FP Burrelles/ze
J anuary 15, 2013
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SOURCE: AP
DATE: 01-14-2013
HEADLINE: NY reports more assaults in state's youth prisons
Source Website
By MICHAEL VIRTANEN
ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) -- The State Commission of Correction reported 337 assaults in New York's four
juvenile prisons last year, roughly triple the total any of the previous four years, or an average of roughly 1.5
assaults per youth.
Commission data showed 226 assaults against other juveniles and 111 attacks on staff, compared with 112
total violent incidents reported in 2011 at the four "secure" facilities operated by the Office of Children and
Family Services. They had 211 residents in early January, down slightly from a year earlier. Though they can
stay until age 21, their median age at the start of last year was 16.4.
"There has been an alarming increase in the total number of violent incidents taking place at OCFS secure
centers in just the first half of this year," Commission Chairman Thomas Beilein wrote in August. He
requested an explanation from OCFS Commissioner Gladys Carrion and the agency's measures in response.
OCEFS operates the Brookwood, Columbia Girls and Goshen secure facilities, all in the Hudson Valley, and
MacCormick outside Ithaca. The agency recently announced plans to close four lower-level residential centers
for juvenile delinquents, who are being sent to New York City programs closer to their homes. It's part of
shifting state and national emphasis from punishment to therapy, which Carrion has pushed in New York.
"As is true in almost all transformational initiatives, there are challenges associated with such a significant
shift in culture and rehabilitative approaches," OCFS spokeswoman Jennifer Givner said Monday. "We
remain committed to the safety of our employees and youth within OCFS facilities."
The agency said assaults at the four secure detention centers slowed in the past six months, while attributing
the 2012 spike partly to installing more video cameras and a new reporting system. Acknowledging prior
reporting was less accurate, officials also say the youths in state custody tend to have more complex
behavioral and psychological issues than ever before.
"This is a difficult population. These are kids who have done very serious crimes, often violent crimes" said
Barry Krisberg, a consultant to the state. "They have significant mental health problems and drug abuse
problems."
The four secure detention centers hold juvenile offenders sentenced in adult court for crimes committed
before they were 16 and juvenile delinquents, "restrictively placed" by family courts.
Krisberg, research director at the Warren Institute at Berkeley law school, said what's happening in New York
mirrors national trends, including a dramatic decline in the total number of youths in juvenile correctional
facilities. He said New York is ahead of many other states in addressing the issues, though it takes time. One
of his proposals will soon establish within each of New York's youth prisons separate units for those who are
considered at high, medium and low risk for aggression. He also suggested a crisis intervention plan for each
individual, less idle time and transition services for going home, something he says have been sorely lacking.
"The garden variety clients in juvenile corrections used to be car thieves, graffiti artists, minor drug dealers,
burglaries," said Krisberg, who also consults to several other states. With minor offenders increasingly sent to
community and residential therapy programs, youth prisons are left with a harder core of teens who
committed violent crimes or sex crimes. "The vast majority have been exposed to pretty dramatic trauma.
They were victims of or witnessed horrendous violence, not untypically from a family member," he said.
"The question is: What should we do for these kids? How do we create safe and effective facilities?" he said.
"Most will be released at age 21. ... There's a public safety interest in doing what we can to turn them around."
Civil Service Employees Association spokesman Steve Madarasz said things aren't improving for the union's
550 members who work at the four detention centers, despite OCFS promises of more staffing and better
training in the move from a custodial correctional approach to one that stresses therapy and counseling. He
said state labor officials issued citations against OCFS in 2011 following union safety complaints at Goshen
and at Taberg in central New York, a "limited secure" facility he said took girls from the now closed secure
Tryon school. CSEA said 19 staff members at Taberg were out of work with injuries from assaults that
included two broken collarbones, a concussion, a broken ankle and dislocated shoulder.
"They really have undermined our membership, not only in basically creating a situation where they're left in
danger, but just not living up to the promise they made to them to improve the system," Madarasz said.
Another issue in the state's "closer to home initiative" that is transferring juveniles from non-secure state
facilities upstate to New York City programs, taking money and jobs with it, he said.
The 2012 commission data translate to approximately 1.6 violent incidents per youth in New York's youth
prisons. Krisberg said while he's not saying that's not acceptable, it's also not out of line with other states like
California with 1,436 incidents in a year among almost 900 youths and Ohio with 1,604 violent incidents
among some 680 youths locked up.
Traditional deterrence strategies through punishment don't work, Krisberg said. "In fact, they backfire."
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Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast,
rewritten or redistributed.
Highlights: Civil Service, Employees Association, CSEA
B
THE Date: Monday, January 14, 2013
Location: BUFFALO, NY
ALO Circulation (DMA): 147,086 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: Ag
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Good news, eventually
It will take a while, but health care costs
for county retirees will begin to decline
Here’s some good news for taxpayers: Erie County’s long-
term liability for health insurance for retirees has dropped
significantly.
Some recent changes will save a relatively small amount
of money in the next decade or so, but in later years will add
up to millions of dollars a year.
The latest long-term estimate for future health care
benefits for retirees was $789.8 million as of Jan. 1, 2012,
down a staggering $187.8 million from two years before
that, according to a report prepared for the county.
However, the short-term outlook is grim. The report esti-
mates the cost of health care for retirees will grow from $20
million in 2012 to $40 million in 2022. After that, actions
being taken now will bend that curve down.
The projected savings is a function of both a smaller
county workforce, meaning fewer workers who will eventu-
ally retire and receive health insurance, and the fact that
workers hired over the last few years and going forward will
have to pay some or all of their health insurance costs. That
represents a change from the past, when the county paid all
of retiree health care.
For these newer retirees the change won't be a good
thing - who wouldn't want fully paid health insurance for
life? — but it is critically important for the county’s financial
health and it brings public employees more in line with their
private-sector counterparts.
The drop in the workforce is the result of a concerted
effort by recent administrations to reduce costs while
maintaining essential services. In addition, contract
language has been negotiated with some unions that will
see members paying more, or all, of their health insurance
costs when they retire.
That change in union contracts is long overdue. The
soaring cost of retiree benefits is a major element strangling
municipal budgets.
The county negotiated contracts at the end of the year
with CSEA Local 815, which represents corrections officers,
and Teamsters Local 264, which represents employees at
both jails. Terms for both unions require a percentage of
health insurance premiums to be paid by current and new
employees. Even more significantly, new hires will no longer
receive county-paid health insurance after retirement.
The contract for the largest CSEA union, which is a sepa-
rate bargaining unit, still provides retirees with free health
insurance for the rest of their lives. Most county employees
now are in this category. That fact, and the expected heavy
retirements from the aging workforce in the next decade,
account for the short-term growth in health costs.
Still, the tide has been turning ever so slowly over the
course of years. County officials should be commended for
their efforts as they face difficult negotiations with the larg-
est union and with other unions as contracts come up.
© 2012 The Butlao News
Al Rights Reserves,
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Nv23,
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THE
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Thursday, January 10, 2013
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
6,812 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 18
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Map.ewoop Manor
County hears
discontent
Citizens speak at forum
on nursing home sale
Wednesday’s public hear-
derelict for not oversee-
ing, or you are remiss in
not assigning the task to
the county administrator
or, if so assigned, the
county administrator is
guilty of neglect.”
Tyler, a Northumber-
land resident whose
mother lives at Maple-
wood Manor, said county
officials have not treated
nursing home residents
and their families with
respect throughout the
privatization process.
“If you care so deeply
for the residents of
By CAITLIN MORRIS y
en ame@saratosienccam ing was another step in Maplewood, why haven't
Twitter.com/CMsaratogian the process of privatizing YOU openly. and honestly.
BALLSTON SPA —
Fourteen people went
before the Saratoga Coun-
ty Board of Supervisors at
a Wednesday public hear-
ing on the privatization of
the county-owned nursing
home, and all 14 of them
spoke against it.
The full board will vote
Jan. 15 on whether to
transfer Maplewood Manor
to the local development
corporation set up to man-
age the sale of the facility.
Dorothy Tyler, a propo-
nent of keeping the nurs-
ing home in county hands,
said Wednesday that plans
are moving forward to
gather the approximately
12,000 signatures neces-
sary to put the decision in
the hands of Saratoga
County voters via a
permissive referendum.
Those signatures cannot
Maplewood Manor.
“We've been following
the process all the way
through, and again we’ve
listened to all the input all
the way through ... we’re
in a situation where it’s
unsustainable and you
know, we certainly don’t
want to see Maplewood
Manor close. So the logical
step is establishing the
LDC and then finding a
buyer that we feel will give
good patient care for the
people that are there and
future people,” he said.
The people who spoke
during the public comment.
period were vehemently
opposed to the privatiza-
tion of the county-owned
facility.
Cliff Ammon, a Sarato-
ga Springs resident, said
the board seems “pre-
programmed to dump our
most vulnerable citizens
answered questions and
See COUNTY, Page 8A.
initiated meetings with our
residents?” she asked at
the public hearing.
Citing examples of priva-
tized nursing homes that
have failed in Dutchess and
Delaware counties and
another with documented
violations in Fulton County,
Tyler said Saratoga County
officials could seek to
improve the nursing home
model rather than follow
those examples.
“Let’s make our county
nursing home the model
that others want to follow,”
she said.
Kathy Garrison, a Wilton
resident who is the region-
al president of the CSEA,
the union that represents
many Maplewood Manor
employees, echoed Tyler’s
sentiments.
be gathered until after the _ by privatizing Maplewood “(Supervisors) should be
board votes, and there are Manor.” working with us to come
differing opinions amongst Ammon questioned why —_up with different solutions
county officials and privati-
zation opponents as to
whether this type of refer-
endum could be used.
Alan Grattidge, chair-
man of the county Board
of Supervisors, said
Maplewood Manor has
become unsustainable for
the county to operate:
“Where was the oversight
over Maplewood for the
past 10 or 15 years? Either
the board has been
SO we can continue to pro-
vide care and we can con-
tinue to work together,”
she said.
“We live in your commu-
nities. We’ve worked on
your campaigns. We have
Page 1 of 2
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
Al Rights Reserves,
‘Account: 23070 (14234)
NSIS
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
THE
ARATOGIAN =
Keyword:
Thursday, January 10, 2013
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
6,812 (58)
Newspaper (D)
18
Main
CSEA
helped many of you get to home the model
sit in the seats that you’re
in. Please don’t turn tous that others want to
and say, ‘Yeah it was really 3
nice, but screw you now.’ follow.
That is unacceptable,” Dorothy Tyler
Garrison added, Northumberland
Let’s make our resident
county nursing
ED BURKE/eburke@saratogian.com
Saratoga Springs resident Cliff Ammon lambasts the
Saratoga County Board of Supervisors Wednesday
regarding its decisions concerning Maplewood Manor.
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
Al Rights Reserved,
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Nvsts
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Page 2 of 2
RIVERHEAD NEWS-REVIEW
Date: Thursday, January 10, 2013
Location: MATTITUCK, NY
Circulation (DMA): 4,865 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 621
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Union opposes deal to
give leash to nonprofit
Says dog shelter jobs should’ve been negotiated
BY TIM GANNON | STAFF WRITER
The union representing most Riverhead Town
employees is filing a grievance to challenge the
town’s recent agreement with North Fork Animal
Welfare League to run the town’s animal control and
shelter functions.
The agreement, which was authorized in December
but is not yet signed, would result in the elimination
of two full-time positions, something Riverhead Civil
Service Employees Association president Matt Hattorff
says must first be negotiated with the union under the
terms of the town’s contract with CSEA.
The contract authorized on Dec. 18 would enable the
town to contract with the nonprofit North Fork Animal
Welfare League for three years of dog control officer
and animal shelter services, starting this March.
The nonprofit group, which has run Southold
Town's animal shelter for close to 30 years, would be
paid $223,135 for the first year, with a2 percent in-
crease for each of the next two years.
The town currently has a full-time animal control
officer and a full-time kennel attendant on duty at its
DOG SHELTER | PAGE 21
animal shelter on Youngs Avenue, both
of whom would be replaced by NFAWL
personnel, as would three part-time
kennel attendants.
“They can't eliminate full-time em-
ployces without negotiating it,” said
Mr. Hattorff. “After they beat up the
department so much, there were only
two full-timers left.”
“LT think we'll work it out.” said Riv-
erhead Supervisor Sean Walter.
Mr. Walter is hoping to reach a
settlement with the union before the
grievance comes from the state Public
Employees Relations Board.
Mr. Walter said he believes the town
can transfer the two full-time employ-
ees to other positions in town.
“I can understand the CSEA filing a
«+. Brievance to protect their employees,
© 2012 RIVERHEAD NEWS-REVIEW
Al Rights Reserves,
that’s what the union is supposed to do,”
said Councilman Jim Wooten, the Town
Board liaison to the animal shelter. “But
i made it clear five years ago when I ran
for office that privatization was the best
thing for the animals in our care and
that we would mitigate whatever situa-
tion we have to do with the union.
“Lthink the in the long run, it’s not
going to be an issue,” he said.
Mr. Hattorff said such proceedings
often take a long time, but added,
“We've got a pretty good record as far
as being able to settle these things.”
Mr. Walter and Mr. Wooten both
said they don't believe the grievance
will derail the deal with NFAWL.
tgannon@timesreview.com
Account: 23070 (14243)
NY-580
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
Date: Thursday, January 10, 2013
RIVERHEAD NEWS-REVIEW Location: MATTITUGK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 4,865 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
6,
‘FOWN OF RIVERHEAD
<j CONTROL
= Seo oise
BARBARAELLEN KOCH FILE PHOTO
Councilman James Wooten said the union's grievance challenging the town’s shelter plans came as no suprise.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 RIVERHEAD NEWS. REVIEW
Al Rights Reserved,
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Nv-580
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BUFFALO
Date: Wednesday, January 09, 2013
Location: BUFFALO, NY
Circulation (DMA): 147,086 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: B10
Section: Region
Keyword: CSEA
Legislature to consider CSEA settlement
Would give union
back pay for 2007
By DENISE JEWELL GEE
NEWS STAFF REPORTER
Erie County lawmakers will
decide whether to give workers
in county government's largest
laborunion back pay for the first
yeartheystarted working under
an expired contract.
Three administrations have
been unable to finalize a deal
with members of Local 815, Civil
Service Employees Association,
to extend a union contract that
expired in late 2006, The union
represents about 3,500 workers
spread throughout county gov-
ernment and Erie County Medi-
cal Center.
After failing last year to get
a proposal ratified by the union
membership that offered pay
raises in exchange for employee
health insurance contributions,
Erie County Executive Mark C.
Poloncarz has opened the door
for the Legislature to impose a
one-year retroactive settlement
with the union for 2007.
Poloncarz wants the Legisla-
ture to approve a one-year set-
tlement that would extend the
terms of the existing contract
without granting any addition-
al pay raises for 2007 or lump-
sum back pay “due to the state
of the county’s finances.”
“There’s no money for that,”
said Peter Anderson, a spokes-
© 2012 The Butlao News
Al Rights Reserves,
man for Poloncarz.
CSEA members last year vot-
ed down a proposal that would
have given them cost-of-living
raises totaling 11 percent for the
years 2012 through 2016, as well
as a signing bonus for the pre-
vious years in which employees
worked under an expired con-
tract. Therejected proposal also
would have required workers to
pay a portion of their health in-
surance costs, in addition to
other concessions.
Legislators now could decide
to approve Poloncarz’s request
or give retroactive pay raises or
aone-time bonus for 2007 —as it
sought to doin 2008 with anoth-
erunion contract - butit cannot
change the terms of work rules
or other areas of the contract.
CSEA workers continue to
receive pay increases for length
of service, but they have not re-
ceived cost-of-living raises since
the contract expired in 2006.
The Legislature has received
a copy of a 2011 report complet-
ed by a neutral fact finder after
the union reached an impasse
with county negotiators — a step
necessary to allow the Legisla-
ture to impose a one-year finan-
cial settlement.
The fact finder’s report rec-
ommended that the union
workers be given a lump-sum
payment of 2 percent of a work-
er’s wages for 2007, but it also
recommended a series of oth-
er contract changes, including
eliminating two paid holidays,
reducing personal days and
shortening lunch time.
Anderson said the Poloncarz
administration believes the
Legislature should not impose a
pay raise or bonus since such a
financial settlement would not
address other issues, includ-
ing employee contributions for
health insurance.
Joan Bender, president of
CSEA Local 815, said the union
reached out to legislators, be-
fore the Legislature received
the fact finder’s report, to com-
municate what it would like
lawmakers to do. She declined
to describe those discussions so
that it did not appear as if she
were trying to put public pres-
sure on the Legislature.
Bender said the union late
last year requested that Polon-
carz send the fact finder’s report
to the Legislature.
If the Legislature imposes a
one-year settlement, the union
would begin negotiating with
the county again over the ex-
pired contract, starting with
2008.
email: djgee@buffnews.com
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Page 1 of 1
Date: Wednesday, January 09, 2013
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (56)
Newspaper (D)
16
TIMES UNION === =
State
jobs
remain
at risk
Unions protest cuts at
NYC hospital; Thruway
Authority layoffs studied
By Rick Karlin
ALBANY — New York state’s
major public employee unions in
2011 struck labor agreements in
which members gave up raises for
layoff protections.
While that has brought a mea-
sure of labor peace with the two
largest unions, the Public Employ-
ees Federation and Civil Service
Employees Association, the pro-
tections weren’t bombproof — and
not everyone is in the clear.
That became apparent Tuesday,
when hundreds of union members
gathered in the Capitol’s Legisla-
tive Office Building to rail against
cutbacks at a state-run hospital in
Brooklyn.
And as members of PEF and
United University Professions
protested potential job losses at
the Downstate Medical Center,
CSEA workers employed by the
‘Thruway Authority were mulling
a letter that suggested layoffs may
be ahead.
To be sure, these events portend
nothing on the scale of potential
cuts that Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s
administration had said would oc-
cur if they didn’t get contract con-
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserved,
cessions from PEF and CSEA two
years ago.
Back then, Cuomo said more
than 7,000 PEF and CSEA jobs
would have been at risk. The
‘Thruway notices, which instructed
employees to make sure they knew
Please see PEF AG >
their seniority rankings, went to
about 550 CSEA employees in re-
cent weeks, said union spokesman
Stephen Madarasz. Public sector
layoffs are carried out by reverse
seniority.
The Thruway workers are not
technically state employees be-
cause the roadway is controlled by
a public authority.
Union members and Thruway
Authority officials plan to negoti-
ate a new contract; the old one ex-
pired last year. But Madarasz noted
that Cuomo’s main negotiator, Jo-
seph Bress, is leading that effort for
the authority.
Madarasz said he believed the
Thruway notices were “tactical”
and may be an attempt to force the
union’s hand in contract talks.
Nonetheless, he said there is
“continuing concern” about the
Thruway Authority’s $90 million
deficit. Facing an outcry, Thruway
officials only weeks ago reversed a
plan to raise truck tolls by as much
as 45 percent.
Thruway Authority Executive
Director Thomas Madison said
in a prepared statement that it is
looking at a wide range of cost-
saving options.
“We have already taken aggres-
sive actions to stabilize our financ-
es,” Madison said. “We are also
engaged in further streamlining
initiatives, including eliminating
additional vacant positions, imple-
menting a hiring freeze and con-
sidering the possibility of layoffs.
“No final decision regarding
layoffs has been made, and we will
continue to do everything we can
to prevent them,” he said.
As for Downstate Medical Cen-
‘Account: 23070 (14228)
NY-10
ter, layoffs are looming for about
800 UUP and PEF members —
about 10 percent of the facility’s
workforce.
The cuts are hitting nurses
represented by PEF as well as lab
technicians and others in UUP.
Only a handful, though, have been
let go so far, with most being told
they will be leaving by the fall.
Hospital officials say reduced
Medicaid reimbursements and
rising costs have necessitated the
cuts.
“The hospital, like other health
care centers across the country, is
under tremendous financial pres-
sure,” said David Doyle, spokes-
man for the State University sys-
tem, which operates Downstate
and its affiliated medical school.
But union leaders also point
out that SUNY took over another
troubled hospital in 2011, and that
hasn’t worked out very well.
“They were trying to grow
themselves out of their problems,”
remarked UUP President Phillip
Smith.
PEF President Susan Kent said
she feared the cuts may be part of
a push to privatize the hospital,
which could leave union members
out in the cold. “We think what is
happening at SUNY Downstate
is just the tip of the iceberg,” she
said.
Still, union members said they
believed the Cuomo administra-
tion doesn’t want to see layoffs,
given the state’s high unemploy-
ment rate.
For instance, the planned clo-
sure of more than a dozen non-
secure youth centers operated by
the state Office for Children and
Family Services in New York City
appears to be proceeding with
minimal loss of jobs.
Most of the people at those fa-
cilities will find other positions or
will be retiring, said union offi-
cials.
“They have indicated to us that
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
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Date: Wednesday, January 09, 2013
Location: ALBANY, NY
Circulation (OMA): 66,507 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 1,6
Sectic Main
Keyword: CSEA
they want to do whatever they
can to get people placed (in other
jobs),” Madarasz said.
> rkarlin@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5758 = @RickKarlinTU
PHOTOS BY PAUL BUCKOWSKI/TIMES UNION
UNION MEMBERS at the Capitol listen during a rally to protest potential job losses at SUNY Downstate Medical Center's University Hospital of
Brooklyn. The cuts are expected as part of a financial restructuring. Organizers fear there could be further job cuts at other SUNY hospitals.
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserved,
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NY-10
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Page 2 of 3
Date: Wednesday, January 09, 2013
Location: ALBANY, NY
Circulation (OMA): 66,507 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 16
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
PHIL SMITH, president of the United University Professions, addresses
a rally to protest job cuts at Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn.
Page 3 of 3
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NY-10
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Tuesday, January 08, 2013
WHITE PLAINS, NY
JOURNAL NEWS Date:
Location:
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM) Chelation (OMA): 75.272 (0)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
CSEA president back on Westchester payroll
Pecora, laid off in 2013 budget deal, lands job at Board of Elections
By David McKay Wilson
dwilson3@lohud.com
Karen Pecora, the out-
spoken Westchester
County union leader who
lost her job — and presi-
dency of the county’s larg-
est public employees
union— in the 2013 budget
deal, was back on the job
ment issues with the coun-
ty administration. She
wants back her former job
at the Parks Department,
which was classified as
rade 7, and paid about
55,000 a year. The elec-
tions post is grade 3, and
pays about $40,000 a year.
County Communica-
tions Director Ned Mc-
Monday. Cormack said it was up to
Pecora, president of _CSEA who would lead the
the Civil Service Employ- union. As for Pecora’s ter-
ees Union Unit 9200,
stepped down Dec. 31 af-
ter her post was eliminat-
ed in the budget deal that
brought 73
layoffs ear-
lier in the
month. She
returned to
county em-
ployment at
the county
Board of
Elections as
an intermediate file clerk.
“T got an offer, and I
took the job,” Pecora said.
“Tt allows me to continue
representing the mem-
bers, as CSEA president.
But just because I’m
working, it doesn’t make it
right what they did.”
Pecora said the union
would continue to press
the improper practice
charge filed with the state
Public Employees Rela-
tions Board, in which the
union alleges that Peco-
ra’s job was eliminated in
retaliation for failing to
agree to the administra-
tion’s demands in collec-
tive bargaining.
As union president, Pe-
cora is on “full release” to
conduct union business
for the 3,200-member
union, while receiving her
county pay, as she helps
resolve —_labor-manage-
Pecora
mination in December,
McCormack said Pecora
and the CSEA could have
avoided the layoffs by
agreeing to the county’s
proposal to have union
members pay for a por-
tion of their health-care
benefits.
“The layoffs in the bud-
get unfortunately were
the result of the fact that
the union didn’t take ad-
vantage of the county ex-
ecutive’s jobs i
plan,” he said.
layoffs could have been
avoided. Three other
unions took up the call.
The CSEA didn’t, and we
were forced to make
layoffs.”
Pecora said the county
insisted upon an across-
the-board contribution,
but the union wanted a
sliding scale, so lower-
paid county workers were
not unfairly burdened.
CSEA also sought a no-
layoff clause in the pact.
The Westchester Coun-
ty Corrections Superior
Officers Association was
among three unions that
agreed to have its mem-
bers pay a portion of their
health-care premiums.
Contributions, which be-
gin at 12.5 percent, will
rise to 15 percent of the
premium cost by 2015,
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
Al Rights Reserved,
CSOA President Bruce
Donnelly said.
‘Account: 23070 (14230)
Nv-2i7e
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6,812 (56)
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Page: 4,10
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
said the county will con- pointed to nursing home
My FLEWOOD tinue to run the facility companies’ track record
|ANOR for at least one more
ounty
to vote
on
LDC
Nursing home
likely to be
year.
Moore elaborated that
county officials care
deeply about the facility
but using a public model
versus a private model
to run the facility is not
financially possible.
“A private-sector
operator could reinvest
in the facility and
improve the care, but
we could never afford to
make those invest-
ments,” he said.
CSEA leaders have
made it clear they ques-
tion the Saratoga County
and their Department of
Health rating. He said the
buyer they choose will be
picked according to these
qualities and the nursing
home will not go to the
highest bidder.
“If anyone wants proof
that we care about Maple-
wood Manor, look at the
fund balance,” Moore
said, iterating that the
county has spent tens of
millions of dollars on the
nursing home over the
years.
Moore said county offi-
cials recently held their
first meeting with resi-
. . administration’s legal dents at the nursing home
privatized viesE 3 ighing and plan to continue
‘ is_weighin: meeting with them on a
By CAITLINMORRIS _ [egal action in not only Thonthly basis,
emoris@saratogianicom “The transition will be
Twitter.com/CMsaratogian See COUNTY, Page 10A done with residents in
BALLSTON SPA — A
public hearing scheduled
for Wednesday to dis-
cuss the ultimate sale of
the county-owned nurs-
ing home, Maplewood
Manor, is expected to
draw a crowd.
The hearing will be the
public’s final opportunity
to make a formal state-
ment to the Saratoga
County Board of Supervi-
sors before members
vote Jan. 15 to transfer
the nursing home to
Maplewood Manor Local
Saratoga County, but in
other counties, like Onon-
doga, where legislators
are dispensing with valu-
able public assets through
the LDC scheme,” CSEA
spokeswoman Therese
Assalian said.
Saratoga Springs Super-
visor Joanne Yepsen also
has been vocal about her
dislike of the plan to priva-
tize Maplewood Manor.
“All the actions that are
being taken so far are
actually reducing the value
of Maplewood Manor while
reducing the number of
mind; this was the first of
what I hope to be monthly
meetings to hear their con-
cerns and answer ques-
tions,” he said.
However, Jimmy Granit-
to, one of the Maplewood
Manor residents who
attended the meeting with
county officials, said he
was unhappy with how the
meeting transgressed.
“They didn’t want us to
ask questions like, ‘Will it
close?’ and ‘What will hap-
pen to the people here?’ ”
Granitto said.
Th ident said it sad-
eae d by beds and care available to dene him that 45 Maple.
the CSEA union and con- °U" Saratoga aging sen- wood Manor employees
cerned employees and
family members of resi-
iors,” she said. “... ’m
sure our residents do not
want to be forced to send
recently left their jobs, but
he understands they want
dents of Maplewood their pensions. ;
Manor is scheduled to OU" loved ones off to other If Maplewood Manor is
counties and states when transferred to the LDC set
take place _ before
Wednesday’s hearing.
Even if the board
votes to transfer Maple-
wood Manor to the LDC
next week, management.
analyst Ryan Moore
the need arises for quality
nursing home care.”
When questioned on
what safeguards were in
place for sustaining Maple-
wood Manor’s excellent
quality of care, Moore
up in its name, it will be
subject to the same rules
and regulations as any
other public body. The
county included in the
LDC’s certificate of incor-
Page 1 of 2
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
Al Rights Reserves,
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NSIS
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THE
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Tuesday, January 08, 2013
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Newspaper (D)
110
Main
CSEA
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
Al Rights Reserves,
poration a section that
says it is accountable
under the Open Meetings
Law of the State of New
York.
The public hearing is
scheduled for 5:15 p.m.
Wednesday in the Sarato-
ga County Board Cham-
bers at 40 McMaster St. in
Ballston Spa. The rally out-
side the building will start
at 4:30 p.m.
Account: 23070 (14207)
NSIS
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Sunday, January 06, 2013
ALBANY, NY
129,275 (56)
Newspaper (S)
441
Main
CSEA
State’s ‘insecure’ youth centers
Assaults rise on workers
and residents at OCFS
juvenile detention sites
By Alysia Santo
Violence is on the rise in New
York’s juvenile detention centers.
Tn a scene from a surveillance
video, teenage detainees gang up
ona much larger staff member and
pound him to the ground. In other
videos, youthful prisoners attack
each other with similar viciousness.
Blood spills and tables are over-
turned. In some recordings, staff
members and young residents lay
unconscious from the blows.
‘The footage, publicized by a for
mer state official in 2011, provided
a rare glimpse into the level of
violence at state-operated “secure”
centers, the juvenile equivalent of
maximum-security prisons, which
are run by the Office of Children
and Family Services (OCFS).
Records show that violent in-
cidents have increased more than
fivefold over the past five years. In
2007, 52 assaults were documented
in the state’s four secure centers;
the number of assaults this year was
up to 280 by December 14, accord-
ing to records from the New York
————__ State Commission
This storyis of Correction, the
available only state agency that
in print. oversees OCFS se-
cure centers.
How could the violence have es-
calated so much, so quickly?
OCTFS staff members and their
unions, the Civil Service Employ-
ees Union and the Public Employ-
ees Federation, blame the policies
of OCFS Commissioner Gladys
Carri6n, who declined to com-
ment for this article. Other OCFS
officials, meanwhile, warn of read-
ing too much into the reports.
Carrién set out to transform the
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserves,
corrections strategy to a therapeu-
tic approach that included more
rehabilitative programming, men-
tal health treatment and limitations
on physical restraint. Referred to
as the “sanctuary model,” it’s a phi-
losophy that addresses the complex
behavioral and psychological needs
Please see CENTERS A11 >
of youths in state custody, and is
nationally recognized by experts
in juvenile justice as a way to lower
recidivism.
But the sanctuary model’s
implementation has been rocky.
Front-line staff members said a
lack of resources coupled with a
fear of being disciplined for re-
sorting to restraints has resulted in
more violent assaults.
OCES officials acknowledged
that assaults on employees and
residents have increased, but they
said more vigilant reporting has
contributed to the statistics.
‘The installation of cameras and
a new incident reporting system
have “improved the accuracy of
the data, which makes compari-
sons over the years inaccurate,”
OCFS spokeswoman Jennifer
Givner wrote in an email.
Staff and administrators have
tussled publicly since Carrién took
over the troubled agency in 2007,
after a 2006 report by Human
Rights Watch and the American
Civil Liberties Union said OCFS
was “among the most hostile juve-
nile justice agencies we have ever
encountered.”
The U.S. Department of Jus-
tice threatened a federal takeover
of New York’s juvenile facilities in
2009 and published a report that
said employees had “routinely”
used “uncontrolled, unsafe appli-
cations of force” and “do not be-
lieve that they have options to re-
spond to youths’ behaviors” other
than physical force.
“Tn fact, staff informed us that
recent measures to reduce re-
straints have put staff's safety at
risk since their ‘hands are tied’ and
they are forced to just step aside
when youth are defiant,” said the
federal report. “(T)his perception
among staff is clearly problem-
atic.”
Three years after the DOJ re-
port, staff employees have the
same complaints about limitations
on restraints and their impact on
safety.
One former OCFS employee
resorted to whistleblowing to draw
attention to the violence.
Eileen Carpenter worked in ju-
venile detention for 12 years and
at the OCFS Training Academy
for five years before taking a job
in 1999 with the SCOC, the state
agency that regulates prisons, jails
and youth secure centers. While
inspecting youth facilities in 2009,
Carpenter became alarmed at
what she found. She collected sur-
veillance video of beatings and ri-
ots to show to the correction com-
mission’s top officials.
Tn 2011, almost five months af-
ter correction commission officials
viewed the videos and took no ac-
tion, Carpenter went public with
a news conference at which she
screened the videos that captured
incidents from 2009 and 2010.
Carpenter said she had never
seen such violence during her
years working for OCFS. She said
without security, it’s hard to make
any rehabilitative progress.
“Tf the kids don’t feel safe,” she
said, “then they can’t get anything
out of the program.”
A lawsuit filed by Carpenter
against her employer alleged that
she was denied promotion because
of her gender and also claimed
SCOC officials were determined
to cover up conditions at youth
facilities.
CSEA spokesman Stephen
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CSEA
Madarasz said the union hasn’t
been contacted by SCOC, but
there was “hope that something
good” would come out of the
videos’ release, namely, that there
would be increased pressure on
OCES to provide more resources
to carry out Carrién’s plan.
“It’s wonderful to talk about
having non-physical intervention
with residents, but you have to
have adequate staff, training and
resources to ensure you can deal
with that in a safe manner, and
they’ve done none of that,” said
Madarasz.
In June, the state created the
Justice Center for the Protection
of People With Special Needs to
track and police abuse and neglect
of vulnerable people in state care.
The agency has jurisdiction over
OCFS facilities, though “it re-
mains to be seen how it will work
in practice,” said Madarasz, since
CSEA has disciplinary procedures
negotiated under its contract
that don’t apply if an employee is
charged with a crime.
Fatalities of youths and staff
members have been cited by
both sides as exemplifying a need
for change. In 2006, 15-year-old
Darryl Thompson died after be-
ing restrained during an alterca-
tion that stemmed from the loss
of recreation privileges at Tryon
Boys Residential Center. In 2009,
24-year-old youth counselor Re-
nee Greco was beaten to death by
two teens she was supervising at
Wyndham Lawn for Children.
Most OCEFS workers who spoke
to the Times Union were Youth
Division Aides (YDAs), the people
who work the floors of the state
juvenile facilities.
“Now we have to wait until
they take a swing at us to use a
restraint, rather than nipping the
behavior in the bud,” said a long-
term employee at Brookwood Se-
cure Center, in Columbia County,
who asked not to be identified. He
said he’s been out multiple times
© 2012 TIMES UNION
Al Rights Reserved,
on workers’ compensation and
has had several surgeries in re-
cent years after being injured by
Brookwood residents.
“T went to work with a constant
feeling I was going to be assault-
ed,” he said.
The number of YDAs on work-
ers’ compensation for injuries is
growing. Those classified as “YDA
4” had a 2007 incident rate of 29
percent; in 2010, the last year data
were available, it was 59 percent.
The correction commission did
not respond to repeated interview
requests. When asked by a Times
Union reporter at an open meet-
ing on December 18 what was be-
ing done to decrease the violence
in OCFS facilities, board officials
said the question was unrelated to
their meeting and declined to an-
swer.
But insight into what correction
commission officials think about
the violence is evident in recent
depositions from Carpenter’s law-
suit. In Chairman Thomas Beil-
ein’s testimony from June, he re-
ferred to the OCFS secure-facility
situation as “dire,” and said recent
footage was “similar” in nature to
that collected by Carpenter.
When asked why the correc-
tions commission had not publicly
acknowledged the conditions in-
side OCFS facilities, Beilein said:
“We had brought these presen-
tations to the Commissioner of
OCFS ... We were giving them
time to try and rectify the situa-
tion ... Am I satisfied with what
they have done? No.”
Juvenile justice consultant Car-
ol Cramer Brooks, CEO of the
National Partnership for Juvenile
Services, said it’s difficult when
facilities change to rehabilitative
models, because not everyone co-
operates. “Staff now have to rely
on tools they don’t feel as com-
fortable using, and tend to imme-
diately say ‘it doesn’t work.”
But longtime OCFS workers
see no ambiguities when it comes
Account: 23070 (14189)
Nvo
to their experience.
“T was never assaulted prior to
Carrién,” said Michael Geraghty,
a youth division aide for 29 years
and CSEA chair of the OCFS La-
bor-Management Committee.
Geraghty, who’s a year away
from retirement, said after a num-
ber of violent encounters he asked
to be switched to the night shift to
avoid getting injured.
He said hostile conditions
and the constant power struggle
leave little time for rehabilitation.
“I want to empower kids to do
the right things, to go to school
or learn a trade,” said Geraghty.
“When a kid doesn’t feel safe,
that’s impossible.”
> asanto@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5008 « @alysiasanto
1, MacCormick Secure Center
2. Columbia Girls Secure Center
and Brookwood Secure Center
3. Goshen Residential Center
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Main
CSEA
By the numbers
Assaults on residents (AOR)
and assaults on staff mem-
bers (AOS) are rising.
AOR AOS
31 21
Total
52
2007
2012 «84185 95 280
Source: NYS Commission of Correction,
records through Dec. 14, 2012.
Workers’ compensation
incident rate, OCFS:
2010 20.7
Workers’ compensation
costs, OCFS:
Medical Costs, OCFS:
$701,732
2007
$1,173,056
$1,209,331
Source: NYS Department of Civil Service
Offices, aides
OCFS: Office of Children and Family
Services, the state agency that
oversees foster care, adoption and
juvenile delinquency.
SCOC: State Commission of
Correction; the state agency that
oversees state prisons, county jails
and juvenile secure facilities to
ensure a “safe, stable and humane
correctional system.”
YDA: Youth Division Aide, a frontline
custodial employee in the state's
juvenile detention facilities.
© 2012 TIMES UNION
Al Rights Reserved,
Excerpts from SCOC testimony
James Lawrence, director of
operations, June 6, 2012
Q. Did you think it was in the public
interest ... compiling the video as
(Carpenter) did and going to the
commissioners with it?
A. Oh, | don’t think it was in the
public interest at all ... The failure to
observe the chain of command ...
in my view, was insubordination and
unprofessional conduct.
Thomas Beilein, chairman, June 13,
2012
Q. Didn’t you think that people
who had children going into these
facilities had a right to know what
was going on in those facilities?
A. They had a right to know.
Q. How were they going to know?
Did you think Gladys Carrién was
going to tell them?
A. | don’t know who was going to tell
them.
William Benjamin, supervisor of field
operations, June 26, 2012
Q. Did you feel that there was any
obligation that your agency had to
those young people who had not.
committed violent acts to ensure
that they were in a safe facility?
A. Had not formulated that opinion
yet.
Q. When did you formulate that
opinion, if ever?
A. | have never thought about it that
way.
Source: Eileen Carpenter v. State
Commission of Correction questioning by
attorney Michael Sussman.
A STAFF member is attacked at Goshen Secure Center in 2010.
Page 3 of 4
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Nye
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Date: Sunday, January 06, 2013
Location: ALBANY, NY
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Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
Page: 144
Section: Main
CSEA
Keyword:
ocrs
THIS IMAGE from a surveillance video shows a violent melee that erupted at Brookwood Secure Center in Claverack on May 30, 2010.
Page 4 of 4
© 2012 TIMES UNION
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (14189)
Nye
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Friday, January 04, 2013
Location: ALBANY, NY
Circulation (DMA): 66,507 (58)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 5
Section: Capital Region
CSEA
Keyword:
Shen bus driver case
in state’s top court
At issue: Can employee
who tested positive for
marijuana keep her job?
By Dennis Yusko
ALBANY — Arguments were
made Thursday before the state’s
highest court over whether a
Shenendehowa schools bus driver
who tested positive for marijuana
can keep her job.
More than three years after the
school district fired Cynthia DiDo-
menicantonio for failing a random
drug test, its appeal of a decision
ordering her rehiring has reached
the Court of Appeals.
On Thursday, attorney Beth
Bourassa argued for Shenende-
howa, while Daren Rylewicz repre-
sented DiDomenicantonio and the
Civil Service Employees Associa-
tion, of which DiDomenicantonio
isa member.
Bourassa opened by saying the
school district had adopted a zero
tolerance policy for positive drug
tests. Rylewicz countered the pol-
icy did not exist.
The contract between the dis-
trict and the CSEA has discipline
steps, starting with written warn-
ings. It also says, “suspension
without pay or discharge may be
invoked with less than two writ-
ten warnings where the employee’s
conduct creates a danger to the
health, safety or welfare of staff,
students and/or the general pub-
lic.”
A district driver for nearly 10
years, DiDomenicantonio was fired
Nov. 10, 2009. CSEA challenged
the dismissal, saying the district
violated its contract. An arbitra-
tor ordered her reinstated minus
six months of back pay, follow-up
drug testing and substance-abuse
counseling.
© 2012 TIMES UNION
Al Rights Reserved,
A state Supreme Court justice
reversed the order. The CSEA ap-
pealed to the Appellate Division,
which reversed the lower court’s
decision in a 3-2 ruling. In the mid-
level appeal, the Appellate Division
majority agreed with the arbitrator
by ruling that the district should
have considered lesser punish-
ments, while the minority said the
district acted within its authority.
‘The Court of Appeals decision
is pending.
JOHN CARL D'ANNIBALE/TIMES UNION
DAREN RYLEWICZ, left, representing Cynthia DiDomenicantonio and
the CSEA, listens as Beth Bourassa, representing the Shenendehowa
school district, presents arguments before the state Court of Appeals.
