Shirley Brown, president of the union’s Town of Warwick unit.
She alone raised over $2,800 for this year’s walk.

“You have to go and talk to people door-to-door,” she said. “I have a
list of people who donate and I contact them each year.”

Brown has an even more compelling reason to throw her efforts
into raising money for research — she is a breast cancer survivor.

“There are a lot of people affected by breast cancer,” she said. “I
work so hard because hopefully, someday this disease can be wiped
out.”

CSEA Westchester
Local members
and their families
turned out for the
Making Strides
Against Breast
Cancer Walk at
Manhattanville
College in
October. Union
members
throughout the
region
participated in
walks across the
area in support 0
finding a cure for,
breast cancer.

Southern Region
CROSSROADS

Southern Region Communications Associate:
Janice Marra

Contributing Photographer: Dyana VanCampen
Southern Region President: Carmine DiBattista
Southern Region Director: James Farina

Southern Region Office Manager: Rhonda Caffarelli

Southern Region Office: 568 State Route 52, Beacon, NY
12508

Ph: (845) 831-1000 or 1-800-757-CSEA (2732)

Fax: (845) 831-1117

CSEA Headquarters: 1-800-342-4146

Do you have an article or announcement for Crossroads?
Mail or fax to Janice Marra, c/o the Southern Region office

Deadline Approaching
For AFSCME Scholarship

Completed applications for AFSCME’s 2001 scholarship
program must be postmarked no later than Dec. 31, 2000. Under
the program, 10 scholarships of $2,000 each will be awarded to
winners selected from applications that meet eligibility
requirements.

The scholarships will be renewed for $2,000 each year for a
maximum of four years, provided the student remains enrolled in
a full-time, four-year degree program at an accredited institution.

Applicants must be high school seniors graduating in the spring
of 2001 who will enroll in a full-time, four-year degree program at
an accredited college or university. Applicants must also be the
daughter or son of an AFSCME (CSEA) member or whose legal
guardian or financially responsible grandparent is an AESCME
member.

Applications can be obtained by writing to:

AFSCME Family Scholarship Program

clo Education Dept.
1625 L Street, NW
Washington, D.C. 20036

Requests may also be made via e-mail at:

education@afscme.org.

we 4

Steve Lercara, left, a town of
Wallkill CSEA member,
wishes John Zupetz a happy
retirement at Zupetz’ recent

retirement dinner.

awarded during the past year:

Lee Van Put

Irving Flaumenbaum Scholarship

Christopher Werner
Irving Flaumenbaum Scholarship

Todd Matthew Derkaczk
Irving Flaumenbaum
Scholarship

Melissa Hagan
Region III Carmine DiBattista
Scholarship

Janna Stafford
Region III Scholarship

Elizabeth Maurer
Region III Scholarship

Jennifer Campanale
Region III Community Action
Committee Scholarship

Christopher M. Primo
Region III Community Action
Committee Scholarship

Daniel DiMaggio
MetLife Insurance Company
Scholarship

Southern Region
Land of Scholars

| Congratulations to the winners — and
their families — of various CSEA scholarships

CSEA town of Wallkill Unit President
Charles Romer, left, and town of
Wallkill Supervisor Tom Nosworthy
congratulate John Zupetz on his
retirement as the town of Wallkill
highway supervisor.

Recognition for 35 years of
service and dedication

Taconic DDSO CSEA Unit President
Dorothy Killmer, with Southern Region
President Carmine DiBattista looking
on, was recognized recently by the
facility for 35 years of service at
Taconic's annual employee recognition
dinner. Other CSEA members were also
honored at the event for 25 and 30 years
of employment at the Rhinebeck facility.

Thank You ... The staff and officers of the
Southern Region would like to thank the officers
and staff of Westchester Local 860 for donating a
bullhorn to the region office.

We have been without one for some time, and it
will prove to be very useful for our activities across

the region.

Retiring highway supervisor will be missed 3

|
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Southern Region 3

Southern Region

NEWS AND NOTES

Will Yourself...

Find out how to get your affairs in
order so that you can take care of your
loved ones when you're not here! Need an
attorney to help you accomplish that? Call
the Region 3 office at

(845) 831-1000 to get names of attorneys
in the region who participate in the CSEA
member legal service.

New Area Code

The Southern Region is now divided by
two area codes, Telephone exchanges in
Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland,
Sullivan and Ulster counties now have
“845” area codes. The change went into
effect in June. Only Westchester County,
the most populated county in the
Southern Region, retains the 914 area
code.

JLT Insurance

Do you need information on low-cost
life, disability, auto, homeowners and
renters insurance? Do you want the
convenience of paying your premium
through payroll deduction? If so, contact.
Bill Bennett at 343-1655 or Sandy
DiBartolo at 949-2606 for more
information. Both are available to visit

At left, State Sen. Thomas Morahan
(R-New City) addresses veterans
and other onlookers at the Oct. 19
ceremony at which Gov. George
Pataki, right, signed an amendment
to the 1998 veterans buy-back law
that allows public employees who
served in the military during
wartime purchase credits toward
their pensions. CSEA Statewide
President Danny Donohue was
instrumental in the state’s passage
. of the new law, of which Morahan
was a sponsor.

Appreciation Day.

your worksite to tell members more about
JLT Insurance.

New Communications Associate
By Janice Marra, Southern Region
Communications Associate

I hope that you're enjoying this latest
edition of the Southern Region
Crossroads. This is my first issue of the
Crossroads, and I am pleased to be
bringing the region’s news to you.

My name is Janice Marra, and I am
your region’s new Communications
Associate, I have been working at CSEA
since September, and I have had the
pleasure of meeting and working with
many members in this region over the last
several months.

Communication with your members and
with those outside of CSEA is one of the
most powerful tools you can master to
keep our union effective and strong. I can
help you with all types of communication
needs, including newsletter training,
media relations or even an informational
table at your worksite.

Call me anytime at (845) 831-1000 to
help you launch your communications
activities.

Above, CSEA members at Hudson Valley DDSO in Middletown relax and
enjoy music, food and games during the center’s recent Employee

Retiring?

Retirement doesn’t have to mean
staying in the dark! Join CSHKA Retirees
to keep yourself informed and involved.
For more information, contact the Retiree
Local President in your county:
Westchester: Margaret Capriola —
(914) 948-1535
Dutchess/Putnam: Harold McKinney —
(845) 229-8833
Orange/Ulster/Sullivan: Theresa
Sinsabaugh —

(845) 986-1286
Rockland: Lee Pound — (845) 634-2756

Install continued from Page 1

The head of the largest Local in the
state, Conley also serves on the
Statewide Board of Directors and on
the Statewide Political Action
Committee.

“Obviously, being a region officer is
beneficial to Westchester Local 860
and its members because it gives our
Local’s concerns more attention
around the region and statewide,” he
said. “’'m looking forward to getting to
know and helping people in the
region.”

Employee Assistance Programs can help
CSEA members with life’s challenges

Employee Assistance Program
coordinators say many CSEA members pop
in to their offices to borrow a book or video
dealing with substance abuse, marital
problems or a gambling addiction.

But they often stay for more than an hour,
releasing a flood of pent-up anxieties held
back sometimes

CSEA pioneered the program with New
York State in the late 1970’s and has been a
strong supporter ever since.

All problems welcome
While substance abuse is often the root of
many problems, CSEA EAP Committee
member Ellen

for years by adam
of shame or fear.
What the

coordinators want
members to know
most is that their
doors are always
open but nothing
of any discussion
ever leaves their
offices.

“evap is a tool. Like any other tool,
if you leave it in a box, it has no

value. I think this is an extraordinarily

valuable resource to employees.”

— CSEA member Christopher Cahill
Department of Environmental
Conservation employee and part-time

Donovan said the
assistance program
offers help in a myriad
of areas.

They include health
care proxies, wills,
cultural differences for
foreign workers,
parenting help — for
parents of children

EAP coordinator and the children of

EAP is a labor-
management
agreement to provide services for employees
aimed at making workers more productive by
helping them cope — confidentially — with
problems they may face in and out of the
workplace.