‘Account: 23070 (14180)
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Friday, January 04, 2013,
SCHENECTADY, NY
60,360 (56)
Newspaper (D)
B3
Local
CSEA
ALBANY
Top N.Y. court reviews
Shen marijuana firing
Union tries to block termination
of bus driver who tested positive
BY STEVEN COOK
Gazette Reporter
Whether an arbitrator over-
stepped his bounds in reinstating
a Shenendehowa Central School
District bus driver who tested posi-
tive for marijuana use was taken
up by the state’s highest court
Thursday.
The attorney for the school dis-
trict, Beth A. Bourassa, argued be-
fore the Court of Appeals that the
bus driver was rightly fired as part
of a zero-tolerance policy and that
an arbitrator overstepped his au-
thority in allowing the driver back
on the job.
The attorney for the bus driver
and her union, Daren J. Rylewicz,
argued that no such zero-tolerance
policy existed and that the contract
was clear in allowing for lesser pun-
ishments than termination.
In her argument, Bourassa said
the district and the union have
agree that a positive drug test re-
veals a danger to the safety and
welfare of students and others.
“We don’t dispute that the pen-
alty was reviewable,” Bourassa
said, “but the arbitrator had to use
© 2012 DAILY GAZETTE
All Rights Reserves,
a rational standard.” The arbitra-
tor should have considered only
whether the bus driver tested
positive, then whether there was
a rational explanation. Finding no
rational explanation, the bus driver
should have been terminated, she
argued.
Rylewicz argued that the rele-
vant information is contained in the
district’s drug and alcohol policy,
which outlines disciplinary steps.
“The district wants one thing, but
their policy says something else,”
he said.
The case concerns bus driver
Cynthia DiDomenicantonio, who
tested positive for marijuana use
in a random drug test in October
2009. She submitted to the test
upon returning to the bus garage
after delivering children to school
that day. When the test results
came back, she was placed on un-
paid suspension and then fired in
November 2009. She had worked
as a Shen bus driver for almost 10
years.
The case went to the Court of Ap-
peals after the mid-level Appellate
Division of state Supreme Court
ruled in favor of DiDomenican-
Account: 23070 (14225)
Nv-823,
tonio, siding with the arbitrator's
original recommendation that she
be reinstated without back pay.
The district had previously re-
fused to comply with that finding
from arbitrator James Gross and
took Civil Service Employees As-
sociation Local 1000 to court in
August 2010.
In November 2010, state Su-
preme Court in Saratoga County
sided with the district, with Judge
Thomas D. Nolan Jr. writing in his
decision that the district can get rid
of anyone who puts students at risk.
CSEA then appealed to the Appel-
late Division.
Whether DiDomenicantonio had
consumed marijuana wasn’t the
point — although she contended
she hadn't smoked it but may have
been exposed to secondhand smoke
or inadvertently eaten marijuana-
laced food. The arbitrator ruled she
was under the influence of the drug
because she tested positive for it.
The issue, according to the
Appellate decision, was that the
district’s contract with the union
didn’t mandate she be fired, as the
district said it did.
A decision by the Court of Ap-
peals is expected next month.
Reach Gazette reporter
Steven Cook at 395-3122 or
scook@dailygazette.net.
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Page: AL AI2
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
Judge Rejects Retiree
Suit Contesting Boost
In Health Premiums
By MARK TOOR
A state judge has dismissed a chal-
lenge by the New York Retired Public
Employees Association to the Cuomo
administration’s decision to raise
health-insurance premiums for re-
tired public employees.
Between 1983 and 2011, the state
paid 90 percent of the costs for em-
ployees who retired after 1982. In
2011, the State Legislature amended
sivil-service law to allow the state to
reduce its contribution. Under the
Jaw, retired and non-union employees
get the same reimbursement that is
negotiated by unionized workers.
Soaked Due to State Deals
_ The two largest unions represent-
ing state workers, the Civil Service
Employees Association and the Pub-
lic Employees Federation, negotiated
contracts that year with increases in
(Continued on Page 12)
health-care costs as high as 60 per-
cent. The Cuomo administration used
those increases to raise premiums
paid by retirees.
The EA and several unions
filed separate lawsuits challenging
the increase. In a Dec. 17 decision,
Justice George B. Ceresia Jr. of Al-
bany Supreme Court rejected all the
arguments by the retirees association
against the increases.
The association argued that the
change in civil-service law was not
meant to affect retirees. Justice Cere-
sia said the statute clearly includes
them. The retirees also contended that
the increase in premiums violated the
US. Constitution’s prohibition against
passing a law that retroactively im-
pairs contract rights. “There is no ‘con-
tract’ that entitles petitioners to con-
tinued state contributions to public re-
tirees’ health care at the same levels
as they received” before the law was
amended, the judge ruled.
Finally, the retirees said the in-
creases violate the State Constitution
because the Legislature had not given
state officials the authority to impose
them. Justice Ceresia said the law did
indeed grant state officials that right.
Uncertain About Appealing
The NYRPEA said it would decide
during its Januaty::board meeting
whether to appeal. 4 6
»< The CSEA, PEF and other unions
jointly filed a similar suit.in’ Federal
court. In December, U.S. District Judge
MaeA. D'Agostino rejected a:motion by
‘state attorneys to dismiss the suit
The New York State Couft Officers
Association also filed a suit, which is
working its way through the Federal
courts.
GEORGE B. CERESIA:
Change was constitutional.
Account: 23070 (14191)
Nv-425
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Page 1 of 1
NEWSDAY (NASSAU EDITION) Covaton: LONSISLAND. NY
Circulation (DMA): 297,601 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
29
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: SEA
Public employees
are scapegoats
The attacks on public workers
by politicians and media outlets
like Newsday have always trou-
bled me, but even more so today
than when they first became
prevalent more than 20 years
ago [“LI city and town employ-
ees: What they all earn,” News,
Dec. 26].
Elected officials started to
look for scapegoats when their
policy failures contributed to an
acute and persistent rise in prop-
erty taxes. They pointed to the
nominal salaries and pensions
earned by public workers as a
primary reason for their fiscal
problems, but it was just a smoke
screen designed to prevent their
constituents from realizing that
politicians themselves and their
reckless policies in countless
areas were in fact responsible.
The media played along be-
cause their access to these
same politicians would be com-
promised if they did not, as
would their influence among
their colleagues. This sad sce-
nario continues to play itself
out, just like a broken record.
Nick LaMorte
Commack
Editor’s note: The writer is
the president of the Civi) =
vice Employees Association,
Long Island Region.
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 NEWSDAY {NASAL EDITION,
Al Rights Reserves,
‘Account: 23070 (14179)
Ny-5659
For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www NewsdayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
CHATHAM COURIER Date: Thurstay, January 03, 2018
Location:
Circulation (DMA): 3,000 (58)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: ALAS
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Village Board passes
resolution that reverses six
controversial CSEA work rules
By Barbara Reina .° _ event the employee is released
For Hudson-Catskill from jury duty on a given day
Newspapers. |<... and there are two or more hours
The Chatham Village Board remaining in the employee's
approved a controversial resolu- scheduled workday, the employ-
tion to rescind certain work. ¢ inust report to work" are both
rules for bargaining “unit “Not applicable 'to. > members of
employees at their regular meet- the bargaining unig” ‘as per the
ing Dec. 13. resolution.
‘According to the resolution, : Trustee, Lenore Packet said
“the Civil Service Employees she is concemed about the new
Association, Inc. filed - an wording of these rules. “I most
improper practice charge against omy about employees using
the Village of Chatham for uni- village tools personally. I think
laterally implementing six work it puts the village at a liability. I
rules when, on May 25,2012, am not in full agreement with
the Board of Trustees adopted how it was written down,” she
the Employment Practices said.
‘Compliance Memal ” # ik See Rules on page 3
After a conference at the “T think if we don’t accept
Publi Employment Relations it and we go through arbitra-
, representatives of the tion, we're going to lose,”
Seen ile a commented Mayor Tom Cur-
erally implementing six work ‘Trustee Lael Locke said the
ce cesoluionsreveresisix wording “seems unusual and
work rules. The first four rules gerous.” cases, potentially dan:
Wer CE Pe PE Lh sient told the board
roperty during the public comment
be Evo rules no Jonsat apply {0 period, “I think you're setting
The Pie rule Oe ed a the _ the village up for lawsuits.”
resolution now allows employ- _, Another resident comment-
ees “to use computers, fax ed that a Public Employment
, ‘ . Relations Board member “is
ee oe ae trying to make a fool of us.
Slows Eaiployees' to “Use the That is not CSEA language.’
village garage or tools and
employees to “make or receive
personal telephone calls during
work hours” and the fourth rule
allows employees “to make or
receive personal calls on a vil-
lage Provided telephone or cell
The last two rules stating that
“an employee’s driving privi-
leges may be suspended for
receiving an excessive number
of traffic citations” and “in the Page 1 of 1
© 2012 CHATHAM COURIER.
All Rights Reserves,
‘Account: 23070 (14206)
NV15S
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date:
Nassau Location:
Circulation (DMA): 8,771 (1)
Type (Frequency):
HERALD
Thursday, January 03, 2013
LAWRENCE, NY
No trash talk here
Residents and officials praise $.D. 1’s storm cleanup
By ANN E. FRIEDMAN
afriedman@linerald.com
Ata Lawrence ‘Association meeting back in November 2011,
nearly 100 Five Towns residents complained about the lack of
service and attentiveness from Sanitary District No. 1, which
picks up trash and recyclables throughout the community
What a difference a year makes.
Ata Village of Lawrence meeting on Nov. 15, 2012, Sanitary
Commissioner James Vilardi received sustained applause from
See S.D. 1, page 13
community members for the work sanitary
district employees have done since Hurri-
cane Sandy.
They have removed more than 15 million
pounds of storm debris since Nov. 1, com-
pared with 1.2 million pounds during Novem-
ber and December of 2011. The refuse is
taken to the district's facility on Bay Boule-
vard in Lawrence, and then trucked to Covan-
ta Energy in Westbury. “It’s been a 24-hour
operation,” said the district's deputy superin-
tendent, George Pappas. “We've made six,
seven or eight trips down the same block to
make sure we took everything.”
Hewlett Harbor Mayor Mark Weiss said
that despite complaints about Sanitary Dis-
trict No. 1 in the past, residents have praised
its efforts post-Sandy.
“Tt's an incredible feat to have a 180-degree
turn-around,” Weiss said. “It’s not an easy
job, and there’s nothing glamorous about
what these guys do, but they gave people a
sense that they were being helped and distin-
guished themselves in this storm. We were
thrilled with the approach they took.”
The district's management met on Oct. 31,
then employees reported to work the next day
to resume regular garbage pickups as well as
storm debris removal. “At our staff meeting,
we discussed how important it is to let the
residents know that we'll pick up all of their
debris,” Pappas said. “And we're still assist-
ing residents to this day.
About a dozen of the 70 employees who
pick up garbage had their homes damaged by
Sandy, Pappas said.
CSEA Union President Joe Mazziotti, a
Lindenhurst resident, was dealing with flood-
© 2012 NASSAU) HERALD (NYC MARKET AREA}
Al Rights Reserved,
ing in his basement while working to clean
up Cedarhurst, where his parents grew up.
“Tt was like a circus running between my
house, my family’s house and working,”
Mazziotti said. “It was an emergency, though,
and it's not something that happens every
day. There was no time to think about any-
thing; you went about your day as normal as
you could.
Helping others who had suffered was
Mazziotti’s motivation. “Everyone was affect-
ed by the storm, and you wanted to get it
cleaned up as soon as possible,” he said. “We
couldn't get enough thanks from the commu-
nity — they were great. They understood we
were not only working, but coming out after
work to pick more up, and they couldn't have
been more grateful.”
Lawrence Association President Ron
Goldman read longtime member Margaret
Carpenter's written words at the associa
tion’s Dec. 26 meeting: “The men worked
around the clock and worked diligently to:
clean up our neighborhoods.”
Constant communication with village offi-
cials helped the district run more efficiently.
according to Pappas ve were able to give
the community a sense of relief,” he said.
Cedarhurst Mayor Andrew Parise said
that the Sanitary District was very coopera:
tive. and that they kept in touch regularly
after the storm. “They had men out day and
night.” Parise said. “I received wonderful
feedback from residents; the reaction was
great. They did an excellent job.”
Pappas could not enough good things
about the staff. “Many of the men worked 10
to 14 hours a day and then went home to a
cold shower,” he said. “We all worked togeth-
er and stuck together to help the residents.”
Recycling pickups were suspended until
the middle of January, because storm debris
pickup is the priority. “We had to make deci-
sions, and it's important to get the storm
debris first,” Pappas said.
Residents can schedule a recycling pickup
by calling the sanitary district offices at (516)
239-5600.
Account: 23070 (14211)
ves
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
Date: Thursday, January 03, 2013
assau Location: LAWRENCE, NY
Circulation (OMA): 8,771 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 1,13
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Courtesy Sanitary District No. 1
SINCE HURRICANE SANDY hit on Oct. 29, Sanitary District No. 1 has picked up
more than 15 million pounds of storm debris from the Five Towns, compared with
1.2 million pounds in the same time period in 2011.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 NASSAU) HERALD (NYC MARKET AREA}
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (14211)
ves
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
SENTINEL-NEWS Date:
Location:
Thursday, January 03, 2013
WESTFIELD, NY
Circulation (DMA): 2,115 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
AL A4
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Main
CSEA
CSEA proposal could
save over $400K a year
By LIZ SKOCZYLAS
MAYVILLE — Proposals made in a letter by the
CSEA to county officials could add up to hundreds of
thousands of dollars in savings for the County Home.
County legislators may not be privy to information
regarding CSEA negotiations, but they did receive a letter
regarding the union’s proposals for the County Home. An
abbreviated version of the letter was read during Wednes-
day’s legislature meeting, Dec. 12. Due to the Taylor Law,
Steve Abdella, county attorney, advised legislators not to
speak publicly about the union’s proposals.
An obtained copy of the six-page letter, which was
addressed from the CSEA Western Region Office to
See PROPOSAL, Page A4
Joseph Porpiglia, county director
of human resources. Additionally,
it obtained a separate 11-page
document of proposed changes to
the Collective Bargaining Agree-
ment. Proposed changes could
Stretch upward of $400,000 in
annual savings.
“The county executive has
instructed CSEA by letter dated
Nov. 28, to submit proposals to
the County negotiating team con-
cerning any changes CSEA is
willing to make concerning work
tules, pay and benefits to keep the
County Nursing Home economi-
cally viable,” the letter states.
Additionally in the November
letter from County Executive
Greg Edwards, it was asked that
CSEA make recommendations to
increase the home’s revenue. For
this request, CSEA chose to defer
to an August 2012 report issued
by the Center for Governmental
Research.
“CSEA has studied that report
and whole-heartedly supports the
recommendations for revenue
enhancements stated therein,” the
letter states.
The letter, which was signed
by Penny Gleason, CSEA labor
relations specialist, goes on to ask
that Porpiglia accept the corre-
spondence as an explanation of
the proposals the union has pre-
© 2012 SENTINEL NEWS
Al Rights Reserves,
ared prior to entering into nego-
tiations with the county.
Several proposals are made in
the letter, including proposals
regarding wages, pay increments,
longevity with the county, substi-
tute employees, health insurance,
sick leave, holidays, uniform
allowance and overtime.
“All provisions of the current
Collective Bargaining Agreement
would still apply to employees of
the Chautauqua County Nursing
Home,” the proposal states.
“Where provisions of the current
Collective Bargaining Agreement
are modified to apply to nursing
home employees only, these pro-
visions shall be stated at Article
18 Special Provisions for County
Home and shall not affect any
other employees covered by this
agreement.”
The first proposal suggests a
wage freeze for all four years of
the contract. The CSEA calculat-
ed the average salary of County
Home employees to be $36,613
per year. The Center for Govern-
mental Research stated that pay-
roll, which excludes overtime
pay, is $6.9 million per year.
The letter also proposes to stop
increases, which are given to eli-
gible employees from the date of
ratification to the end of the con-
tract.
“Based on information provid-
ed to the CSEA by the county - of
187 eligible employees 127
employees have reached or
should have reached step 9 of the
salary schedule and would there-
fore be ineligible for any addi-
tional increases,” the letter states.
For the 70 employees still
moving through the salary sched-
ule, no increments would be
awarded if the union and the
county come to an agreement.
According to CSEA calculations,
this would result in a savings of
$76,887 per year in each of the
contract’s three years.
An employee receives an addi-
tional $40 for each year of ser-
vice after 10. So, the CSEA also
proposes a freeze on the increases
Account: 23070 (14196)
Na
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SENTINEL-NEWS
Date: Thursday, January 03, 2013
Location: WESTFIELD, NY
Circulation (OMA): 2,115 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
AiAd
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
in longevity to which employees
would be eligible to receive based
on increased years of service for
the duration of the contract. The
CSEA calculates by freezing the
longevity increases, $3,840 per
year would be saved in each of
the contract’s three years.
It also proposes a lower
longevity rate for employees who
are hired on or after the ratifica-
tion of the agreement.
The Center for Governmental
Research report states that there
are 233 full-time equivalent posi-
tions at the County Home, with
92 substitute employees.
“Most substitutes are paid at
step 3 of the salary schedule for
the grade in which their title is
placed. However, 17 of the 92 are
paid above that step 3 rate,” the
letter states.
In this case, CSEA proposes
that all substitute employees be
placed at the first step of the
salary schedule for their title. By
doing this, a total savings of
$148,890 could be recognized,
according to the CSEA.
The letter also makes supposi-
tions regarding employee health
insurance. It estimates that 151 of
the County Home’s 187 employ-
ees are enrolled in the county
health insurance program. The
letter estimates that for each
employee who enrolls in the High
Deductible Plan rather than the
Preferred Provider Network, there
would be savings. The letter
assumes 20 percent of the County
Home employees would enroll in
the High Deductible Plan, which
would save a total of $80,040.
“CSEA believes these are con-
servative figures, given the coun-
ty’s marketing ability and the
educational information that will
be given to employees,” the letter
States.
Several proposals have also
been made regarding sick time
for employees of the county
home. One proposal eliminates
the sick leave bonus, which the
CSEA said will be a savings of
$15,065 to the county.
© 2012 SENTINEL NEWS
Al Rights Reserves,
The letter also proposes that, in
order to stop employees from
‘extending a holiday by using sick
time, that they must work the day
before and following a scheduled
holiday, or not receive holiday
pay. It also proposes forming a
sick leave use committee to help
lessen sick leave use.
Another proposal, which the
CSEA said will result in savings
of $52,678, is to eliminate Good
Friday and Election Day as holi-
days. Eliminating uniform
allowances, which is paid to
employees in the Nursing Depart-
ment, would result in saving
$29,500 annually, the letter
states. And, the letter proposes
that employees be allowed to
contribute to the Chautauqua
County Home Fund through pay-
roll deduction.
Paul Wendel, R-Lakewood,
asked during Wednesday’s legis-
lature meeting why legislators
received a copy of the proposal,
when they are unable to discuss
it.
“If this is going to be presented
as to our knowledge or under-
standing of the contract, why are
we given a portion of that con-
tract?” Wendel asked. “This is
pertaining to County Home
employees.”
Despite questions by Wendel
and other legislators, Abdella
repeatedly cited the Taylor Law
during the meeting in an attempt
to explain why the negotiations
should not be discussed.
“The county could be viewed
as having had an improper prac-
tice and not negotiating in good
faith, because it permitted the
legislative body to involve itself
in negotiations and completely
muddy the waters as far as the
negotiation process,” Abdella
said.
Abdella assured legislators that
the county is in a fact-finding
stage in the negotiation process.
The county executive will contin-
ue to work with CSEA officials,
but legislators have no part in the
negotiation unless negotiations
Account: 23070 (14196)
Na
reach impasse.
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Page 2 of 2
The Daily
Date:
t ar Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
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Section:
Keyword:
Thursday, January 03, 2013
ONEONTA, NY
11,343 (169)
Newspaper (D)
12
Main
CSEA
Otsego Manor
inches closer to sale
BY JOE MAHONEY
STAFF WRITER
COOPERSTOWN — Two
months after more than 1500
people signed a petition urging
that Otsego Manor not be priva-
tized, Otsego County lawmak-
ers are inching closer to recruit-
ing a consultant who would
help them market the home.
Otsego County Rep. Kath-
erine Stuligross, D-Oneonta,
said of three applicants for the
consulting position, a Roches-
ter outfit called the Center for
Governmental Research ap-
pears to have the experience
qualifications sought by county
officials for the guidance that
will be needed for the complex
transaction.
The full
Board of Rep-
resentatives
is expected
to vote on the
contract after
the members
meet privately
at an executive
session sched-
uled for Jan. Il
at the county building in Coo-
perstown, she said.
Privatizing the 174-bed Manor
is opposed not only by many pa-
tients at the nursing home but
also by the union for more than
200 workers at
Stuligross
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserved,
the facility, the
Civil Service
Employees As-
sociation.
The county
board began
looking _— into
selling the
home in 2012
Crowell when county
Treasurer Dan
Crowell did a financial analysis
showing the ballooning deficit
at the home will cause the tax-
payer subsidy to the facility to
soar above $5 million this year.
Stuligross said the Center for
Governmental Research pro-
vided guidance to Fulton Coun-
ty lawmakers when they also
chose to privatize its county-
owned home.
That particular arrangement
led to reductions in the nursing
home workforce as well as con-
cerns about the quality of care
provided by the new operator,
CSEA official Robert Compani
told the Otsego board in No-
vember.
Stuligross said any final deci-
sion on the fate of the Manor
will rest with the Otsego board
— not with the consultant.
“We're not going to sell to
anybody who does not have
a strong financial position,
and we're not going to sell to
anybody who does not have a
strong background in providing
quality health care,” she said.
She said county officials want
to see “a seamless transition”
with “minimal impact on pa-
tients and minimal impact on
employees.”
A leader of the grassroots ef-
Account: 23070 (14201)
Nvs21
fort to keep the home in county
‘SEE MANOR ON PAGE 2
hands, Maureen Culbert
of Springfield, a veteran
volunteer at the Manor,
said she remains skeptical
of claims that privatizing
the home will not jeopar-
dize patient care.
“The are just going to
be cutting personnel, and
that is not something you
want to do with a nursing
home,” Culbert said.
Culbert said she is not
giving up on her cam-
paign to convince county
board members from ex-
ploring alternatives that
would allow the nursing
home to remain an asset
of county government.
“It belongs to the coun-
ty residents,” she said.
“The board should find
the money and find a way
to make it work.”
Her local represen-
tative, Keith McCarty,
R-Springfield, said he
would an increase in the
county’s share of the sales
tax, bringing it from 4 per-
cent to 4.5 percent, as one
way to raise revenue that
could forestall the privati-
zation of the Manor.
“I’m not throwing the
Manor under the bus yet,”
said McCarty.
However, Rep. Kathy
Clark, R-Otego, the chair-
woman of the Board of
Representatives, said she
will not back any calls
for boosting the sales tax.
She argued such a move
would make businesses
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
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The Daily Star 2...
Type (Frequency):
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Section:
Keyword:
Thursday, January 03, 2013
ONEONTA, NY
11,343 (169)
Newspaper (D)
12
Main
CSEA
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserved,
less cgmpetitive with ri-
vals in nearby counties
and thus have a negative
impact on Otsego County
finances.
Mark Lavigne, spokes-
man for the state Associa-
tion of Counties, said sev-
eral counties have already
privatized their nursing
homes and more are con-
sidering the option.
“These are difficult de-
cisions that county offi-
cials don’t want to make,”
Lavigne said. For many
counties, he said, run-
ning nursing homes has
become financially unsus-
tainable, and county offi-
cials have been forced to
consider privatizing them
because they are a discre-
tionary program, one that
is not mandated by the
state.
Clark said there is no
firm deadline for privatiz-
ing the Manor.
“The process evolves,”
she said. “I don’t want to
put a date on ii
Culbert maintained the
board has failed to ad-
equately explore options
other than selling the
home.
“Where is the Plan B?”
she asked. “What if they
don’t find a suitable buy-
er?”
Account: 23070 (14201)
Nvs21
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Page 2 of 2
Date:
Location:
\ ] Circulation (DMA):
ALLEY ‘Type (Frequency):
Wednesday, January 02, 2013
FULTON, NY
7,650 (79)
Newspaper (2WK)
6
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Oswego News
Border Patrol supports Toys for Tots - The — Border Patrol joined on as a major
supporter of the US Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots campaign this holiday season.
Pictured at the Border Patrol Station recently are, from left, Chris Jones, local Toys for
Tots coordinator; Jerrad Bell, BPA; Alan Lindsey, SBPA; Roger Audet, BPA; Paul Vandish,
BPA; Matthew Davidson, BPA; and Keith Hook, SPA.
Scouting for Food - Local Cub Scout Packs, Oswego Pack 888, Fitzhugh Park Pack 809
and Minetto Pack 819, participated in “Scouting for Food” for The Salvation Army. The
scouts went around to family, friends and neighbors and collected non-perishable food
and personal hygiene. The troops delivered 42 bags and boxes of food and personal hy-
giene for the Salvation Army.
© 2012 VALLEY NEWS.
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (14187)
Nv-238
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
Date: Wednesday, January 02, 2013
Location: FULTON, NY
Circulation (OMA): 7,650 (79)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (2WK)
Page: 6
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Thanksgiving meal donated — Fitzhugh Park Elementary School received a food dona-
tion from Omicron Delta Kappa National Leadership Honor Society of SUNY Oswego.
The organization sponsored a family for Thanksgiving and provided all of the fixings plus
much more. President Mike Dempsey did all of the food shopping. Involved were Jeff
Chetney (CSEA Vice President), School Nurse Karyn Kirwan RN, ODK Advisor Daniel
Lupa, ODK Secretary Laura Stone and Advisor Katie Maxwell.
¥ a
ee
Sandy Hook fund-raiser - Oswego High School students inTaishana Jackson's classroom
decided recently that they wanted to do something for Sandy Hook Elementary School.
They made ribbons and passed them around the building. Green ribbons were part of the
wardrobe of students and faculty. The students received contributions of $873.89.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 VALLEY NEWS.
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (14187)
Nv-238
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
JOURNAL NEWS Date:
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM)
Location:
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Tuesday, January 01, 2013
WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
14
Main
CSEA
Union sues
to block
Westchester
2013 budget
Judge denies CSEA’s bid
to halt cutbacks, layoffs
By Elizabeth Ganga
eganga@lohud.com
Westchester County’s largest union
filed a lawsuit Monday challenging the
passage of the 2013 budget, but failed to
get a stay stopping the layoffs and oth-
er cuts from taking effect with the new
year.
Steven Crain, an attorney represent-
ing the 3,200-member Civil Service
Employees Association unit said the
union was looking to hold the govern-
ment accountable for passing a budget
without following proper procedure
and trying to stop 72 employees from
being laid off and 31 others demoted.
“If it was done illegally then the
CSEA members that were laid off were
See CSEA, Page 4A
laid off illegally,” he
said.
But if a judge finds
procedural flaws, there
are nine votes to pass it
again, said Legislator
Jim Maisano, R-New Ro-
chelle, who led a coali-
tion of seven Republi-
cans and two Democrats
to pass a $1.7 million
compromise budget last
month. The lawsuit, he
said, is a confirmation
that the coalition ran the
meeting properly and
passed a legitimate bud-
get.
“After — everything
that went on at the bud-
get meeting this is the
only technicality they
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
Al Rights Reserved,
could find?” he said.
The lawsuit argues
that the county charter
and state open meetings
law were violated when
the coalition continued
the budget meeting Dec.
7 after most of the Dem-
ocrats walked out, and
passed a spending plan
with a substitute chair-
man and clerk.
The meeting has no
proper minutes or other
record, Crain said.
“There’s no way for
the public to know what
happened,” he said.
Maisano said the tem-
porary clerk took min-
utes but the board has
yet to approve them.
State Supreme Court
Justice Nicholas Cola-
bella denied a request
for a restraining order
Monday. The next court
date is Jan. 18.
A spokeswoman for
County Executive Rob
Astorino said the ad-
ministration was
pleased with Colabella’s
decision. “Our negotia-
tions with the CSEA con-
tinue and the county ex-
ecutive’s ‘jobs for sav-
ings’ plan, which could
have averted layoffs in
the 2013 budget, remains
on the table,” said Donna
Greene.
Astorino had pushed
unions to agree to health
insurance contributions
in exchange for fewer
layoffs.
The CSEA is also
challenging the admini-
stration’s decision to lay
off its president, Karen
Pecora.
It has filed a chal-
lenge with the state Pub-
lic Employment Rela-
tions Board and plans to
file a grievance alleging
that laying off Pecora vi-
olates the union contract
with the county.
Account: 23070 (14164)
Ny.
2872
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Page 1 of 1
COURIER-ADVOCATE **
Date:
Sunday, December 30, 2012
ion: BATH, NY
Circulation (OMA): 10,931 (173)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
County health care facility sold
‘BY MARY PERHAM
‘ THE COURIER
** December**
BATH — The Steuben
County Health Care Facil-
tity complex has been sold
ito Centers for Specialty
tCare Group, LLC for
‘nearly $11 million.
County legislators
‘unanimously —_ approved
‘Monday the sale of the
-bed, four-year-old fa-
ty on Mt. Washington
‘oad and the nearby for-
-mer health care facility.
‘But emotions ran high
ibefore the final roll call
“vote on the sale.
CSEA officials and em-
ployees lobbied emphati-
cally against the sale,
asking for the vote to be
tabled to allow for more
‘time to consider the mat-
ster.
~ Union leaders warned
Steuben lawmakers selling
the nursing home would
not save the county much
money overall and warned.
the quality of care would
deteriorate under a private
company.
But legislators said the
sale pays down construc-
tion costs and will do away
with an operational an-
nual deficit of $2 million to
$3 million -- the equivalent
of a 6 percent to 9 percent
tax hike for property own-
ers.
The new owner, Centers
for Specialty Care Group,
LLC was selected from five
bidders and owns
Founders Pavilion in Corn-
ing, Legislator Scott Van
Etten said.
“We toured Founders,
we talked to the residents
© 2012 STEUBEN COURIER ADVOCATE
Al Rights Reserved,
there,” Van Etten said.
“None of them said they
had any of the kind of the
problems (with care) you're
talking about.”
County Legislator Gary
Swackhamer, R-Hornell,
said his mother had been a
county nursing home resi-
dent, adding he has spent
25 years on the county
board trying to keep the fa-
cility.
“It’s not us. It’s not us,”
Swackhamer said. “It’s the
state government you
should be talking to. They
said ‘You build it. We'll pay
you more.’ They lied to
us... You're talking to the
wrong people.”
Steuben legislators con-
sidered selling the county
nursing home some 10
years ago, after the facil-
ity’s $10 million reserves
were nearly depleted by
operational costs. But the
search for a seller turned
up one bid for $1 million
and the Legislature
soundly rejected the deal.
Instead, they took up
the state's offer to build a
new $17 million facility,
paid for largely through
state aid. State officials
also said they would reim-
burse the new nursing
home at higher rates for
daily operations.
At the time projections
showed the higher state
rates would bring the new
facility to a break-even sta-
tus. But the promised
higher funding never ma-
terialized.
Instead, counties across
the state can expect lower
reimbursement, while pri-
vate companies are receiv-
ing more money, legislators
said Monday.
County Administrator
Mark Alger said the
union’s warnings low-in-
come residents will not be
accepted under new own-
ership are misleading.
Alger said the county’s
sale agreement stipulates
80 percent of the residents
must qualify for Medicaid
— similar to the number of
residents at the facility
now. Typically, private pay
residents also transition
quickly to low-income sta-
tus, too, he said.
Adding the old facility
to the sale also may offer
the new owners an oppor-
tunity in the future to pro-
vide other aging-related
services, Alger said.
“Obviously I can’t speak
for them,” he said. “But we
put the old one in to see if
there was interest, and
there was, from a couple,
for that purpose, of day
care or assisted living.”
Union officials — who
also voiced concern current
employees will lose some of
their benefits — said they
will keep an eye on the
proceedings.
Steuben County CSEA
Local President Sally Mac-
Dougal said the union will
keep a close eye on future
negotiations, especially the
employees’ contracts.
“We did our best,” she
said. “And we're still here
for the employees. That
hasn't changed.”
Account: 23070 (14193)
Nv-aa
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THE STEUBEN Date: . ‘Sunday, Decent 30, 2012
COURIER-ADVOCATE °%.s oun:
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Main
CSEA
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 STEUBEN COURIER ADVOCATE
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (14193)
Nyaa
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Sunday Freeman ==
Date: Sunday, December 30, 2012
Location: KINGSTON, NY
Circulation (OMA): 18,140 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Former City Laboratory workers
fight Kingston for health benefits
Class-action suit says full payment for coverage should continue
By PAUL KIRBY
Freeman staff
KINGSTON — Former
employees of the long-closed
Kingston City Laboratory have
filed a class-action lawsuit
against the city, demanding it
continue to pay for their medical
benefits, according to a union
official.
Howard Baul, a labor specialist
with the Civil Service Employ-
ees Association (CSEA), said the
lawsuit was filed Friday in state
Supreme Court in Kingston. Baul
also said Ulster County Surro-
gate’s Court Judge Mary Work
issued a temporary restraining
order that bars the city from
denying benefits to one former
employee who suffers from a life-
threatening disease.
Baul, whose union represents
the former lab workers, said the
lawsuit asks the court to rein-
state benefit payments for all
of them. The benefits are to be
eliminated on Dee. 31.
Baul said the benefits were
provided for many years through
“several terms of mayors, sev-
eral terms of Common Councils
and several terms of corpora-
tion counsels” and should stay
in place.
IN NOVEMBER, the former
lab employees received notices
(© 2012 SUNDAY FREEMAN
Al Rights Reserved,
from the city that taxpayer-fund-
ed benefits would be eliminated
for some, while others would
have to start paying for them.
Kingston Mayor Shayne Gallo
has said 30 former employees of
the lab, which was on Broadway
near Kingston Hospital, receive
benefits. Of those, he said, 16 are
not entitled to benefits because
they did not became vested in
the insurance plan.
Gallo said the remaining 14
employees, who are retirees,
will have to contribute to their
health insurance premiums, as
other retired city employees do.
THE LETTER sent to the
former employees from Jacque-
line DeCicco, executive director
of the city’s Civil Service Office,
said, in part, that those receiv-
ing the benefits are not entitled
to them.
“It appears that the sole basis
for the payment of your health
and dental insurance is the
expired contract between the
city and the labor units of the
CSEA,” the letter said. “Legal
counsel has advised the city that
the agreement does not establish
a legal basis for the payment of
your health and dental benefits,
as you were not retired from city
employment.
“Such payments are an uncon-
Account: 23070 (14136)
Ny-804
stitutional gift of public funds
and cannot lawfully be contin-
ued,” the letter said. “Therefore,
please be advised that it is the
city’s intention to terminate such
payments effective Dec. 31.”
GALLO HAS said the employ-
ees who are having their benefits
terminated “resigned before the
closing of the lab (in 1994) and
then they came back, some sever-
al years later, to demand health
insurance and were included by
the prior administration, (which)
enrolled them without any review
or any consideration to whether
they were eligible or if they paid
as investees.”
The mayor, who served as an
assistant city attorney under
his predecessor, former Mayor
James Sottile, said the city will
save about $100,000 by termi-
nating the benefits and that the
money will be restored to the
city’s general fund.
The city’s current corporation
counsel, Andrew Zweben, said
on Friday that the city’s position
continues to be that there is no
contract requiring the city to
pay for the benefits. Zweben said
the elimination of the benefits
could save millions of dollars
over time.
pkirby@freemanonline.com;
twitter.com/PaulatFreeman
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Page 1 of 1
LEADER-HERALD
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Friday, December 28, 2012
GLOVERSVILLE, NY
8,750 (56)
Newspaper (D)
15
Main
CSEA
Report calls for salary increases
Fulton County, CSEA negotiating new contract
By MICHAEL ANICH
The Leader-Herald
JOHNSTOWN — A state fact-
finder is recommending Fulton County
union workers receive salary increases
in 2012 and 2013.
Chairman | The fact-finder re-
departs, | cently issued his final
Page 3 | report on Fulton
County govern-
ment’s impasse with its 285-member
General Unit union, and the Board of
Supervisors chairman agreed with sev-
eral of the recommendations.
Among recommendations in state
Public Employment Relations Board-as-
signed fact-finder Gordon Mayo’s Dec.
13 report is a suggested salary structure
to reach a new contract. The last contract
for the General Unit of Local 818 of the
Civil Service Employees Association
expired at the end of 2009.
Mayo recommended the county
enter into a retroactive four-year
agreement with the General Unit.
He called for no wage increases for
2010 and 2011, and a 1 percent
crease for 2012. He recommends i
creasing salaries 1 percent at the
beginning of 2013 and bringing that
raise to 1.5 percent at the middle of
2013.
“CSEA members are taxpayers too,
and while their taxes are going up, their
salaries have remained stagnant, which
is a double whammy,” Mayo wrote.
“While I commend the county for its
fiscal prudence, there is no requirement
that its employees should bear an inor-
dinate share of the burden.”
As a response to the report, Board of
Supervisors Chairman Michael F.
Gendron issued a Dec. 21 memo to
Board of Supervisors members. In ac-
cordance with Civil Service Law, the
chairman is required to formally re-
spond by submitting his recommenda-
tions to his board on how to settle the
dispute.
© 2012 LEADER HERALD
Al Rights Reserved,
Gendron’s response to Mayo’s re-
port agreed with most of the salary
recommendations, but Gendron also
COUNTY — On Page 5
called for a five-year agreement
with 2014 as the final year, in
which he suggests no wage in-
crease for that year.
Local 818 President Ron
Briggs said today his union is
“going to counter Gendron’s pro-
posal,” including the chairman's
call for a fifth year of the contract
with no pay increase
“In addition, approval of any
successor collective-bargaining
agreement should be contingent
upon the union’s withdrawal of
the improper-practice charge it
filed against the county,” Gen-
dron wrote.
He was referring to the union
filing an improper labor practices
charge against the county after
Perth Supervisor Greg Fagan
sent a Sept. 20, 2011, memo to
county department heads, which
then was copied to union mem-
bers. In the memo, Fagan, as
chairman of the supervisors’ Per-
sonnel Committee at the time,
urged union members to conduct
a formal “membership vote” on
county management's proposal.
CSEA Regional President
Kathy Garrison a month later
termed the memo “disgusting”
and said it was “unacceptable”
the county would try to deal di-
rectly with the membership while
negotiations are in progress.
Briggs said the union might be
“willing to drop” the improper
practices charge.
Gendron’s memo concluded:
“I believe that the recommenda-
tions I outlined in this memoran-
dum strike a reasonable balance
for our employees and taxpayers
Account: 23070 (14202)
Nv-258
Such an agreement would also fit
in with the Board of Supervisors”
budget planning goal for stabil-
ity through the end of 2014."
During its meeting Thursday,
the Board of Supervisors went
into a roughly 40-minute closed-
door executive session for the
listed reason of “collective bar-
gaining.” The board met with
County Attorney Arthur C.
‘Spring but took no action toward
a new General Unit contract.
After the meeting, Stead said
union negotiations continue to-
ward a new contract.
Briggs said the county now is
required to conduct a public
hearing, at which time the union
can present its side of a response
to Mayo’s report.
Elsewhere in the fact-finder’s
report, Gendron said he con-
curred with several other recom-
mendations toward settling the
dispute. They included Mayo’s
recommendation that an addi-
tional week of lag payroll begin
July 1, 2013.
Mayo recommended the
union's request for a $50 boot al-
lowance increase be granted
retroactive to Jan. 1, 2012, but
Gendron wants it effective Jan.
1, 2013.
Gendron agrees with Mayo’s
recommendation to endorse the
county’s proposal that future
new employees who select the
individual health insurance plan
contribute 20 percent of pre-
mium costs.
Michael Anich covers John-
stown and Fulton County news.
He can be reached at john-:
stown@leaderherald.com.
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Page 1 of 1
GREAT NECK NEWS (NYC MARKET ed
AREA)
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Friday, December 28, 2012
GREAT NECK, NY
7,000 (1)
Newspaper (W)
4
Main
CSEA
Union holds toy drive
for victims of Sandy
CSEA Nassau Local 830
collected nearly one thousand
toys through generous dona-
tions by the union’s nearly
10,000 members over the
past month. Through a part-
nership with the U.S. Marine
Corps Toys for Tots program,
CSEA distributed boxes at over
a dozen county worksites, and
collected hundreds of toys.
These toys were distributed
on Dec. 17 to Brierley Park in
Hempstead, where they will
now be given out to Hurricane
Sandy Victims in Long Beach,
Far Rockaway and Inwood, as
well as to Hempstead schools.
At the Local 830 An
nual Holiday Party held on
Dec. 19 at the Crest Hollow
Country Club in Woodbury,
over 500 toys were donated
by the nearly 800 attendees.