Employee Assistance Programs were
pioneered by the R.H. Macy Co. in
the 1930s. Macy’s realized it was
cheaper to rehabilitate workers and
train them to help others, than to fire
them.

elderly parents, stress,
career issues,
problems with a boss, financial problems and
more.

No problem is too big or too small, said
Donovan, a state Department of Health
worker.

EAP does not directly provide counseling
therapy, financial, legal or medical
assistance.

Full-time or part-time EAP coordinators —
some of them CSEA members — interview
their “clients,” make an assessment and
prepare a referral, said CSEA member and
part-time coordinator Christopher Cahill, a
Department of Environmental Conservation
employee in the southern Adirondacks.

EAP’s help is also available to the spouses,
mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters and

children of CSEA
members.

Today most
state agencies
have EAP in
place. The
program also
has 65
coordinators
overseeing programs helping up to 35,000
CSEA local government members.

“sUOAL 1000 AFSCME .
ont AFL-cy9

y Family,
Friends and
Neighbors

765,000 mempens STROSS

Tool for members

“EAP is a tool. Like any other tool, if you
leave it in a box, it has no value. I think this
is an extraordinarily valuable resource to
employees,” Cahill said.

EAP is also a valuable tool for
management, giving employers an option
other than discipline to help their workers
get help.

“We're flabbergasted that management is
so behind this,” said Tom McMahon, Local
president of CSEA’s James E. Christian
Memorial Health Department Local in Albany.

The Employee Assistance Program also
coordinates food drives, blood drives, and
other charitable events, allowing workers to
help others in need, building morale,
McMahon said.

EAP coordinators and volunteers
emphasize any request made by an employee
is kept confidential. In fact, volunteers don’t
keep records so nothing may be learned from
a worker's visit.

“The program is very important to us. It
affords our employees a plethora of
protection the employees otherwise would
not have,” said John O’Keefe, CSEA Local
president of CSEA’s Wadsworth Center for
Laboratories and Research in Albany and a
former EAP Committee member.

If you think you need help, seek out an
EAP coordinator in your workplace today!

— Lou Hmieleski

Walking for a good cause — CSEA
Westchester County Local members and
their families turned out for the Making
Strides Against Breast Cancer Walk at
Manhattanville College recently. CSEA
members across the state have been taking
part in similar walks to help raise
awareness for the need for breast cancer
research, as well as funding.

December 2000

THE WORK FORCE

Page 13

Award-winning cartoon

CSEA’s resident
cartoonist Ralph
Distin extended his

\aBor COMMUN C4, in
2

award-winning streak

TERNATIONAL
===
AVIDOSSY SW

is 4 a
TAFL-CIOcLs + with a cartoon which

recently captured a prestigious
International Labor Communications
Association (ILCA) award. Judges said the
cartoon, shown at left, has a “nice touch
and clear message” about the power of
voting. Distin’s cartoons have received
numerous state and international awards
the last three decades.

Also see pages 10-11 for more on
the “long and drawn out history” of CSEA

mx Fite Commission helped CSEA

organize local government workers

Also in 1941:

Former CSEA President Charles A.

live in infamy with the bombing of
Pearl Harbor, but that year also saw

D:: 7, 1941 was the date that would

CSEA defend, protect and extend
the merit and fitness provisions of
state Civil Service law.

The union’s work in 1941] in the
civil service arena would quickly
pave the way for local government
workers to join CSEA’s ranks.

CSEA was instrumental in the
creation of the state Fite
Commission in 1941.

The commission developed the
rules and procedures to bring the
civil service system standards and
its protections from political

influence to the employees of counties,
cities, towns, villages and school districts

throughout New York State.

Brind Jr. and CSEA Counsel John T.
DeGraff were appointed by Gov. Herbert
Lehman to the commission.

Their presence on the
commission was telling.

The Fite Commission’s
recommendations became the
backbone of local government
civil service reform and allowed
CSEA to rapidly organize local
government workers.

After World War II, with
thousands of local government
workers enjoying the protections
of the merit and fitness system,
CSEA changed its charter to give local
government employees a governing role in
the growing CS

Dr. Charles Brind Jr.,
CSEA President
from 1935-1941

Hitler invades Russia.

* Industrialist Henry Ford signs a contract

with the United Auto Workers,
recognizing it as a part of the Congress of
Industrial Organizations (CIO). This
affects 130,000 workers nationwide.

The U.S. Supreme Court bars employers
from considering union connections or
allegiances in hiring.

Army tank output is crippled by an
inter-union struggle as the Congress of
Industrial Organizations (CIO) refuses to
handle parts made by the American
Federation of Labor (AFL).

Humphrey Bogart stars in the “Maltese
Falcon,”

The Museum of Modern Art in New York
City adds Van Gogh's “The Starry Night”
to its collection.

* Franklin Delano Roosevelt is sworn in for

his third term as president.

eee ea THE WORK FORCE

December 2000

Work Force earns state, national awards

Winners

The Work Force has been judged the best union
newspaper in New York State and among the finest
union publications in the nation in two prestigious
journalism contests.

It is the first time CSEA’s monthly tabloid has won
first place for general excellence in the statewide
competition sponsored by the Metro New York Labor
Communications Council. The Work Force won
several other awards for writing, photography and
graphic design in the statewide contest.

On the national front, The Work Force won a
general excellence award from the International
Labor Communications Association for its strong
news and feature content.

The paper also won special national awards for
unique performance relating to the newspaper's
outstanding coverage of the union’s state contract
fight campaign and CSEA’s support of the New York
Special Olympics.

Keen competition
“These awards confirm our belief that we have the
| best union in the nation and the best people working
ith us to get our mes: e out to our members in
The Work Force,” said President Danny
Donohue.

“The last year has been filled with quickly
changing events, and our Work Force team has
excelled in the most difficult of circumstances,”
Donohue added.

Judges in the national competition called The Work |

Force's special four-page insert on the state contract
fight “a strong call to arms.”

CSEA’s repeated coverage of its involvement and
support of the New York Special Olympics also
received a national award,

CSEA’s in-house cartoonist, Ralph
Distin, was also honored by the national
judges again this year for his pithy and ot
piercing cartoons. :

The judges gave Distin an award for

his cartoon “Plugging into the secrets of L Ge KK to purchase up to three

electorate power.” The award-winning
cartoon is reprinted on Page 14.

Statewide honors

The statewide labor journalism contest sponsored
by the Metro New York Labor Communications
Council was equally competitive.

For the first time, The Work Force was judged the
best paper of its size in the state.

Statewide awards were also won for stories about
CSEA members who work at the Saratoga race track
and Chemung County garbage collectors.

A photo illustrating a story about a North
Syracuse School District secretary who located
untapped grant money won an award.

CSEA President Danny Donohue, left, looks on as state Sen. Thomas Morahan,
at podium, speaks during the Veterans Buy Back bill signing ceremony. Gov.

Pataki is at right.

Labor lobbied and lawmakers, Pataki said “yes!”

sxO0AL 1000 AFSCME 6 yp
A O10

Leo
265,000 mempens SRN

CSEA wins improved
veterans buy-back law

NEW CITY — CSEA’s leadership in
the AFL-CIO has produced a key
legislative victory that allows veterans
to boost their retirement pensions.

At the urging of CSEA and the state
AFL-CIO, Gov. George E. Pataki recently
signed a law that expands on the
state’s 1998 veterans’ “buy-back” law.

Old provision too costly

The 2-year-old law allowed wartime
veterans in public employment to buy
credits toward retirement for each
year they were in the service, but
many veterans could not
afford the law’s purchase
rates.

The new law allows
veterans in public service

years of service credit at 3
percent of the employee’s
current annual salary.

“I think it’s important
that this state, built on union members
and union support, is saying to its
veterans that their time meant
something,” CSEA President Danny
Donohue said.

Union lobbying praised
State Sen. Thomas Morahan (R-New
City), a sponsor of the legislation,
credits labor unions for lobbying on
the bill.

December 2000

“It took everyone working together
to recognize the great personal
sacrifices of our New York veterans,”
he said.

Assemblyman Ronald Tocci (D-New
Rochelle), chairman of the Assembly
Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said CSEA
and the state AFL-CIO were key to
passing the bill.