For the seventh straight year,
these toys are being distrib-
uted to the Economic Oppor-
tunity Commission of Nassau
County, and will be given to
the children during their An-
nual Christmas on Jackson
© 2012 GREAT NECK NEWS {NYC MARKET AREA}
Al Rights Reserved,
From left, Gary Battle, Rev. Richard Lawson, Mike Lordi of
Local 830, President of Hempstead Public Schools Betty
Cross, Freeport Mayor Wayne
Hall and Kelvin Lewis of
Local 830, at Brierley Park in Hempstead with toys that
are being donated to Hemptead Schools, and hurricane
victims in Long Beach, Far Rockaway and Inwood.
Street event. In addition, the
Uniondale Early Childhood
Center, and Coalition of Com-
munity Well-Being will receive
these toys.
Since Jerry Laricchiuta
took over the reins of CSEA
Local 830 in 2005, CSEA has.
collected thousands of toys for
children in need in local com-
munities. “I have to thank our
members who always put oth-
ers before themselves. Despite
difficult economic times, they
always step to the plate when
needed,” Laricchiuta said.
CSEA Local 830 is Nas-
sau County's largest public
service union with 6,000
members working for Nas-
sau County and over 3,000
working for the Nassau Health
Care Corporation. CSEA also
has 50,000 members on Long
Island, and 300,000 in New
York State.
Account: 23070 (14251)
Nv-260
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Page 1 of 1
» Date: Thursday, December 27, 2012
e al azette Location: SCHENECTADY, NY
Circulation (DMA): 60,360 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: Ba
Section: Local
Keyword: CSEA
Court set to hear
appeal in bus
driver firing case
CLIFTON PARK — The state
Court of Appeals will weigh in next
month on the case of a bus driver
who lost her job with the Shenen-
dehowa Central School District in
2009 after a drug test found mari-
juana in her system.
Arguments are scheduled for Jan.
3 in Albany.
In October 2009, Cynthia DiDo-
menicantonio’s urine tested posi-
tive for marijuana during a random
drug test. The district placed her on
unpaid suspension and then fired
her the following month. She had
worked nearly 10 years with the
district.
An arbitrator had said DiDo-
menicantonio should be reinstated
to her position without back pay:
Shenendehowa officials filed a
lawsuit and state Supreme Court
in Saratoga County sided with the
district’s right to terminate anyone
who puts students at risk.
The Civil Service Employees
Association appealed the case to
the Appellate Division of state Su-
preme Court, which in December
200 sided with the union. It ruled
the contract did not include a “no
tolerance” policy for drug use, but
listed other disciplinary actions,
including fines, suspension and
termination.
The district appealed to the
state’s highest court.
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 DAILY GAZETTE
All Rights Reserves,
‘Account: 23070 (14169)
vers
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Thursday, December 27, 2012
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (56)
Newspaper (D)
17
TIMES UNION == =
Keyword: CSEA
Judge
tosses
health
case
State can charge retired
public workers more for
coverage, ruling says
By Casey Seiler
ALBANY — A state Supreme
Court justice has dismissed a chal-
lenge to a state decision to impose
the same health care cost increases
on retired workers negotiated by
public employees unions.
In a forceful decision, state Su-
preme Court Justice George B.
Ceresia of Troy concluded that
even giving the retirees a liberal
interpretation of their arguments,
“petitioners have failed to state any
valid cause of action.”
‘The suit was brought by the New
York Retired Public Employees As-
sociation on behalf of retirees, who
saw their share of health insurance
costs increase following the tough
contract negotiations of mid-2011.
As with active employees, the
share for retirees went up from 10
percent to 12 percent of the total
premium cost for an individual plan,
and from 25 percent to 27 percent
for a family plan. Plaintiffs noted
typical costs could go from $59 to
$95 per month for an individual, or
from $250 to $331 per month for
a family plan — especially tough,
they argued, for retirees on a fixed
income.
Defendants included Gov. An-
drew Cuomo, the Department of
Civil Service, Budget Director Bob
Megna and others. The state was
defended by state Attorney General
Eric Schneiderman’ office.
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserves,
In his 18-page order, dated
Dec. 17, Ceresia rejected the three
grounds for action in the challenge
to the increase.
In dismissing the plaintiffs’ claim
that the increase violates Civil Ser-
vice Law, Ceresia said the suit failed
to note the amendment of the law
that allows the state to increase the
retirees’ share. The ruling also re-
jected what the judge referred to as
their “belated alternate argument”
that the court should protect em-
ployees who retired before Oct. 1,
2012 from being hit with the in-
crease. The action would, Ceresia
wrote. be a clear violation of the
separation of powers.
In response to the argument
that the increase violated the
contracts clause of the U.S. Con-
stitution and its state equivalent,
Ceresia concluded “there is no
‘contract’ that entitles petition-
ers to continued state contribu-
tions to public retirees health
care at the same levels as they
received prior to enactment” of
the 2011 amendment to Civil
Service Law.
The judge also disagrees with
the argument that health care
benefits and pension benefits en-
joy the same level of protection.
Because they are singled out for
mention in the state constitution,
pension payments have been seen
as being virtually inviolate — even
in cases where public employees
or elected officials have commit-
ted crimes connected to their du-
ties.
To the plaintiff's third cause of
action, that the state Civil Service
Commissions involvement in the
increase violates the separation of
powers in the state constitution,
Ceresia noted the Legislature’s
bill language explicitly allowed for
the adjustment to be made by the
commission’s president, with the
approval of the state budget direc-
tor.
“The petitioners have failed to
present specific allegations that
Account: 23070 (14112)
NVI
would support their conclusion
that the Legislature ceded any
fundamental policy responsibility
to make social and political policy
to the president of the Civil Ser-
vice Commission,” Ceresia wrote.
Tony Cantore, who handles
legislative affairs for the RPEA,
said the organization hasn’t made
a decision on whether to appeal
the dismissal. The topic will like-
ly be addressed at its next board
meeting set for January, he said.
A federal suit brought by major
state public employees unions, in-
cluding the Civil Service Employ-
ges Association and the Public
Employees Federation, survived
a similar motion for dismissal
earlier this month. U.S. District
Judge Mae A. D'Agostino said the
plaintiffs had established sufficient
grounds to allow the case to pro-
ceed to the discovery phase.
> cseiler@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5619 = @CaseySeiler
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Page 1 of 1
OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: ALATA
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Veto over-ride saves jobs,
nixes exec’s budget cuts
By Anne Phyllis Pinzow
‘STAFF WRITER
In a 13 to three vote with one absence, the
Rockland County Legislature overrode the
vetoes of County Executive C. Scott
Vanderhoef on three resolutions; the accept-
ance of the report of the Budget and Finance
Committee, the adoption of the County
budget and the appropriation of budget
items for 2013. (Nancy Low-Hogan, Frank
Sparaco and Chris Carey against, Ed Day
absent)
Though only 12 votes were needed, pre-
vious to the meeting on December 18, the
outcome was in doubt as on December 4;
the legislature had accepted the amend-
ments proposed by the Budget and Finance
Committee by just a 10 to seven vote.
The budget, which has now been adopted,
has a property tax levy of $96 million,
which is an 18.43 percent increase from
2012 levy as part of the $736,999,800
appropriation for the 2913. budget.
What this means formpropetty owners is a
property tax rate up 44 cents to about $2.50
per $1,000 of assessed property value or an
increase of about $157 per household bring-
ing the average bill to about $900 in county
taxes alone.
Vanderhoef had vetoed almost all of the
amendments the legislature had made to his
proposed 2013 budget except for restoration
of the Sheriff's Mounted Patrol and five
Patrol officers as well as the Mosquito
Control Program of the Rockland County
Health Department. He also did not veto the
legislature’s decrease in the sales tax
reserve and some of the changes made to
the salary savings account. Those items not
vetoed were adopted without further leg-
islative action.
Though the public hearings on the budget
had been held and closed on December 4,
Comell allowed two speakers, Glenn Lewis
and Pete Bower
Lewis, a county employee, brought up the
contention among the County E ive,
the Legislature and the CSEA“on te
© 2012 OUR TOWN
All Rights Reserves,
Memorandum of Agreement between the
CSEA and Rockland County which states,
“During the term of this Agreement, no per-
son in this bargaining unit shall be terminat-
ed or laid off due to budgetary reasons. This
provision will terminate on December 31,
2013.” The same provision was agreed to
with RAM and the Doctor’s Council.
Though the agreement was approved by
the Rockland County Legislature this past
September, in his proposed budget
Vanderhoef planned to outsource positions
in jail security, the laundry and food service.
With other positions this came to more than
70 layoffs. “Mr. Vanderhoef said these
employees are being outsourced, not laid
off.” He said that the County Executive
could call it anything he wanted, it still
meant that these people would be out of
work. “I respectably implore you to again
override Mr. Vanderhoef’s shameful out-
sourcing plan and return the words honesty,
trust and integrity to Rockland County’s
VETO OVER-RIDE: Page 7, please
dictionary.” Bower, an employee of the
Rockland County Highway Department which
was tagged to lose six people, a dispatcher and
drivers of snow plows.
“Their solution was to take two mechanics out of
our garage and put them in snow plows so when
the trucks start breaking down and the mechan-
ics have to be called off the road, now you're
down eight... You're putting the public at risk.
When Sandy hit, when O&R was called off the
road because it was too dangerous, we were told
to stay out and keep the roads open, which we
did.”
Schoenberger: Veto would increase deficit
During the legislators’ discussion, Han
Schoenberger said that the CE’s vetoes would
increase the deficit by $12 million because it was
listed as a reduction to the deficit of the General
Fund. This money is anticipated to come from
the proposed sale of the county nursing home.
Account: 23070 (14232)
N¥-3205
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 3
OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: ALATA
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Schoenberger referenced the analysis and review
of the proposed budget by O'Connor Davies
which stated that since the sale is not anticipated
to occur during 2013, the General Fund deficit
will not be reduced by that transaction in 2013.
“This will result in an unfavorable revenue vari-
ance unless both the revenue and appropriation
are removed from the operating budget when
adopted for 2013," as done by the County
Legislature. He said the vetoes had the result of
increasing the property tax levy by about
$15,000.
The third reason Schoenberger listed for over-
riding the vetoes was the reduction in force of 70
employees proposed by the County Executive.
While the memorandum of agreement promised
no layoffs for budgetary reasons. the reason for
these layotls has been described by the CT's
office as program elimination.
He said if the veloes are allowed to stand then
an outside company would have ie de hired. as
planned dy the CEs budget bur the county
would be taken to court. if the county lost the
lawsuit. then the county would have to pay the
svorkers their lost wages, their pension payments
and their medical coverage. “HU s 100 risky Its
“srong morale as wrong legally and gives
exposure to the county tor millions and millions
of dollars.”
The County Executive also vetoed the elimi-
nation of some of 22 positions which are vacant
but fully funded.
While the Highway Department employees
were not subject to the same “no layoff” clause,
there was much said about how if these emplo’
ees would be let go, roads would not be plowed.
Charles “Skip” Vezzetti, Superintendent of the
Rockland County Highway Department had tes-
tified there were 27 routes to plow: but only 24
drivers. “So there will be three routes that won't
be plowed,” as quickly as is done now.
Jim Dean, Superintendent of Highways for the
Town of Orangetown said that the towns have
inter-municipal agreements with the county to
plow some county roads, such as Congers Road
in Orangetown. He said that if the county
reached out to the towns to extend those agree-
ments, it would mean alteration of routes and
could extend the time it takes to clear roads dur-
ing a snowstorm but if an agreement was in
place, those roads would be plowed.
Legislator Joseph Meyers, who had voted
against the legislative amendments two weeks
ago voted to override the vetoes, criticizing both
the CE’s office and the legislative body. “This is
© 2012 OUR TOWN
All Rights Reserves,
not a moment to rejoice in the fact that we're
saving these jobs or that job, it’s just been a
complete failure of county government to
address the fiscal needs of this county which has
led us to the point where people who are mem-
bers of unions who do important work for the
county have to worry about losing their jobs in
droves just because the county could not make
modest reductions...hoping that sales tax rev-
enue would come back.”
Meyers had not voted for the CSEA contract
because of the “no layoff” clause in this fiscal
climate.
However the contract was approved and
Meyers said “The most important thing is honor-
ing a contract, not just the word of the contract
but also the spirit of the contract because if you
don’t do that, you're nothing but a shyster.”
Lastly, Meyers said the last thing that should
ever be cut is basic infrastructure maintenance as
that’s what the taxpayers are paying the taxes for.
Legislator Patrick Moroney, who had aided
Legislator Ed Day in an aborted attempt to
amend the legislative budget, said he could not
vote to lay off people a week before Christmas.
Legislator Nancy Low-Hogan said “I agree
with my colleagues who have spoken that there
is a lot of ineptitude in the County Executive's
budget. I do not want to lay off any person, in
this room or otherwise. I admire the work of
Cornell Cooperative Extension and Paul Trader
and his staff. Any decision to lay anyone off or to
increase someone’s taxes by 18 percent is not an
easy decision to make...Frankly neither budget
satisfies all of my hopes for reducing our base
line.” She said she’s voted consistently to avoid
having to raise property taxes and reduce the
county’s baseline expenditures. While both
budgets have made significant cuts, the legisla-
tures budget keeps the baseline the same while
the CE’s budget represents a substantive cut in
the county’s baseline expenditures. “That base-
line is unsustainable,” and so she voted nay.
As Low-Hogan had proposed two weeks ago,
she asked for an ongoing year long analysis of
the budget starting in January.
Legislative Chair person, Harriett Cornell said
that while the job of county government is pub-
lic safety, there is also public health. “That is
something that no other government in Rockland
County does. There’s no one out there that’s
helping to prevent illness.” She said this is the
purview of the County Health Department and
Cornell Cooperative Extension.
She said the CE’s budget was short on educa-
‘Account: 23070 (14232)
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OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
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: ALATA
Main
CSEA
tion and prevention. “The way you maintain
public health is education.” She said the County
Department of Health is key in the emergency
services unit in preparing for any kind of emer-
geney.” She voted for override of the vetoes.
Lewslator Caris Carey voted against the veto
override. Aiter the meeting he said the County
Executive's response kept in the reinstated pub-
lic safety issues with the exception
of the Highway Department. “] did-
n’t think it was a great budget but I
think better than the budget we had
put together,”
In regards to the $12 million, he
said after speaking to both the coun-
ty's financial personnel as well as
the company that reviewed the
budget, “that was just a balance
sheet item.” He said it was not por-
trayed as an operating budget issue.
As to the contract, that while the
CE had negotiated contract his legal
team would have advised him on all
ramifications of any actions. While
he was absent at the time of the vote
on the CSEA contract vote, he
would have voted for it knowing
that programmatic cuts would have
been allowed.
Legislator Ed Day said he had
BUDGET VETO:
Page 21, please
never expected the CE to veto the budget amend-
ments and had informed the legislative leaders
that he was scheduled to be absent on December
18, due to job considerations. Hence he was
absent at the time of the veto override vote.
Previously he had voted against the legislative
© 2012 OUR TOWN
All Rights Reserves,
amendments to the budget and said in a subse-
quent phone interview that his colleagues knew
where he stood.
“I made my position known on December 4.
With that position my not being there had not
effect on the outcome obviously. | was not going
to change my vote.” He said even with all the
debate, the tax increase is much higher than it
should be. Programs that have been criticized for
inefficiencies are being kept open and that noth-
ing is being done to cut back the budget line in
those areas. He also wanted to take the patronage
positions out of the budget, but said there is still
business as usual. “I’m sick of the excuses why
we can’t do better.”
After the vote, Billy Ricaldo, the Southern
Region President of the CSEA said “We're real-
ly thankful for the vote but we also found out a
lot more on how they feel about the County
Executive and how he does the daily business,
that it’s not in the best interests of the county res-
idents or employees and the programs that we so
desperately need in this County.”
Asked if since contract negotiations had taken
so long to resolve and there is a contract through
2013, will the union start negotiations for 2014
or wait for the next CE to take office, Ricaldo
said Vanderhoef wants to start negotiations for
2014 in January. “We really want to look at a lot
of things before we in proper court procedures
make up our minds because we just settled this
contract and he’s gone back on his word on
numerous occasions.”
“We've been challenged on a lot of other
issues with him. I think he’s getting the wrong
information from the guy who negotiated the
contract as well as the Commissioner of
Personnel (Joan Silvestri) which I think is a con-
flict of interest.”
‘Account: 23070 (14232)
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The Evening Telegram
Date: Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Location: HERKIMER, NY
Circulation (DMA): 6,657 (169)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: ALAS
© 2012 TELEGRAM (THE)
Al Rights Reserved,
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
HERKIMER points:
Union
grievance
not going
away
By Amanda Fries
GateHouse News Service
HERKIMER — The lo-
cal union representing
Herkimer County employ-
ees has filed a grievance
over the apparent failure
of the county to list a job
opening.
County officials said a
clerical error caused the
problem, but the union is
continuing the grievance.
Steven Billings, Her-
kimer County's personnel
officer, said the grievance
was received on Dec. 13,
and they have “rectified the
situation.” He would not
elaborate.
The position was for se-
nior data collector, which
was filled by Gabe Oram,
who was promoted on Oct.
1 from data collector in the
county’s Real Property Tax
Department, Billings said.
“We're complying with
the contract,” he said. “The
union has filed a grievance,
and I'll leave it at that.”
JoAnne LeClair, Civ-
il_Service Employees _As-
sociation Unit 7100 pres-
ident, said the union filed
the grievance based on two
m The vacant position
should immediately be
posted.
m The county also should
give the appropriate Civil
Service exam.
The union has not ended
the grievance.
LeClair said she is wait-
ing for a response to her
Freedom of Information
requests.
The FOIL inquiries
stem from the recent an-
nouncement of two layoffs
within the Real Property
Department.
While it’s not stipulat-
ed in the union contract,
LeClair said they request-
ed an exam be given as
“part of the remedy.”
Billings said, “That’s not
necessary to do.”
LeClair said typically she
is emailed the postings,
SEE UNION, A5
but instead was informed
by county employees of
the vacant position.
Billings said the post-
ing does go to Herkimer
County Community Col-
lege’s Human Resources
Department as well as
posting them internal-
ly and on county bulletin
boards.
“Tt does say in the con-
tract that (sending it to
the union president is)
what we do,’ he said,
adding he had never re-
ceived a call or complaint
before.
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COURIER-ADVOCATE
Date:
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3
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Location: BATH, NY
Circulation (OMA): 10,931 (173)
Steuben sells health care facility
to owners of Founders Pavilion
BY MARY PERHAM
THE COURIER
BATH | The Steuben
County Health Care Facil-
ity complex has been sold to
Centers for Specialty Care
Group, LLC for nearly $11
million.
County legislators
unanimously approved
Monday the sale of the 105-
bed, four-year-old facility
on Mt. Washington Road
and the nearby former
health care facility.
But emotions ran high
before the final roll call vote
on the sale.
CSEA officials and em-
ployees lobbied emphati-
cally against the sale,
asking for the vote to be
tabled to allow for more
time to consider the matter.
Union leaders warned
Steuben lawmakers selling
the nursing home would
not save the county much
money overall and warned
the quality of care would
deteriorate under a private
company.
“You are removing a
vital safety net and putting
long term health care out of
reach for many of your res-
idents,” said CSEA Western
Region President Flo Tripi.
Others union officials
argued there was strong
local support to keep the fa-
cility, with 66 percent of
local’ taxpayers. surveyed
wanting the nursing home
to stay under Steuben’s
control.
The poll was a random
sampling of 689 people
across the county, according
to union official Chris
Reakal.
But legislators said the
sale pay downconstruction
costs and do away with an
© 2012 STEUBEN COURIER ADVOCATE
Al Rights Reserved,
operational annual deficit
of $2 million to $3 million -
- the equivalent of a 6 per-
cent to 9 percent tax hike
for property owners.
The new owner, Centers
for Specialty Care Group,
LLC was selected from five
bidders and owns Founders
Pavilion in Corning, Legis-
lator Scott Van Etten said.
“We toured Founders,
we talked to the residents
there,” Van Etten said.
“None of them said they
had any of the kind of the
problems (with care) you're
talking about.”
County Legislator Gary
Swackhamer, R-Hornell,
said his mother had been a
county nursing home resi-
dent, adding he has spent
25 years on the county
board trying to keep the fa-
cility.
“It’s not us. It’s not us,”
Swackhamer said. “It’s the
state government you
should be talking to. They
said ‘You build it. We'll pay
you more.’ They lied to us.
You're talking to the wrong
people.”
Steuben legislators con-
sidered selling the county
nursing home some 10
years ago, after the facil-
ity’s $10 million reserves
were nearly depleted by op-
erational costs. But the
search for a seller turned
up one bid for $1 million
and the Legislature
soundly rejected the deal.
Instead, they took up
the state’s offer to build a
new $17 million facility,
paid for largely through
state aid. State officials
also said they would reim-
burse the new nursing
home at higher rates for
daily operations.
At the time projections
showed the higher state
rates would bring the new
facility to a break-even sta-
tus. But the promised
higher funding never mate-
rialized.
Instead, counties across
the state can expect lower
reimbursement, while pri-
vate companies are receiv-
ing more money, legislators
said Monday.
County Administrator
Mark Alger said the union’s
warnings low-income resi-
dents will not be accepted
under new ownership are
misleading.
Alger said the county’s
sale agreement stipulates
80 percent of the residents
must qualify for Medicaid —
similar to the number of
residents at the facility
now. Typically, private pay
residents also transition
quickly to low-income sta-
tus, too, he said.
Adding the old facility to
the sale also may offer the
new owners an opportunity
in the future to provide
other aging-related serv-
ices, Alger said.
“Obviously I can’t speak
for them,” he said. “But we
put the old one in to see if
there was interest, and
there was, from a couple,
for that purpose, of day care
or assisted living.”
Alger said as painful as
selling the facility is, the
sale probably ensures the
nursing home’s future.
“If we tried to maintain
the service, ultimately we
would have grown broke,”
he said. “Now, they may
even expand some serv-
ices.”
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COURIER-ADVOCATE
Date: Sunday, December 23, 2012
Location: BATH, NY
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: 3
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CSEA
© 2012 STEUBEN COURIER ADVOCATE
Al Rights Reserved,
Alger said the county
will now complete its nego-
tiations, with no deadline
set for the closing. Center’
for Specialty Care Group
also must apply for and re-
ceive a Certificate of Need
from the state, before the
sale can be complete. 7
Union officials — who
also voiced concern current
employees will lose some of
their benefits — said they
will keep an eye on the pro-
ceedings.
Steuben County CSEA
Local President Sally Mac-
Dougal said the union will
keep a close eye on future
negotiations, especially the
employees’ contracts.
“We did our best,” she
said. “And we're still here
for the employees. That
hasn't changed.”
THE COURIER/FILES
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WARWICK ADVERTISER Date: Friday, December 21, 2012
Location: WARWICK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 8,000 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 8,9
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Valley View seeks new administrator
Temporary administrator will run nursing home as county lays groundwork
for permanent hire
BY EDIE JOHNSON
GOSHEN — Funding for Valley View nursing home is
assured for next year. But still undecided is who willman-
age the county-owned facility.
On Dec. 14, legislators on the Health and Mental Health
Committee agreed to hire a temporary administrator to
manage the nursing home come Jan. 1, when the coun-
ty's contract with the current administrator ends. In the
meantime, the legislature will establish the position of
county commissioner. The commissioner will make a
permanent appointment.
County Executive Edward Diana terminated the cur-
rent administrator, Orange Administrative Services
(OAS), after an investigatory committee of the legislature
found that OAS has mismanaged the place.
It is illegal for a nursing facility to operate without a
licensed administrator. Diana said a temporary admin-
istrator could be hired on a monthly, quarterly, or yearly
basis.
The meeting began in an especially tense mood follow-
ing last week's override of Diana's budget. But the atmo-
sphere grew more cooperative as Diana addressed all of
the legislators' concerns.
There are two ways the administrator's position can be
filled: appointment by the county executive, or appoint-
ment by a county commissioner. Legislators say they
want to be involved in the hiring and in ongoing oversight.
Diana offered the position to the committee chair, Mi-
chael Amo of Central Valley, who is a licensed adminis-
trator himself. But Amo said no.
The quest promises to be a long one, starting with es-
tablishing the commissioner position.
"T think you will be shocked at what they want," Diana
said, referring to the one response so far to the county's
request for proposals. Legislators had earlier set a work-
ing figure of just under $150,000 per year.
If no one is selected by the end of the month, Diana
said, the Department of Health will put the nursing home
in receivership and assign a temporary administrator.
The bottom line
Diana last week blasted legislators after they agreed,
19-2, to fund Valley View through 2013. He said legisla-
tors built a budget on "speculative revenue opportunities,
hypothetical expense cutting measures, and unrealized
union concessions" that will "send our county down a Page 1 of 3
path toward certain financial ruin." ee
© 2012 WARWICK ADVERTISER,
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WARWICK ADVERTISER Date: Friday, December 21, 2012
Location: WARWICK, NY
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Page: 8,9
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 WARWICK ADVERTISER,
Al Rights Reserved,
Legislators will be under pressure to prove him wrong.
Step 1 will be continued negotiations with labor unions,
which have so far promised an 8 percent cut in salaries, a
separate bargaining unit, and staffing control measures to
limit the need for overtime.
A nursing home gains an important advantage when
hospitals choose them for the patients it discharges. And
Amo said Valley View's occupancy rate may be bolstered
with residents from the 19 other nursing homes in the
region that closed indefinitely after sustaining damage
from Hurricane Sandy.
Legislators say the big battle will be with the state and
federal bureaucracy, with their strangling regulations and
meager reimbursements.
The Berger Commission concluded that there was a
surplus of nursing home beds in New York State and rec-
ommended reducing nursing home capacity will be re-
duced by 3 percent. Another report conducted later by
health care professionals found that outpatient andhome
care yielded better results.
But then the Department of Health warned of a com-
ing "tsunami of increasing elderly" — as Amo put it — and
said the hospital system did not have enough beds.
Medicare has set up a Catch-22, legislators say: Medic-
aid will only cover a patient's stay while the patient shows
improvement. But as soon as the patient reaches a clini-
cal plateau, he or she is either sent home, sent to another
facility, or billed out-of-pocket.
Patients unable to show continued improvement are
usually the ones who have the most pressing needs. Facil-
ities like Valley View that care for patients with advanced
Alzheimer's disease, pulmonary diseases that tequire
oxygen, and other difficult conditions will be unable to
compete with facilities that offer rehabilitation programs
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where patients show continuing progress.
"Lots of people have contributed lists of potential
solutions," said Bill Oliphant, who heads the almost
400-member CSEA labor union said. "Offering some
new services suchas kidney dialysis that give a good cost-
benefit ratio, day care services, and more rehab programs
may be a few of the service changes that can improve re-
imbursement rates."
Oliphant waited nearly an hour and ahalfto participate
in the Labor Relations Committee meeting, which had
gone into a contentious executive session — during which
one legislator could be heard screaming "Liar!"
"We are always willing to come to the table," said the
patiently waiting Oliphant. "But it will take a willing
partner and some time."
Alegislative session scheduled for Dec. 20 at the Emer-
gency Services Building will be the last this year.
The meeting began in an especially tense
mood following last week’s override of
Diana’s budget. But the atmosphere grew
cooperative as Diana addressed all of the
legislators’ concerns.
Page 3 of 3
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WATERTOWN DAILY TIMES (LAST ed
EDITION)
Location:
Friday, December 21, 2012
WATERTOWN, NY
Circulation (OMA): 20,944 (176)
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Section:
Keyword:
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B1B5
Northern New York
CSEA
WHISPERING PINES: Facility, slated for closure, has its final holiday party
A BITTERSWEET AFFAIR
By DANIEL FLATLEY
TIMES STAFF WRITER
On Thursday night,
there was an air of familiar-
ity to what likely was the last
Christmas party at the Jef-
ferson County Home for the
Aged, also known as Whis-
pering Pines, 1240 Coffeen
St.
Santa was on hand to dis-
tribute brightly wrapped
packages to the 47 residents
who filled the room. Stock-
ings and bows adorned the
walls and figurines and snow
globes sat on the artificial
snow stuffed in each win-
dowsill.
Whispering Pines staffand
volunteers from the North
Side Improvement League
called out names of gift re-
cipients; their voices were
soon drowned out by the rip-
ping of wrapping paper and
the excited chatter of resi-
dents examining their newly
opened presents.
“This is probably one of
the last parties because we'll
be closing, but we do this ev-
ery year,” said nursing assis-
tantJoan E. Wilder. “We have
several parties.”
North Side Improvement
League President Brenda L.
Parker said the organization
likely will not host parties at
Samaritan Summit Village
when the facility opens next
year.
“It's just too big and there
will be too many residents,”
she said.
After presents were
opened, Kim M. Greene, ac-
tivities director and 22-year
veteran of Whispering Pines,
led residents in animpromp-
tu rendition of “Santa Claus
Is Coming to Town.”
Ms. Greene said residents
like to arrive for the party
promptly at 6 p.m. and de-
part just as promptly 45 min-
utes later.
Everyone agreed the new
Samaritan facility would be
good for the residents, but
the transition has left county
employees of the nursing
home ina difficult position.
“The new facility ought to
be beautiful,” said Timothy
M. Glover, who played Santa
Claus. “The hard part is the
people who work here.”
It’s still unknown if the 15
full-time county employees
at Whispering Pines will have
jobs next year.
“They're waiting to see
what's going on with the
‘See EMPLOYEES BS
county. We don’t know,” Mrs.
Wilder said.
The employees are looking
to stay within county govern-
ment, which provides benefits
based on classifications and
seniority and is partof the state
retirement system. They would
be unlikely to find a similar
benefits plan in the private sec-
tor, which would have signifi-
cant effects on their retirement
plans.
Whispering Pines is ex-
pected to close early next year.
The county has been engaged
with Civil Service Employees
Association Local 823 | try t
Ci 0 try to
secure opportunities for the
dacs full-time staff mem-
ers,
(© 2012 WATERTOWN DAILY TIMES (LAST EDITION}
Al Rights Reserves,
The county Legislature has
been trying to close the facility
for years, recognizing that the
continued cost of providing
care would increase greatly in
the future, In August 2010, the
county voted to contribute $5
million to the construction of
two facilities in order to bring
more skilled-nursing beds to
the county so it could get out of
the business,
That $5 million invest-
ment, in addition to a $30
million grant from the state
Department of Health, has
helped bring 168 skilled-
nursing beds and 120 assist-
ed-living beds to Samaritan
Summit Village in Water-
town, and 60 assisted-living
beds to Meadowbrook Ter-
race in Carthage.
Both facilities are expected
to open in early 2013 and will
be managed by private health-
care companies.
“The state has backed away
from adequately financing
adult homes,” said Laura C.
Cerow, commissioner of the
Jefferson County Department
of Social Services.
It would cost the county
$500,000 a year to maintain
Whispering Pines, Mrs, Cerow
said,
“It's not really about the
money,” she said, “It's about
moving this service to an entity
that is better equipped to pro-
vide it.”
Mrs, Cerow said this holi-
day season is going to be an
emotional one for Whisper-
ing Pines staff members who
have become attached to resi-
dents.
Mrs. Wilder, who worked
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Keyword: CSEA
for the county for 27 years be-
fore retiring and returning to
work part time, said, “We love
‘em, you know? They're good
people. Some of them have no-
body.”
‘AMANDA MORRISON m WATERTOWN DALY TIMES
Mary Lou Hough, center, laughs with Santa Claus as he talks the future during the facility’s last holiday party before the
with residents of Whispering Pines about their plans for building is dosed down.
(© 2012 WATERTOWN DAILY TIMES (LAST EDITION}
Al Rights Reserves,
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Date: Friday, December 21, 2012
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Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
CSEA: Rejected Our Savings Ideas
Westchester Exec: Union’s
Making Me Lay Off 100
By MARK TOOR
Westchester County Executive
Robert P. Astorino is blaming the
Westchester Civil Service Employees
Association for the layoff of about 100
public employees called for in the
county’s new budget. The union shot
back that the budget was passed
“based on an intentional campaign of
misinformation” by Mr. Astorino.
The County Executive said on
Westchester’s website, “Most, if not
all, of those layoffs could have been
averted had the CSEA, the county’s
largest union, agreed to a new con-
tract that included employee health-
care contributions just like almost
everyone else pays. But unlike three
other county unions, the leadership of
the CSEA refused to make a deal.”
‘He Won't Compromise’
Karen Pecora, president of the
Westchester CSEA, said Mr. Astornio
was misrepresenting the situation.
“We've said we'll contribute toward
health-insurance premiums,” she said.
“We've made other cost-savings propos-
als that would result in huge savings
for the county. All we've asked is for a
modicum of job security, but the Coun-
ty Executive insists on a ‘my-way-or-
e-highway’ approach over any sort of
compromise with us on contract issues.
“We've even been told that this
budget agreement was the county’s
way of ‘inflicting pain’ on CSEA,” she
continued.
Ms. Pecora asked the Board of Leg-
islators to review union proposals
aimed at saving the county at least
$22 million next year, including $10
million from salary freezes, $4 million
from four furlough days per employ-
ee, and $6 million based on health.
care contributions by workers. The
contract is now in mediation, said
union spokeswoman Jessica Ladlee.
The number of layoffs started at
126 and by Dec. 12 was down to 102,
Ms. Ladlee said. The layoff lists in-
clude Ms. Pecora and a second union
official, she said. Though she has
worked for the county since the early
1990s, Ms. Pecora, a secretary in the
Parks Department, is the only one in
her title. Third Vice President Teri
Rella, a secretary in Public Works, is
also on the layoff list.
Democrats Say It Ain’t So
The county budget was approved
Dec. 7 by a coalition of seven Republi-
cans and two Democrats on the Board
of Legislators, and signed immediate-
ly by Mr. Astorino. But the remaining
Democrats, who walked out of the leg-
islative chamber before the vote, say
they don’t recognize it as passed.
“The budget approved Friday by a
bipartisan coalition of the Board of
Legislators and signed by County Ex-
ecutive Astorino is the final budget for
2013,” county spokeswoman Donna
Greene said Dec. 12. “It is a good sol-
id budget, the result of compromises
by both sides. If the union had fol-
lowed the lead of three other county
unions and contributed to the cost of
their health care—as Astorino has
been asking them to do for three years
—many if not all of the layoffs could
have been averted.”
This budget was the third proposed
by Mr. Astorino that does not raise
property taxes. He was elected on a
promise to end the spiral of increas-
ing taxes.
On health-care contributions, the
union had offered a sliding scale based
on salary that averaged 8.5 percent of
the premium for individual coverage
(Continued on Page 7)
and 10 percent of the cost of family
coverage. It also proposed payments of
$4,000 to $16,000 a year for each em-
ployee who opts out of coverage.
Union officials say Mr. Astorino has
asked CSEA for higher health-care
premiums than other unions whose
members were better-paid. One of
those unions, the Teamsters, agreed to
have members pay 10 percent of their
health-care premiums, a figure that
will rise to 12.5 percent in 2015. New
hires will pay 20 percent. Figures for
the other unions were not available.
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ROBERT P. ASTORINO
CSEA ‘refused to make a deal.
KAREN PECORA: A ‘my-way-
or-the-highway’ approach.
Page 2 of 2
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© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
State Unions Caution:
‘Right-to-Work’ Law
Could Happen Here
By MARK TOOR
The national anti-labor tide last
week swamped Michigan, which
passed “right-to-work” laws covering
both private and public employees, and
leaders of public-worker unions here
said they can’t guarantee something
similar wouldn't happen in New York.
“It’s pretty disturbing, isn’t it?” said
Susan Kent, president of the Public
Employees Federation. “I don’t know
if it's something we're going to see in
New York, but nationally they are
really cutting into labor.”
“You have different elements in play
here, but take nothing for granted,” said
Stephen Madarasz, a spokesman for Ciy-
il Service Employees Association Presi-
dent Danny Donohue He recalled hard.
(Continued on Page 7)
right Republican gubernatorial candi-
date Carl Paladino, who was defeated
in 2010 by Governor Cuomo. The Re-
publicans are “no longer the party of
Nelson Rockefeller,” he said.
As 12,000 union supporters protest-
ed outside Michigan’s capitol building
on Dec. 11, the Republican-controlled
Assembly approved a bill prohibiting
any requirement that workers who
are not union members pay fees to
cover the cost of contract negotiations,
‘ievances and other services. The
tate Senate had passed the bills a
week earlier, and Gov. Rick Snyder
signed them immediately.
The issue seemed to come from
nowhere; Governor Snyder had been
neutral on the “right-to-work” propos-
als until barely a week before they
were passed.
Federal law requires that unions rep-
resent all employees equally, whether
they're members or not. Though the law
takes effect in 90 days, it does not affect
contracts currently in force. Non-union
members would not be able to withhold
payments until the pacts lapse.
So it was unclear how much the new
law would damage unions, although it
will definitely shrink their treasuries.
Labor leaders in Michigan said they
would consult with their counterparts
in the South, where “right-to-work”
laws have existed for decades.
‘Sleeping Tiger’ May Maul GOP
They also said they are looking to-
ward the 2014 elections, hoping to re-
place Mr. Snyder with a Democrat and
take back the State Legislature. “The
sleeping tiger is awake now,” Michigan
'L-CIO President Karla Swift told
the Detroit Free Press. “We have 2014
as a goal to shift out and win justice.”
Michigan became the 24th state to
pass a “right-to-work” law. Ms. Kent and
Mr. Madarasz said the law, coupled with
anti-union efforts in other states, was
part of a right-wing strategy against
unions. “They’re trying to force unions
to spend their resources on things oth-
er than representing the membership,”
Mr. Madarasz said, referring to in-
creased efforts that will be required to
collect payments from non-members.
He said the billionaire Koch broth-
ers—who were reported to have fund-
ed the lobbying effort on the bills in
Michigan—and other wealthy Tea Par-
ty members and anti-labor activists
are bent on “destroying our democra-
cy. They don’t want people to be able to
have a voice. They want to control the
discussion and the choices.”
There is “a certain symbolism”
about the new law passing in Michi-
fan, which with the United Auto
orkers has been a major pro-union
state, Mr. Madarasz said. “It has a
chilling effect on labor nationally.”
It’s been a difficult couple of years
politically for unions, particularly
those representing public employees.
In Wisconsin, Republican Gov. Scott
Walker rammed a bill through the Re-
publican-dominated State Senate
soon after taking office in 2011 that
limited collective bargaining for pub-
lic workers to salaries only, abolished
dues check-off and required that the
unions be recertified annually by a
majority of their membership—not
just most of those voting. A Federal
Judge struck down much of the law,
but the state is appealing.
Ohio Also Targeted
In Ohio, voters late last year re-
pealed a bill championed by Republi-
can Gov. John R. Kasich that restrict-
ed bargaining rights for public em-
ployees. But the anti-union efforts
continue, and conservatives are now
pushing to add Ohio to the list of
“right-to-work” states.
In Indiana, Republican Gov. Mitch
Daniels signed a “right-to-work” law
for his state—the first such bill
passed in 10 years—in February.
Ms. Kent said anti-union laws such
as right-to-work retard the economic
recovery, because they deprive work-
ers of jobs that pay a livable wage and
allow them to make purchases. “It’s
more of a race to the bottom while cor-
porations are making record profits,”
she said. Unions “have to start put-
ting together a strategy to combat
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© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
this” on a national basis, she added.
Proponents of “right-to-work” laws
say they are actually helping workers
by allowing them the choice of keep-
ing more money in their pockets. But
the unions say “right-to-work” is fi-
nancially devastating by weakening
unions and thus depressing wages. An
AFL-CIO fact sheet says the average
worker in a “right-to-work” state
makes $1,540 less per year, the me-
dian household income is $6,437 less,
and 28 percent more people lack
health insurance.
“Governor Snyder's own flip-flop on
this issue reveals the lengths to which
he is willing to go to deliver for the
Koch brothers, the American Legisla-
tive Exchange Council, CEOs and oth-
er extremists waging a war on work-
ing people,” said Randi Weingarten,
president of the American Federation
of Teachers.
‘Take Nothing for Granted’
STEVE MADARASZ: Forcing
unions to divert resources.
SUSAN KENT: ‘Really cut-
ting into labor nationally.
RICK SNYDER: Accused of
‘war on working people.’
Account: 23070 (14121)
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Keyword: CSEA
Renewed Attack on Labor
Any notion that the radical anti-union forces in this
country might be chastened by last month’s election
results went up in smoke when “right-to-work” laws
were swiftly pushed through the Michigan State Leg-
islature and signed by Gov. Rick Snyder last week.
The same basic formula was at work as during a
similar hijacking of union rights in Wisconsin near-
ly two years ago: a Republican-controlled Legisla-
ture and Governor, and a lobbying effort bankrolled
by the odious Koch brothers, the billionaire indus-
trialists who hate unions as much as they detest en-
vironmental regulations. Despite claims that this
was aimed at empowering individuals to not have
their dues money become captive to their union lead-
ers’ interests, the real political agenda was under-
scored in both states by the exemptions from the new
laws for both police and fire unions, the labor groups
which are most likely to be conservative.