— Janice Marra

Veteran’s Buy-Back

To be eligible for the service
credit, public employees must:
have served during World War Il,
Korea, Vietnam or Persian Gulf
wars, or during the Lebanon,
Grenada or Panama conflicts, and
have at least five credited years in
one of the various public
retirement systems.

To learn more or to download an
application, visit the state
Comptroller’s Web site at:
http://www.osc.state.ny.us/retire/

THE WORK FORCE Marte)

-CSEA members made the difference

CSEA members across New York
worked hard in getting out the vote
in crucial races — not the least of
which, for the U.S. Senate — to get
friends of working families elected.
CSEA’s mobilization in these efforts
proves again the value members
bring to their union.

State Assembly, Senate candidates give
their thanks for CSEA’s support

66 L. proud to have received the endorsement and support of CSEA.
The members of this union are the very backbone of our state and
Iam honored that they have put their confidence in me. This
endorsement reflects my commitment to our state’s public work force
that I will continue as your Assemblywoman from the 119th District.99

— Assemblywoman Joan Christensen
D-Syracuse

66 y sincere thanks and appreciation to my friends in the Civil

Service Employees Association. Your support and assistance
were critical to my re-election bid and together we will continue
fighting for good wages, a safe workplace and quality health care
benefits for our public sector working families who do so much for
the people of New York State, especially here in the Mohawk
Valley region. 99

Assemblywoman RoAnn Destito
D-Utica

6¢ Twould especially like to thank CSEA for their endorsement. This
year, through CSEA’s hard work and support, we achieved a
permanent cost of living adjustment (COLA) ... CSEA is a very
valuable and necessary organization, and I will continue to fight for
workers’ rights through advocacy and legislative initiatives. 99

— Assemblywoman Susan John
D-Rochester

66 aeiaig the support of the CSEA that I have enjoyed in the past

and that I have received during this year’s election cycle. I look
forward to working with the CSEA in the future and to helping the
leadership meet the needs of the thousands of dedicated men and
women who serve our state in numerous capacities. The hard work of
our civil servants has made the state work force the best in the nation,
and is a source of pride to me and all New Yorkers. 99

— State Sen. Pat McGee
R-Olean

View ‘Choices’ when switching health plaiis

CSEA state members who are
considering changing health
insurance options for 2001 or
want to examine available
benefit plans should review the
Health Insurance “Choices”
booklet for 2001.

This publication was mailed
to agency health benefit
administrators, usually located
in the personnel office, in
mid-November.

It describes the Empire Plan
and the New York State Health
Insurance Program (NYSHIP)
approved HMOs in geographic
regions.

Enrollees and their families

who currently participate in
Independent Health (Hudson
Valley/Downstate Region) wiil
need to review the “Choices”
publication and choose a
different health carrier because
it is not being offered to
enrollees in 2001.

As this edition went to
press, the 2001 Empire Plan
premium rates were not yet
approved by the state Division
of Budget.

As soon as the 2001 rates
are approved, the Rates &
Deadlines Guide will be sent
to each enrollee’s home so an
informed decision can be

made about health insurance
choices.

Members will have 30 days
from the date the 2001 rates
are approved to change plans.

Members who are not
changing health insurance
options do not need to take
any action.

CSEA members who want to
change health insurance
options must submit a signed
Health Insurance Transaction
Form PS-404 to their agency
health benefits administrator
by the deadline specified in the
year 2001 Rates & Deadlines
Guide.

CSEA Constitution, Bylaws and Resolutions, as approved

New York City — CSEA
delegates at the union’s 90th
annual meeting approved the
following amendments to CSEA’s
Constitution:

*Reducing the maximum
number of valid signatures and
Social Security numbers required
on a nominating petition from 450
to 300 for candidates for both the
State Executive Committee and
Local Government Executive
Committee (Constitution Articles
Vi and VII).

*Restructuring the Retiree
Executive Committee so it is made
up of all Retiree Local presidents
(Constitution Article IX) and
eliminating language in the
Delegates Article (Constitution
Article X) made unnecessary due
to this restructuring.

*Granting the office of
Statewide Secretary responsibility

to determine delegate voting
strength. The function was done
previously by the Membership
Committee. (Constitution Article
x)

Delegates at the 2000 annual
meeting approved the following
changes to the Bylaws:

“Language inserted to make
clear that only State Division
members on Region Executive

process for State negotiating team
members (Article VI, Section 3).

*Created Education Services
Committee, Maintenance and
Infrastructure Committee,
Corrections and Law Enforcement
Committee and Human Services
Committee to reflect the various
industries the union represents
and consistent with establishment
of a Health-Care Services
Committee in 1999 (Article VI,

Clarification: DCAA

members who choose to set aside

or disabled dependent care.

or visit the Web site at:
www.flexspend.state.ny.us.

deductions income-based

A November Work Force article on the
Dependent Care Advantage Account did
not include a breakdown of incomes for

pre-tax salary for child care, elder care

CSEA members earning up to $35,000
will receive $400, those earning between
$35,001 - $55,000 will receive $300, and
those earning over $55,000 will get $200.
Call 1-800-358-7202 for more information

Section 4),

*Deleted the Committee
for Methods and
Procedures from the list of
special and ad hoc
committees (Article VI,
Section 4).

Delegates at the 2000
annual meeting approved
the following resolutions
requiring:

*CSEA continue to lobby
to defeat the Social
Security Solvency Act of
1999 which would allow
for the establishment of

December 2000 THE WORK FORCE Page 17

personal investment accounts in
lieu of a portion of an individual
Social Security tax.

*CSEA support federal
legislation that would ensure
medical information privacy.

*CSEA support the
reintroduction in the state
Legislature of Assembly bill
3563/Senate bill 2077 which would
prohibit all local governments
from unilaterally reducing health
benefits or increasing costs to
retirees unless a corresponding
change is negotiated for current
employees.

*CSEA lobby to defeat the Drug
Patent Term Restoration Act in
Congress which would allow drug
manufactures to maintain their
exclusive patents for three years
beyond the years prescribed by
law.

*CSEA continue to work
through negotiations with New
York State to have Mental Health

Aides receive

support state legislation
that would rename the four
agency buildings at the Empire
State Plaza in Albany after Susan
B, Anthony, Mother Frances Xavier
Cabrini, Harriet Tubman and
Eleanor Roosevelt. — -

*CSEA’s locals and units make
every effort to recruit and
promote a diverse work force
when hiring staff.

*CSEA support legislation
making March 10 an official state
holiday honoring Harriet Tubman.

Visit
www.cseainc.org
Feet to clip and save
important phone numbers
for your HMO? Have a
question about your health
plan’s coverage? CSEA’s Web
site has all
the latest
information
from the
Joint
Committee
on Health
Benefits. Visit CSEA’s Web
site today for expanded and
enhanced statewide news,
goings on in the union, and
vital healthcare information.
www.cseainc.org, your
one-stop shop for union news.

Break in membership
affects eli ity for union
office, voting privileges

A break in union membership status
can have long-term future implications.
Your membership status affects your
eligibility with respect to:

* seeking or holding union office;

ning nominating petitions for
potential candidates;

* voting in union elections, and;

* voting on collective bargaining
contracts.

Only members “in good standing” can
participate in thy
“good standing,” }
delinquent.

rour dues cannot be

If you go on unpaid leave or for any
other reason have a break in your
employment status, your dues will not
continue to be paid through payroll
deductions. You must make
arrangements to pay your dues directly
to to continue your membership
status. If you are either laid off or placed
on leave without pay status due to
becoming disabled by accident, illne:
maternity or paternity, you may be
eligible for dues-free membership status
for a period not to exceed one year.

Note, however, you must continue to
pay dues to run for office, Dues-free or
gratuitous membership allows members
to continue their insurance coverage
while out of work. It does not protect
your right to run for or hold office.

You must notify the CSEA
Membership Records Department at 1-
800-342-4146, Ext any change in
your status and what arrangements you
are making to continue your
membership in CSEA

CSEA members urged
to participate

United Way,
SEFA drives
set to begin

Known for their year-round
generosity and community spirit,
CSEA members across the state will
again be the backbone of two
charity appeals this year.