Union officials representing New York State work-
ers described the measures, which have long been
standard in the South and are being taken up by an
increasing number of GOP-led state governments in
the Midwest, as a potential threat here. That seems
far-fetched at this point—while the name of Car] Pal-
adino was invoked by a Civil Service Employees As-
sociation spokesman, that Tea Party-backed GOP gu-
bernatorial candidate proved an embarrassment to
the party not only by the margin of his defeat but
based on his rabid rhetoric and tawdry past. It’s hard
to imagine someone of his ilk having a serious chance
of winning in a state that has become increasingly
Democratic in both the suburbs and upstate regions.
But Public Employees Federation President Susan
Kent noted that such laws “are really cutting into la-
bor” nationally, and they have been proven to depress
wages in the states where they've been adopted, as
well as making fringe benefits either scarce or a
shadow of what is provided in states where union
shops require that workers pay dues to the union
with the bargaining certificate for their job title even
if they choose not to become full-fledged members.
State AFL-CIO President Mario Cilento noted in a
letter to the editor published in the Dec. 15 New York
Post the toll taken by right-to-work conditions goes
well beyond the wage gap: “28 percent more workers
lack health insurance, the poverty rate is 18 percent
higher and workplace deaths are 36 percent higher.”
Yet he was a lonely voice in a letters column that
reflects the right-wing tilt of the paper's editorial
page: the other six missives on the subject were re-
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liably anti-union, with one letter-writer stating,
“Unions had a purpose years ago, but now they have
become political shakedowns with their dues require-
ments going to their admitted socialist leaders to give
to politicians of their choice.”
The sentiments were as clichéd as they were wrong.
There is much less of a socialist grounding to today’s
union leaders than there was 70 or 80 years ago, and
the continuing importance of unions even with the
achievements during that era can be seen in the fact
that over the past 40 years, wages for working people
have stayed roughly flat once adjusted for inflation,
while executive compensation has soared into the strat-
osphere during that period. It is no coincidence that
union representation today, at less than 12 percent na-
tionally (and about half that percentage in the private
sector) is one-third what it was in the early 1970s.
As Hedrick Smith, the author of the new book “Who
Stole the American Dream?”, remarked in an inter-
view on “New York Times Close-Up” this past week-
end, “Middle-class prosperity goes with middle-class
power.” Unions, even with their imperfections and the
outright corruption that has infested some, have been
the primary engines of that middle-class power.
Even members of the police and fire unions, how-
ever conservative in their politics, should not be
fooled by the special treatment afforded their
brethren in states like Michigan and Wisconsin: the
weakening of the labor movement as a whole hurts
their own bargaining power.
Page 2 of 2
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For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
OBSERVER
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Friday, December 21, 2012
DUNKIRK, NY
83,300 (49)
Newspaper (D)
ALAS
Main
CSEA
CSEA proposal could save $400K yearly
By LIZ SKOCZYLAS
OBSERVER Mayville Bureau
MAYVILLE - Proposals made
in a letter by the CSEA to county
Officials could add up to hundreds
of thousands of dollars in savings
for the County Home.
County legislators may not be
privy to information regarding
CSEA negotiations, but they did
receive a letter regarding the
union’s proposals for the County
Home. An abbreviated version of
the letter was read during
Wednesday’s legislature meeting.
Due to the Taylor Law, Steve
Abdella, county attorney, advised
legislators not to speak publicly
about the union’s proposals.
The OBSERVER obtained a
copy of the six-page letter, which
was addressed from the CSEA
Western Region Office to Joseph
Porpiglia, county director of
human resources. Additionally, it
obtained a separate 11-page docu-
ment of proposed changes to the
Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Proposed changes could stretch
upward of $400,000 in annual
savings.
“The county executive has
instructed CSEA by letter dated
Nov. 28, to submit proposals to
the County negotiating team con-
cerning any changes CSEA is will-
ing to make concerning work
tules, pay and benefits to keep the
County Nursing Home economi-
cally viable,” the letter states.
Additionally in the November
letter from County Executive Greg
Edwards, it was asked that CSEA
make recommendations to
increase the home's revenue. For
this request, CSEA chose to defer
to an August 2012 report issued
by the Center for Governmental
Research.
“CSEA has studied that report
and whole-heartedly supports the
recommendations for revenue
enhancements stated therein,” the
letter states.
© 2012 OBSERVER
All Rights Reserves,
The letter, which was signed by
Penny Gleason, CSEA labor rela-
tions specialist, goes on to ask
that Porpiglia accept the corre-
spondence as an explanation of
the proposals the union has pre-
pared prior to entering into nego-
tiations with the county.
Several proposals are made in
the letter, including proposals
regarding wages, pay increments,
longevity with the county, substi-
tute employees, health insurance,
sick leave, holidays, uniform
allowance and overtime.
“All provisions of the current
Collective Bargaining Agreement
would still apply to employees of
the Chautauqua County Nursing
Home,” the proposal states.
“Where provisions of the current
Collective Bargaining Agreement
are modified to apply to nursing
home employees only, these provi-
sions shall be stated at Article 18
Special Provisions for County
Home and shall not affect any
other employees covered by this
agreement.”
WAGES
The first proposal sug-
gests a wage freeze for all
four years of the contract.
The CSEA calculated the
average salary of County
Home employees to be
$36,613 per year. The
Center for Governmental
Research stated that payroll,
which excludes overtime
pay, is $6.9 million per year.
INCREMENTS
The letter also proposes
to stop increases, which are
given to eligible employees
from the date of ratification
to the end of the contract.
“Based on information
provided to the CSEA by the
county - of 187 eligible
employees 127 employees
have reached or should have
reached step 9 of the salary
schedule and would there-
fore be ineligible for any
additional increases,” the
letter states.
For the 70 employees still
moving through the salary
schedule, no increments
would be awarded if the
union and the county come
to an agreement. According
to CSEA calculations, this
would result in a savings of
$76,887 per year in each of
the contract’s three years.
LONGEVITY
An employee receives an
additional $40 for each year
of service after 10. So, the
CSEA also proposes a freeze
on the increases in longevity
to which employees would
be eligible to receive based
on increased years of service
for the duration of the con-
tract. The CSEA calculates
by freezing the longevity
increases, $3,840 per year
would be saved in each of
the contract’s three years.
It also proposes a lower
longevity rate for employees
who are hired on or after the
ratification of the agree-
ment.
SUBSTITUTE
EMPLOYEES
The Center for
Governmental _ Research
report reports that there are
233 full-time equivalent
positions at the County
Home, with 92 substitute
employees.
“Most substitutes are
paid at step 3 of the salary
schedule for the grade in
which their title is placed.
However, 17 of the 92 are
paid above that step 3 rate,”
the letter sates.
In this case, CSEA pro-
poses that all substitute
employees be placed at the
first step of the salary sched-
ule for their title. By doing
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OBSERVER
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 OBSERVER
All Rights Reserves,
this, a total savings of
$148,890 could be recog-
nized, according to the
CSEA.
HEALTH INSURANCE
The letter also makes sup-
positions regarding employ-
ee health insurance. It esti-
mates that 151 of the
County Home’s 187 employ-
ees are enrolled in the coun-
ty health insurance program.
The letter estimates that for
each employee who enrolls
in the High Deductible Plan
rather than the Preferred
Provider Network, there
would be savings. The letter
assumes 20 percent of the
County Home Employees
would enroll in the High
Deductible plan, which
would save a total of
$80,040.
“CSEA believes these are
conservative figures, given
the county’s marketing abili-
ty and the educational infor-
mation that will be given to
employees,” the letter states.
SICK LEAVE
Several proposals have
also been made regarding
sick time for employees of
the county home. One pro-
posal eliminates the sick
leave bonus, which the
CSEA said will be a savings
of $15,065 to the county.
The letter also proposes
that, in order to stop
employees from extending a
holiday by using sick time,
that they must work the day
before and following a
scheduled holiday, or not
receive holiday pay. It also
proposes forming a sick
leave use committee to help
lessen sick leave use.
OTHER ITEMS
Another proposal, which
the CSEA said will result in
savings of $52,678, is to
eliminate Good Friday and
Election Day as holidays.
Eliminating uniform
allowances, which is paid to
employees in the Nursing
Department, would result in
saving $29,500 annually, the
letter states. And, the letter
proposes that employees be
allowed to contribute to the
Chautauqua County Home
Fund through payroll deduc-
tion.
NEXT STEPS
Paul Wendel, R-
Lakewood, asked during
Wednesday’s _ legislature
meeting why legislators
received a copy of the pro-
posal, when they are unable
to discuss it.
“If this is going to be pre-
sented as to our knowledge
or understanding of the con-
tract, why are we given a
portion of that contract?”
Wendel asked. “This is per-
taining to County Home
employees.”
Despite questions by
Wendel and other legisla-
tors, Abdella repeatedly
cited the Taylor Law during
the meeting in an attempt to
explain why the negotiations
should not be discussed.
“The county could be
viewed as having had an
improper practice and not
negotiating in good faith,
because it permitted the leg-
islative body to involve itself
in negotiations and com-
pletely muddy the waters as
far as the negotiation
process,” Abdella said.
Abdella assured legisla-
tors that the county is in a
fact-finding stage in the
negotiation process. The
county executive will con-
tinue to work with CSEA
officials, but legislators have
no part in the negotiation
unless negotiations reach
impasse.
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a ston ourna Location: BALLSTON SPA, NY
Circulation (OMA): 2,300 (56)
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Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Union tries
.to save
Maplewood
BY JAMES TWIGG
jtwige@theballstonjournal.com
Members of the union representing Saratoga County
employees (CSEA) are actively campaigning to keep Ma-
plewood Manor nursing home under control of the county.
The board of supervisors voted last month to transfer
control of Maplewood Manor into the hands of a local de-
velopment corporation (LDC). The LDC will be working
with a private operator in order to manage the sale.
CSEA spokeswoman Therese Assalian has been active-
ly trying to prevent this from happening. She says that
the county was interested in weighing their options over
the summer, and came up with a quick decision to move
forward.
“They are moving way too fast,” said Assalian. “This
solution they came to with the LDC is not a good solu-
tion.”
In their efforts to keep Maplewood Manor a county
nursing home, Assalian says they have been campaigning
for the past few months. Overall between advertising, a
float outside of the county complex, and the turn out at
the meetings, it seems that word is getting out but it’s still
unknown whether or not Maplewood Manor will remain
under control of Saratoga County.
“We’ve been running a campaign for months that cam-
paign involved meeting with supervisors which we are
still doing,” said Assalian. “We have a group of employ-
ees and community members that we’ve been coordinat-
ing with. We have been doing some advertising, and will
continue to do advertising to get the word out.”
Asecond and final public hearing is already scheduled.
The process has been moving forward towards each vote,
with no guarantee of what the future will bring for Maple-
Please see Journal on page 3
wood Manor.
Assalian is worried that the
switch to private ownership
of Maplewood Manor may
spell bad news for current residence. It could lead to some
of those currently residing there to no longer have a place
to stay or could result in the closing of the nursing home
all together.
Furthermore, Assalian is worried about the impact that
the sale might have on local jobs as well. County employ-
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© 2012 BALLSTON JOURNAL
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NY-aI
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Keyword: CSEA
ees could potentially face unemployment if Maplewood
Manor is indeed switched over to private ownership.
For now, Assalian and the other members of the CSEA.
will continue their campaign and wait anxiously for the fi-
nal hearing to learn what will become of the nursing home.
“There’s a public hearing coming on January 9th, that’s
the next step,” said Assalian. “They are going to be voting
we think after that, it could be as early as January to final-
ize the transfer.”
Though there is still time for the CSEA to stop the privati-
zation of Maplewood Manor, their window of opportunity
is ever shrinking as Jan. 9 approaches. At this moment,
the future for Maplewood Manor, its residents, and its
employees is unknown.
Page 2 of 2
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Al Rights Reserved,
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NY-aI
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Friday, December 21, 2012
e Os ourna Catation JAMESTOWN, NY.
Circulation (DMA): 15,168 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
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Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Concessions On The Table
CSEA Proposal For County Home Workers Could Save Upwards Of $400K A Year
By Liz Skoczy.
s
Iskoczylas@post-journal.com
MAYVILLE — Proposals made in a let-
ter by the CSEA to county officials could
add up to hundreds of thousands of dollars in
savings for the County Home.
County legislators may not be privy to
information regarding CSEA negotiations,
but they did receive a letter regarding the
union’s proposals for the County Home. An
abbreviated version of the letter was read
during Wednesday’s legislature meeting.
Due to the Taylor Law, Steve
Abdella, county attorney,
advised legislators not to speak
publicly about the union’s pro-
posals.
The Post-Journal obtained a
copy of the six-page letter,
which was addressed from the
CSEA Wester Region Office
to Joseph Porpiglia, county
director of human resources.
Additionally, it obtained a separate | 1-page
document of proposed changes to the Collec-
tive Bargaining Agreement.
Proposed changes could stretch
upward of $400,000 in annual
savings.
“The county executive has
instructed CSEA by letter dated
Nov. 28, to submit proposals to
the County negotiating team
concerning any changes CSEA
is willing to make concerning
work rules, pay and benefits to
The letter, which was
signed by Penny Gleason,
CSEA labor relations spe-
cialist, goes on to ask that
Porpiglia accept the corre-
spou lence as an explana-
tion of the proposals the
union has prepared prior to
entering into negotiations
with the county.
Several proposals are
made in the letter, includ-
ing proposals regarding
wages, pay increments,
longevity with the county,
substitute employees,
health insurance, sick
leave, holidays, uniform
allowance and overtime.
“AIl provisions of the
current Collective Bargain-
ing Agreement would still
apply to employees of the
Chautauqua County Nurs-
ing Home,” the proposal
states. “Where provisions
of the current Collective
Bargaining Agreement are
modified to apply to nurs-
ing home employees only,
these provisions shall be
stated at Article 18 Special
Provisions for County
Home and shall not affect
any other employees cov-
ered by this agreement.”
WAGES
provided to the CSEA by
the county — of 187 eligi-
ble employees 127
employees have reached or
should have reached step 9
of the salary schedule and
would therefore be ineligi-
ble for any additional
increases,” the letter states.
For the 70 employees
still moving through the
salary schedule, no incre-
ments would be awarded if
the union and the county
come to an agreement.
According to CSEA calcu-
lations, this would result in
a savings of $76,887 per
year in each of the con-
tract’s three years.
LONGEVITY
An employee receives an
additional $40 for each
year of service after 10.
So, the CSEA also propos-
es a freeze on the increases
in longevity to which
employees would be eligi-
ble to receive based on
increased years of service
for the duration of the con-
tract. The CSEA calculates
by freezing the longevity
increases, $3,840 per year
would be saved in each of
the contract’s three years.
It also proposes a lower
keep the County Nursing Home economical- The first proposal sug- longevity rate for employees
ly viable,” the letter states. gests a mage ooze for all tid ee fired on or ater the
Additionally in the November letter from four years of the contract. ratification of the agreement.
County Executive Greg Edwards, it was The CSEA calculated the SUBSTITUTE
asked that CSEA make recommendations to 2Verage salary of County EMPLOYEES
increase the home’s revenue. For this Home employees to be The Center for Govern-
request, CSEA chose to defer to an August $36,613 per year. The ental Rese eh ae t
2012 report issued by the Center forGov- Center for Governmental ™n there are 234
Shiraenial Research, Research stated that pay- States that there are 233
“CSEA has studied that report and whole- Toll, which excludes over- pul ine alone BO:
time pay, is $6.9 million tions at the County Home,
heartedly supports the recommendations for pay ° with 92 substitute employ.
to stop increases, which are
given to eligible employees
from the date of ratification
to the end of the contract.
“Based on information
revenue enhancements stated therein,” the peryear. 2
letter states. See CSEA. INCREMENTS &Most substitutes are
Page AG The letter also proposes paid at step 3 of the salary
schedule for the grade in
which their title is placed.
However, 17 of the 92 are
paid above that step 3
rate,” the letter states.
Page 1 of 2
© 2012 POST JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (14117)
Nvsid
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
The Post-Journal
Date: Friday, December 21, 2012
Location: JAMESTOWN, NY
Circulation (OMA): 15,168 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: ALAS
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 POST JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserves,
In this case, CSEA pro-
poses that all substitute
employees be placed at the
first step of the salary
schedule for their title. By
doing this, a total savings
of $148,890 could be rec-
ognized, according to the
CSEA.
HEALTH INSURANCE
The letter also makes
suppositions regarding
employee health insurance.
It estimates that 151 of the
County Home's 187
employees are enrolled in
the county health insurance
program. The letter esti-
mates that for each employ-
ee who enrolls in the High
Deductible Plan rather than
the Preferred Provider Net-
work, there would be sav-
ings. The letter assumes 20
percent of the County Home
employees would enroll in
the High Deductible Plan,
which would save a total of
$80,040.
“CSEA believes these
are conservative figures,
given the county’s market-
ing ability and the educa-
tional information that will
be given to employees,”
the letter states.
SICK LEAVE
Several proposals have
also been made regarding
sick time for employees of
the county home. One pro-
osal eliminates the sick
eave bonus, which the
CSEA said will be a sav-
ings of $15,065 to the
county.
The letter also proposes
that, in order to stop
employees from exicadine
a holiday by using sic
time, that they must work
the day before and follow-
ing a scheduled holiday, or
not receive holiday pay. It
also proposes forming a
sick leave use committee
to help lessen sick leave
use.
OTHER ITEMS
Another proposal, which
the CSEA said will result
in savings of $52,678, is to
eliminate Good Friday and
Election Day as holidays.
Eliminating uniform
allowances, which is paid
to employees in the Nurs-
ing Department, would
result in saving $29,500
annually, the letter states.
And, the letter proposes
that employees be allowed
to contribute to the Chau-
tauqua County Home Fund
through payroll deduction.
NEXT STEPS
Paul Wendel, R-Lake-
wood, asked during
Wednesday’s legislature
meeting why Legislators
received a copy of the pro-
posal, when they are
unable to discuss it.
“If this is going to be
presented as to our knowl-
edge or understanding of
the contract, why are we
given a portion of that con-
tract?” Wendel asked.
“This is pertaining to
County Home employees.”
Despite questions by
Wendel and other legisla-
tors, Abdella repeatedly
cited the Taylor Law dur-
ing the meeting in an
attempt to explain why the
negotiations should not be
discussed,
“The county could be
viewed as having had an
improper practice and not
negotiating in good faith,
because it permitted the
legislative body to involve
itself in negotiations and
completely muddy the
waters as far as the negoti-
ation process,” Abdella
said.
Abdella assured legisla-
tors that the county is in a
fact-finding stage in the
negotiation process. The
county executive will con-
tinue to work with CSEA
officials, but legislators
have no part in the negotia-
tion unless negotiations
reach impasse.
Account: 23070 (14117)
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Keyword:
Thursday, December 20, 2012
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (56)
Newspaper (D)
5
Capital Region
CSEA
Maplewood disposal advances
Saratoga County agrees
to more fees related to
nursing home lease deal
By Dennis Yusko
BALLSTON SPA — Saratoga
County supervisors voted to spend
an additional $35,000 on attorney
fees toward the expected lease and
sale of its nursing home, which
continues to serve as a refuge for
dozens of fire victims, as a crucial
vote on its future nears.
Under a resolution passed by
the Board of Supervisors on Tues-
day, the county will hire Harris
Beach to complete the lease of
Maplewood Manor nursing home
to a local development corpora-
tion. The legal bill comes on top
of $50,000 the county paid the
firm this year for a study that led a
majority of supervisors to support
a privatization plan for the public
nursing home.
Under the county’s plan, a local
development corporation made up
of county leaders will borrow $6
million from the public nursing
home’s sale, include that money
in the 2013 county budget and
try to sell Maplewood Manor to a
private buyer by the end of 2014.
A public hearing on transferring
the 237-resident facility to the
corporation is scheduled for Jan.
9. County supervisors will vote on
the plan on Jan. 15.
“T think everyone is a little con-
cerned and worried, and they’re
just waiting and seeing,” Maple-
wood Manor Administrator Diane
Brown said Wednesday.
Board of Supervisors Chairman
Thomas Wood III and Vice Chair-
man Alan Grattidge have said tax-
payers cannot afford to continue
paying for the nursing home’s fi-
nancial losses. Annual deficits go-
ing back to 2004 have depleted the
county's reserves by about $60 mil-
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserves,
lion, county Administrator Spencer
Hellwig III said.
The privatization plan has the
board’s support. While six mem-
bers of the 23-person body op-
posed forming the development
corporation last month, all but
one voted Tuesday to pay Harris
Beach the $35,000. Supervisors re-
cently passed a county budget for
next year that includes the $6 mil-
lion achieved through borrowing
against Maplewood’s equity.
On Tuesday, supervisors also
voted to set a fee of $44.13 a day
for 31 residents of the Home of
the Good Shepherd in Malta, who
were displaced by a fire on Dec.
2 and moved into a 40-bed wing
in Maplewood that the county
had closed last month as part of
a downsizing effort. The Malta
home provides its own staff to care
for the residents, and is paying
the county to cover lodging, food
and bed linen costs, Hellwig said.
Persons who were relocated could
remain at Maplewood for another
few weeks, or until the Malta home
is repaired, Maplewood’s Brown
said.
Patricia Southworth, town su-
pervisor of Ballston, said the ar-
rangement showed the county has
aneed for nursing home services.
Southworth opposed selling Ma-
plewood Manor because she thinks
quality of care will suffer if it’s sold,
but she supported Tuesday’s reso-
lution to retain Harris Beach.
“If it does happen, we want to
make sure it happens correctly and
the county is protected on legal
fronts,” Southworth said.
Members of the Civil Service
Employees Union, which repre-
sents hundreds of employees at
Maplewood, are making a late push
to derail the privatization effort.
“CSEA is coordinating with
community members and Maple-
wood Manor employees to lobby
supervisors and get as many people
as possible to the January 9 public
hearing,” spokeswoman Therese
Assalian said. The union is running
advertisements about Maplewood
Manor’s future because it thinks
many county residents are not
aware of the changes proposed, As-
salian said.
> dyusko@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5353 = @DAYusko
‘Account: 23070 (14080)
NY-10
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 1
BALDWIN HERALD
Date: Thursday, December 20, 2012
Location: LAWRENCE, NY
Circulation (DMA): 3,773 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 15
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Sani2
to stay
By CHRIS CONNOLLY
cconnolly@iinerald.com
The votes are in. and Sanitary District 2 will
remain in operation. The final count was 4,597 to
keep the district in place and 1,682 to dissolve it.
Following an extremely high turnout, reactions
on both sides of the election were positive. The
commissioners and supporters of the sanitary
district thanked those who voted in their favor. and
even some of those behind the movement to
dissolve the district had a positive take on the
outcome.
Sani2 supporters jubilant
History is written by the victors, and the story
being told by Sani2 and its boosters is one of hold-
ing off a band of mercenary invaders.
In an email to his colleagues and members of
the media, Sanitary Commissioner Jerry Brown
called the referendum “unprecedented and histor-
ic.” and described the coalition that demanded the
vote as “carpetbaggers that invaded our home-
town.”
“The taxpayers of Baldwin, South Hempstead
and Roosevelt voted to keep Sanitary District #2,
and send these outsiders packing by a 4,597 to 1.682
Vote: a 73 percent victory.” Brown wrote, He went
on to voice the hope that “the District Attorney's
office will take a close look at these paid political
operatives that perpetrated this fraud on the good
people of [D]istrict 2.”
Messages celebrating the win also came from
the Baldwin Chamber of Commerce and Nick
LaMorte, president of the Long Island Region's
Civil Service Employees union. “The sustained
efforts of paid political operatives from two special-
interest groups to subject the residents of Sanita-
tion District 2 to a barrage of lies and distortions
were ultimately unsuccessful,” LaMorte said. “We
were confident from the outset that voters would
see through this charade.” LaMorte was joined by
Local 882 President John Shepherd, Sanitation
District Unit 1 President John Laibach, Sanitation
© 2012 BALDWIN HERALD
Al Rights Reserves,
District Unit 2 President Chris Seaman and Recy-
See SANITARY, page 5
cling Unit President Russ Brower is issuing congratulations.
LIPC reacts
Among members of the Long Island Progressive Coalition
and Residents for Efficient Special Districts, the outlook was
positive as well — with equivocations. David Segal, commu-
nications coordinator for the LIPC, which backed RESD, said
he felt that while his group's referendum did not pass, it was
not altogether unsuccessful.
“The thing we’re most excited about is that the vote
mobilized a higher number of people than you see in these
kinds of elections,” Segal said. “Turnout was at least triple
the mobilization you usually see, which means people are
talking about these issues. That’s never a bad thing. The
more people that take civic engagement seriously, the more
excited we will be.”
Asked why he thought Sani2 had such a strong showing,
Segal pointed to the district's work after Hurricane Sandy.
“The district's performance after Sandy was great,” he said.
“That's to their credit.”
Segal went on to say that his side's efforts would pay divi-
dends in the future. “I think as a result of this effort, you
might see people being more active in traditionally nonpoliti-
cal parts of Long Island,” he said. “This isn’t the end of
efforts like this.”
SAMI 2 VOTING RESULTS
Yes 1,682
No 4,597
Account: 23070 (14172)
N38
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BALDWIN HERALD Date: Tue Cision
Location:
Circulation (OMA): 3,773 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 15
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
710Z ‘OZ 4equiaded — C1VN3H NIMCIVa
Chris Connolly/Herald file photo
SANITARY DISTRICT 2 won a referendum to continue operations in convincing fashion. The Herald spoke to
both sides to get their reactions to the result.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 BALDWIN HERALD
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (14172)
N36
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THE
ARATOGIAN ="
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Keyword:
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
6,812 (56)
Newspaper (D)
110
Main
CSEA
MapLewoop Manor
Union’s goal:
Save facility
were still open to viable
cost-saving ideas to stabi-
lize the financial state of
Maplewood Manor, but
that the home can’t keep
running millions of dollars
in the red.
“We have to stop pre-
tending that if we wait
things will improve on
their own. A failure to
move forward immediate-
ly will result in a loss of
what little fund balance
By CAITLINMORRIS —_ board has scheduled a Jan. We have left,” Wood said,
cmorris@saratogian.com 9 vote to create the local referring to the county
Twitter.com/CMsaratogian development corporation. __ udget.
County attorney Stephen In Orange County, the
BALLSTON SPA — The
union representing Sarato-
ga County employees
vowed Tuesday to actively
campaign to keep Maple-
wood Manor as a county-
owned nursing home.
“We've taken issue with
the process by which the
supervisors moved forward
Dorsey had said earlier this
month transferring Maple-
See UNION, Page 10A
wood Manor to an LDC
would require a two-
thirds vote of the board, in
accordance with a county
Jaw. But Tuesday evening
he cited a state law indi-
privatization of the coun-
ty-owned nursing home
Valley View was recently
reversed, following a cam-
paign waged by nursing
home employees, political
pressure and contractual
concessions made by
CSEA, which Assalian
hinted at being willing to
with the LDC,” said cating that the vote would 40inSaratoga.
Therese Assalian, a spokes- need only a simple major- ‘We made it quite clear
woman for CSEA’s regional _ ity to pass. that we would be willing to
office, Tuesday. “This is a big change Work with the county, and
At the end of last month,
the Board of Supervisors
voted to transfer the public
facility into the hands of a
local development corpora-
tion to manage its sale to a
private operator.
In the union’s view,
Assalian said, “the Republi-
can caucus met privately
and decided this was the
plan to push through the
LDC, and every step has
been part of that plan and
very little has been open to
public input.”
The process toward pri-
vatization is muddy enough
for at least one supervisor
— Joanne Yepsen, one of
Saratoga Springs’ two rep-
resentatives — to recom-
mend the county get a pro-
fessional opinion from the
state Attorney General on
how to proceed. The county
that could take place for
the county on Jan. 9, and
I think we should be sure
we know how to proceed
under the law; the best
place I know to do that is
the state,” said Yepsen,
one of six members of
the 23-member county
board who had voted
against pursuing the
LDC.
Assalian said the union
wants residents of
Saratoga County to seri-
ously consider the effects
of the privatization move
on the county’s elderly
population, and is also
concerned about county
jobs.
At Tuesday’s monthly
Saratoga County Board of
Supervisors meeting,
Chairman Thomas Wood
noted that supervisors
they have not reached out
to us in any way to discuss
cost-saving measures,”
Assalian said Tuesday.
Saratoga Springs
Supervisor Matt Veitch
said that if there have
been any concessions
made or offered by the
union, he has not seen
them. “But I’m always
willing to be open to sug-
gestions,” Veitch said.
“Even at this late point,
you always have to be
open to ideas.”
The union says it will
focus on developing a
campaign with Maple-
wood Manor employees
and television ads to
catch the attention of
county residents.
Brian Nealon, CEO of
Wesley Nursing Home, a
faith-based, private non-
profit in Saratoga Springs,
Page 1 of 2
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
All Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (14072)
NSIS
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
THE
ARATOGIAN
Date: Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Location: SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 6,812 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
1,10
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
All Rights Reserved,
said Tuesday he has
looked at the numbers
and doubts a private oper-
ator would want to buy
Maplewood Manor as-is.
“County officials will
struggle to find an entity
to come in and pay the
market value for the
property, given the fact
that right now the proper-
ty is committed to being a
277-bed nursing home
and it’s sustaining a loss
of many millions a year,”
Nealon said.
On Dee. 11, the Board
of Supervisors adopted a
2013 county budget that
included a controversial
revenue item — $6 million
borrowed from the equity
of Maplewood Manor.
That item led three super-
visors to vote against the
budget.
One was Supervisor
Yepsen. “I can’t support
bad accounting practices
of borrowing money
against an asset (Maple-
wood Manor) to pay for
operations, and I can’t
support raising taxes
without deeper spending
cuts,” she said.
The budget that was
approved will increase
the average countywide
tax rate to $2.27 per $1,000
assessed value, a 4-cent
raise from this year.
County officials say keep-
ing Maplewood in the
hands of the county would
have required a 20 per-
cent increase in county
property taxes. For a
home assessed at
$250,000, the raise would
be just over $100 a year.
“Keeping Maplewood
Manor would mean we
either raise taxes or cut
services,” Veitch said.
Pat Reed is a former
nursing administrator at
Albany Medical Center
and regularly attends the
county Public Health
Committee meetings as
an observer for the local
League of Women Voters.
She says that the county
already doesn’t have
enough beds available in
nursing homes, and calls
the issue a “medical cri-
sis.”
“J don’t think it is in the
best interests of Saratoga
County to rush forward
with this,” Reed said
Tuesday. She said county
officials “stated it would
be transparent and there
would be lots of room for
input, and I believe the
decision was made by two.
men in a room and the
other supervisors just
played out a role.”
A second and final pub-
lic hearing is scheduled
for Jan. 9, immediately
before the Board of
Supervisors votes to
transfer Maplewood
Manor in the LDC.
One Saratoga Springs
resident, Cliff Ammon,
said he is among those
county citizens ready to
fight to keep Maplewood
Manor a public facility.
“The people are out
there sharpening their
pitchforks,” Ammon said.
Account: 23070 (14072)
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Date: Wednesday, December 19, 2012
LONG ISLAND, NY
297,601 (1)
Newspaper (D)
A28
Main
United Public Service Employees Union
ISLIP TOWN
Union criticizes security layoffs
BY NICOLE FULLER
nicole fuller@newsday.com
The union representing most
Town of Islip employees is ques-
tioning the decision to lay off se-
curity personnel and harbor po-
lice, saying the moves conflict
‘with the town’s recent efforts to
beef up security at Town Hall
and maintain safe waters.
The town board last month
approved the layoffs of 35 town
employees — including three
security guards and four mem-
bers of the harbor police — as
it moves to close a $12 million
budget deficit. The board also
raised property taxes 28 per-
cent.
But officials from the United
Public Service _ Employees
Union which- represents about
370 Islip Town workers, said
losing the security guards
would leave the town without
© 2012 Newsday in,
All Rights Reserved,
staffing for a newly installed se-
curity post at Town Hall.
“The town was emphatic
that there needed to be securi-
ty at the town’s main office
building to ensure the safety of
town leaders, staff, town resi-
dents and taxpayers who visit
the building for town services,”
said Patrick E. Boyle Jr., union
president. “Is the town’s mes-
sage with these layoffs that this
was four weeks ago, and we're
really not concerned with their
safety?”
Town Supervisor Tom Croci
said he’d prefer to avoid lay-
offs, but they are part of the
town’s fiscal reality. Croci said
the addition of the guard post
at Town Hall was a “security en-
hancement” that will remain.
He declined to comment on spe-
cific security measures but said
any further changes will merit
Account: 23070 (14063)
NY-56,
“appropriate public notice.”
“Our job is to not only look
out for our employees but the
taxpayers as well,” said Croci, a
Republican. “We're balancing
the safety needs of our town in
acknowledgment that there are
state and local partners that
play a role in the town as well.”
Union officials also chal-
lenged the decision to leave the
area’s waterways without a
town security presence. The
layoffs of three bay constables
and one supervisor would effec-
tively disband the unit.
Patrick _Passaretti, the
union’s labor relations repre-
sentative, said relying solely on
Suffolk Police and the Coast
Guard would leave the public
“in danger. ... Their boats
break down; there’s no one to
rescue them.” he said.
For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www: NewscayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
Page 1 of 1
It
Date:
Location:
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ceyword:
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
SYRACUSE, NY
78,616 (79)
Newspaper (D)
5
Main
CSEA
LOCAL NEWS
County transfers Van Duyn
Move is the county’s first
step in selling nursing home
to private operator.
By Rick Moriarty
Staff writer
The Onondaga County Leg-
islature voted 13-4 Tuesday to
transfer Van Duyn Home &
Hospital to a county-created
development corporation —
the first step toward selling the
513-bed nursing home to a pri-
vate operator.
The vote came despite
threats by the union represent-
ing most of Van Duyn’s 559
employees to take legal action
to try to stop the transfer to the
Onondaga Civic Development
Corp.
The transfer is a legal ma-
neuver to allow the sale of the
county-owned nursing home to
Rockland County-based Up-
state Services Group, a private
nursing home operator. Plans
are for the OCDC to sell the
facility to Upstate Services at
the end of November 2013 for
$5 million and hold a five-year
mortgage as part of the trans-
action.
The interim step is neces-
sary because the county could
not legally hold a mortgage on
the property, while the civic
development corporation
could,
Supporters said the county
has little choice but to sell the
nursing home. If it does not,
county taxpayers will have to
foot the bill for an estimated
$1 million-a-month operating
deficit caused by inadequate
Medicaid reimbursement rates,
they said. The state has frozen
the reimbursement rates at
1987 levels to pressure the
county to get out of the nurs-
ing home business, they said.
© 2012 POST-STANDARD
Al Rights Reserves,
‘As I see it, it’s really the
only solution,’’ said Legislator
Michael Plochocki, R-Marcel-
lus.
Before the vote, Phil Gra-
ham, president of Civil Service
Employees Association Local
, Said the sale to a private
operator could result in staff
cuts and a reduction in the
quality of patient care. He also
questioned the accuracy of the
county’s estimates of future
deficits at Van Duyn.
Legislator Monica Wil-
liams, D-Syracuse, said she
opposed the sale because she
is not sure that Upstate Ser-
vices will continue Van
Duyn’s policy of accepting the
most needy and hard-to-place
patients. She and legislators
Linda Ervin, Chris Ryan and
John Dougherty were the only
lawmakers to vote against the
transfer.
Though the price that Up-
state Services will pay for Van
Duyn is $5 million, the county
will net much less from the
transaction because lawmakers
also voted 13-4 today to give
the operator $2 million to as-
sist with first-month operating
costs. They also voted today to
borrow $2.5 million to demol-
ish the former tuberculosis
sanatorium on the property.
Contact Rick Moriarty at
Teo sy pveanies com or
470-3148.
‘Account: 23070 (14075)
Nve7e
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ownership
Page 1 of 1
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
JOURNAL NEWS teeation: WHITE PLAINS, NY
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM) Grreulalion (OMA), 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
County budget cuts union leader’s job
Astorino’s move decried as heavy-handed, anti-union
By David McKay Wilson
dwilson3@lohud.com
sions came in exchange
for a contract clause that
prohibited layoffs for
Astorino’s decision to
eliminate Pecora’s job in
the Department of Parks
A 2013 Westchester “budgetary reasons.” and Recreation came at
County budget that cut the ThecountyLegislature the behest of Parks Com-
jobofthe outspoken presi- voted 10-7 to restore the missioner Kathleen
dent of the county govern- jobs, but Vanderhoef ve- O’Connor, based on her as-
ment’s largest public em-
ployee union is being de-
toed 45 of the CSEA job
restorations. He main-
sessment of the depart-
ment’s staffing needs,
criedbysomeaspartofan tained that privatizing Greene said.
anti-union wave sweeping foodand security services Though Pecora’s job ti-
parts of the country. tosave money wasa“pro- tle — secretary 1, word
Ken Margolies, senior
associate at Cornell Uni-
versity’s School of Indus-
trial and Labor Relations,
said that over his 26-year
career in the field, it’s the
first time he has seen a
municipal labor leader
lose his or her job as a re-
sult of stalled contract ne-
gotiations.
“It’s a sign of the times,
that management is get-
ting bolder, and willing to
take more extreme action
against unions,” he said.
County Executive Rob
Astorino’s action came in
his no-tax increase bud-
get. During budget talks,
he assailed the Civil Ser-
vice Employees Associa-
tion Unit 9200, saying it
failed to provide enough
givebacks on_health-in-
surance premiums to halt
about 90 layoffs.
Asimilar fight is being
waged across the river in
Rockland County, where
CSEA Unit 8350 is taking
on County Executive
Scott Vanderhoef, whose
budget called for 55
layoffs. CSEA members
are fuming because in
September, they ratified a
contract with a three-year
salary freeze, elimination
of step-raises valued at
$1.2 million, deferred pay
for 10 days, and increased
health-insurance contri-
butions. Those conces-
grammatic” change and
not “budgetary.”
The Legislature will
meet today to consider
overrriding the veto.
In Westchester, CSEA
President Karen Pecora
charged that Astorino’s
decision to eliminate her
job and the position of Te-
resa Rella, Unit 9200's
third vice president, is
part of his anti-union
agenda. There were about
90 CSEA layoffs in the
Westchester budget.
“Tt’s really a union-
busting bullying tactic,”
said Pecora, the Unit 9200
president who must step
down on Dec. 31 when her
job is eliminated. “He’s
targeting CSEA officers.”
Astorino spokeswom-
an Donna Greene, howev-
er, said it was the union’s
fault that the leaders lost
their jobs. She said the
union could have saved
their posts if it had agreed
to Astorino’s demands in
collective bargaining.
“Had the CSEA fol-
lowed the model of three
other unions to have their
members contribute a
portion of the cost of their
health-care benefits-
—just like virtually every
other worker today —
most if not all of the
layoffs could have been
avoided,” Greene said.
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
All Rights Reserves,
processor — was within
the Parks Department
budget, she did not work
at parks headquarters.
Under Westchester Coun-
ty labor contracts, union
leaders are allowed to
work full time on union
business.
“We did what’s best for
the department,” said Pe-
ter Tartaglia, deputy com-
missioner of the Parks De-
partment. “It’s not easy to
downsize when you have
six golf courses, the Coun-
ty Center, Playland and
18,000 acres of parkland.”
Margolies said the
elimination of Pecora’s
job could hurt labor-man-
agement relations here.
“It obviously personal-
izes the situation,” he said.
“You can’t help but think it
was vindictive, and delib-
erate. There’s no finesse
here. It’s a heavy-handed
move.”
Pecora said this strate-
gy puts at peril the posi-
tion of any labor leader
who is released from a
county post to conduct
union business, as autho-
rized by contract.
CSEA spokeswoman
Jessica Ladlee said the
union is evaluating how to
respond to Astorino.
“We have totakeaclose
look at having an outspo-
ken union leader being
‘Account: 23070 (14076)
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2872
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Page 1 of 2
Date: Tuesday, December 18, 2012
JOURNAL NEWS Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM) Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
targeted for job elimina-
tion,” Ladlee said.
At issue in the stalled
labor talks were the
thorny issues of wages
and health benefits. Peco-
ra said the union had
agreed tonoraises fortwo
years, plus four unpaid
furlough days. She said
the union offered to pay a
portion of health-insur-
ance premiums, based on
lidii le, noting th:
asliging foie Karen Pecora, president of Civil Service Employees
employees who earn Association Unit 9200 on the decision to cut her job: “It’s
$35,000 a year pay the really a union-busting bullying tactic.” FILE/THE JOURNAL News
same premium as those
earning $100,000 a year.
She said the county has
insisted that CSEA adopt
an across-the-board con-
tribution, as agreed to by
other county unions.
“Tt might work for the
other unions, but not for
us because of the huge dif-
ference in our salaries,”
she said. “We are still of
the mindset that we are
willing to meet to come to
an agreement.”
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM)
All Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (14076)
Nv-2i72
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Newsday =
Type (Frequency):
Date:
Sunday, December 16, 2012
LONG ISLAND, NY.
Circulation (DMA): 361,063 (1)
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Newspaper (S)
27
Main
CSEA
Pay cuts save 200 jobs
BY BILL BLEYER
bill.bleyer@newsday.com
Oyster Bay Town employees
on Friday overwhelmingly ap-
proved a new contract package
to save 200 jobs from elimina-
tion.
The vote was 620-323 to ac-
cept the financially strapped
town’s offer of reduced pay in
return for a no-layoff clause.
“The union is very happy,”
union president Robert Rauff
said. “Our obligation is to save
jobs and create more security,
and I think we accomplished
that. They stuck together and
they looked at the big picture
and they gave the town the
help it needed.”
‘Among concessions made by
the union, workers will forgo
salary hikes, step increases and
(© 2012 NEWSDAY {NASAL EDITION,
Al Rights Reserved,
longevity pay in addition to tak-
ing a payroll lag — 25 instead
of 26 checks — in 2013, And
2014 will see a step increase
but also another payroll lag and
2 percent raises in January and
July, rather than a 4 percent
hike at the start of the year.
The reconstructed contract
approved by the 1,100-member
Civil Service Employees Associ-
Siion Local BST willbe in cffect
until 2016.
The measures are intended
to cut expenses to rescue the
town from a fiscal crisis that in-
cludes borrowing to cover a $13
million shortfall this year.
“We commend the leadership
for striking the right balance and
commend the workforce for
doing the right thing for the
town and its residents,” town at-
torney and deputy superinten-
dent Leonard Genova said.
About 90 employees retired
earlier this year through an in-
centive program, but 200 layoffs
or union concessions would
have been necessary to cut
costs, town officials said. The
town is expected to save $10.5
million in salaries and benefits
from the buyouts and $8 million
in union salary givebacks, a Stan-
dard & Poor's credit ratings agen-
cy report showed last month.
Ascheduled Nov. 5 union vote
on a deal was postponed by su-
perstorm Sandy. At meetings
last fall, union members com-
plained that they and their fami-
lies were bearing the brunt of
the town’s financial problems.
Account: 23070 (14047)
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For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www NewsdayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
Date: Friday, December 14, 2012
Location: NEW YORK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 26,418 (1)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: ASAT
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
DANNY DONOHUE: State
can’t just impose hike.
Rule Federal Lawsuit
Against Hiking Retiree
Health Costs is Valid
By MARK TOOR
A Federal Judge last week rejected
the state’s request to dismiss a law-
suit filed by the Civil Service Employ-
ees Association that seeks to stop the
state from increasing health-insur-
ance payments for retirees.
“We're encouraged that a judge has
agreed what the state did may be
legally wrong,” said CSEA President
Danny Donohue. “We are certain what
they did is morally wrong.”
Key State Unions Involved
The Retired Public Employees As-
sociation, the Public Employees Fed-
eration, United University Profes-
sions, the New York State Correction-
al Officers and Police Benevolent As-
sociation and other unions are party
to the suit or have filed their own
suits. The decision by Judge Mae A.
D'Agostino of the Northern District of
New York affects all the cases filed in
the district.
The New York State Court Officers
Association has filed a separate suit
that is proceeding in the Federal
courts downstate.
The suits were brought after the
state in the fall of 2011 unilaterally
increased payments for health-care
costs for retirees. The lawsuit said the
state and the Unified Court System
violated the retirees’ contracts when
the state raised their contribution
rates from 10 to 12 percent for indi-
vidual coverage and from 25 to 27 per-
cent for family coverage.
The union argued that it is illegal
for the state to increase costs for
members who are already retired.
“Nobody bargained for these increas-
es,” Mr. Donohue said. “Not the union
and certainly not the retirees living
on fixed incomes who are being hit
hard by higher costs.”
Lawyers for the Cuomo administra-
tion said the state had raised insurance
(Continued on Page 7)
payments by retirees before and had
not run into legal trouble. They also
questioned whether the court had ju-
risdiction over the dispute. And they
reminded the court that state was ex-
periencing fiscal difficulties.
But Judge D’Agostino ruled that
the unions had met the burden re-
quired to continue the case: that they
had presented a coherent argument
and that the matter was under the
court’s jurisdiction.
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CHRONICLE
Date: Friday, December 14, 2012
Location: CHESTER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 7,583 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 1.29
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Valley View funded through 2013
Legislators cite moral obligation, promise oversight to contain costs
BY EDIE JOHNSON
GOSHEN — Impassioned
speeches accompanied the 19-2
vote Wednesday that will keep
Valley View nursing home in the
county's hands for another year.
"Tt survived the Civil War, two
world wars, and now it will sur-
vive the Diana administration,"
said Legislator Michael Ag-
nostakis, referring to the nursing
home's 180-year history.
Orange County lawmakers
said they had a moral obligation
to the county's most vulnerable
residents. And they had the su-
permajority needed to meet that
obligation. Their vote cancelled
the veto of the county executive,
Edward Diana, who objected to
amendments they had inserted
in his budget to fund Valley View
beyond February.
Within a few hours of the vote
Wednesday, Diana sent out a
blast email calling the vote "reck-
less and irresponsible." He said
funding Valley View would drive
county taxes up 8.5 percent. Leg-
islators insist there is no increase
to the budget.
What was expected to be a
squeaker ended up a landslide.
Diana in his email blamed "the
emotional, personal, and politi-
cal agendas of a few legislators
(for creating) dysfunction within
the Legislature. I believe they...
are destroying the financial sta-
bility that we have worked so
hard to establish." (For his com-
plete email, please turn to page
12.)
Only Michael Amo and Patrick
Berardinelli, both Republicans,
held out. They said Medicaid re-
imbursements are certain to de-
crease, despite legislators’ hopes.
‘Be ahero’
© 2012 CHRONICLE
Al Rights Reserves,
Before the vote, Emmet
Garnham, vice president of the
CSEA labor union to which Val-
ley View workers belong, told
lawmakers that, rather than fol-
low the rest of the failing nursing
homes in the state, they should
let Valley View be "a model of
success."
"Have courage," he told them.
"Be a hero."
Chester Supervisor Steve Neu-
haus said veterans at Valley View
have toldhim they are "terrorized
about their future."
Valley View "has been punted
like a football," he said. "Don't
disappoint the Greatest Genera-
tion."
Woodbury Councilman James
Skoufis, who was elected to the
state Assembly in November,
said, "We've done the right thing
at Valley View for generations.
Don't let this be the generation
that fails. Our county govern-
ment was formed to help the
people of the county."
Containing costs
All legislators agree Valley
View is never going to be amon-
eymaker. Their goal is to limit
losses so that it does not crush
SEE VALLEY VIEW, PAGE 29
the county budget, which now tops $700
million. They're betting they can keep an-
nual operating costs to between $5 million
and $10 million when they hire a new ad-
ministrator. Diana fired the current admin-
istrator, OAS, which most legislators blamed
for poor financial management of the facil-
ity. Lawmakers are also counting on better
reimbursement rates, greater efficiency in
operating the facility, and salary givebacks
by the union. Legislators say they will follow
Valley View's progress with benchmarks to-
ward financial solvency, and regular reviews
of the administration and labor.
Legislator Tom Pahucki challenged the
‘Account: 23070 (14071)
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Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
expectation that Valley View make a profit.
Most county services — parks, golf courses,
colleges, the airport — are not, he said.
"They are, rather, services," said Pahucki.
"Why is it we keep funding Orange County
Community College, even when the state
has dropped its one-half contribution? Are
we the best that we can be? Do we care for
those that cared for us?"
Are we the best that we
can be? Do we care for
those that cared for us?”
Legislator Tom Pahucki
SEA 7900/7902 President Bill Oliphant in a
file photo (Photo by Joshua Rosenau)
PHOTO BY JOSH ROSENAU
Valley View nursing home
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 CHRONICLE
Al Rights Reserves,
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PHOTO NEWS
Date: Friday, December 14, 2012
Location: MONROE, NY
Circulation (OMA): 10,656 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
: 34
Main
CSEA
Legislators override Diana's veto
to fund Valley View through 2013
BY EDIE JOHNSON
GOSHEN — Impassioned speeches
accompanied the 19-2 vote Wednesday that will
keep Valley View nursing home in the county's
hands for another year.
“It survived the Civil War, two world wars, and
now it will survive the Diana administration,” said
Legislator Michael Agnostakis, referring to the
nursing home’s 180-year history.
Orange County lawmakers said they had a
moral obligation to the county's most vulnerable
residents. And they had the supermajority needed
to meet that obligation. Their vote cancelled the
veto of the county executive, Edward Diana, who
objected to amendments they had inserted in his
budget to fund Valley View beyond February.
Within a few hours of the vote Wednesday,
Diana sent out a blast email calling the vote
“reckless and irresponsible.” He said funding
Valley View would drive county taxes up 8.5
percent. Legislators insist there is no increase to
the budget.
What was expected to be a squeaker ended
up a landslide. Diana in his email blamed "the
emotional, personal, and political agendas of a
few legislators (for creating) dysfunction within
the Legislature. | believe they..are destroying the
financial stability that we have worked so hard to
establish.” (For his complete email, please turn to
page 12.)
Only Michael Amo and Patrick Berardinelli,
both Republicans, held out. They said Medicaid
reimbursements are certain to decrease, despite
legislators’ hopes.
Before the vote, Emmet Garnham, vice
president of the CSEA labor union to which Valley
View workers belong, told lawmakers that, rather
than follow the rest of the failing nursing homes
© 2012 PHOTO NEWS
Al Rights Reserves,
in the state, they should let Valley View be "a
model of success.”
“Have courage,” he told them. "Be a hero.”
Chester Supervisor Steve Neuhaus said
veterans at Valley View have told him they are
“terrorized about their future.”
Valley View “has been punted like a football,”
he said. "Don’t disappoint the Greatest
Generation.”
Woodbury Councilman James Skoufis, who
was elected to the state Assembly in November,
said, "We've done the right thing at Valley View
for generations. Don't let this be the generation
that fails. Our county government was formed to
help the people of the county.”
Alllegislators agree Valley View is never
going to be a moneymaker. Their goal is to limit
losses so that it does not crush the county
budget, which now tops $700 million. They're
betting they can keep annual operating costs to
between $5 million and $10 million when they
hire a new administrator. Diana fired the current
administrator, OAS, which most legislators
blamed for poor financial management of
the facility. Lawmakers are also counting on
better reimbursement rates, greater efficiency
in operating the facility, and salary givebacks
by the union. Legislators say they will follow
Valley View's progress with benchmarks toward
financial solvency, and regular reviews of the
administration and labor.
Legislator Tom Pahucki challenged the
expectation that Valley View make a profit. Most
county services — parks, golf courses, colleges,
the airport — are not, he said.
"They are, rather, services,” said Pahucki. "Why
is it we keep funding Orange County Community
College, even when the state has dropped its one-
half contribution? Are we the best that we can
be? Do we care for those that cared for us?”
‘Account: 23070 (14087)
Nv-900
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CSEA
Friday, December 14, 2012
NEW YORK, NY
26,418 (1)
Newspaper (W)
ALAS
Already Shorthanded,
Court System Reduces
Request for Funding
By MARK TOOR
Even as a union leader described
staffing levels as being in “dire
straits,” the Unified Court System
submitted a $1.75-billion budget for
fiscal year 2013-14 that’s $212,000
less than the current year’s. It in-
cludes increases for legal aid in civil
and criminal cases while reducing
personnel and overtime budgets.
“The vast majority of the Judiciary
budget supports personnel, so control-
ling these costs is critical,” Chief Ad-
ministrative Judge Gail A. Prudenti
said in her introduction to the budget.
Cut 1,500-Plus Positions
“Over the past three fiscal years, as
a result of participation in the Early
Retirement Incentive Program, tar-
geted layoffs, a hiring freeze, and oth-
er measures, the non-judicial work-
force of the court system has been re-
duced by more than 1,500 positions, a
reduction of almost 10 percent,” she
continued. “Our current staffing is be-
low levels last seen a decade ago, de-
spite a significant increase in our
workload over that time period.”
Judge Prudenti told the New York
Law Journal, “We are continuing to
fill only the’ most-critical positions
where they are most needed, in the
trial courts. We are not filling any po-
sitions at the Office of Court Admin-
istration, and we will be taking a care-
ful look on a weekly and monthly ba-
sis of how many people are leaving
the court system and carefully filling
only essential positions.”
“We’re in dire straits,” Dennis
Quirk, president of the New York
State Court Officers Association, said
in an interview last week. “We’re
shorthanded.” He said the loss of 1,500
(Continued on Page 9)
employees includes 350 Court Officers
in the city. “We can’t give people days
off, we can’t give vacations,” he said.
He said court employees are “pret-
ty stressed out. But it’s not good in
any state agency, in any city agency.”
Judges’ Pay Hikes Included
The budget includes pay increases
for judges, which were approved ear-
lier this year and are being phased in
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
over a three-year period. Before the
increase took effect, the judges had
had their pay frozen for 13 years.
It also inchides experience incre-
ments for current employees. Their
unions are negotiating new contracts,
but the Triborough Amendment re-
quires that increments be paid even af-
ter a contract expires. The budget con-
tains no reference to possible pay rais-
es for union-represented employees.
Mr. Quirk said that in submitting a
no-growth budget, UCS officials “are
doing what they've been told to do by
the Legislature and the Governor.”
Since he took office in January 2011,
Governor Cuomo has pressed state
agencies to reduce spending, and
when court officials requested a budg-
et increase in his first year in office,
he and the Legislature cut the courts’
allocation more than $100 million be-
low the previous year's.
Mr. Quirk noted the state’s contin-
uing economic problems, saying, “I
can’t blame the Governor, can’t blame
the Legislature, can’t blame the Chief
Judge.” But he did blame the Civil
Service Employees Association, which
was the first’ major state-employee
union to settle on a contract. The pact
included a three-year pay freeze, nine
unpaid furlough days and increases in
workers’ payments for health insur-
ance, and it served as a basis for con-
tracts with other unions.
‘Threw Us Under the Bus’
“Danny Donohue [CSEA‘s presi-
dent] threw all the employees of the
state of New York under a bus,” Mr.
Quirk said. A CSEA spokesman de-
clined to respond.
The budget continues austerity
measures that were introduced to save
money, such as closing courts at 4:30
p.m. to avoid overtime and limiting the
use of Judicial Hearing Officers, retired
judges who work on a per-diem basis.
UCS's proposed budget will become
part of the state budget, which the
Legislature must pass by April 1,
2013. Governor Cuomo will propose
his budget in January.
Account: 23070 (14070)
Nv-425
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DENNIS QUIRK: Court offi-
cers ‘pretty stressed out.’
Page 1 of 1
CHRONICLE
Date: Friday, December 14, 2012
Location: CHESTER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 7,583 (1)
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Page: 29
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 CHRONICLE
Al Rights Reserves,
Valley View labor talks break
down -
CSEA representatives balk at county demands
BY JOSHUA ROSENAU
GOSHEN — Negotiations to trade
labor concessions in exchange for
the continuance of Orange County's
public nursing home Valley Viewed
stalled after union officials and
county leaders walked away from the
bargaining table last Thursday, union
leaders announced Dec. 10.
Bill Oliphant, president of the Civil
Service Employees Union CSEA
7900/7902, said he still holds out
hope that further negotiations will
keep the nursing home in the coun-
ty's control. Last month the county
executive, Edward Diana, agreed
not to renew the county's contract
with Orange Administrative Services
(OAS), while the union agreed to
wage freezes and other concessions.
But the county proposes cutting
the wages of nursing home workers
by 24 percent, which Oliphant says is
"absolutely absurd."
Oliphant said talks broke down
in part because David Darwin, the
county's representative at the bar-
gaining table, was umiable provide
basic information about the cost of
operating the nursing home.
"T cannot believe they are acting in
good faith," he said.
Despite the continued disagree-
ment, Oliphant said he will continue
to urge the county to resume nego-
tiations. He said a meeting has been
scheduled for Dec. 16.
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é ) Date: Thursday, December 13, 2012
Location: AUBURN, NY
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Page: ALAS
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
CAYUGA COUNTY __ ™steketoallow whathap- oping cost-saving initia
Union:
Keep
nursing
home
pened in Delaware County
to happen here,” Wheaton
said.
Legislators have dis-
tives that could help ease
the 2 county’s burden.
. would hope that
you would recognize, as do
cussed the potential merger many of your constituents,
between the county nurs- that your County Nursing
ing home and Mercy Reha~ Home is something that
bilitation Center for the last
few months and officials
have said that privatiza-
tion could have a positive
outcome for the county. No
your community values
having, worth funding by
whatever means necessarv
- whether it means raising
taxes, or developing anoth-
final decisions have been _ ef dedicated funding source
made. Nursing home resi- _ to continue your long lega~
dents and staff have stood cy of caring for your own,
in defense of the nursing
home however, suggest-
she said. “This is precisely
the kind of service we pay
ing that the potential plan _taxes for.”
ss could be detrimental to the
CSEA official asks county. Staff writer Sistina
Legislature to reconsider : Cayuga County Nursing Giordano can be reached at
sale or merger
Home Administrator Deb
English is still waiting to
282-2237 or sistina.giorda-
no@lee.net. Follow her on
see what the outcome will Twitter at CitizenGiordano.
Sistina Giordano be but said legislators have
‘The Citizen had the mindset of sus-
i tainability and are trying to
Cayuga County legislators are ™ake a decision that is best
being asked to seriously re-think Suited for everyone.
the potential sale or merger of the
Cayuga County Nursing Home.
Ina letter dated Dec. 10, Colleen
Wheaton, central region president
of the Civil Service - Employees As-
sociation, the union represent-
“They are still in the
process of gathering in-
formation and no final
decision has been made,”
English said. “I’d like to
wait and see what the fi-
ing workers at the Cayuga County _ nal product is going to be
Nursing home, asked the Legisla+ _ before jumping to any con-
ture to re-consider any decisions clusions. I think that’s what
made about the nursing home and ~—_-we’re all waiting for.”
warns them of the potential dire
consequences of privatization.
Wheaton cited the Country;
side Care Center, a nursing homie
formerly owned and operated by
Delaware County. Six years aftef
In her letter, Wheaton
addressed the fast-grow-
ing population of aging
citizens and that union
members believe Cayuga
County cannot afford to
the sale of the home to a private _ lose any nursing home beds
operator, it recently closed for g¢ and gamble on Privatization
when private operators walked which could result in some
away from both ownership and county resident needs be-
promises made to the county and ing unmet.
its residents, abe said.
See Privatize, AS
The end result, she said,
left nearly 125 nursing home
residents to make alternate
living arrangements hun-
“With privatization, we
lose the direct control we
have over quality of care
and costs,” she said, “and
we lose that ‘safety net’
mandate to care for our
most vulnerable citizens
dreds of miles away from if they don’t happen to be
their families. able to afford private care”
“It would be a tragic Instead, Wheaton urged Page 1 of2
officials to consider devel-
© 2012 CITIZEN
Al Rights Reserved,
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Nv3I
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Date: Thursday, December 13, 2012
ly
oe Location: AUBURN,
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Page: ALAS
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Keyword: CSEA
“Tt would be a tragic
mistake to allow what
happened in Delaware
County to happen here.”
Colleen Wheaton, central region president
of the Civil Service Employees Association
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 CITIZEN
Al Rights Reserved,
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Nv3I
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JOURNAL NEWS Date: Wednesday, December 12, 2012
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‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Sean: Main
Keyword: CSEA
LOCAL NEWS
CSEA: Astorino health-care claim false
Union says it offered plan for contribution on premiums
By Gary Stern
gstern@lohud.com
CSEA leaders on Mon-
day blasted Westchester
County Executive Rob As-
torino and two Democrats
who supported a last-min-
ute 2013 budget for mis-
representing the union’s
position on health-care
contributions, saying that
100 layoffs could have
been avoided.
Astorino has been
pushing the Civil Service
Employees Association to
accept employee contri-
butions toward health-
care premiums, contend-
ing that the union has
been unwilling to do so.
But union leaders said
Monday they have been
proposing contributions
based on a percentage of
each worker’s salary. The
average annual family
contribution under their
lan, they said, would be
32,020. The CSEA, which
represents about 3,200
county employees, also
has sought a no-layoff
clause, which leaders said
the county would not con-
sider. The union’s con-
tract expired Dec. 31.
Karen Pecora, presi-
dent of CSEA Unit 9200,
said Astorino wanted the
union to accept higher
health-care premium con-
tributions like those al-
ready accepted by other
unions whose members
make more money.
“To ask someone who
makes $35,000 a year to
pay the same thing as
someone who makes
$135,000 didn’t seem right
to our membership,” she
said.
Pecora’s job is due to be
eliminated under the bud-
get. The 22-year county
employee is a secretary.
County spokeswoman
Donna Greene said the
2013 budget approved Fri-
day and signed by Astori-
no was the result of com-
promise. “If the union had
followed the lead of three
other county unions and
contributed to the cost of
their health care as the
county executive has
been asking them to do for
three years — many if not
all of the layoffs could
have been averted,” she
said in a statement.
CSEA leaders said they
also offered other conces-
sions for a proposed two-
year contract, including
no salary increases and
four days of unpaid fur-
loughs in 2013. They con-
tend the concession would
have saved the county $22
million in 2012 and 2013.
Union leaders said
they planned to reach out
totwo Democratic legisla-
tors — Michael Kaplowitz
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
All Rights Reserved,
of Somers and Virginia
Perez of Yonkers — who
sided with Republicans on
Friday to approve a com-
promise $1.7 billion bud-
get. They hoped a board
majority still might con-
sider amending the bud-
get to reduce layoffs.
“We're trying to work
on those two legislators
who jumped ship to come
backin,” said Billy Riccal-
do, president of the CSEA
in the lower and mid-Hud-
son Valley. Riccaldo said
the union was disappoint-
ed and surprised by what
Kaplowitz and Perez did.
But Kaplowitz said the
CSEA is too late. The
union did not make a solid
proposal on health-care
contributions, he said.
“The budget is final for
2013,” he said. “We have
had not one, not two, but
three discussions on
health-care contributions
to save jobs. There were
no concrete details. The
responsibility lies square-
ly at the feet of the CSEA
leadership. It’s unfortu-
nate. I’m not happy about
100 people losing their
jobs in a recession.”
The average salary of
CSEA members in county
government is $62,000,
Pecora said. But about 900
employees make so little
that they qualify for food
stamps, she said.
Account: 23070 (14023)
Ny.
2872
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Page 1 of 1
OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 9
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
CSEA critics on a witch hunt?
To the editor:
After reading Anne Phyllis Pinzow’s
article about the progress on the current
contract negotiations between CSEA
and the town board, I had some ques-
tions about who the residents are who
keep pressuring the town board mem-
bers to hold out for implementing
unreasonable demands on town work-
ers.
Firstly, what is this concept of wage
freeze. when the total cost of living
freezes then i see their point. I don’t
think O&R will freeze rates anytime
soon.
Secondly, I would like to have seen
the names and addresses of such resi-
dents printed in the article. I feel it is
cowardly for any one to hide behind
anonymity when attacking the liveli-
hood of ANY individual.
Iam sure they are the same extremists
who have nothing better to do with their
time but annoy public officials over and
over and rationalize their actions by
telling themselves and others that they
are on a crusade for the public good.
The individuals who | have in mind go
to public budget meetings and decry the
taxes they have to pay in Orangetown
and workers pay and benefits.
I wonder if they would have liked it if
the same thing happened to them when
they were working and trying to raise
families. | hope they are not church
goers.
It is disgusting to watch them interro-
gate officials looking for some _per-
ceived failing which they can exploit.
Always looking for them to slip up as if
they want to catch them in some act of
fiduciary crime. They act as if they were
witch hunters. Yet, some were public
servants themselves during their work-
ing careers. Enjoying benefits and still
enjoying benefits in their retirement
© 2012 OUR TOWN
All Rights Reserves,
which they themselves are trying now to
deprive others of, others worked in the
private sector and thought that civil
service jobs were beneath them and col-
lect Social Security decrying the
increases are too small. My congratula-
tions to them is in order.
They are doing a great job pushing an
agenda that will help destroy the middle
class in this country of which | will
remind them they are part of.
The other fear is that this is causing
needless expense. If the union brings a
discriminatory lawsuit against the town
we will pay some more as we did with
tax certiori cases in the 1980s and with
the McGee Brothers case. The union is
not asking for outrageous demands.
These unnamed residents are.
The pathetic part of all this is that our
town officials listen to this small vocal
group. These people are trying to fight
economics itself. Since the 1950s
Orangutan has been a bedroom commu-
nity of NYC, families move here , work
here, raise children, and move on
because of taxes.
Taxes that pay for the community and
make it worth living in. There is no law
or rule or guarantee that says you have
to live here for the rest of your natural
life. To fight this trend at other peoples
expense is reprehensible at best. My
parents have left due to taxes and I will
do the same some day. I have no illu-
sions of dying in Pearl River and they
should not either.
If you can afford to stay here in
Orangetown that’s great, if not find a
proper solution. Don’t turn on people.
Remember we who live here now
pushed out people who paid for schools,
side walks, teachers, snow plowing
police protection etc. we all enjoy.
James Cassetta
Pearl River
Account: 23070 (14057)
N¥-3205
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Date:
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
R ckl d Cou Tim Chealaton (DMA): 3800 4)" wv
ocklan nty es Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
will likely appear in the 2014
Rockland County budget.
Legislature Approves
2013 Budget
Several program and po-
sition restorations were ap-
proved in the budget, including
the restoration of various con-
continued on page 6
tract agencies such as Cornell
Cooperative Extension and the
BY MICHAEL Nathan Klein Institute. The to-
RICONDA tal expenses related to restora-
The Rockland County Leg-
islature narrowly voted 10-7
to approve a revised version
of the December 2012 budget,
making major cutbacks while
avoiding the layoffs of con-
tract-safeguarded employees
and restoring some programs
which were initially elimi-
nated.
The budget produced sig-
nificant dissent for a variety of
reasons, with opposing votes
from Legislators Day, Mo-
roney, Low-Hogan, Meyers,
Sparaco, Carey, and Wieder.
Blame for difficulties in put-
ting together and passing it was
levelled on a variety of factors,
including unfunded mandates
from Albany and slow action
by County Executive C. Scott
Vanderhoef.
Legislator Nancy Low-Ho-
gan stated that poor auditing,
a failure to adequately address
the deficit, and an unwilling-
ness to make significant cuts
in appropriate areas produced
a weak budget which fails to
provide critical services for
county residents. Low-Hogan
stated that her position was in-
formed, in part, by her experi-
ences in public service, which
she said convinced her that
programs such as nonprofits
provide crucial services for the
most vulnerable of citizens.
“We need to have salary
cuts, perhaps across the board
among _ higher-compensated
employees,” Low-Hogan said.
Legislator Joseph Meyers
expressed agreement with
Low-Hogan, calling the bud-
get “disheartening” and stat-
ing that cuts had to be made to
appropriate areas,
Still, the proposal inched by
with the required majority of
votes. Legislator Alden Wolfe,
who supported the measure,
stated that the impact of the
legislature's changes was
“profound.”
“I can say with a straight
face that I believe the budget
that is proposed tonight, with
the proposed changes, is the
most balanced budget I have
ever voted on,” Wolfe said.
The budget, which initially
outsourced CSEA-backed
employees in laundry, radiol-
ogy, cook, and security posi-
tions, was modified to reflect
the existing union contract,
which does not allow layoffs
of CSEA members for budget-
ary reasons.
Also included were cuts to
employee overtime, the abo-
lition of certain vacant posi-
tions, the closure of the county
employee pharmacy, and cuts
in hospital services, including
neonatal programs for new
mothers. In sum, the cuts re-
duced county expenditures by
$7,585,838.
Other previously included
cuts, such as the elimination of
Sheriff's Mounted Patrol Unit,
Highway Department layoffs,
and mosquito control, were re-
instated into the budget, with
legislators stating that these
programs which were too im-
portant to cut even temporar-
ily.
The sale of the Summit Park
facility’s nursing home was
not included in the final 2013
budget, as it will require ad-
ditional time to organize and
tions come to $6,169,173.
When both the cuts and res-
torations are taken into ac-
count, $1,416,665 is left over.
These funds will be set aside
for unforeseen expenses which
might arise in the 2013 fiscal
year. On the revenue side of the
budget, a property tax increase
of roughly 18 percent was also
approved,
With the proposal passing
through the legislature, its final
stage is approval by the county
executive, who can sign. vcto,
or modify the proposed budget
before giving it his approval.
Prior to the final vote the
Rockland County Legislature
held three public hearings and
votes beginning at 6 p.m. on
December 4 on various bud-
get and tax items, including a
tax cap bypass and measures
which provide taxpayers with
greater information on how
their moncy is spent.
The first hearing was on the
Rockland County Deficit Re-
duction Act (RCDA), a bill
which establishes a special re=
serve account to hold $10 mil-
lion in funds each year which
can only be used for the purpose
of paying down the deficit. The
measure is an alternative to a
$80 inillion deficit bond which
the county requested from the
state.
Should the deficit bond be
approved and provided by the
state, the funds from the bill
will be unnecessary. According
to Legislator Ian $. Schoen-
berger, the measure is prefer-
able to the deficit bond because
Page 1 of 2
© 2012 ROCKLAND COUNTY TIMES
Al Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (14017)
Nv277
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Rockland County Times &
Date: Wednesday, December 12, 2012
Location: NANUET, NY
Circulation (DMA): 2,500 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 16
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 ROCKLAND COUNTY TIMES
Al Rights Reserves,
the county could pay down the
deficit, with in-hand money
while having a contingency
plan at the same time.
“If the state does not give it to
us, we have to get it ourselves,”
Schoenberger said.
The proposal passed almost
unanimously, with the sole op-
posing vote coming trom | cg-
islator Joseph Meyers. Meyers
objected to the opening of a
reserve account with no cash in
hand, which he said might look
suspicious and send the wrong
message about its purpose.
The second hearing ad-
dressed an override for the
2013 tax limit, which raises the
maximum real property tax
which the county can levy. If
the override goes into effect, it
will be in effect for the 2013
fiscal year.
Legislators disagreed on the
wisdom of raising the county's
property but most agreed
that the inability to override
the state-mandated sales tax
cap and a lack of cash flow
required a bypass of the 2%
property tax cap.
Legislator Alden H. Wolfe
specifically blamed unfunded
state mandates which require
additional tax revenue to main-
tain critical county functions,
“Counties are seemingly set
up to fail through this burden
of state mandates, and we real-
ly don't have a choice,” Wolfe
said “If you are voting against
ifting of the cap, then you
Il better be prepared
to offer $13 million in cuts to
local share, because that’s the
difference.
Dissenting from the major
ity, Legislator Frank Sparaco
defended his opposing vote by
saying that the budget could
not accommodate the 18 per-
cent tax because nothing in the
budget offsets its effects.
“The truth of the matter is
that if [ felt that this was fai
with balanced cuts and tax in-
creases-l'd be willing to nego-
tiate, but | just don't see it that
w Sparaco said.
paraco also added to the
legislators” frustrations with the
timing of the budget’s presen-
tation by the county executive,
stating that it was “insulting” to
be provided a budget which did
not factor in the 2% tax cap on
such short not:
The legislature also approved
two additional tax educa-
tion measures. The Rockland
County Mandate and Taxation
Information Act approved the
inclusion of an insert detailing
counly revenues and expenses
with county tax bills.
‘The insert includes a descrip-
tion of state mandates and their
impact on county finances. The
Rockland County — Taxation
Transparency Act performs the
supplemental function by in-
serting an additional tax Hyer,
which summarizes county in-
come and expenses, as well as
the effects of mandates and an
optional flyer for towns.
The tax resolutions, which
passed unanimously, also
sought to address what Legis-
lator John Murphy compared
toa publicity campaign to raise
awareness of the role of state-
levied expenses which impact
county taxes.
Optional inserts which pro-
vide similar information as it
relates to town finances would
be made available by both
bills, as well.
‘Account: 23070 (14017)
var?
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Page 2 of 2
FINGER LAKES TIMES
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Monday, December 10, 2012
GENEVA, NY
12,891 (78)
Newspaper (D)
1A6A
Main
CSEA
Wayne axes 30.5 jobs
Budget adopted with 2.9 percent hike in tax rate
By JULIE ANDERSON
janderson@fitimes.com
LYONS — As economic conditions
at the federal and state levels contin-
ue to fluctuate, some county govern-
ments, school boards, nonprofits and
businesses are making difficult deci-
sions related to their fiscal futures.
The Wayne County Board of
Supervisors voted last week to adopt
a 2013 budget that calls for the elim-
ination of 30.5 full-time jobs. The
budget passed by a weighted vote of
933-256
Marion Supervisor Jolene Bender
and Sodus Supervisor Steve LeRoy
were absent.
The spending plan includes a 2.9
percent increase in the tax rate, rais-
ing it to $7.76 per $1,000 of assessed
value. There was a 3.24 percent
increase in the total property tax
levy.
“We did the right thing,”
Williamson Supervisor and board
Chairman James Hoffman said. “It is
not a happy occasion. I wish we could
do everything for everyone, but we
just can’t. Many of us, me in particu-
lar, have to keep thinking about
= See WAYNE on Page 6A
years past 2013 and what is
to come.”
The crucial numbers in
the 2013 budget:
« Total revenues are
$129,467,912.
© The total tax levy will
bring in an_ estimated
$36, 93, 503.
© The total amount of
appropriations
$170,981,214, a 0.3 percent
increase from this year.
© The general fund appro-
riations are $134,528,916,
816,049 more than this
year.
* General fund revenues
projected at
$93, 735,414, nearly $1.2
million less than 2012.
The final calculations cre-
© 2012 FINGER LAKES TIMES
Al Rights Reserved,
ated a budget gap of
$2,007,252.
The board voted Nov. 6 to
override the tax cap if need-
ed but decided not to take
that step.
The county _ Mental
Health Behavioral Health
Network will be impacted
severely, losing 13 full- and
six part-time positions.
Canvareely. the county jail
and corrections department
will see an increase of 17
part-time positions.
The Wayne County
Nursing Home will receive
$1,522,084, its operating
costs subsidized by the gen-
eral fund.
Several individuals
opposed the budget proposal
at last week’s meeting.
Among them were four
Mental Health clients, a
Mental Health employee
and five trustees from local
libraries.
The Pioneer Library sys-
tem receives funding from
town governments: The
county cut its appropria-
tions by $30,000.
Paul Peters, president of
Local No. 859,
believes over $105,000 could
have been saved by the
county if they did not hire
an outside law firm when
negotiating contracts. He
also believes that “those
responsible for thousands of
employees do not fully
understand what county
workers do. They are not
hearing the issues.”
Wolcott Supervisor Kim
Park voted no to the budget,
saying it was financially
irresponsible to look at
using $4.7 million in the
general. fund balance. Rose
Super asc Kenan
dridge was the other no
vote.
“Making cuts has real-
world consequences,”
‘Account: 23070 (14048)
v2
Baldridge said. “Granted,
we used a scalpel and not a
meat cleaver, but we should
be looking at revenue, not
towards cuts.”
County supervisors were
tasked this budget season
with finding a solution to
the problem of state-man-
dated costs exceeding the
county tax levy by more
than $2 million, a problem
facing other upstate juris-
dictions, also.
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 1
4. + Date: Friday, December 07, 2012
Rockland Journal-Newss Fin. Fides Decors
Circulation (DMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 19
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Hard choices ahead
for Rockland exec
Budget items
face veto pen
The county executive
has through Wednesday
to decide whose math —
and whose vision of the
county’s obligations —
makes more sense.
Many hard choices
must be made, this
budget season and
beyond.
While the bottom line of both the
Rockland County executive’s pro-
posed 2013 budget and the amended
budget plan passed by the Legisla-
ture are the same — both are $737
million and both would raise prop-
erty taxes by 18 percent — starkly
different decisions have been
made to arrive at those figures.
Now, County Executive C. Scott
Vanderhoef can decide if he will at-
tempt to quash any or all changes
via his veto power; the Legislature
could be hard-pressed to override
such veto, considering Tuesday’s
tight 10-7 budget vote. The trick for
the county executive is discerning
which changes made by the Legis-
lature better serve the mission of
crafting a reliable budget, and
which will do more harm. There are
no easy choices.
Much is at stake. Rockland
County’s deficit had been estimat-
ed at $96 million, but now is expect-
ed to reach $114 million by year’s
end. The continued flow of red ink,
and lack of a solid plan to stanch it,
has landed Rockland’s bond ratings
just one step above junk status.
The 2013 budget plan has to be
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
All Rights Reserves,
solid enough to instill faith in the
county by bond-rating agencies
that have warned a downgrade
could come. Rockland already has
the worst rating among New York’s
counties.
Job cuts restored
Vanderhoef’s budget included
scores of job cuts, among them
about 70 layoffs. Legislators on
Tuesday restored most of those po-
sitions. Among the jobs saved:
workers whose departments — se-
curity, food services at the jail,
laundry services at the health com-
plex — would be outsourced in
2013. Those workers’ union, CSEA,
had recently agreed to a contract
that included givebacks in ex-
change for aban on layoffs for bud-
getary reasons in 2013.
“If you are laying off people
(and) replacing them for less mon-
ey, that’s budgetary ... the county
has to honor its contract,” Legisla-
ture Budget & Finance Chairman
Ilan Schoenberger told the Editori-
al Board. Schoenberger said the
county stood to save $700,000 by
Account: 23070 (13992)
N10
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Page 1 of 3
Rockland Journal-News
Date: Friday, December 07, 2012
Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 19
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
outsourcing; the amended budget
accounts for that by making other
budget cuts..
The Legislature also restored
the sheriff’s mounted patrol unit,
and other jobs in that department,
betting on cuts in costly overtime
expenditures at the jail after staff-
ing problems there were ad-
dressed. The Legislature’s amend-
ed budget also restores funding for
the important mosquito control
program — duties that would cost
municipalities more to do, a cost
that would be passed on to taxpay-
ers.
Real-time budgeting
One budget move Vanderhoef
shouldn’t undo: The Legislature’s
decision to take out $12 million in
revenue from the transfer of the
Summit Park nursing home com-
plex to a local development corpo-
ration that will handle its future
sale.
The chance that the transfer
would be complete, and revenue
froma sale realized, in 2013 is slim.
This is a transition that is going to
happen, as it is occurring in coun-
ties throughout New York state.
But banking on revenue before the
mechanisms to achieve it are in
place just repeats earlier budget-
ing errors that have helped feed the
swelling deficit.
Summit Park compounds the
county’s problems in another way.
The recently passed Rockland
County Deficit Reduction Act de-
mands that the county set aside $10
milliona year to put toward the def-
icit; it was originally designed to
begin in 2013, but will now start in
2014, since the Legislature will not
bank on revenue from the Summit
Park sale until then.
The delay may be frustrating,
but it is better to make clear what
can be accomplished, rather than
again anticipate revenue that
would only come on a wing anda
prayer.
Vanderhoef spokesman Ron
Levine told the Editorial Board that
the county executive is reviewing
the Legislature’s budget changes,
and until that review is completed,
he is unable to make an informed
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
All Rights Reserves,
determination if any veto is re-
quired.
The county executive has
through Wednesday to decide
whose math — and whose vision of
the county’s obligations — makes
more sense. Many hard choices
must be made, this budget season
and beyond.
‘Account: 23070 (13992)
Nvst0
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Page 2 of 3
Friday, December 07, 2012
Rockland Hournal-News Cacaton: WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
19
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Rockland County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef addresses the Rockland
Legislature in May when the county instituted new taxes, fees and layoffs as
part of a contingency budget amid a growing deficit. LAURA INCALCATERRA / THE
JOURNAL NEWS
Page 3 of 3
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13992)
NY5I0
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Friday, December 07, 2012
JOURNAL NEWS Date:
Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM) Chelation (OMA): 75.272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 11
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Dems propose to cut Astorino’s ‘appointees’
Executive says if cuts go through,
he plans to veto entire 2013 budget
By Elizabeth Ganga
eganga@lohud.com
As the Westchester
Board of Legislators ap-
proaches a vote on the fi-
nal 2013 budget today, the
Democrats have put for-
ward a proposal that bal-
ances the $1.7 billion
spending plan by cutting
57 jobs they consider po-
litical appointees of Re-
publican County Execu-
tive Rob Astorino.
“The Democratic cau-
cus very clearly decided
it was not going to swap
experienced profession-
als for political patronage
jobs,” said Thomas Staud-
ter, a spokesman for the
legislature’s Democrats.
But Astorino called the
year’s expenses.
The job eliminations
include several assistants
to the county executive,
county attorneys, budget
department staff and a
long list from the Depart-
ment of Social Services,
including two deputy so-
cial services commission-
ers.
Astorino appealed to
individual Democrats to
work with the Republi-
cans on a bipartisan bud-
get.
He said he was willing
to compromise — but not
on the county’s fiscal
health.
“T would hope at least
two would have the cour-
age to do what’s right,” he
said.
proposal _ irresponsible 7
and said it would lead to go, nacmueang ner bude
chaos next year.
And by cutting staff
within the budget for the
County Executive’s Of-
fice, Astorino said, the
Democrats have violated
alongstanding agreement
to allow each branch of
government to make its
own staffing decisions.