The United Way and State
Employees Federated Appeal

| (SEFA) will rely on the generosity
| and goodwill of tens of thousands

of union members statewide to
raise money for local charities.

CSEA President Danny Donohue
said he is encouraging members to
participate in both drives “because
we understand the needs of our
neighbors and our co-workers.”

“Because of the importance of
services funded by United Way and
because our members are directly
involved in how United Way
operates at the local level, |
enthusiastically endorse the
campaign,” Donohue said.

“To make sure members are
supporting organizations that
support the labor movement, I
encourage CSEA members to
designate their pledges to the
organization of their choice or to
their local United Way,” Donohue
added.

e
VETERANS: CSEA wants to hear from you so we ©
you of programs and benefits you may be entitled to. Please fill out

the coupon below and mail to;

CSEA
143 Washington Ave.
Albany, N.Y. 12210
Attn: Jim Corcoran

Name:

Window open on free

Some people use all of their computer’s
capabilities. For others, the only window they
know how to open is the double hung kind.

For CSEA members on Long Island who don’t
know windows from the Windows computer
program, free training is available.

CSEA, working with the Long Island
Federation of Labor and the Consortium for
Worker Education, is offering computer courses
on Long Island to meet the growing need.

CSEA is also working on plans to expand the
program statewide with state AFL-CIO funding
through central labor councils in six locations.

More than 1,000 members have enrolled for
the Long Island classes, given at local colleges
and universities. Spouses and domestic
partners may also attend the classes offered
days, nights and weekends in Nassau and
Suffolk counties.

‘Click’ a big hit

“| think it’s wonderful and the teacher is
great. I was afraid the class would move too
fast, but it’s perfect,” said Patricia Chomicki, a
CSEA state member for nine years, who
brought her husband to the classes.

“We just got a computer at home so the
timing is perfect for us, | can’t believe it’s free,”
she added.

Show me the money
CSEA Long Island Region President Nick
LaMorte said he learned about the training
money through the Long Island Federation of
Labor, of which he is board member.
Members on Long Island should call their

n better inform

computer training

—

CSEA Long Island Region members Linda
Caputo, and Patricia and Harry Chomicki,
front to back, take part in free computer
training offered by CSEA.

Local or Unit presidents for more information
or to register.
— Sheryl C. Jenks

Hempstead pact comes in early

For the first time in 27 years, union workers from the CSEA

Town of Hempstead Local will see their contract settled prior to

coverage.

the expiration of their last pact.

The four-year contract, which goes into effect Jan. 1, 2001,
calls for salary increases and has no givebacks, no
contributions for medical insurance and enhances dental

“The whole strategy of this local board is to include the

membership and make them feel they are a part of something.
CSEA has a lot to offer and we want our members to be aware
of it and use it. We set out to do a lot of internal organizing and
it worked,” said Local President Bill Flanagan.

The local regularly brings CSEA training, from defensive
driving to computer classes, on-site, to its members.

“The Town of Hempstead Local is very progressive. CSEA is
proud of the way they have turned the local around and drawn
the members in,” said CSEA Long Island Region President Nick
LaMorte.

Address:

Phone:

Branch of service:

Any suggestions or interests:

— Sheryl C, Jenks

Pre tem THE WORK FORCE

»

December 2000

CSEA wins decision
for court reporters

ALBANY — In a unanimous decision,
the Public Employment Relations Board
has ruled that the Unified Court System
(UCS) committed an improper practice by
unilaterally changing the way court
reporters charge private litigants for
transcripts of court proceedings.

The decision, which upheld an earlier
ruling by an administrative law judge, was
hailed by CSEA President Danny Donohue
as “an outright victory for court reporters
which restores fairness to the workplace.”

The Judiciary Law requires reporters to
furnish transcripts to private parties or
their attorneys as well as the courts.

Reporters traditionally arrange with
attorneys for private litigants to pay for
transcripts. But UCS implemented new
rules that required reporters to use an
“agreement form” which noted that
litigants could insist on not paying more
than $1.38 a page for transcripts.

The action prompted the union to file
an improper practice charge which it
won on the grounds that the changes
were mandatory subjects of negotiation.

The court system then appealed to the
full PERB Board.