“They cut my office,”
he said. “That had never
been done in the history of
this county. There was al-
ways a detente.”
He added: “They
should never touch the
people I work with on my
floor.”
If the cuts go through,
Astorino said he may have
to veto the entire budget.
If an override failed, the
2012 budget numbers
would roll forward into
2013, and would not accu-
rately reflect the new
the Democrats to restore
126 positions that Astori-
no cut in his proposed
budget, including nature
center curators, engi-
neers, Civil Service Em-
loyees Association mem-
bow and others who ar-
gued their jobs keep the
county going.
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
All Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (13994)
Ny.
2872
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POST-STAR
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Friday, December 07, 2012
GLENS FALLS, NY
24,678 (56)
Newspaper (D)
ALAS
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
County eyes layoffs
Union will vote as
time grows short
in Warren County
By DON LEHMAN
dlehman@poststar.com
QUEENSBURY ¢ The
a contract by the end of the
year,” Dusek said.
Dusek said he believed
progress had been made to-
ing freeze in place since the
contract was rejected in mid-
October, and has compiled
alist of 20 or so positions to
union that represents nearly ward a new contract sincea _cut later thismonthifnocon-
500 Warren County workers proposed five-year deal was _ tract is in place by the end of
will vote on anew proposed voted down in October. the year.
labor contract as county lead- Geraghty would not elab- More than a dozen vacant
ers eye the Dec. 21 county orate on how the contract _pesitions have not been filled
BoardofSupervisorsmecting offer was changed. The _ over the past seven weeks be-
asadeadlineforanewdeal, | GSEA Warren County unit's cause of the hiring freeze.
The county has modified
its contract offer to the Civil
See COUNTY, Back Page
Concessions in health in-
surance premiums, raises and
Service Employees Associa~ _leadershipwastakingthepro- _ other labor costs were being
tionunit “slightly” duringthe | posalbacktothe membership _ counted on for the county’s
latest round of negotiations, andavotewasexpectedbefore 2013 budget.
said Warrensburg Supervisor _ the county board’s regular De- “Everything depends on
Kevin Geraghty, the county’s cember meeting. whether we can get that con-
budget officer. Therese Assalian,aspokes- tract,’ Geraghty said. “They
Both Geraghty and county womanfortheCSEA,saidshe (the union leadership) have
Administrator Paul Dusek couldn't offer specifics about been very responsive. They
said they are optimistic a _ the union's schedule forhav- know what we need todo.”
dealcanbeinplaceintimeto ing members review the con- The timetable for layoffs
avoid an estimated 20 layoffs _ tract proposal. was unclear this week as ne~
county officials have said they “WhatIcansaytodayisthat — gotiations continued.
would need to get the savings progress is being made and “We'll talk about that at the
hoped for in the new labor
contract.
“Our stated goal is to have
there has been solid move-
ment on key issues,” she said.
The county has had a hir-
Dec. 21 meeting,’ Dusek said.
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 POST-STAR
Al Rights Reserves,
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vase
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Date:
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Keyword:
Thursday, December 06, 2012
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (56)
Newspaper (D)
314
Main
CSEA
Rising costs spur calls to unionize
Employees at SUNY
Research Foundation
cite health insurance
By Rick Karlin
ALBANY — Health insur-
ance costs for thousands of em-
ployees at the State University of
‘New York’s Research Foundation
are rising, a development that’s
prompting renewed calls by its
employees to unionize.
Previous labor organizing ef-
forts at the foundation have had
little effect. Foundation officials
say they are aligning health insur-
ance costs with those of the rest
of the unionized state workforce,
whose members have swallowed
increases in recent years.
“A lot of people are there for
the benefits,” said Bill Scherl, a
neurology researcher at SUNY
Stony Brook who’s part of a
group seeking initial recogni-
tion as a union — dubbed United
Research Professionals — on the
Long Island campus, with hopes
to reach out to foundation em-
ployees across the state.
The foundation carries 9,527
people on its payroll; approxi-
mately 17,500 work there, but
about half are paid through a
variety of grants. Just 742 foun-
dation employees are currently
unionized.
At issue is a phased-in increase
in the percentage of health care
insurance costs that employees
pay. By 2014, it will have risen
from 10 percent to 15 percent for
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserved,
individuals and from 25 percent
to 30 percent for family coverage,
said foundation spokesman Peter
Taubkin.
The out-of-pocket cost for
the workers, then, would be a 50
percent increase or a 20 percent
boost, respectively.
State employees represented
by major unions, including the
Public Employees Federation and
G rvice Employees Associa-
fon, had similar bes ith insurance
increases in their most recent
contracts.
“After this change the value
of our health care plan will re-
main comparable to other SUNY
health plan, and competitive with
other research universities,” said
‘Taubkin.
According to a chart on the
foundation’s website, the monthly
cost of an individual plan in 2013
will run between $62 and $153,
depending on the plan chosen
and the worker’s region. For fam-
ily plans, the range goes from
$293 to $666 per month.
Retiree health care costs are
Please see HEALTH A14 >
rising as well.
The foundation maintains a
differential between employees
who have worked for 20 years
or more and those with less time
on the job. Retirees who worked
between 10 and 19 years, for in-
stance, pay more for their health
coverage.
‘That has put retiring at age 55
out of reach for people like Scherl,
who is 49 and has two young chil-
dren.
“T planned my life around this,”
he said, explaining that he initially
planned to retire at 55 and focus
on an art and antiques business he
runs.
But with the recent increases,
he figures that leaving in six years
would be unaffordable.
“The only thing that can be
done is to form a union,” said
Scherl. “I’m not a big fan of them,
but they are just chipping away at
our benefits.”
Also increasing are charges for
services such as out-of-network
coverage, for using doctors that
are not on a given insurance plan’s
roster.
Other unions across the state,
including New York State United
Teachers more than a decade ago,
have tried and failed to organize
workers in the vast research foun-
dation.
In 1996, two foundation cleri-
cal workers at SUNY’s Albany
campus were fired after distribut-
ing fliers that said the unionized
SUNY employees earned more
money than they did.
> rkarlin@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5758 « @RickKarlinTU
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NV-10
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Page 1 of 1
NIAGARA GAZETTE
Date:
Location:
Thursday, December 06, 2012
NIAGARA FALLS, NY
Circulation (DMA): 13,799 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Jail medical unit going ‘private’
NIAGARA COUNTY:
Medical services
company to take over
inmate care Dec. 16.
BY JOYCE M. MILES
joyce.miles@niagara-gazette.com
The transition to private
medical care for inmates of
Niagara County Jail should
be completed by mid-
month.
Armor Correctional
Health Services, a Miami-
based medical services
company, is set to take over
the jail medical unit Dec.
16, Sheriff James Voutour
said this week.
That means Dee. 15 is
the last day of work for
seven county employees
who work as registered and
licensed practical nurses at
the jail.
Some, but not all, of
those nurses will stay on
as employees of ACHS.
According to Voutour, the
company hired three of
the seven after interviews
with nurses who applied.
To complete its staff roster,
Armor passed over some
present county employees
and hired from the outside.
All laid-off nurses are
being offered a severance
package that includes 3
1/2 months of county-paid
health insurance, and 100
percent buyback of unspent
vacation, personal and sick
days, human_resources
Director Peter Lopes said.
The standard severance
package for laid-off county
employees includes health
coverage for two months
after the month in which
they’re terminated. After
consultation with Voutour
and a representative of the
© 2012 NAGARA GAZETTE
All Rights Reserved,
nurses’ union, CSEA, Lopes
said the county agreed to
offer the nurses an extra
month of paid health cov-
erage.
They hope the offer
discourages nurses from
quitting — and potentially
leaving the jail medical
unit understaffed — before
Armor takes over.
“It’s everybody's hope,
through careful planning,
that the transition will go
smoothly,” Lopes said.
The US&J recently
fielded a complaint from a
nurse who didn’t get hired
by Armor, charging the
county's process for hand-
ing off jail medical work
was not fair or transparent.
The nurse, who declined
to give her name, claimed
top officials at the jail did
not keep the nursing staff
apprised of privatization
talks — they learned from
the media that their jobs
were being cut, she said;
and also claimed officials
falsely promised nurses
that ACHS would hire all
of them.
Voutour, and CSEA unit
President Tom Lafornia,
denied both of those charg-
es
Lafornia said he and
the nurses were informed
months ago that the sher-
iff's office was pursuing
privatization. CSEA did
register its objections to
that, he added.
Voutour acknowledged
the nurses may well have
learned from the media
first that their jobs were
definitely being cut — in
mid-September a legisla-
tive committee recom-
mended the county leg-
islature give Voutour the
authority to cut a final deal
with Armor — but he said
the news accounts merely
confirmed what the nurses
knew was likely.
“We didn’t confirm
(Armor contract approv-
al) to employees until the
administration committee
voted, but they knew all
along this is what we were
working toward,” Voutour
said.
As for assurances the
county nurses would all be
retained by Armor, none
were ever made, Voutour
said. What was relayed to
the nurses, and Voutour
was quoted as saying in
various publications, is that
they would all be able to
apply for jobs with Armcr.
Why half of them weren't
retained, he declined to say
Monday.
Per the contract signed
Nov. 30, Armor will be paid
$1,999,250 next year to staff
and operate the jail infir-
mary, provide all inmates’
medical, dental and men-
tal health care, and assume
liability for any malprac-
tice-type claims lodged by
inmates.
While the contract price
is higher than this year’s
$1.7 million budgeted cost
of a county-run medical
unit, going with Armor
should help the county
save money long-term, in
part by getting the jail out
Account: 23070 (14011)
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NIAGARA GAZETTE et ou
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Thursday, December 06, 2012
NIAGARA FALLS, NY
13,799 (49)
Newspaper (D)
3
Main
CSEA
© 2012 NAGARA GAZETTE
All Rights Reserved,
from under a state Com-
mission on Corrections
mandate regarding medical
unit staffing.
As of mid-October, the
county-run unit was six
RNs short of being proper-
ly staffed and the infirmary
— comparable to an on-site
hospital — was not oper-
able, according to Voutour;
inmates needing medical
treatment were being taken
to Eastern Niagara Hospital
instead.
By farming out medical
work, the county will shed
public employee legacy
costs and cut spending on
inmate-patient transport
and guarding, the sheriff
noted. Armor can get medi-
cal supplies including phar-
maceuticals at less cost and
its assumption of liability
for patient-care complaints
offers the county potential-
ly “huge” savings, he added.
Account: 23070 (14011)
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Page 2 of 2
OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 05, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 34
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Use layoff threat to wring concessions
from Orangetown CSEA workers, residents insist
By Anne Phyllis Pinzow
STAFF WRITER
Orangetown residents have demanded
that elected officials threaten layoffs of
CSEA (Civil Service Employees
Association) unit employees if the union
makes no concessions as a new contract is
crafted. But the new contract has been
very long in coming; the CSEA workers
have been working out of contract since
January, 2011.
Demands have been made for employ-
ee’ salaries to remain frozen and there has
been pressure mounting that employees
pay in for their pension and health benefits
for the length of their employment.
Demand parity with PBA
CSEA unit members want to be treated
with the same financial consideration as
PBA (Patrolmen’s Benevolent
Association) unit members who had nego-
tiated a settlement for a five year contract
with yearly increases.
Members have also spoken at Town
Board meetings decrying their perception
that the town’s fiscal woes are being laid
at their feet.
That perception is borne partly from the
mounting New York State Retirement
Pension costs which jumped so high for
2012 (19 percent) that in order for the tax
levy to remain under the two percent
increase cap, the payment was amortized
for a five year period, adding $200,000 to
this year’s budget from last year, and will
again for the next four years. This year’s
pension costs made another 11 percent
leap.
Town council members have spoken of
consolidating the Office of Receiver of
Taxes with the Town Clerk, divesting the
town of Broadacres Golf Course as well as
the sewer plant. Any one of these options
will mean layoffs from town employment
from the present workforce.
Negotiations drag
Negotiations have dragged on for three
years, since the beginning of 2010, and are
entering the fourth year with possibly lit-
© 2012 OUR TOWN
Al Rights Reserved,
tle incentive for a settlement as the budg-
et has already passed, with no layoffs and
with salaries and benefits based on the
2010 CSEA contract.
Given the terms of that contract, it will
remain in force allowing for pre-deter-
mined raises but no overall wage increas-
es, and no changes to the pension and
health benefit pay in policy, all of which
speculatively adds up to a better deal than
what is being offered by the town.
Some items that have been spoken of
openly at Town Board meetings are
employee payments into their pensions
and health benefit expenses, wage freezes,
wage furloughs, work rule changes, lay-
offs and restrictions on overtime. There
also have been items which the Town
Board has reserved as matters of policy
and under their sole purview, which the
CSEA would rather be included in the
contract and therefore subject to negotia-
tion.
On both sides there is political pressure
with taxpayers pushing with votes to pay
less and reduce mounting taxes and on the
labor side, again with votes, to get a better
deal or give up leadership.
Mike Menegaux, president of the
Orangetown CSEA said in a recent inter-
view that the negotiations are going
nowhere right now. “We are in mediation
and as of yet, nothing’s really happened.”
He said that while he did not want to
discuss what the union had asked for he
said that they had been granted nothing up
until the point when he asked for PERB
(the Public Employment Relations Board)
to assign a mediator (Lori Matles) to the
negotiations.
“Considering what the town settled for
with the PBA and is still talking zeros to
us, it doesn’t matter what number I say. As
far as I'm concerned, you treat one group
of employees one way and you treat
another group significantly different,
there’s a problem.”
Record lag in negotiations
While there have been problems before
in negotiating contracts, with the last one
Account: 23070 (14001)
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Page 1 of 3
OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 05, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 34
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
delayed as the entire contract was
revamped for language and consistency,
this is one of the longest periods between
negotiations.
Menegaux said it started in 2010 when
he and former Town Supervisor Paul
Whalen had some dialogue about starting
the negotiating process with possibly
doing a roll over for one year and talking
about a percentage increase.
“This way both sides would have gotten
through the economic debacle and could
wait to see what would happen. Verbally
Whalen said it might be a good idea, but
then nothing happened.”
That continued until August of 2010
when Menegaux wrote a letter to Whalen
requesting dates to start negotiations. “He
eventually gave us a date, (but Whalen
never showed.) We sat down and that’s
when we were told via a (deputy) Town
Attorney (Teresa Kenny) a member of the
negotiating team that Whalen didn’t know
what direction he was going in and might
bring in another attorney and blindsided
both negotiation teams. Officially, he
never sat down with us.” Other members
of the team were Deputy Town Attorney
Barbara Gionta, Charles Richardson, the
former Orangetown Finance Director, and
Eileen Schlag, Director of Personnel. On
the labor side, Menegaux said aside from
him and Larry Sparber, the chief negotia-
tor for the CSEA, there were representa-
tives from different town departments.
Whalen then brought in Richard
Zuckerman, experienced in labor negotia-
tions, and never himself appeared at any
of the negotiations, which was taken as a
slap in the face by the union leadership.
Menegaux said this attitude seems to
have continued into the new administra-
tion and that Town Supervisor Andrew
Stewart has not attended any negotiation
session either.
“I’ve been doing this a lot (since 1976)
and the Supervisor always comes in, espe-
cially if he’s new, to introduce himself and
put his blessings on how the system works
and so forth but we haven’t gotten that
from either Whalen or Andy Stewart.”
Stewart told Our Town. “I have met
with, and spoken on the phone with, both
PBA and CSEA leadership, and I welcome
impromptu meetings as a part of my basic
© 2012 OUR TOWN
Al Rights Reserved,
“open door” principle of management.
Also, I recently conducted a very intense
and frank discussion with all of the
sewer department employees at
once addressing their questions and
concerns about the town budget for
2013.
“| lead regular department head
staff meetings where we discuss
employee concerns and quality of
work life issues of concern to our
union leaders and members. In addi-
tion, I speak frequently and with
great enthusiasm on radio and in
public meetings as to the quality and
dedication of our town employees,
and the vital services they provide.
“While I think it very important to
recognize and communicate with
union leadership, I also believe very
strongly that each employee can
speak for themselves and raise
issues that I need to know about,
regardless of whether it is seen as
relevant by the union leadership.”
If Stewart’s presence at any of the
meetings would have changed the
outcome will not be known as six
meetings into the negotiations, Menegaux
said there had been no movement. That’s
when he called for a mediator.
Richard K. Zuckerman, the attorney
hired to negotiate for Orangetown, said in
a phone interview that his experience with
the negotiations began on February 7,
2011 though there was at least one meet-
ing before that.
Impasse declared
An impasse was declared in June of
2011 after six sessions and the union
asked New York State PERB to assign a
mediator to conduct a mediation.
He said that mediation involves a state
CSEA NEGOTIATION:
Page 4, please
appointed mediator. “She has the power of persua-
sion but no binding authority. She can not make
either side agree to a proposal. She can not oppose
a contract.”
He said if that does not work then the next step
in the process is implemented which is “fact find-
ing.” This involves the appointment by PERB of a
Account: 23070 (14001)
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OUR TOWN
Date: Wednesday, December 05, 2012
Location: PEARL RIVER, NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,507 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 34
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
different person who conducts a hearing during
which both sides put in their documentary evi-
dence in support of their various proposals.
Documentary evidence as it was presented dur-
ing the PBA negotiations consisted of graphs and
figures showing the “labor's” pay scale as opposed
to that of the surrounding pay scales for similar
work. It also presents demographics and an exam-
ination of the wealth of the town and its residents
as well as the need of the services of the laborers.
Basically it’s a statement of what the labor side
wants, why they should get it and presents how
and why the town can afford to give what is being
asked.
On the town’s side, a document was presented,
again with graphs and charts also showing demo-
graphics, the town’s budget, and the stresses
placed upon that budget by other economic factors.
This is basically a report acknowledging the value
of labor but showing how and why the town can-
not afford what it is being asked to pay.
From these the fact finder writes a formal report
that analysis the criteria presented.
However, unlike the arbitration panel in a PBA
negotiation, the fact finder’s report is not binding.
If both sides agree there’s a contract.
If they don’t then the next step is legislative
determination. That is when the Town Board
imposes a contract on the union.
© 2012 OUR TOWN
Al Rights Reserved,
Unlike the PBA, the CSEA can negotiate a con-
tract to cover any length of time agreed upon with
the town.
There is no time limit as to how long negotia-
tions can go on or any type of deadline date unless
it is set by either or both parties such as layoffs,
sales, or strikes.
There have been three mediation sessions with
the next one not until December 17. Zuckerman
commented that this is usually many more than is
usual. “There’s a misperception in the public eye
that if you keep people in a room long enough
there will be a contract. But all that happens if you
lock people in a room for a long time is they get
hungry.”
Zuckerman said, “The mediator has been work-
ing hard to resolve the difference between the par-
ties but has, unfortunately not yet succeeded in
achieving a settlement.”
Commenting on the negotiations, Orangetown
Councilman Denis Troy said, “We are in negotia-
tions and I do understand how they feel regarding
the police contract but that was due to the existence
of the binding arbitration process and how it works
against the municipalities. We will try to reach an
agreement shortly with CSEA.” Councilman Tom
Diviny said, “The town will continue to negotiate
in good faith with the union and try to come up
with an agreement both sides can live with.”
Account: 23070 (14001)
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Page 3 of 3
Date: Wednesday, December 05, 2012
ly
Location: FULTON, NV
Circulation (DMA): 7,650 (79)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (2WK)
Page: 3
a
Secti Main
Keyword: CSEA
Controversy erupts over how to pay county employees
by Carol Thompson
Oswego County employees belonging
to the Civil Service Employees Union set-
tled their most recent contract agreeing to
a lump sum payment of $1,000. How the
payment is to be made resulted in a cyber
war of words last Friday.
The employees who are to receive the
additional payment are under the assump-
tion that it is a payroll adjustment to com-
pensate for the lack of a raise during the
year or more that they worked without a
contract,
Oswego County's CSEA union president
Bill Reed and county officials were in dis-
agreement as to how to distribute the pay-
ment.
That led to an ¢-mail exchange that in-
volved employees.
At issue is whether the payment should
be made a bonus or treated as additional
pay.
There is a stark difference in the amount
the employees will receive under the In-
ternal Revenue Service tax code.
If treated as a bonus, the employees
would receive $577 after taxes. If paid as
additional salary, the payment would be
subject to only regular deductions.
In response to a string of e-mails,
County Treasurer John Kruk wrote, “As
County Treasurer, it is my responsibility
to ensure that Payroll and all related de-
ductions are paid according to State and
Federal Law.”
He added, “I have attached Section
31.3402 of the Internal Revenue Code
which states how the $1,000 Supplemental
© 2012 VALLEY NEWS:
Al Rights Reserves,
Wage check on January 17th to CSEA CO-
OP Union Members should be handled.
These deductions were outlined in a letter
to the Union on October 9, 2012 offering
an alternative option to include the $1,000
payment in your normal payroll check
which would result in deductions at your
normal rate.”
Kruk said the treasurer’s office would
be glad to change the $1,000 payment to
be included in the regular check if Reed
so advised.
“I trust this clarifies any misunderstand-
ing and eliminates any further calls and
e-mails,” Kruk wrote.
The confusion began when county chief
accountant Mark See sent an e-mail to em-
ployees outlining how the payment would
be made. See had wanted to include the
payment in with a regular paycheck as a
salary adjustment so there would be less
taxes deducted.
When the union objected, See sent out
an e-mail to notify the employees of the
amount they would receive.
Following Kruk’s message, Reed wrote,
“Neither Mr. Kruk nor Mr. See speak for
the union and [ would not expect them to
be familiar with how the process works
with CSEA. I am sure their suggestions
were well-intended but they were not re-
ally helpful and kind of confusing at this
point.”
County officials and the union are
working to settle the matter. Reed said in
one of his messages that it could come to
a membership vote.
Account: 23070 (14021)
Nv-238
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Page 1 of 1
TIMES UNION =
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
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Keyword:
Monday, December 03, 2012
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (56)
Newspaper (D)
3
Main
CSEA
New
wave of
temps
State officials say they’ve hit
ona way to save $60 million over
the next five years by reducing
the pay of a legion of temporary
workers who
supplement
/ the state
f Le - workforce.
Under a
series of new
contracts
arranged by
the Office
of Gen-
eral Services,
temp service
employees
will see their wages fall as much as
42 percent.
The savings should reach $12
million a year, said OGS spokes-
woman Heather Groll, on a range
of employees, many of them on
long-term assignments. The temps
are technical and management
personnel; clerks; agricultural and
service workers; building con-
struction tradesmen; translators;
and interpreters. They are asbestos
removers, who might work ona
specific project. Or they are highly
skilled doctors and nurses needed
for key assignments. Others are
JAMES M.
ODATO
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserved,
hearing transcriptionists, call
center staff or food preparation
workers. Many are working side
by side with state employees every
day for months or even years.
Groll said the new contracts,
awarded to 38 companies, should
result in a 30 percent cut in temp
service costs to agencies compared
with the previous deals, which
recently expired. She added that
37 percent of the contracts were
awarded to minority- or women-
owned enterprises.
Rates are falling across the
board based on the winning bid-
ders’ pay structures. For instance:
An over-the-phone language
interpreter will receive 75 cents
per minute, compared with the old
rate of 90 cents to $1.12.
A legal secretary in the Capital
Region will get an hourly rate of
$12.48, compared with as much as
$22.07. Hearing reporters in New
York City will be paid $3.25 per
page, compared with the old rate
of $4.83. A registered nurse in the
Capital Region will get an hourly
rate of $36.67, compared with the
former pay of up to $63.20.
“They don’t take into consid-
eration where these agencies are,
or (workers’) reputations or their
credentials,” said Maisie Hillen-
brandt, area director of Nursefind-
ers. The firm has supplied nurses
to the state for a decade, but no
longer after the lowest bidder won.
She said the nurses she has been
sending to state agencies, already
trained and familiar with the work,
won't take the lower wages and
won't sign on with the winning
contractors. She said the rate
charged for temps isn’t the rate the
workers pocket, as the contractor
keeps a substantial percentage.
Giving temp services to the lowest
bidders, Hillenbrandt said, may
give state employers cheap labor,
but they may be poorly prepared
workers. “I don’t think they're
realizing the repercussions yet.”
Other mainstays, like Kelly
Services, are also now on the side-
lines. Winning bidders include
return company New Wave
People Inc., a woman-owned firm
in Princeton, NJ., whose owner
would not discuss her business.
Groll could not provide an
estimate on the number of temps
in the state force. The Civil Service
Employees Association estimates
the number is in the thousands,
given that $62 million was spent
on them from April 2008 to March
2010. “New York state has long
abused the use of temporary work-
ers to undercut both full-time state
workers and the temps,” said CSEA
spokesman Stephen Madarasz.
“The state is now just continuing
that abuse but paying the work-
ers even less.” He noted that some
temps shore up depleted staffs.
The strategy masks the size of
the state payroll and allows expan-
sion during hiring freezes, the
union argues.
> jodato@timesunion.com «= 518-
454-5083 » @JamesMOdato
‘Account: 23070 (13929)
NY-10
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Page 1 of 1
Rockland Journal-Newss Fier:
Monday, December 03, 2012
WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
17
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
‘Difficult’
budget in
hands of
leaders
Rockland’s lawmakers
to vote on $737M plan
By Khurram Saeed
ksaeed@lohud.com
NEW CITY — Rockland legislators
will vote Tuesday night on next year’s
county budget, which will likely result
for cutting funding for
the county pharmacy
and reducing the work-
force by 55 people
through another early
retirement plan.
“We feel confident
that our budget com-
plies with the law, is con-
servative and we believe
our numbers are accu-
rate,” Levine said.
The county may have
cash flow issues, but the
county executive has
said that it’s not broke.
But Rockland’s bud-
get deficit remains ama-
jor challenge since it
makes the cost of bor-
rowing money more ex-
pensive. The county has
a credit rating that
stands at one level above
ing home by 2014 and use
the proceeds to pay down
the county’s debt. The
county has loaned Sum-
mit Park $32 million to op-
erate, and none of the
money has been repaid.
Legislators would have
to sign off on creating the
local development corpo-
ration and agreeing to
transfer Summit Park to
it. If that happens, the lo-
cal development corpora-
tion would lease the facil-
ity back to the county,
likely for a dollar, and
then borrow money and
make a partial payment to
the county. The county
would get the rest when
the sale was completed.
The proposed budget
included $12 million from
in higher taxes and further cuts to ser- junk status, giving itthe the anticipated transfer
vices. unwelcome distinction of Summit Park to a local
Lawmakers are not expected to ap- of being the lowest of all _ development corporation.
prove the $737 million budget as it was the counties in New The consultants’ report
submitted to them by County Execu- York. noted that the approval
tive C. Scott Vanderhoef in late Octo- The deficit isestimat- _ process for a third party
ber. Typically, legislators make adjust- ed to be $90 million to to take over could take
ments to the massive budget following $100 million, but the ac- anywhere from 18 to 24
weeks of review and outside analysis. counting consultant firm months. Unless the sale
Many of our departments and hired by the Legislature Was completed before the
many of our services have already said last week that the end of 2013, DeSantis said
been cut to the bone,” said Legislator debt was projected to in- the $12 million couldn’t be
Ilan Schoenberger, who serves a Crease more than $114 recognized as revenue
See BUDGET, Page 7A million. Schoenberger and wouldn't be available
chairman of the body’s
Budget and Finance
Committee. “It makes it
avery difficult budget.”
Some legislators
have taken issue with a
number of Vanderhoef’s
proposals, including an
18 percent property-tax
increase (or an extra
$157 for the typical
homeowner) that would
break the state tax cap,
the elimination of union
jobs and getting rid of
the county _ sheriff's
mounted patrol unit.
Vanderhoef spokes-
man Ron Levine said
hard choices had to be
made to balance the bud-
get. Vanderhoef’s
spending plan also calls
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
Al Rights Reserved,
called the figure a worst-
case scenario.
Following the exami-
nation of the proposed
budget, consultants Nich-
olas DeSantis and Alan
Kassay, of Harrison-
based O’Connor Davies,
reviewed their findings
with legislators Tuesday
and discussed potential
items that posed prob-
lems. One of them has to
do with the future of the
county-owned Summit
Park Hospital and Nurs-
ing Care Center in Rama-
po. In October, Vander-
hoef called on the county
to create a local develop-
ment corporation to sell
Summit Park’s 100-bed
hospital and 321-bed nurs-
Account: 23070 (13945)
NY5I0
tobe applied to the deficit.
DeSantis and Kassay
also told The Journal
News they had concerns
about the county budget-
ing $2.4 million in new
revenue from the expect-
ed sales of rights to future
revenues from cellphone
tower leases since there
are no agreements in
place. He also said a “mis-
understanding of govern-
ment accounting” saw the
administration include $4
million in revenue from
the issuance of serial
bonds.
Levine said the admini-
stration stood by its num-
bers.
Legislator Ed Day
compared the existing
condensed budget review
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
Rockland Journal-News
Date: Monday, December 03, 2012
Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 17
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
process to working on a
car with major engine
damage.
“They’re giving it to us
and expect us to do an
overhaul,” Day said. “We
can do minimal things at
best. We’re not going to
solve the problem.”
If the Legislature ap-
proves an amended bud-
get, Vanderhoef has the
power to veto it or certain
line items within it. The
Legislature could then
override his veto.
The Legislature ordi-
narily takes about five
weeks to review the bud-
get, department by de-
partment, line by line. But
they lost nearly two
weeks due to Superstorm
Sandy. Lawmakers have
been meeting until mid-
night in recent days to
come up with solutions.
Legislative Chairwom-
an Harriet Cornell said
one of major issues they
have been discussing are
the proposed job cuts of
union workers. Three
unions, including the Civil
Service Employees Asso-
ciation, recently signed
new contracts with the
county forbidding layoffs
due to budgetary reasons.
Vanderhoef has
countered the positions
are being outsourced be-
cause the programs are
changing.
Cornell said many in
the Legislature don’t see
the reasons as program-
matic but budgetary.
“We're struggling with
them and talking about
them and trying to come
to a consensus on them,”
Cornell said.
Rockland CSEA Presi-
dent PT. Thomas said
about 60 of the 70 workers
on the chopping block be-
long to his union. They
primarily work in securi-
ty, food services, as X-ray
technicians and prenatal
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
Al Rights Reserved,
workers. He remained op-
timistic that legislators
would reinstate all of the
positions. “For my side,
there is no compromise as
far as these positions are
concerned because it is a
violation of the contract,”
Thomas said. “I am not go-
ing to give up even one of
my members.”
Staff writer Laura In-
calcaterra contributed to
this report.
Account: 23070 (13945)
NY5I0
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 2
JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM)
Date: Sunday, December 02, 2012
WHITE PLAINS, NY
Location:
Circulation (OMA): 98,374 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
Page: 5
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Putting off pension payments is a horrible solution
_
ae)
Phil Reisman
If you hada great cred-
it rating and wanted to
buy a house or take out a
loan to go to college, you
would expect to obtain
the lowest interest rate
possible. That’s how the
free market works.
Only here’s a case
where the free market
doesn’t apply.
Westchester County
has atriple-A bond rating.
As far as credit worthi-
ness goes, it doesn’t get
any better than that. Of
New York’s 62 counties,
only two others — Orange
an Onondaga — are rated
that high, according to
the New York State Asso-
ciation of Counties.
But in one significant
way, Westchester gains
no advantage from its fis-
cal prudence.
County Executive Rob
Astorino’s proposed 2013
budget includes borrow-
ing $35 million to help
meet a $91.1 million em-
ployee pension bill.
Common sense and
fairness dictate that the
county should be able to
finance that bill by ven-
turing into the open-bond
market, just as it routine-
ly does when it borrows to
pay for, say, capital pro-
jects. With a triple-A bond
rating, the county, Astori-
no claims, should obtain a
favorably low interest
rate of between 1.5 per-
cent and 2 percent.
Only he can’t borrow
at less than 3 percent.
Why can’t he? He can’t
because we’re not talking
about the free market, not
in the conventional sense.
We're talking about the
state government in Alba-
ny — and that’s a whole
different kettle of fish.
Ever since the econo-
my tanked, local govern-
ments have been over-
whelmed with exponen-
tially higher payments to
the state’s public employ-
ee pension fund. In 2001,
Westchester’s obligation
was $4 million. By 2015, it
is expected to be $107 mil-
lion. That year, pension
costs are projected to ac-
count for a whopping 35
percent of municipal gov-
ernment budgets state-
wide.
There are a couple of
ways of handing this cri-
sis —raise property taxes
or lay off workers. But
there is also a third way,
first offered by the state
in 2010.
Under the so-called
amortization plan, mu-
nicipalities may defer the
pension costs and pay the
state back ata fixed inter-
est rate of 3 percent. That
rate applies to everyone,
including governments
with a triple-A bond rat-
ing.
Critics say this is like
buying from the company
store at noncompetitive
prices. The result is get-
ting deeper and deeper
into debt.
Earlier this year,
Bloomberg News quoted
White Plains Mayor
Thomas Roach, who
summed it up this way:
“The road to hell is paved
in amortizing pensions.
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY (WESTCHESTERPUTNAM)
Al Rights Reserved,
All you’re doing is taking
a current operating cost
and pushing it down the
line.”
Astorino vociferously
resisted the impulse to
opt for amortization last
year, mainly for that rea-
son. He changed his mind
this year, though he hy-
perbolically complained
at a recent budget news
conference that it was
like dealing with a loan
shark. This got a laugh
from those in attendance.
The county executive
claims that being allowed
the option to borrow on
the outside would save
the county $2 million to $3
million, or as much as
$300,000 a year over a 10-
year period.
Not to be able to do that
was “outrageous,” he
said.
“We have asked them
to make a change in the
law that would allow
counties like us or any
public entity that has to
borrow, if they have good
credit, to be able to do so,”
he said. “Why not? Who’s
being hurt here? Nobody.
But this is what they al-
low us to do — borrow
from them only.”
From the state’s per-
spective, Astorino is,
well, wrong. Among other
things, he’s supposedly
wrong that the county
would get a markedly bet-
ter interest rate on the
outside, more like 2.5 per-
cent.
Make no_ mistake,
there’s a lot of politics in
this.
Account: 23070 (13934)
Ny-2692
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM)
Date: Sunday, December 02, 2012
Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 98,374 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
Page: 5
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Astorino came into of-
fice on a pledge that he
wouldn’t raise property
taxes — and he has suc-
ceeded so far in keeping
his word. Next year, he
faces what promises to be
a tough re-election cam-
paign and he doesn’t want
to go into it without say-
ing he held the line on
three successive budgets.
His strategy has been
to cut frills, or what he
calls “nice-to-haves,” and
to press the public em-
ployee unions — particu-
larly the Civil Service
Employees Union — to
pay a percentage of their
health-care benefits. An
impasse with the CSEA
on this issue has resulted
in Astorino’s call for lay-
ing off 126 workers.
Amortization is a hor-
rible solution to a press-
ing problem — though
more and more cash-
strapped public employ-
ers are seizing on it.
Andif it helps hold toa
zero percent tax increase
in Westchester, Astorino
will take it. In the mean-
time, he can at least at-
tempt to deflect any criti-
cism by saying that the 3
percent interest rate is
unfair when applied to a
triple-A-rated county.
On top of that, he can
presumably blame the
state’s higher interest
rate for not allowing him
to save a few jobs.
This budget stuff gets
sticky. The Democratic-
controlled board has al-
ready jabbed Astorino for
the amortization propos-
al, as well as his idea to
borrow money to pay for
$13 million in court-or-
dered property-tax re-
ductions.
So there will be a fight.
But there is one thing
that can be counted on:
No matter what happens
on the local level, the
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY (WESTCHESTERPUTNAM)
Al Rights Reserved,
state always gets its mon-
ey.
The state always wins.
Reach Phil Reisman at
preisman@lohud.com or
914-694-5008.
Account: 23070 (13934)
Ny-2692
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 2
C
THE STEUBEN
OURIER
fate:
-ADVOCATE 2x .ou»;
Type (Frequency):
Sunday, December 02, 2012
BATH, NY
10,931 (173)
Newspaper (W)
2
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
County officials nix
smoking ban proposal
BY MARY PERHAM ban) stop,” county Legisla-
THE COURIER tor Scott Van Etten, R-
Caton, asked. “The
BATH | Steuben government needs to stay
County legislators defeated
a second effort by a stand-
ing legislative committee
11-4 Monday to ban smok-
ing on county-owned or
leased property.
The ban, proposed by
the county Legislature's
Human Service, Health
and Education Committee
was being considered at the
urging of various local
health officials. It was
tabled a couple months ago
out of people’s lives.”
Ferratella, and county
legislators Hilda Lando, D-
Corning City, Robin Lat-
timer, R-Bath, Gary
Swackhamer, R-Hornell
and Randy Weaver D-Hor-
nell voted in favor of the
bill
VanEtten and county
legislators Lawrence Cros-
sett, R-Bath, Dan Farrand,
R-Rathbone, Mike Hanna,
R-Hammondsport, Joe
CAROL FERRATELLA
ices, but recently dropped
the idea of outsourcing the
programs. Legislators were
recently warned state cut-
backs next year could force
the closure of continuing
day treatment services,
now offered.
The public comment pe-
riod was opened, despite a
recent decision by Legisla-
to allow officials more time Hauryski, R-Campbell, , Chai Joe Hau-
todevelop the restriction. Patrick McAllister, R-Way- ryski, R-Campbell, not to
But the new proposal land, Aaron Mullen, R- allow & time at the meeting
was strongly criticized bya Avoca, Bill Peoples, fo, the public to speak.
number of legislators for
being too broad and the
$1,000 fine excessive.
County lawmakers also
thought the restriction
would be unenforceable.
HSH&E Committee
Chairwoman _ Legislator
Carol Ferratella, R-River-
side, said the restriction
would be “self-policed” and
was meant to encourage
R-Addison, Tom Ryan, R-
Canisteo, Brian Schu, R-
Hornellsville, and George
Welch, D-Corning City
voted against the measure.
County Legislator Gary
Roush, R-Erwin, was absent
Legislators also were im-
plored by clients and county
mental health staff not to
close continuing day treat-
ment services now offered
Hauryski said anyone with
an issue could bring it to
the appropriate committee
chair and be put on the
agenda.
Bringing it before a com-
mittee also allows discus-
sion of the topic, since
lawmakers do not respond
to public comments.
But environmentalist
Rachel Treichler, of Ham-
people to stop using tobacco by Steuben. The clients and
products. Ferratella said staff participated in a one se tee ‘lee
she doubted the fine would CSEA-sponsored protest. ing comments before; the
ever be imposed. ~~ before*the’ meeting before “meeting.
But the ban would be filling the legislative cham- ‘Treichler said the public
meaningful to.anyone who’ bers and speaking during comment period allows the
has had a loved one die of the public comment period. Legislature to be notified of
cancer or struggle with em- The county has been new information on a topic
physema. Ferratella said. considering ways to cut the loser to the time they
“Well, where does (the
cost of mental health serv-
occur.
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 STEUBEN COURIER ADVOCATE
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13976)
Nyaa
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Friday, November 30, 2012
Location: NEW YORK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 26,418 (1)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: ALAS
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
Astorino, Westchester
CSEA Feud Over Plan
To Lay Off 126 Staff
By MARK TOOR
Westchester County Executive
Robert P. Astorino has presented a
budget for 2013 that calls for laying
off 126 workers and eliminating 63
unfilled jobs. He blamed the layoffs on
the Westchester Civil Service Em-
ployees Association, saying that if
members had agreed to contribute to
their health-care costs, they would
not be necessary.
The budget “is a labor-driven jugger-
naut,” he said. “Despite all efforts, ex-
penses are going to rise by about $97
million and of that, 82 percent has to
do with labor costs, salaries and in-
creased benefits. This has nothing to do
with our employees; they are terrific.”
‘Wants Biggest Bite on Lowest-Paid’
Karen Pecora, the union president,
responded after the budget announce-
ment Nov. 14 that the union had pre-
sented a proposal for members to pay
a portion of their health-care costs but
that the contributions offered weren't
high enough for county negotiators.
“Our members are the lowest-paid in
the county but he is demanding the
highest contribution rate toward
health-insurance premiums,” she said
(Continued on Page 9)
in a statement on the CSEA website
Nov. 15.
The county wants the Westchester
CSEA, the largest of its five unions,
to pay more toward the premiums
than it was getting from three other
unions that had agreed to contribu-
tions, a union spokeswoman said in
an interview. Actual numbers were
not available, but the Teamsters
agreed to have members pay 10 per-
cent of their health-care premiums, a
figure that will rise to 12.5 percent in
2015. New hires will pay 20 percent.
In return for negotiating health-
care contributions, the spokeswoman
said, the union wanted a no-layoff
guarantee, but it had not material-
ized.
The $1.7-billion budget is $97 mil-
lion higher than last year's. It reflects
a deficit of $89 million. In addition to
the layoffs, Mr. Astorino proposes bal-
ancing the budget by issuing bonds to
pay refunds for tax overpayments by
property owners and some of the re-
quired increase in payments to the
state pension fund.
Sticks to No-Tax-Hike Stance
He declined to raise taxes, as he has
since he took office three years ago.