Pe 1000 AFSCME « 4p,

MEMORIAL AWARD
WINNERS — CSEA
awarded the annual Kim
Hytko and Doug
Lundquist Memorial
Awards during a recent
staff conference. Barbara
Collen, Human Resources
Specialist, won the Hytko Award, and
Miguel Ortiz, deputy counsel in the Legal
Department, were this year’s recipients. The
awards honor CSEA staff who excel in their
jobs and are active in their communities ...
PEOPLE PEOPLE — Patricia Metzger from
CSEA Metropolitan Region was named PEOPLE
Recruiter of the Year at the recent Annual
Delegates Meeting. Metzger recruited 174
members in 2000. CSEA’s Capital Region
received the 2000 People Cup — for the third
year — for recruiting 460 new PEOPLE
members. Also, 20 new PEOPLE members were
recruited during the convention, which also
raised $3,725 for PEOPLE. And, the PEOPLE
recruiter of the month for October is Marie
Prince of the Erie County Local in CSEA’s
Western Region. She recruited 24 new people
members. PEOPLE is AFSCME’s federal Political
Action Program aimed at getting friends of
working families elected to Congres
WESTERN SUFFOLK BOCES UNIT ADDS
MEMBERS — CSEA recently was successful in
adding 20 cafeteria

Compeneation Legal Assistance Program can hel
mn Work
help you obta

The Frog

The CSEA WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
LEGAL ASSISTANCE PROGRAM

covering Workers’ Compensation
and Social Security Disability

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workers to the Western
Suffolk BOCES Unit,
which already includes
300 school aides. In
doing so, CSEA fended
off a challenge from
another union seeking to
organize the food
service workers as a
separate unit ... AND
MORE ON BOARD IN
TOWN OF LLOYD —
CSEA recently received
PERB certification to
represent 23 full and
part-time employees in
the town of Lloyd ...
STUDENTS INSIDE
ALBANY — CSEA and
the League of Women
Voters are again
sponsoring the Students
Inside Albany
Conference, in
coordination with the
public television
program “Inside Albany.”
The program brings

265,000 MemBens STRON®

together high school
students from across the
state for an opportunity to
take an active role in
public policy and
government. CSEA is aiming
for attendance from every
school district CSEA represents at
the April 2001 conference. For more
information, contact the League of Women
Voters — or the CSEA Communications
Department at 1-800-342-4146, ext. 1270 ...
DRIVEN IN SARATOGA — CSEA has won
voluntary recognition from the Saratoga
Springs City School District to represent 88 bus
drivers who formerly belonged to Saratoga
Transportation Employees Association.
Employees voted to disband the association
and affiliate with CSEA because, according to
bus driver Diane Matuszewski, “Our unit had
grown beyond what we could manage. CSEA
can offer the bus drivers an entire legal
department, classes on handling grievances,
and other training STEA would have to have
paid for in the past” ... CASE MANAGER OF
THE YEAR — CSEA Onondaga Local member
Carol Bascom, a Psychiatric Social Worker
Assistant working in the Mental Health
industry for the non-profit Onondaga Case
Management Agency, has been named National
Case Manager of the Year by the National
Association of Case Managers ... COOKING UP
SOME HELP — Although she faces an uphill
battle against skin and muscle cancer, Ashley
Hammond, the 11-year-old niece of CSEA
Mohawk Correctional Facility Local President
Rick Vellone, recently got a big boost of
support from area corrections workers. CSEA-
represented cooks and other workers at
Mohawk and Marcy Correctional Facilities
donated about 3 1/2 weeks of hard work to get
food donations and then cook the meals at a
community benefit held for Hammond. Vellone
says that about $6,000 was raised to help the
family with current and future medical
expenses, including more than $400 raised
from CSEA well-wishers on the convention
floor at the recent CSEA Annual Delegates
Meeting. Vellone said the family was “just
overwhelmed — they were really, really
grateful, they couldn't thank us enough.”

Just a reminder ...
When telephoning CSEA
Headquarters, remember:

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THE MAIN PHONE NUMBER
IS NOW |
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(518) 257-1000.

December 2000 THE WORK FORCE [etm ks)

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_Wt’s great
to be 90!