Residents of the affluent but high-
taxed county have suffered in the re-
cession, and they elected him in 2009
in the hope that he would end the
ever-rising tax spiral.
Ms. Pecora said Hurricane Sandy
had pointed out the folly of reducing
the county workforce: “The County
Executive’s reckless proposed cuts
will pose a completely unnecessary
safety risk for the residents of this
great county. This comes after County
Executive Astorino thanked workers
for their dedication and expertise in
providing critical responsiveness to our
neighbors in the county... If it was en-
tirely up to Mr. Astorino, many of these
dedicated county CSEA workers would
already have been laid off last year and
Superstorm Sandy's impact would
have been far worse for all residents.
“During this most-recent storm,”
she continued, “the CSEA county
workforce worked around the clock to
remove trees, pump out water to pre-
vent flooding, monitor drinking water
for safety, deliver supplies to emergency
shelters, dispatch emergency calls, and
inspect bridges and roads for safety.
Draconian cuts in the 2013 budget will
prevent such a smooth response when
the next major storm comes.”
Wants Cutbacks Rescinded
She called on the Board of Legisla-
tors to rescind Mr. Astorino’s proposed
cuts. Most of the layoffs would come
in the Parks, Social Services, Public
Works and Transportation depart-
ments. No public-safety jobs would be
affected, according to the Astorino ad-
ministration. The county has lost 20
percent of its workforce in the past
two years, Ms. Pecora said.
The union spokeswoman said mem-
bers were being urged to attend and
speak out at one of the three open
hearings on the budget. The Board of
Legislators must approve a budget by
Dec, 27.
Mr. Astorino said the state was re-
sponsible for much of the county’s fis-
cal problems. “Unfunded mandates
account for 85 cents of every dollar we
take in, leaving 15 cents on the dollar
for things we want to do,” he said. And
without mandate relief, he said, the 2-
percent annual cap on property-tax
increases “is a complete farce, a cruel
joke on people.”
Account: 23070 (13937)
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Date: Friday, November 30, 2012
Location: NEW YORK, NY
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Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
ROBERT ASTORINO: Budg- KAREN PECORA: Calls
ef woos ‘labor-driven health-care demand unfair.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13937)
Nyv-a25,
For roprinis or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Friday, November 30, 2012
OBSERVER Location: DUNKIRK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 83,300 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 16
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Paper trail brings
CSEA negotiations
back to square one
OBSERVER Staff Report
MAYVILLE — _ Greg
Edwards has been waiting
nearly 11 months for a list of
proposals from union offi-
cials to save the County
Home.
On Thursday, less than 30
days prior to the county leg-
islature’s review of the con-
tract to sell the County
Home to Altitude Health
Services, Inc., the union
responded to Edwards’
request to negotiate.
“CSEA is requesting that
negotiations for terms and
conditions of employment
for employees at the
Chautauqua County Nursing
Home be separated from
negotiations for the remain-
der of the Chautauqua
County Employee Unit
6300,” noted Penny
Gleason, labor relations spe-
cialist. “This request is pred-
icated upon full Joong of
the County Home (including
IGT match) and implemen-
tation of other cost-saving
and revenue enhancing rec-
ommendations made in the
Center for Governmental
negotiate.
“Tf I com-
mit the taxpayers of our
county to funneling over
$3.2 million tax dollars into
the County Home each year,
and implement flawed
changes, then the CSEA will
negotiate changes to their
contract,” Edwards said in
response to the Nov. 20 let-
ter submitted by Gleason. “If
the CSEA would like to sub-
mit a proposal that is respon-
sive to my letter delivered
over 10 months ago, I would
be willing to review the same
as long as the offer is
received by the negotiating
team prior to Dec. 12, 2012.”
In his letter, Edwards
also seeks clarification from
the CSEA as to what they
meant by their request
being predicated on IGT
funding and implementa-
tion of CGR recommenda-
tions.
“The union’s letter con-
ditions any potential negoti-
ations by the CSEA on my
promise that I will guaran-
tee that the taxpayers of ©
Chautauqua County will
Research report.” spend $1.6 million of our
Edwards, while noting the _ property taxes, and another
poor timing by the CSEA, $Le million of our state and
formulated a response and
said there
federal taxes every year
going forward to keep the
On Oct. 24, the legisla-
ture voted 16-8 to direct
Edwards to negotiate a con-
tract for the sale of the
County Home to Altitude
Health Services, Inc. for
$16.5 million. The legisla-
ture will review the contract
for sale during its Dec. 19
meeting.
In the meantime, the
County Home continues to
lose an estimated $9,000
per day, according to
Edwards.
“Instead of losing $9,000
per day we could be earning
$2,190 per day and have the
opportunity for expanded
health care for our seniors,”
Edwards said, noting how
the sale of the County
Home to a private sector
company would change the
county’s financial climate.
Comments may be sent
to editori-
al@observertoday.com
was still Skilled Nursing Home
time for the owned by the county,”
CSEA to Edwards notes. “Not stop-
deliver on ping there it also requires
the first that I promise that the sig-
invitation nificantly flawed CGR
he made report recommendations be
more than guaranteed to be imple-
10 months mented.” ere
ago to
© 2012 OBSERVER
Al Rights Reserves,
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N¥-190
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Date: Thursday, November 29, 2012
EXPRESS Location: MECHANICVILLE, NY
Circulation (OMA): 2,650 (56)
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Page: 221
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Keyword: CSEA
Maplewood Employees, Others Oppose Privatization
by Harold Wessell
BALLSTON SPA, Nov. 20—Dorothy Tyler of Saratoga
Springs, whose mother Patricia is a resident of
Maplewood Manor, was the first of about a dozen
speakers before the Saratoga County Board of
Supervisors, when the Board began the process of
finding an acceptable private operator for the fiscally
strapped facility.
Tyler, a member of the nursing home’s Family
Council, told of another, just-formed group of staff
and County citizens, named Citizens Advocate for a
Sustainable Maplewood Manor (C.A.S.M.M.), “formed
to advocate for people being left out of the process —
your process...We are willing to assist you, and we
would like to be part of the process. Our County has
been caring for our elderly, sick and poor for over 200
years. As a county, it is our duty to provide for those
who cannot provide for themselves. We should not
Pass it off to the highest bidder,” She presented a list
of questions and suggestions from the group.
Looking ahead five to ten years, she voiced what
proved a persistent theme of the speskers: “You
can't possibly believe that employees working for
lower wages and benefits, in inappropriate staff-to-
patient ratios, can provide the same quality care our
residents now receive.”
Maplewood employee Nick Berardi read a
letter from members of the residents’ ‘association:
“Maplewood’s mission has always beer to provide
quality care for those in need. You cannot get that
same quality from a private-run nursing
home ... whose primary mission is to
make money ... Providing for these
elderly and disabled should not be run
as a business,” but to provide for “a
fundamental need of society.”
Susan Flowers, an employee, also
maintained that private nursing homes
equal “lower pay and lower staff, that
usually means lower care ... We could
be the county that says No to getting rid
of its county nursing home. There are a
lot of people out there that cannot afford
private nursing homes, especially these
days. We need to stand proud and say
to care about our county residents and
our elderly who need somewhere to live
... and take care of our own.” She said
she prayed that day; the Eoard would
“give Maplewood Manor one more year,
at least one more year, to prove that we
© 2012 EXPRESS
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EXPRESS
Date: Thursday, November 29, 2012
Location: MECHANICVILLE, NY
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Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 221
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 EXPRESS
Al Rights Reserved,
can make it.”
Employee Steven Mitchell likewise
expected that “Privatization would
likely mean diminished services ... The
responsibilities of a private company would condemn
[residents] to fewer activities, no meals from scratch,
and other luxuries that a private company would
not allow due to the bottom line. The dollar cannot
be the bottom line when we are dealing with these
residents.”
Barbara Thomas called it a “social and moral
obligation” to provide that kind of service to county
residents. She estimated that a 20 percent property
tax increase — said to be the only other way to save
the home -— would be about “$50 a year per $100,000
— I'm willing to pay that, particularly in the short
term; because | think we have been rushed into this
decision, by a small committee of the board... And |
know that the meetings were not public. The people
didn’t know what the charge to the consultant was.”
Raymond Meyers was the lone speaker to support
* see Maplewood page 21
privatization, calling attention to the now-notorious
main cause of its persistent deficit: the constant
shortfall in Medicaid reimbursements municipal
homes are subject to. “I think this a very painful loss
of control by local government in state unfunded
mandates. It's hard to believe that it's gone on this
long, and impacted so large financially. And nothing
brings that home as how people are hurt in this
example.” However, he felt that unless the County
takes a position and figures out a solution to dealing
with unfunded state and federal mandates, “What's
the next service that we're going to lose in the county,
around the corner?”
Prior to the vote, Waterford supervisor John
Lawler, illustrated the perennial impact of unfunded
state mandates on the entire County budget: In the
2013 budget due for adoption next month, every dollar
of the anticipated property tax of $52,577,684 will go
toward paying for $63,837,520 in state mandates —
with $12,259,836 to be found from other sources.
Kathy Garrison, CSEA Capital Region President,
calling Nov. 20 a sad day for Saratoga County,
claimed that “The decision to dispense of the property
was decided privately by the Republican caucus,
behind closed doors, with zero transparency. County
residents have been shut out of this process, ignored
and disrespected. Your vote today to create an LDC is
being done without the consideration of other options,
without a public hearing and without any respect for
the residents and employees of Maplewood Manor...”
She further alleged that LDCs have “great potential
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EXPRESS
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Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 221
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 EXPRESS
Al Rights Reserved,
for abuse .. Friends and family can be appointed
to the board; LDCs are not required to comply with
open meetings and Freedom of Information Laws;
no disclosure of financial information is required; no
requirement that fair market value is paid for property.”
(Maplewood Manor is valued at $13-15 million.)
She warned members who were behind the plan,
or are going along with it, “Let me assure you that
your ability to get re-elected will be impacted by this
vote. Voters will remember; and next year when you
are up for re-election, CSEA will be happy to remind
them...”
Prior to the vote, Moreau Supervisor Preston
Jenkins said he was concerned that the
County would still be borrowing money from
the LDC, which could impact taxpayers
for the next three years, if the sale as
proposed doesn't occur at some point; and
he was “not comfortable” with that.
Ballston Supervisor Patricia
Southworth said she had “serious
questions about quality of life issues that
will occur, I'm sure,” if Maplewood
is privatized -- and should the
facility end up
closing in the future. She hoped
that if the LDC goes forward, the
Board would keep looking at
alternative plans.
New Milton Supervisor
Daniel Lewza also expressed his
concern that after the $6 million
the County will be
getting from the LDC,
in the 2014 budget,
even if they sell
the property in
January, the
County will still
be responsible for
probably the next
16 months. “
Are we going to
have to borrow
again? | think
what we need to
do is go back, take a look at things, ... and tighten
up a flat cut, across the board, in each department,
including Maplewood Manor, and see where they can
get to making up the $6 million.”
Northumberland Supervisor Willard “Bill” Peck said
he went into the process with an open mind about 18
months ago, and originally doubted the need for an
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EXPRESS
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 EXPRESS
Al Rights Reserved,
LDC. “The more | looked at it, the more I'm dealing
with it, the LDC was really a way to finance an annual
operations until we can transition to a private entity.”
Peck took issue with some of the comments,
pointing out that in fact all meetings will be subject
to the Open Meetings Law. As for claims of “friends
and family getting high paid wages to come to work
for the LDC... The LDC is going to be made up of five
supervisors and two other people as citizens — That's
the LDC. We aren't being paid for it.” He added, “I
think everybody knows, there is a great need for a
nursing home here.” The concern he has, however,
is about long-term viability; “and in the hands of the
County that is not sustainable. We probably should
have done this ten years ago.”
Voting against the proposal were Jenkins, Mary
Ann Johnson, Lewza, Southworth and Yepsen.
Richardson and Jean Raymond of Edinburg did not
attend. Members of the LDC board will be Chairman
of the Board of Supervisors Thomas Wood Ill;
Supervisors Ed Kinowski of Stillwater, Thomas
Richardson of Mechanicville, and Arthur Wright of
Hadley; and from the general public former longtime
Public Health Nursing director Helen Endres, and
former Malta Supervisor David Meager.
Observed Kinowski to the Express later: “The
challenge with saving Maplewood is striking the
best balance to preserve its existence for our
future. The LDC appears to be the best method
to continue Maplewood’s future; provide time to
work out employee matters; continue caring for our
residents, and help stabilize and improve our County
Budget. Lacking a direction to help on these four
fronts is not an option.” Meanwhile, “The Federal
and State government continue to wrangle over Inter-
governmental Transfers (IGTs) of Medicaid funding,
shorting the County millions of dollars. Medical costs
continue to skyrocket.”
Richardson told the Express: “I think it’s a good
idea ...Here’s the thing, We've tried to investigate to
see if we're doing the right thing, and no one has been
able to come up with an idea to make Maplewood
self-sufficient;” since compared to a private operator
which gets 100 percent Medicaid reimbursement, a
County gets only about 68 percent. “So we've been
running it at negative-millions of dollars a year... Now
it's been negative nine million for the last couple
years.” Property taxes can’t be increased, “because
the governor says we can’t do that.” Nor he added
was the legislature willing to let the County raise its
sales tax — “That would have been one percent, and
we would have been equal to all the other counties
around us, and they screamed about that.”
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EXPRESS
Date: Thursday, November 29, 2012
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 EXPRESS
Al Rights Reserved,
He emphasized that he was glad he was asked
to participate on the LDC board, “because | want to
make sure. My heart is saying let's keep it open [as
a county facility] but my head is saying, we just can’t
do it.” He pointed out that over the last seven he has
helped many people from Mechanicville to live there.
“And | understand what it all means. | have my aunt
up there right now, and have had other relatives up
there.” He added the whole LDC board is a very good
group. “Everybody's heart is in this as well as our
heads, so we're taking as close a look at this as we
possibly can.”
A second resolution passed last week sets a
public hearing for January 9, 2013, at 5:15PM in the
Board of Supervisors Chamber for consideration of a
second resolution, that would initiate the LDC’s actual
management of the sale process, while the County
continues as operator.
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JOURNAL EWS tes ware Bans ny
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM) Cireulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
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Keyword: CSEA
LOCAL NEWS
Astorino accuses union of pact holdout
County exec: Officials delay contract to keep health care
By Elizabeth Ganga
eganga@lohud.com
WHITE PLAINS — West-
chester County Executive
Rob Astorino accused the
county’s largest union
Wednesday of intentional-
ly holding out on a con-
tract settlement to get an-
other year of free health
care,
The Civil Service Em-
ployees Association,
which represents about
3,200 county employees,
has apparently decided to
accept layoffs to protect
its health care benefit, As-
torino told The Journal
News’ Editorial Board.
Astorino has pressed the
eight county unions to ac-
cept health premium con-
tributions in its contracts.
Three unions have agreed
to the provision, but five
are still in talks.
“They’ve probably
made the conscious deci-
sion: 126 bodies is worth it
so the rest of us keep free
health care,” Astorino
said of the CSEA.
The terms of expired
contracts continue during
negotiations under state
labor law.
CSEA officials could
not be reached, but Karen
Pecora, the president of
Unit 9200, has said the
union is willing to contrib-
ute to health care and has
made other offers to save
the county money but is
looking for a “no layoff”
guarantee in return. Asto-
rino has used layoffs as a
threat, she said.
The layoffs are part of
a $1.7 billion budget with
no tax increase for 2013
that Astorino proposed
two weeks ago and must
be in place by the end of
December. Throughout
the budget season, Astori-
no, a Republican, had laid
the layoffs at the door of
the CSEA. While he
doesn’t want to lay people
off, Astorino told the Edi-
torial Board, cuts were
necessary to create a re-
sponsible budget without
a massive tax increase.
Though nonprofits and
county employees facing
cuts have protested his
budget, his third with no
tax increase, Astorino
also said he has reached
the appropriate balance
of funding government
and controlling taxes.
There are certain things
government should do, in-
cluding keeping a strong
safety net, building roads
and bridges, and protect-
ing public health, he said,
but Westchester has ex-
panded into areas argu-
ably not the province of
government, like running
an amusement park and
funding nonprofits. The
goal is to provide services
more efficiently, he said.
“We are, I think, very
kind and generous in what
we do as a county,” he
said. “We do what we're
supposed to do, and we go
well beyond what we're
supposed to do.”
Astorino specifically
addressed cuts to health
centers and child care,
two of his most controver-
sial proposals. The health
centers have the re-
sources to do well without
the $3 million in county
funding they currently
get, he said. And the high-
er contributions from par-
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
All Rights Reserves,
ents in the county’s subsi-
dized child care programs
are similar to many coun-
ties and will allow the
county to help more peo-
ple, he said.
In the future, as cuts
get more difficult, Astori-
no said, “taxes have to be
the last resort.”
“We're not there yet,”
he said.
Account: 23070 (13908)
Ny.
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Thursday, November 29, 2012
JAMESTOWN, NY
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 POST-JOURNAL
All Rights Reserves,
Time
To
Talk?
CSEA Willing To Negotiate
If County Invests In Home
By Liz SkoczyLas
Iskoczylas@post-journal.com
MAYVILLE — County Execu-
tive Greg Edwards plans to formal-
ly respond to a letter from CSEA
today.
At the County Legislature meet-
ing Wednesday evening, Bonnie
Peters, a member of CSEA, spoke
about a letter she sent to each mem-
ber of the legislature. The letter is
apparently different from the one
Edwards received from the union
last Wednesday, which he has been
studying with the county's legal
and Human Resources teams.
“Tonight, for the first time, I
understand that a different letter
with different language, different
terms, was sent to the legislature,”
Edwards told media following the
meeting. “So, I'll be asking legisla-
tors to get a copy of that, so I can
look at that as well, because that
was the first 1 heard, when a CSEA
member read it to the Legislature
earlier (Wednesday) evening. I
guess the complicating factor is, I
haven't seen that letter, other than
hearing it being read this evening.
It’s ferent than the one I
received?” * a .
See COUNTY, Page A3
The letter was not for-
mally sent to the Legisla-
ture clerk to be entered into
the records, however the
CSEA member read por-
tions of it aloud. Edwards
expressed frustration over
receiving the letters now,
when communication was
initially started in January
to discuss issues between
the county and CSEA.
“This is a situation
where we have negotiated
for over a year with CSEA
Local 6300 as a complete
organization, 934 employ-
ees, and have been unable
to reach an agreement,”
Edwards said. “The union
walked away from the
negotiation, declared
impasse. So, there is a for-
mal procedure, a very tech-
nical procedure, you have
to follow in those sorts of
circumstances.”
According to Edwards,
the union is requesting that
the county invest a signifi-
cant amount of money into
the Chautauqua County
Home. At that point, CSEA
would be willing to discuss
proposals it is willing to
make about changing the
operation of the home.
“It’s all premised and
preconditioned on my com-
mitment, the Legislature’s
commitment, to invest full
in the IGT,” Edwards said.
“This year, that would
mean $1.6 million in local
property tax, matched by
1.6 million of our state
and federal taxes, for a
total of $3.2 million of tax
subsidy for an organization
that right now is losing
over $9,000 a day in its
operations.”
Edwards called the tim-
ing of the letters “unfortu-
nate,” also stating that the
language was unusual and
unclear. However, he said
that he will have a formal
response for CSEA as well
as the Legislators today.
Account: 23070 (13940)
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Thursday, November 29, 2012
ONEONTA, NY
11,343 (169)
Newspaper (0)
3
Main
CSEA
Otsego board grilled on Manor, job cuts
BY JOE MAHONEY
STAFF WRITER
COOPERSTOWN — An Ot-
sego County staffer who helps
the elderly with questions about
their medical benefits and Pub-
lic Defender Richard “Otto” Ro-
thermel were among a parade
of people who urged county
lawmakers Wednesday night to
reconsider planned job cuts in-
cluded in the tentative budget.
Fighting for his job and sup-
ported by about two dozen peo-
ple who flocked to the Otsego
County Courthouse for a public
hearing on the spending plan,
David Polley, an Office for the
Aging benefits specialist, said
services to the aged population
“will suffer dramatically” if his
position is eliminated.
Numerous senior citizens and
John Imperato Sr., the president
of the county’s Civil Service
Employees Association local
union, asked the board to keep
Polley on the job.
“Why are we attacking our
elderly?” asked Imperato, who
also criticized the Board of
Representatives’ decision car-
lier this year to seek a private
operator for the 174-bed Otsego
Manor nursing home.
Board Chairwoman Kathleen
Clark, R-Otego noted the board
is facing tough choices heading
into 2013 as a result of having to
increase its subsidy to keep the
county-owned nursing home
operating from $3.3 million this
year to $5.5 million next year.
She said unfunded mandates
imposed by the state and rising
retirement costs for public em-
‘ployees have forced the board
to whittle away at services and
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserved,
consider cuts that prove to be
unpopular.
Among the cuts included in
the tentative budget — as re-
leased by county Treasurer
Dan Crowell, who packed the
document after consulting with
board members — is the elimi-
nation of one of the five part-
time assistant public defenders,
Rothermel challenged the rea-
soning for that cut, arguing the
cost of providing representa-
tion to people who can’t afford
a lawyer will end up increasing
because it will drive more cases
to so-called assigned counsel —
private lawyers who work at a
much higher hourly rate.
He also expressed concern
that eliminating the job of one
of his assistants will prompt
others to resign from the office
— leading to an even bigger in-
crease in the number of cases
routed to assigned counsel. Ro-
thermel said the current assis-
tants could end up making more
money by working less if they
simply quit and join the pool
of lawyers working as assigned
counsel. He said he could also
retire, collect his pension and
work as an assigned counsel.
“I'll win, the assistants will
win, but I’m concerned the
county will lose,” he said.
The most consistent topics
that ran through the remarks
from those who sounded off at
the forum dealt with requests
to keep Polley in his position
and to reconsider the sale of the
nursing home.
Bob Compani, another CSEA
official, described how patient
care has declined and work-
ing conditions for staffers have
suffered since a nursing home
formerly operated by Fulton
County was privatized.
“I have seen it in my home
town,” said Compani, who is
from Gloversville. “Don’t let it
happen here.”
He said scores of employees
have left their jobs at that facil-
ity, despite the fact Gloversville
has one of the highest unem-
ployment rates in New York.
The board is expected to act
on the $124.5 million tentative
budget at its monthly meeting
next Wednesday.
Clark, in an interview, said the
spending plan could be amend-
ed then, after she and other
board members reflect on the
comments made by citizens.
Rep. Rich Murphy, D-town of
Oneonta, said he plans to meet
today with Polley, whose job
elimination was proposed by
Frances Wright, the director of
the Office for the Aging. Mur-
phy said he has never seen such
a strong showing of public sup
port for one county worker.
Meanwhile, Murphy said he
expects the panel will con-
tinue to examine the possibil-
ity of tacking on a quarter of a
percentage point to the county
sales tax in order to avoid the
possibility of cutting more jobs
and services. However, it will
not be possible to enact such
an increase in time to impact
the budget that will be acted on
next week.
The tentative budget amounts
to a 1.97 percent increase over
the county's 2012 property tax
levy.
Account: 23070 (13936)
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The Daily Star
Date: Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Location: ONEONTA, NY
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Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserves,
Debate
arises over
possible
county
job cut
BY JOE MAHONEY
STAFF WRITER
COOPERSTOWN — As
Otsego County lawmakers
prepare to hear from the
public tonight on a tenta-
tive county budget for 2013,
a behind-the-scenes debate
has broken out.
The debate focuses on
whether planned _ layoffs
should include a worker re-
sponsible for counseling se-
nior citizens on their Medi-
care options.
John Imperato Sr. the
head of the local Civil Ser-
vice Employees Association
unit representing unionize
county workers, said the
proposed termination of Of-
fice for the Aging staffer Da-
vid Polley is based on flimsy
rationales that fail to take
into account the positive
contributions he has made
to enlighten seniors on their
federal benefit options un-
der Medicare.
“A lot of people will be
there to support him” at a
public hearing on the tenta-
tive budget at 6 p.m. at the
Otsego County Courthouse
in Cooperstown, Imperato
said.
Polley, contacted by The
Daily Star, declined to com-
ment, saying his supervisor,
Director of the Office for
the Aging Frances Wright,
instructed him to refrain
from making public com-
ments about the planned
elimination of his job.
County Treasurer Dan
Crowell, whose tentative
budget includes the elimina-
tion of Polley’s job, denied
charges by Imperato that
the firing was “political” in
nature.
“We've got a budget gap
that we have to close, and
that involves very hard deci-
sions,” he said.
As to whether or not Pol-
ley has enough allies on the
County Board of Represen-
tatives to keep him in his
$39,527-a-year job, Crowell
said that it’s “too hard to
tell.”
One of Polley’s allies, Rep.
Betty Anne Schwerd, R-Bur-
lington, said she has been
flooded with calls from se-
niors who want Polley to
keep his job.
“I think he is an integral
part of the office, and to
give up any part of the office
is a disservice to seniors,”
Schwerd said.
However, Rep. James
Powers, R-Butternuts, said it
was up to Wright to “make
the cuts where she thinks
the least damage will be
done.”
At the same time, Powers
said he is opposed to any
job cuts at the Department
of Motor Vehicles, an arm of
county Clerk Kathy Sinnott-
Gardner's office. He said
any cuts to jobs there would
hurt the public.
Account: 23070 (13935)
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Wednesday, November 28, 2012
JAMESTOWN, NY
15,168 (49)
Newspaper (D)
Ct
Region
CSEA
CSEA Looks To Negotiate Separately For County Home Workers
By Liz Skoczy.as
Iskoczylas@post-journal.com
MAYVILLE - Nearly 11
months after a request for what the
CSEA was willing to do regarding
the sale of the County Home, the
union has responded.
Last week, County Executive
Greg Edwards received a letter
from the CSEA. In the letter, the
union requested “that negotiations
for terms and conditions of
employment for employees at the
Chautauqua County Nursing Home
be separated from negotiations for
the remainder of the Chautauqua
County Employee Unit 6300,”
However, the letter may be too
little, too late.
“My thoughts are pretty clear. I
asked the president of the local
CSEA in January by letter to advise
me what the CSEA was willing to
do,” Edwards said. “They did not
acknowledge receipt of the letter,
nor did they ever respond to that
letter until I received this letter in
my office on Nov. 21. So, from
January until November, this is the
first thing I have received.”
Edwards said he had formally
communicated with the CSEA in
January of this year. At the time, he
said he told them he was working
with Marcus and Millichap to
begin marketing analysis of the
County Home. He requested that
the CSEA provide anything it was
going to propose on the County
Home by April, to
be presented along
with the findings
of Marcus and
Millichap,
According to a
release by the
CSEA on Tues-
day, the union is taking the first
step toward controlling costs and
increasing revenue as suggested in
a recent report and study of opera-
tions at the Chautauqua County
Home.
© 2012 POST JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserves,
“We are committed to nursing
home residents and taxpayers who
demand quality long-term care and
access to the care that only the
Chautauqua County Home pro-
vides,” said David Fagerstrom,
Chautauqua County unit president.
“This offer demonstrates that com-
mitment. We are hopeful these
negotiations can begin immediately
and that measures recommended
by the Legislature’s Ad Hoc Com-
mittee on the County Home and
the Center for Governmental
Research can be implemented.”
The letter, which is dated Nov.
20, states that the request is predict-
ed upon full funding of the County
Home, including IGT match, and
implementation of other cost-sav-
ing and revenue enhancing recom-
mendations made in the Center for
Governmental Research report.
Under the union proposal, nurs-
ing home workers would remain
members of the CSEA Chautauqua
County Unit 6300,
but a separate sec-
tion of the contract
would include arti-
cles specific only
to county home
employees.
In his budget
proposal, Edwards called for $1.3
million in IGT funding which
would have been matched by
another $1.3 million of state and
federal taxes. The legislature, how-
ever, reduced that amount by
$250,000.
“Tt is important for the home to
be fully funded as negotiations take
place, and for other recommenda-
tions in the study to be considered
for implementation as well,”
Fagerstrom said. “The Chautauqua
County Home is an asset owned by
county residents, and an important
safety net that provides care for all
regardless of ability to pay. We
believe it can remain taxpayer-
owned and thrive if the CGR report
is fully and seriously considered.”
According to Edwards, the
County Home is projected to lose
more than $700,000, or approxi-
mately $9,000 per day. This infor-
mation is why the county engaged
Marcus and Millichap, and why it
acknowledged an offer by Altitude
Health Services Inc. for $16.5 mil-
lion to parce the County Home,
Edwards said. a
“That's why we are finalizing
the contract as we speak between
Altitude and the county of Chau-
tauqua to be presented to the Chau-
tauqua County Legislature for their
review for their December ses-
sion,” Edwards said. “So, obvious-
ly it is difficult on the eve of
reviewing the contract of the sale,
to receive this letter as the first let-
ter in response to my January letter,
when we're negotiating the con-
tract for. the sale of the property.
So, it’s very unfortunate timing
that the CSEA chose here.”
Stephen Abdella, county attor-
ney, said since the budget is fully
adopted, Legislators would not be
able to change the tax levy at this
point.
“If they decided to increase it
back to where it was in the tenta-
tive budget or higher, I think they
could do that by going to the fund
balance,” he said. “They could do
that at any time. That would be
outside the budget process at this
point.”
Edwards said he does not expect
the letter from CSEA to be dis-
cussed during tonight's legislature
meeting. However, he will be dis-
cussing the letter further with
CSEA representatives.
“Since it’s unclear what is actu-
ally being proposed in this letter,
I'll work between now and the
December meeting to try and fig-
ure out what that is,” Edwards said.
Attempts to reach union officials
for further comment Tuesday were
unsuccessful.
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Date: Wednesday, November 28, 2012
OUR TOWN PEARL RIVER, NY
Main
CSEA
CSEA CRIES BETRAYAL:
After inking a no-layoff agree-
mentr with the County, CSEA
workers are angered over elim-
ination of jobs in the new coun-
ty budget for 2013. Page 3
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 OUR TOWN
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13931)
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Wednesday, November 28, 2012
SYRACUSE, NY
78,616 (79)
Newspaper (D)
35
Main
CSEA
Union
warns
county
of suit
Workers say transferring
ownership of Van Duyn
nursing home is illegal.
By Rick Moriarty
Staff writer
The union that represents
workers at the Van Duyn nurs-
ing home said Tuesday it may
sue Onondaga County if, as
expected, the county takes the
first step toward selling the
513-bed facility to a private
operator.
Mark Kotzin, a spokesman
for the Civil Service Employ-
ees Association, said the union
believes it would be illegal for
the county to transfer owner-
ship of Van Duyn Home &
Hospital to the Onondaga
Civic Development Corp.
The county Legislature is
expected to vote as early as
Tuesday on a proposal to
transfer the nursing home to
the OCDC. County officials
said the OCDC would then sell
ing home to Upstate
ces Group of Rockland
County for between $8 million
and $10 million. Unlike the
county, the OCDC could hold
a mortgage on the nursing
home, making it easier for Up-
state Services to finance the
purchase.
The OCDC is a local devel-
opment corporation created by
the county in 2009 primarily to
issue bonds on behalf of non-
profits to finance their devel-
opment projects. Kotzin said
its purpose does not include
facilitating the county’s sale of
© 2012 POST-STANDARD
Al Rights Reserved,
its nursing home to a private
entity.
““We believe it’s not legal to
be using an LDC (local devel-
opment corporation) for this
purpose,” he said.
The CSEA represents about
500 of Van Duyn’s 559 em-
ployees. It says it is worried
that a private operator would
slash wages, benefits and staff-
ing at Van Duyn, leading to a
reduction in the quality of care
at the facility.
Upstate Services has said it
would keep nearly all of Van
Duyn’s employees and main-
tain its mission. The company
has not said whether a change
in ownership would affect
wages and benefits.
Earlier this year, Lewis
County considered forming a
local development corporation
to operate its nursing home
while the county looked for a
buyer. It backed off after the
CSEA threatened to take legal
action to stop the move, Kot-
zin said.
Threats of a lawsuit do not
appear to be deterring the ad-
ministration of Onondaga
County Executive Joanie Ma-
honey, however. County At-
torney Gordon Cuffy said the
state law that authorizes the
creation of local development
corporations does not limit
them to financing projects for
nonprofits.
He noted that a section of
the law states that one of the
purposes of a local develop-
ment corporation is to “‘lessen
AT ISSUE, PAGE A-5
the burden of government.’’
It’s under that provision that
the OCDC could facilitate the
sale of Van Duyn, he said.
“*A clear reading of the stat-
ute shows it can do it,”’ Cuffy
said.
The Mahoney administra-
tion estimates that deficits at
Van Duyn will total $115 mil-
lion over nine years, placing a
huge burden on taxpayers.
State Comptroller Thomas
DiNapoli last year issued a re-
port calling for a change in the
law to rein in local develop-
ment corporations, which he
said are exempt from many of
the provisions that guide the
operations and financial trans-
actions of local government.
His report said the wide lati-
tude given to the corporations
“‘increases the risk of waste,
fraud, or abuse of taxpayer
dollars or assets.””
Contact Rick Moriarty at 470-3148 or
rmoriarty@syracuse.com,
‘Account: 23070 (13882)
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Date: Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Location: NANUET, NY
UF Circulation (DMA): 2,500 (1)
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Page: 1
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
UNION STRIKES BACK
Rockland County CSEA Calls for
Rockland Legislature to Reconsider
Budget Cutbacks, Threatens Suit
BY MICHAEL RICONDA
New City — The Rockland
County Legislature held a
public hearing at its No-
vember 20 meeting to ad-
dress the recently-released
2013 budget, prompting
public employees repre-
sented by the Civil Service
Employees Association to
speak against cuts to pro-
grams and layoffs.
The budget, which in-
cludes the elimination of
70 positions and cuts to
public health programs
such as mosquito control
and the county’s breast-
feeding initiative for new
mothers, was presented in
late October and has been
going through detailed re-
view in the legislature.
CSEA members criticized
a variety of cuts presented
in the budget, including
the breastfeeding program,
health benefits packages for
county employees, the em-
ployee pharmacy, and the
prescription drug program.
In addition, several CSEA
members claimed that the
proposed cuts meant that
county was entertaining
the possibility of breach-
ing their previous contract
with the union.
CSEA President PT.
Thomas spoke out against
© 2012 ROCKLAND COUNTY TIMES
Al Rights Reserves,
the layoffs and stated that
if the budget cuts interfered
with their prior contract or
the public ownership of
Summit Park Facility, the
CSEA would pursue legal
action to counter what he
calls a “privatization ef-
fort” against the troubled
healthcare center.
“Our stand is that Summit
park should stay as a public
entity,” Thomas said. “We
may even be forced to put
the issue on a referendum
in the coming ballot.”
Thomas also took the bold
step of suggesting drastic
$11 million cuts to legis-
lator positions and elimi-
nating the position of the
county executive entirely,
emphasizing the impor-
tance of focusing cuts upon
small numbers of high
carners rather than low-
level service positions,
Laurie Messenger, whose
position with the breast-
feeding program could be
cut in the current budget
plan, criticized County Ex-
ecutive C. Scott Vanderhoef
for emphasizing the elimi-
nation of departments over
eliminations of positions, a
move which Messenger de-
scribed as misleading.
Messenger also stressed
the importance and eco-
nomic value of retaining
public health programs,
a common theme among
many healthcare workers
who spoke.
Prevention saves money
by keeping people healthy,”
Messenger said.
In defense of the budget,
President of the Rockland
Business Association Al
Samuels stated that while
he felt that the legislature
should be more active in
modifying the budget and
open to suggestions from
outside consultants and ex-
perts who have reviewed
the budget, the budget as it
stands “represents a direly
needed reality check” and
should be carefully consid-
ered by the body.
“There are things in this
budget that are very hard,”
Samuels said. “For some
of you, many of them are
harder than others because
you have great commit-
ment to some of the things
that are represented by
them, and we understand,
but it’s time for the county
legislature to vote for the
entity that is Rockland
County, because if Rock-
land doesn’t survive, no
component of Rockland
can.”
Account: 23070 (13904)
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Page 1 of 2
Date: Wednesday, November 28, 2012
' Location: NANUET, NY
Circulation (DMA): 2,500 (1)
ockian n es Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 1
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Budgetary meetings and
public hearings are expect-
ed to continue throughout
the coming weeks, with
the next budgetary review
scheduled for November
26.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 ROCKLAND COUNTY TIMES
Al Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (13904)
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Tuesday, November 27, 2012
SYRACUSE, NY
78,616 (79)
Newspaper (D)
3
Main
CSEA
Speakers oppose selling Van Duyn
Workers union, families of
residents fear quality of
care, staffing would suffer.
By Rick Moriarty
Staff writer
The possible sale of Onon-
daga County's Van Duyn nurs-
ing home to a private operator
came under fire Monday night
from a public employees”
union and relatives of the fa-
cility’s residents.
Officials of the Civil Ser-
vice Employees Association
said they fear wages and bene-
fits for Van Duyn’s nurses and
other employees would be
slashed if the 513-bed facility
is sold to Upstate Services
Group, the Rockland County-
based nursing home operator.
That’s what happened when
Fulton County sold its nursing
home to a private operator
from New York City, said
Robert Compani, deputy direc-
tor of contract administration
for the CSEA.
“Do what’s right for the
county,’” Compani told law-
makers at a public hearing.
The union represents about
500 of Van Duyn’s 559 em-
ployees.
© 2012 POST-STANDARD
All Rights Reserved,
Phil Graham, president of
CSEA Local 834, said the
quality of care at Van Duyn is
likely to fall under a private
operator driven by a need to
generate profits.
“Can we walk away from
our responsibility to have a
true safety net?’’ he asked.
Graham also questioned the
accuracy of county estimates
that Van Duyn will run deficits
totaling $115 million over the
next nine years if it continues
to be run by the government.
He said the county has refused
to tell the union how it came
up with the estimates.
Virginia Denton, whose
aunt has been a resident of
Van Duyn for two years, said
she is worried that a private
operator would cut staff. She
said the county should raise
taxes to cover the facility’s
deficits rather than sell it.
““Van Duyn is a very, very
special place,”’ she said.
None of the eight people
who spoke at the hearing sup-
ported selling the nursing
home.
The county Legislature is
expected to vote next month
on a proposal to transfer Van
Duyn to the Onondaga Civic
Development Corp., a county-
created nonprofit corporation,
as an interim step to selling the
facility to Upstate Services
Group. The company is nego-
tiating a purchase for $8 mil-
lion to $10 million. It has
pledged to maintain the quality
of care at Van Duyn.
The idea of selling Van
Duyn appears to have strong
support in the Legislature be-
cause of the impact that bal-
looning deficits at the nursing
home could have on the coun-
ty’s finances.
Legislature Chairman Ryan
McMahon said the county is at
a point when it must sell Van
Duyn or risk financial ruin.
“Tf people have a better
idea, we'd love to hear it,’’ he
said after the hearing.
Contact Rick Moriarty at
Tmoriarty@syracuse.com or
470-3148.
Page 1 of 1
Account: 23070 (13881)
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Ballston Journal
Date: Friday, November 23, 2012
Location: BALLSTON SPA, NY
Circulation (OMA): 2,300 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Maplewood
Manor
to be sold
Saratoga County Supervisors vote to form LDC
BY MARCI REVETTE
marci@theballstonjournal.com
Despite protests from concerned
citizens and other interested parties,
the Saratoga County Board of Su-
pervisors voted at the Tuesday, Nov.
20 board meeting to form a Local
Development Corporation (LDC) in
order to sell Maplewood Manor, the
county-owned nursing home.
The vote, which was not unani-
mous, came after several angry citi-
zens spoke out during the public com-
ment period against privatizing the
county home.
Tensions between the supervisors
and the employees and family mem-
bers of the residents at Maplewood
Manor have been evident ever since
the proposed transaction was rec-
ommended last month by the Public
Health Committee.
“It didn’t seem possible that our
elected officials would actually con-
sider abandoning their social and mor-
al responsibilities toward a significant
portion of their constituents and our
neediest neighbors,” said Saratoga
resident Cliff Ammon. “However, as
time wore on, it became increasingly
apparent that the decision to dump our
most helpless was predetermined.”
Ammon also echoed the sentiments
of other citizens who protested the de-
cision was made without any public
hearings.
“You are all making a momentous
decision without public hearings,
based on a $50,000 report that report-
© 2012 BALLSTON JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
edly does not question any person
connected with Maplewood, staff,
patient, or family member,” Ammon
said. “The feeling is that this corpo-
ration you are creating is designed to
shield you from personal involvement
and culpability.”
Other citizens were upset over the
fact that Schuyler Hall, a 40-bed unit,
was officially closed last week. The
county expects to save $1 million in
net finances. The closing of that unit
required 32 patients to be moved to
new beds, sometimes even separating
family member
“That was their home.” said Nick
Barardi, an employee at Maplewood
Manor. “They’re being viewed as a
waste of money.”
Still other citizens expressed shock
that the supervisors would even con-
sider privatizing the home, since
some of them have family members
who are residents in the facility.
“It’s sad that your greatest concern
is making moncy, not the patients,
some of whom are your relatives,”
said Saratoga resident Barbara Brow-
er.
Saratoga County CSEA President
Kathy Garrison was perhaps the most
vocal of all when she addressed the
board.
“As for the members of the caucus
who hatched this scheme, and to those
who simply decided to go along with
it, let me assure you that your ability
to get re-elected will be impacted by
this yote,” Garrison said. “Voters will
remember, and next year when you
are up for re-election, CSEA will be
‘Account: 23070 (13890)
Nr
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
ll 1 Date: Friday, November 23, 2012
Ballston Journal 2... 28°"
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AZ
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
happy to remind them of your decep-
tion and your vote today.”
Before the vote was taken, several
board members stated why they were
either for or against forming an LDC.
“T have a problem with forming an
LDC and borrowing moncy against
it,” said Moreau Supervisor Preston
Jenkins. “I think it will potentially be
a double whammy to the taxpayers
over the next three years if this sale
goes through. I cannot vote for this
to borrow money to pay for operating
expenses for the year.”
According to the tentative 2013
county budget released on Oct. 31,
“the LDC model will allow the County
to partially offset next year’s subsidy
to Maplewood with funds borrowed
against the equity of the facility. This
will save the General Fund from hav-
ing to contribute $6 million towards
Maplewood’s projected deficit.”
The county does not have such “fi-
nancial flexibility” in the absence of
an LDC, the budget document states.
© 2012 BALLSTON JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
Ballston Supervisor Patti South-
worth had more personal reasons for
voting no.
“T have serious concerns over qual-
ity of life issues that will occur if an
LDC is formed,” she said. “I have se-
vere concerns about how this facility
would be run and what would hap-
pen to the residents and the property
should the facility ever be closed.”
Northumberland Supervisor Wil-
lard Peck explained why he would be
voting yes to the LDC.
“The LDC will have five supe!
sors on the board,” Peck said, “We
care about our citizens and want to do
the right thing. The right thing is to
keep the facility open and we can’t do
this without the LDC.”
The supervisors who voted no were
Preston Jenkins, Patti Southworth,
Mary Ann Johnson, Daniel Lewza,
Richard Lucia and Joanne Yepsen.
A public hearing will be held on
Jan. 9, 2013 at 5:15 p.m. to finalize
the formation of the LDC.
‘Account: 23070 (13890)
Nr
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Page 2 of 2
Date: Friday, November 23, 2012
Location: SYRACUSE, NY
Circulation (DMA): 78,616 (79)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
13
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Stephen D. Cannerelli/The Post-Standard, 2010
VAN DUYN Home and Hospital, West Seneca Turnpike, Syracuse, may be transferred
to an Onondaga County-created development corporation as an interim step toward
selling the 513-bed nursing home to a private operator. A public hearing at 7 p.m.
Monday will address the issue.
Safety Net At Risk
Onondaga County must not privatize Van Duyn
By Phil Graham
Since 1827, Onondaga County has had a
role in caring for our most vulnerable citi-
zens when it founded the county poor-
house. In 1975, Onondaga County began
building the Van Duyn Home & Hospital,
our public nursing home.
We built Van Duyn because our elected
leaders clearly saw the value to our com-
munity of continuing to have a safety net
facility for our elderly and infirm, one that
would treat the most medically complex
cases, and that would be available to all
county residents, regardless of ability to af-
ford nursing home care.
Now, that legacy and commitment to our
seniors is at serious risk.
Van Duyn belongs to the citizen taxpay-
ers of Onondaga County. This is our nurs-
ing home. When asked in the past, resi-
dents supported keeping Van Duyn as a
public nursing home, even if it cost more in
taxes. This is the kind of government ser-
vice people value paying for. Unfortunate-
ly, the county didn’t ask the public their
thoughts before putting Van Duyn up for
© 2012 POST-STANDARD
Al Rights Reserved,
sale.
Now the Onondaga County Legislature
is about to make another move toward get-
ting rid of our responsibility to our commu-
nity’s seniors by transferring Van Duyn’s
property and assets to a Local Develop-
ment Corporation (LDC). County officials
say this will make it easier for the private
company the county executive has selected
to purchase Van Duyn sometime next year.
Should we just allow them to dump dec-
ades worth of public investment into our
county nursing home?
There are many questions that should be
answered before our legislators take any
further action regarding Van Duyn. Among
them: Does the public support selling our
nursing home? Why do we need an LDC to
help the future buyer with financing? Can’t
it get financing on its own? Do we really
want to transfer ownership to a quasi-pub-
lic corporation, which has no direct ac-
countability to taxpayers and is projected to
run deficits in the next three years, accord-
ing to its financial plan?
On behalf of the residents who our mem-
‘Account: 23070 (13856)
Nve7e
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Page 1 of 2
It
Date: Friday, November 23, 2012
Location: SYRACUSE, NY
Circulation (DMA): 78,616 (79)
' Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 13
Main
ceyword:
CSEA
© 2012 POST-STANDARD
Al Rights Reserves,
bers care for and their families, we oppose
the sale of Van Duyn. If you want another
good reason as to why, let me tell the tragic
story of how nursing home privatization re-
cently failed the citizens of Delaware
County.
Last month, Delaware County residents
watched as the doors closed to their former
public nursing home, six years after selling
it to a private operator. That operator
couldn’t make a profit, so it walked away
from the home and the people who lived
there, leaving residents to be hastily relo-
cated hundreds of miles away from their
families and leaving taxpayers holding the
bag on more than half a million dollars still
owed from the sale.
We urge people to speak out against Van
Duyn’s sale at the Legislature’s public
hearing at 7 p.m. Monday, to stop the pos-
sibility of what happened in Delaware
County from ever happening here. Our
elected officials have an obligation to make
sure our safety net remains intact, and we
will hold our legislators accountable for
their actions if they vote to sell off Van
Duyn or transfer the property to a LDC.
Phil Graham, of East Syracuse, is president of Local
834 of the Civil Service Employees Association.
‘Account: 23070 (13856)
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OLEAN TIMES HERALD
Date: Friday, November 23, 2012
Location: OLEAN, NY
Circulation (OMA): 11,212 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: AS
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 OLEANTIMES HERALD
Al Rights Reserved,
Show raises $1,700
for cancer funding
OLEAN -— The 1950s
In Sync show held Nov. 2
— and sponsored by the
Olean Fire Department, CSEA
locals, Olean Blues Brothers,
Generations and the Olean
Theater Workshop — gener-
ated $1,700 toward the fight
against breast cancer, organiz-
ers said.
Proceeds from the event
are being donated to the
Cancer Services Program of
Cattaraugus and Allegany
counties.
Account: 23070 (13944)
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Page 1 of 1
WINDHAM JOURNAL Date: Traces Moverbes 22,2012
Location:
Circulation (OMA): 2,000 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Proposed pay hikes for county officials draws criticism
By W. T. Eckert
‘Hudson-Catskill Newspapers:
CATSKILL _— Proposed
rent socio-economic climate,
everyone should share in the
hurt.
CSEA Unit 7000 backed by
Vice President Ed Diamante
and Treasurer Pam O'Reilly
raises for several appointed and “I just feel in equity of spoke on. behalf of CSEA
elected Greene County officials everyone in the county," Ved- Local 820.
got called into question Mon- der ‘said, “that this hardship _ Unit 7000 represents 247
day night in a public hearing. should be shared by everyone.” _ Greene County workers.
Union leaders and county
employees voiced their dis-
pleasure with several proposed
local laws that would allow for
three elected and two appoint-
Greene County Mental
Health employee Jessica Dillon
echoed Vedder’s sentiment.
From her experience work-
ing for the county, Dillon said
“We've been told for the
last three years that times are
tough and we need to sacri-
fice,” Soderblom said. “We've
been told there is no money for
cd officials to get an increase in she has witnessed the struggles TSS.” ;
ir salary ranging from 1.30 the county has gone through Soderblom said that there
16.9 percent, had been significant increases
Local Laws 4 through 7
introduced the potential to
increase the salaries of the
county treasurer by 6.7 percent
from $74,083 to $79,083;
county clerk by 16.9 percent
from $59,000 to $69,000;
county administrator by 1.5
percent from $132,000 to
$133,980 and commissioner of
Department of Social Services
by 2.9 percent from $81,873 to
$84,329 — both in Local Law
Introductory No. 6; and the
sheriff by 1.5 percent from
$75,000 to $76,125.
Moved from the Greene
County Legislative Chambers
to the Catskill High School
Auditorium in preparation for a
larger turnout, not many spoke
their mind on the matter at
hand but those that did, spoke
loud and from the heart.
Doris Vedder, a 23-year
employee with Greene County
Public Health said she, like
those to follow her, felt the
issue of raises to those selected
should be addressed as a whole
and not directed to one individ-
ual.
“We have had several meet-
ings about the closing of our
home care department in the
interest of saving money for
the county,” Vedder said, “and
through the year it has been
very difficult to see several
coworkers, whether they were
there four years or 30 years,
have to leave their positions to
find employment elsewhere.”
Vedder said that in the cur-
(© 2012 WINDHAM JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
after tropical storms Irene and
Lee; however, the economical
struggles have been in exis-
tence long before the storms
came to town.
“I have serious concerns
about continuing to reside and
work in a place where there is
an unequal distribution of
money,” Dillon said.
With serious cutbacks in
multiple county departments,
where does the county find the
money for raises to specific
individuals, something she
called “very unfair.”
“Mental Health is housed in
a building that is substandard,”
Dillon told the lawmakers. “I
would consider that to be a
substantial cutback for many of
us that work there on a regular
basis.”
“We go to work with a roof
falling:in on us, leaks, plumb-
ing that is inadequate,” Dillon
continued, “not to mention the
inability for people with dis-
abilities to access that building
with any kind of safety; our
one ramp to that building is
deteriorating,”
Dillon said, regardless of its
condition, she loved that the
space was being utilized but
has concerns about the figures,
how they were reached and
reminded the legislators that
they were “all in the same
boat.”
Leaders of the Civil Service
Employees Association
addressed the lawmakers and
Judy Soderblom, president of
in the county administrator's
salary in 2007 from $99,507 to
$132,000 in 2012, a $32,439
increase, averaging 6.5 percent
each year, she said.
On the other hand,
Soderblom said members of
Unit 7000 have been laid off or
demoted with a decrease in the
county workforce from 282 in
2010 to 247.
“Our members are doing
more with less,” Soderblom
said. “What is being proposed
is not fair. If these raises are
approved for a select few, it
will be a slap in the face to the
majority of Greene County
workers.”
The legislature isn’t slated
to vote on the proposed salary
increases until next month, ten-
tatively Dec. 5, along with the
2013 tentative budget, which
the public was also given an
opportunity to address tonight,
though no one did.
Greene County Legislature
Chairman Wayne Speenburgh
said the unions in the county
have been holding the line over
the last four years and have
been very receptive with good
contracts, something that he
said he needs to personally
take into consideration.
“I've been working with
them over the last three or four
years,” Speenburgh said. “We
have gone through a very diffi-
cult economic downturn and
they have been very, very good
about helping us through this
Account: 23070 (13894)
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WINDHAM JOURNAL
Date:
Thursday, November 22, 2012
(© 2012 WINDHAM JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
Location: WINDHAM, NY,
Circulation (OMA): 2,000 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: A3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
thing.”
Speenburgh said there needs
to be a discussion with his fel-
low legislators on how to move
forward on the proposed local
laws, “if it goes forward.”
“We're going to take this
information that they gave us
tonight,” Speenburgh said,
“they raised several good
points that I think we need to
consider and certainly we don’t
want to ‘slap them in the
face.”
Account: 23070 (13894)
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Page 2 of 2
TIMES UNION =
Date: Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Location: ALBANY, NY
Circulation (DMA): 66,507 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
17
Capital
Keyword: CSEA
Nursing home on
road to privatization
Vote for entity to manage
Maplewood Manor seen
as step toward its sale
By Dennis Yusko
BALLSTON SPA — Saratoga
County supervisors on Tuesday
voted to create a local develop-
ment corporation to manage the
sale of the county’s Maplewood
Manor nursing home to a private
operator.
Members of the county Board
of Supervisors voted 15-6 to form
the corporation despite pleas from
family members of Maplewood
Manor residents and employees
to keep the 277-bed home pub-
licly owned. Supervisors will now
transfer the Ballston Spa facility to
a seven-member limited develop-
ment corporation that could bor-
row money from the facility’s value
and try to sell it to a private buyer
by December 2014.
“This decision was made af-
ter an extensive assessment and
considerable deliberation,” board
Chairman Thomas Wood III said.
County leaders have said they
cannot afford to continue subsi-
dizing the facility’s annual deficits,
Please see HOME B7 >
caused mostly by declining Medic-
aid reimbursements from the state.
The county has provided nearly
$45 million to cover nursing home
deficits since 2004, budgeted for
a nearly $10 million shortfall this
year, and no longer has the re-
sources to fund it, County Admin-
ister Spencer Hellwig III has said.
Tuesday’s vote did not come as
a surprise. County leaders had al-
ready budgeted $6 million in reve-
nue for 2013 from the corporation
borrowing against Maplewood’s fu-
ture sale. The budget also proposes
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserved,
shutting 40 beds in the facility. The
rest of facility will remain open and
employees would continue to work
for the county until it is sold to a
private entity. Maplewood’s value
is estimated at $13 million to $15
million.
On Tuesday, the board set a
public hearing to consider an ad-
ditional resolution authorizing the
sale of the facility for 5:15 p.m.
Jan. 9. County officials have said
the plan will not compromise care
for existing and future residents,
but about 10 people who spoke
prior to Tuesday’s vote disagreed
and urged the supervisors to keep
Maplewood Manor.
“This is what we fear, that high
turnover in private-sector homes
is going to result in low-quality
care for our loved ones,” said Su-
san Ballinger, whose mother and
mother-in-law reside in Maple-
wood Manor.
Kathy Garrison, president of the
Civil Service Employees Union
Capital Region chapter, said the
creation of a local development
corporation would have long-last-
ing negative consequences. CSEA
represents most of Maplewood’s
315 full-time employees. Garrison
accused county leaders of conduct-
ing a closed process.
“This is a sad day in Saratoga
County,” Garrison said. “This vote
effectively ends a rich legacy of
decades of caring for our county’s
most vulnerable residents.”
Voting against the resolution
Tuesday were Corinth Supervisor
Richard Lucia, Moreau Supervisor
Preston Jenkins, Saratoga Springs
Account: 23070 (13844)
NV-10
Supervisor Joanne Yepsen, Ballston
Supervisor Patricia Southworth,
Milton Supervisor Dan Lewza
and Day Supervisor Mary Ann
Johnson. They cited uncertainties
regarding the sale and facility’s fu-
ture. Not present were Edinburg
Supervisor Jean Raymond and
Mechanicville Supervisor Thomas
Richardson.
‘The local development corpora-
tion will function as a public body
subject to open meetings laws,
Hellwig said Tuesday. The cor-
poration’s seven-member board
of directors will consist of Wood,
Richardson, Northumberland Su-
pervisor William Peck, Stillwater
Supervisor Ed Kinowski, Hadley
Supervisor Mo Wright, former
Malta Supervisor David Meager
and Helen Endres, a nurse who
served as the county’s director of
public health. The corporation
could issue requests for buyers in
March and select a private owner
byJuly.
The county paid $50,000 to the
law firm Harris Beach for recom-
mendations on what to do with the
nursing home. Attorneys suggested
the county consider divesting itself
of Maplewood.
Dorothy Tyler of Northumber-
land opposes the sale of Maple-
wood, and on Tuesday, announced
the formation of a group called
Citizens Advocate for a Sustain-
able Maplewood Manor. She said
the county’s decision left many
emotionally devastated.
“It is our duty to provide for
those who cannot provide for
themselves,” Tyler said. “It should
not be sold to the highest bidder.”
> dyusko@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5353 = @DAYusko
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Page 1 of 1
Rockland Journal-Newss Fier:
Circulation (OMA):
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Keyword:
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
WHITE PLAINS, NY
76,272 (1)
Newspaper (D)
4
Main
CSEA
Vanderhoef’s budget
slammed at hearing
By Laura Incalcaterra
lincalca@lohud.com
least be able to work until
that agreement expires at
still providing a net reve-
nue income of $192 million
the end of 2013. to the county.
sf Another CSEA worker, Not everyone was op-
csha” Ce ee oe David Schwall, said he posed to the budget.
Thomas told county legis- WS bothered by the pub- Al Samuels, president
lators Tuesday to elimi- lic perception that union and CEO of the Rockland
workers were somehow Business Association,
nate the County Execu-
tive’s Office and reduce
the size of their own board
to save millions in the 2013
budget.
Thomas was one of
about a dozen people who
spoke during a public
hearing on County Execu-
tive C. Scott Vanderhoef’s
proposed 2013 budget,
nearly all of them in oppo-
sition.
Vanderhoef’s $736.9
million spending plan
calls for a $157 property-
tax hike, eliminates at
least six programs and
cuts 70 jobs — most of
them Civil Service Em-
ployees Association posi-
tions.
The job cuts have infu-
riated members of three
unions, including the
CSEA, who signed a new
contract that banned
layoffs done for budget-
ary reasons.
Vanderhoef says the
job cuts will result from
program eliminations and
are therefore allowed,
something several county
legislators have publicly
questioned since many of
the jobs will be out-
sourced to cheaper pro-
viders.
Robyn Richi, who faces
being laid off from her
county security post, said
she and her co-workers
signed the new contract in
good faith and should at
getting a free ride despite
their hard work.
“All we ask for is the
opportunity to do the job
that Rockland County
hired us to do,” Schwall
said. “And to spend the
last months and years
wracked with anxiety and
worry for our friends, our
families, our co-workers
about what’s going to hap-
pen, it’s just wrong and we
deserve better.”
Thomas formally re-
quested legislators to
change the County Char-
ter and eliminate the posi-
tion of county executive.
He said cutting the office
would cut $7.27 million
from the budget.
He also requested the
board to decrease their
size, from 17 members to
six, to save another $4 mil-
lion.
Thomas further asked
that the tourism function
be turned over to Price-
line or Travelocity, that
the number of depart-
ment heads be consolidat-
ed and that workers with-
out civil service status
that had been appointed
by Vanderhoef be let go.
Thomas told legisla-
tors that county workers
are responsible for bring-
ing millions in revenue
into county coffers, more
than paying for their sala-
ries and benefits while
was one of three RBA
members to address the
board, all demanding
that legislators act more
decisively on the budget.
Samuels quoted a re-
port by a think tank
hired by the RBA to re-
view the county’s fiscal
state and how it came to
amass a $96 million bud-
get deficit and to have a
credit rating teetering
on the brink of junk sta-
tus.
“Now is the time to
rise to the occasion,”
Samuels said. “The busi-
ness community of
Rockland County, which
is so vital to the future of
Rockland, requests that
you do that.”
He said the budget
presented difficult chal-
lenges in terms of the
cuts proposed, but that
action was needed to
right Rockland’s fiscal
house.
Hector May, also of
the RBA, pointed out
that years of overesti-
mating revenues and
other mistakes had con-
tributed to the crisis.
He also said that it
might be more efficient
to allow the private sec-
tor to perform some ser-
vices and for the county
to halt other services, at
least until it corrected
its fiscal situation.
“Everyone hadahand
Page 1 of 2
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
Al Rights Reserved,
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rr Ve Date: Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Backland Suurnal-N RULE Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
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‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 4
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
in creating the deficit,”
May said. “Now, every-
one must have a hand in
erasing it.”
The Legislature plans
to adopt a budget Dec. 4.
“To spend the last months and years
wracked with anxiety and worry for
our friends, our families, our
co-workers about what’s going to
happen, it’s just wrong and we
deserve better.”
DAVID SCHWALL, Civil Service Employees Association
member
Page 2 of 2
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THE
PARATO GIAN
Date:
Location:
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Keyword:
Wednesday, November 21, 2012
SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
6,812 (56)
Newspaper (D)
15
Main
CSEA
Vote
OKs
LDC
move
Decision puts
facility on path
to privatization
By CAITLIN MORRIS
cmorris@saratogian.com
Twitter.com/CMsaratogian
BALLSTON SPA — A
landmark vote by the
Saratoga County Board of
Supervisors Tuesday
approved the creation of a
local development corpora-
tion to manage the sale of
the county-owned nursing
home, Maplewood Manor.
Of those on the 23-mem-
ber Board of Supervisors,
six voted against the reso-
lution. Two supervisors,
Jean Raymond of Edin-
burg and Thomas Richard-
son of Mechanicville, did
not attend the board meet-
ing.
The six dissenters were
Preston L. Jenkins Jr. of
Moreau, Patricia South-
worth of Ballston, Richard
B. Lucia of Corinth, Dan
Lewza of Milton, Mary Ann
Johnson of Day and
Joanne Dittes Yepsen of
Saratoga Springs.
Jenkins requested a sep-
arate vote on the issue —
typically, the supervisors
approve all their monthly
resolutions en masse —
citing his financial con-
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
All Rights Reserved,
cerns about the procedure.
Declining Medicare
reimbursements and rising
operational costs have led
See LDC, Page 5A
public assets like nursing
homes to be frequent tar-
gets for privatization in
recent years.
Maplewood Manor has a
$27 million annual operat-
ing budget. County Admin-
istrator Spencer Hellwig
estimates the county will
spend $10 million on
Maplewood Manor in 2012,
and even though that num-
ber will likely be reduced
by state subsidies, Hellwig
said rising expenses are
insurmountable. The
biggest costs associated
with Maplewood Manor
are tied to employee
salaries and benefits,
which make up 85 percent
of the nursing home’s oper-
ating budget — $21.6 mil-
lion.
A seven-member board
was also named to manage
the newly created Maple-
wood Manor LDC. That
board includes five super-
visors — Chairman of the
Board Thomas Wood,
Willard H. Peck of
Northumberland, Ed
Kinowski of Stillwater,
Tom Richardson of
Mechanicville and Arthur
“Mo” Wright of Hadley.
The two other members
are Helen Endres, who
served for 34 years in the
Saratoga County Public
Health Nursing Service,
and Dave Meager, a for-
mer Malta supervisor.
Fourteen people signed
up in advance to make a
five-minute-or-less com-
ment to the Board of
Supervisors prior to the
vote. Of the 14 speakers, 12
spoke about Maplewood
Manor. Of those, 11 were
against privatizing the
facility.
The one person who
spoke in support of privati-
zation said he supports the
change because the deficit
is so large, but he also
wonders what other coun-
ty services are at risk of
getting cut if the county
keeps experiencing fiscal
dilemmas.
“This is a very painful, in
a lot of ways, example of
loss of local control and
local government due to
state unfunded mandates,”
he said.
Peck spoke in support of
the LDC creation and said
he had an open mind when
making a decision over
whether or not to privatize
the facility. Ultimately, he
decided an LDC was the
best way to finance Maple-
wood’s Manor ongoing
operation until it can be
sold to a private company.
He also said he knew peo-
ple were typically scared of
change, but they shouldn’t
be.
“We're not scared, we’re
pissed,” a person in the
audience loudly responded.
At 5:30 p.m. Dec. 3, there
will be a public hearing on
the proposed county budg-
et which includes
$6 million in equity bor-
rowed against the value of
Maplewood Manor when it
is sold. At 5:15 p.m. Jan. 9,
a public hearing will be
held on a second resolu-
tion that would authorize
the county to transfer
Maplewood Manor into the
hands of the LDC to man-
age the sale of it to a pri-
vate-sector operator.
What they’re saying
Fourteen people spoke during the public
comment period prior to Tuesday’s meeting.
Here is a sampling of some of the things they
said:
Account: 23070 (13847)
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THE
ARATOGIAN
Date: Wednesday, November 21, 2012
Location: SARATOGA SPRINGS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 6,812 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 15
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 SARATOGIAN
All Rights Reserved,
“All municipalities are facing tough financial
times, but | personally regret Ulster County's
decision to relinquish its ownership and con-
trol of such an important county-run service
to an independently functioning and self-
governing board like a local development
corporation.”
— Robert Parete, Ulster County legislator
@ “Your vote today to create an LDC is being
done without the consideration of other
options, without a public hearing and without
any respect for the residents and employees
of Maplewood Manor who are expected to
sit by quietly while you hand over the keys to
their home... Voters will remember, and next
year when you are up for re-election, CSEA.
will be happy to remind them of your decep-
tion and your vote today.”
— Kathy Garrison, CSEA Capital Region
president
‘The feeling among citizens is that this cor-
poration you are creating is designed to
shield you from personal involvement or cul-
pability... | sense that as more and more
county residents hear of this action and
begin to appreciate the consequences, you
will see a rising tide of local support for this
indispensable community asset.”
— Cliff Ammon, Saratoga Springs
@ “Providing care for the elderly and disabled
should not be run as a business. Providing
for those in need is a fundamental obligation
of society. We have given to the community
for decades and don't think it’s too much to
ask that we receive quality care when we
need it.”
— Letter from Resident Association at Maple-
wood Manor members Maria McElya and Eliz-
abeth Retell, read aloud during the public
comment period
Account: 23070 (13847)
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TIMES UNION =
Date: Tuesday, November 20, 2012
Location: ALBANY, NY
Circulation (DMA): 66,507 (56)
Type (Frequency):
Keyword:
Newspaper (0)
1.8
Main
CSEA
Sandy’s influence at work
Workers upset over losing vacation days for disturbance
By Rick Karlin
ALBANY — Superstorm Sandy
has created waves in the state work-
force.
A handful of state workers down-
state say they have been unfairly
docked vacation days because they
stayed home during the Oct. 29 storm
either because their supervisors told
them to or because they were unable
to get to their worksites.
While the disagreement appears to
be limited to several dozen people in
select locations, it’s just another ex-
ample of how Sandy’ fallout is likely
to linger for some time.
State employee unions as well as
state agencies appear to be downplay-
ing the issue.
When asked about complaints re-
garding vacation time, Jane Briggs of
the Public Employee Federation said
in an email, “We are continuing to
actively advocate with the state on a
wide variety of concerns raised by our
downstate members about Hurricane
Sandy-related issues.”
And Civil Service Employees Asso-
ciation spokesman Stephen Madarasz
said the complaints were scattered and
will be looked at on an individual ba-
sis. “It will get resolved case by case,”
he said, adding he doesn’t believe
there was evidence that state agen-
cies acted unreasonably.
The disputes so far seem to cen-
ter on the state Office for Mental
Health and its Manhattan Psychi-
atric Center, which is on Wards
Island in the East River between
Manhattan and Queens.
Also, there are disagreements
by Department of Labor person-
nel assigned to various locations in
the city.
Workers at the psychiatric cen-
ter were for a time unable to get to
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserves,
work since the bridges to the island
were closed.
“There was no viable way for
people to get to work,” said Joe Sa-
no, executive director at the state
Office of Management/Confiden-
tial Employees, a group of non-
union workers.
Members of OMCE were
among those who couldn’t get to
the psychiatric center and have
seen their vacation days taken away
in order to make up the difference.
In other cases, workers were told
not to come in, but then learned
that time would be deducted from
their vacation accruals.
Generally, employees are re-
sponsible for getting themselves to
work and must give up their “leave
time” if they can’t. But in this case,
the entire New York City metro
area was paralyzed at the height of
the storm.
Sano stressed that residents of
the psychiatric center didn’t go
unattended: Workers at the hospi-
tal simply stayed and worked extra
shifts until they could be relieved.
Spokespeople from OMH and
the Department of Labor didn’t
return calls for comment about the
disagreement.
Madarasz added that many
CSEA members worked around
the clock in the storm’s aftermath.
The union also represents mu-
nicipal workers who had to clear
streets, drainage facilities and gen-
erally get things up and running
after the storm.
And unions, including CSEA
and PEF, were involved in vol-
unteer and other efforts aimed at
flood relief.
The dispute is one of many
open questions in the wake of the
storm, which continues to rever-
berate as thousands remain with-
‘Account: 23070 (13839)
NY-10
out power.
Another example: CSEA mem-
bers at the South Beach Psychi-
atric Center on Staten Island had
to evacuate patients and in the in-
terim had their vehicles flooded in
the center’s parking lot. There will
likely be disputes over who will be
responsible for the cost: the work-
ers’ insurance providers or the
state, or both.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo earlier
said the storm would likely dou-
ble the state budget deficit from
$1 billion to $2 billion, while
he is preparing to ask the fed-
eral government to pick up more
than $30 billion in storm-related
costs.
> rkarlin@timesunion.com « 518-
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Date: Sunday, November 18, 2012
SUNDAY GAZETTE Location: SCHENECTADY, NY
Circulation (OMA): 61,374 (56)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
Page: Bt BG
Section: Regional
Keyword: CSEA
SARATOGA COUNTY
Counties priced
out of nursing
home business
Saratoga latest to eye privatization
BY STEPHEN WILLIAMS
Gazette Reporter
Since George Washington was
president, counties in New York
state have been responsible for
providing for the poor, elderly
and int
When Saratoga County was
formed in 1791, one of the first
things supervisors did was appro-
priate a few shillings‘each for care
of “paupers.”
But the county’s founders
wouldn’t recognize today’s system,
in which the Maplewood Manor
nursing home in Ballston Spa is
just one of dozens of county-run
nursing homes across the state.
Nor would they easily compre-
hend the costs of caring for the
elderly and infirm.
What was a $3,650 county ex-
pense for the poor in 1816 has
evolved into a modern nursing
home with a $26 million annual
budget for 2013, a facility that los-
es $8 million to $10 million a year
— losses after federal aid, losses
that must be covered by county
taxpayers.
That kind of drain on local re-
sources — replicated across the
state — is prompting leaders in
Saratoga and other counties to con-
sider selling their nursing homes,
or finding other ways to cut their
losses.
It’s a move being made, almost
always, over the bitter objections
of public employees.
“What we see in other counties
that have privatized is they dra-
matically reduced the workforce,”
CSEA Regional President Kathy
© 2012 SUNDAY GAZETTE
Al Rights Reserves:
Garrison said at a recent rally.
Saratoga Springs Supervisor
Joanne Yepsen said a new group,
Citizens Advocate for a Sustain-
able Maplewood Manor, is being
formed.
“It's really important to keep a
quality facility in our county,” the
Democrat said.
In their 2013 budget, Saratoga
County leaders propose creating a
local development corporation that
would take over management of the
277-bed facility, where roughly 315
county employees now work. The
LDC would be able to manage
Maplewood Manor's sale over the
next couple of years to a private
owner, and also borrow against
anticipated sale proceeds to cover
the infirmary’s anticipated losses,
county officials said.
RED-INK PROBLEM
Charlton Supervisor Alan R.
Grattidge, a Republican who is
expected to chair the Board of Su-
pervisors in 2013, said he hopes a
private, nonprofit health care com-
pany buys the facility.
“It’s a needed facility, and what
we will do will be very important to
its continued operation,” Grattidge
said. “The current situation can’t
go on because of the enormity of
the deficit.”
The losses at Maplewood Manor
have drained the county's once-
healthy surplus, Grattidge said,
and without those losses the county
likely would not have needed this
year’s 3.5 percent property tax in-
crease — or next year’s proposed
15 percent increase.
“The third option is to close it,
and I don’t think that’s something
anyone wants,” Grattidge said.
In making plans to sell its nursing,
home, Saratoga County is far from
alone — about half of the state’s
counties that own nursing homes
are looking at that. Three homes
have been sold this year, including
Fulton County’s.
There are another 14 counties
— including Saratoga and Albany
— that are reviewing their options,
according to the New York State
Account: 23070 (13849)
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Sunday, November 18, 2012
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61,371 (58)
Newspaper (S)
B1B6
Regional
CSEA
Association of Counties. That's out
of 33 county-owned nursing facili-
ties in 3] counties.
NYSAC officials said it’s a deci-
sion counties make reluctantly, only
after years of significant losses.
“County administrators, county
executives, county legislators don’t
want to sell nursing homes. This
is an exploration of last resort,
but these are difficult times,” said
Mark LaVigne, a spokesman for
NYSAC.
COST OF CARE
For years, he said, county taxpay-
ers have subsidized nursing homes
across the state that lost money be-
cause federal Medicaid reimburse-
ments haven't kept up with the cost
of patient care.
In Saratoga County’s case, the
reimbursement from Medicaid
— the federal medical plan for the
poor — is only $157 per patient per
day, when county officials say the
actual cost of care exceeds $300
per day. Some 83 percent of Ma-
plewood Manor's residents are on
Medicaid.
Saratoga and other counties have
also faced hits on county sales tax
revenues since 2008, and then last
year’s imposition by the state of a
2 percent tax cap on local govern-
ments changed what was already a
difficult equation, making financ-
ing nursing home losses more dif-
ficult.
That’s before even considering
the uncertainty for nursing home
finances created by Medicare
changes in the Affordable Care Act
— commonly known as Obamacare
— that will go into effect over the
next few years; these will both cut
Medicaid provider payments and
force new efficiencies on health
care providers.
“We have not come up with a
model that lets counties stay in the
nursing home business,” LaVigne
said.
In the Capital Region, every
county that has owned a nursing
home has taken some form of ac-
tion in recent years due to financial
losses.
Fulton County sold its nursing
© 2012 SUNDAY GAZETTE
Al Rights Reserves:
home earlier this year for $35 mil-
lion — one of three county-owned
facilities that have sold statewide
since Jan. 1.
Montgomery County sold its
nursing home in Amsterdam for
$645,000 in 2006, after a four-year
process that started when county
officials learned it would need mil-
lions of dollars in improvements.
BUCK THE TREND
Schenectady County, meanwhile,
is spending an estimated $44 mil-
lion to build a new 200-bed Glen-
dale, Home: in Glenville — one that
will be more energy-efficient and
modern than the current, antiquat-
ed home.
The capital investment will lead
to higher Medicaid reimbursement
rates for patient care, and federal
aid payments will allow the county
to break even on construction, said
county spokesman Joe McQueen.
But the new facility will still lose
money, even though two public
employee unions have agreed to
lower pay for new hires.
“The county Legislature believes
it is an important investment,”
McQueen said. “People say you're
losing all this money, but we don’t
see it that way. We see it as an in-
vestment.”
People don’t criticize the li-
brary system for losing money, he
noted.
“We want to be able to have our
seniors stay in our community
when they reach that time in their
lives,” he said.
The new Glendale Home will be
finished by late next year.
In Albany County, officials were
well along with a $71 million plan to
build a new, more-modern nursing
home when the state Health De-
partment in September rejected
the plan, citing the costs and the
impact on county finances of the 2
percent tax cap.
In the county’s proposed 2013
budget, County Executive Daniel
P. McCoy has proposed transfer-
ring the existing nursing home to
Upstate Services Group of Spring
Valley, a private operator that al-
ready operates the Hudson Park
Account: 23070 (13849)
Ny-6230
nursing home in Albany and has
made proposals to buy other pub-
licly operated nursing homes. Mc-
Coy says the transfer would save
the county $70 million over the
next decade.
To the north, meanwhile, War-
ren and Washington counties are
also exploring whether to sell their
longtime infirmaries.
“This is a traditional function of
counties in New York state,” LaVi-
gne said. The decision to close or
selling a nursing home, he said,
“is not a decision they want to.
make.”
“LAST RESORT’
Historically, county infirmaries
have been the nursing homes of
“last resort” for the poor and in-
firm elderly who couldn’t be placed
in private nursing homes or other
facilities, either because of their
physical conditions or financial
situations.
Most counties, like Saratoga,
have been providing care for the
poor, elderly and infirm for 200
years, and sometimes longer.
A state law passed in 1824 de-
clared that care for the poor and
infirm would be a county respon-
sibility, and counties should make
plans to establish “poor houses.”
In Saratoga County’s case, it built
its first poorhouse on what came to
be called the “county farm” prop-
erty in Milton in 1823.
The first poorhouse was a small,
two-story house, supplemented in
1874 — after an investigation of
noxious conditions at the old home
— by the first hospital-style care
facility.
There was a working farm for
the able-bodied poor, where they
grew crops from oats, to rhubarb
and sold milk, according to files in
the county historian’s office.
But the people living there
changed over time. A report from
1875 in the Saratogian newspaper
‘noted that about two-thirds of the
residents were “gray-haired in-
mates.”
POORHOUSE HISTORY
In the 20th century, as govern-
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Sunday, November 18, 2012
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CSEA
© 2012 SUNDAY GAZETTE
Al Rights Reserves:
ment programs were developed to
provide a safety net for the working
poor and unemployed, those who
needed county care were mostly
the elderly who were infirm and
had nobody else able or willing to
care for them.
“There's a distinction between
providing a poorhouse and pro-
viding a nursing home,” Grattidge
said. ”
In 1961, the county farm was
closed, and its remaining residents
moved to what had previously been
acounty-run tuberculosis sanitari-
um in Providence.
Its remote location was a disad-
vantage, and the current Maple-
wood Manor facility opened in
1972.
Because of the losses, county of-
ficials studied the situation in 2004,
but declared it a needed service.
Since then, however, the county
has gone through what was then a
$30 million surplus, and last year,
county supervisors decided to
study the issue again.
A pair of consultants, the Har-
tis Beach law firm and the Arthur
Webb Group, came up with the
recommendation to sell the facil-
ity through a local development
corporation. Ulster County, also
advised by Harris Beach, is follow-
ing a similar path with its nursing
home.
Insome form, Maplewood Manor
“absolutely has a place in the over-
all picture of how the aging people
is taken care of,” Grattidge said.
Reach Gazette reporter Stephen
Williams at 885-6705 or
swilliams@dailygazette.net.
‘County admi
istrators, county
executives, county legislators don't
want to sell nursing homes. This is an
exploration of last resort, but these are
difficult times.
MARK LAVIGNE
New York State
Association of Counties spokesman
Account: 23070 (13849)
Ny-6230
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Location: SCHENECTADY, NY
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The Maplewood
Manor in Ballston
Spais seen
__ on Friday.
| PETER R. BARBER/
| PHOTOGRAPHER
PETER R. BARBER/GAZETTE PHOTOGRAPHER
Work continues at the Glendale Nursing home on Hetcheltown Road in Glenville on Thursday.
Page 4 of 4
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POST-STAR
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GLENS FALLS, NY
24,678 (56)
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B1,B7
Section: Local/Region
Keyword: CSEA
Health agency likely would “Wedon’t want todothis,
B oard not face any cuts because _ but theseare tough financial
of the number of positions _ times,’ Dusek said.
that department has had to Stanley Hornak, a
leave vacant because of an spokesman for CSEA, said
warn S ongoing countywide hiring the union hoped to have
freeze. an agreement within a few
Dusek said the cuts will ks.
layoffs
ahead
County leaders
eye 20 positions
for possible cuts
By DON LEHMAN
dlehman@poststar.com
QUEENSBURY ¢ Warren
County officials have iden-
tified nearly 20 jobs that
will be cut by the end of
the year if the county can-
not get anew labor contract
with the union that repre-
sents more than 500 county
employees.
County Administrator
Paul Dusek told county su-
pervisors Friday hehas been
working with department
heads to identify positions
tobe eliminated.
Dusek would not iden-
tify which departments
would be targeted, though
he said the county Public
© 2012 POST-STAR
Al Rights Reserves,
undoubtedly affect ser-
vices, but the county has
no choice because savings
are needed.
It was hoped those sav-
ings would come from a
five-year labor contract
that would have increased
health insurance contri-
butions by employees and
limited raises, but mem-
bers of the union — Warren
County Unit of the Civil
Service Employees Associ-
ation — overwhelmingly re-
jected thecontract proposal
last month.
Dusek said the two sides
have resumed negotiations,
but there was nonewagree-
ment, and he was not aware
of any plan for anew union
vote.
He said he was “en-
couraged” by recent talks,
though.
“We're hoping we don’t
have to employ this list,” he
said. “But the problemis the
union negotiations control
our costs going forward.”
Hesaid thecuts will “un-
doubtedly affect services” if
they have to be made.
‘weeks.
“CSEA is interested in
See COUNTY, Page B7
reaching a contract by theend
of the year,” he said.
The number of layoffs
will depend on how many
positions are not filled in the
coming weeks, as a hiring
freeze is ongoing.
Seven positions that would
have been filled have been left
vacant since the hiring freeze
was enacted last month, and
that attrition will be taken
into account as new job cuts
are considered, according to
Dusek.
The county is in negotia-
tions with three other unions
that represent county work-
ers and is at impasse with one
ofthem.
That union is Warren
County Sheriff's Employees
Alliance, which represents
about 100 county jail correc-
tion officers and Sheriff's Of-
fice support staff.
A mediator has become in-
volved in those negotiations,
Dusek said.
‘Account: 23070 (13860)
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Daily Freeman
Date: Friday, November 16, 2012
Location: KINGSTON, NY
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Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 DAILY FREEMAN
Al Rights Reserved,
Orange lawmakers vote
to fund nursing home
Mid-Hudson News Network
GOSHEN — The Orange
County Legislature has
voted to budget $48.8 mil-
lion to fund the Valley
View nursing home for all
of 2013.
County Executive
Edward Diana only put
money in his 2013 budget
for the first two months
of the year.
There were a number of
funding streams used to
craft the full year of fund-
ing, including proposed
give-backs from the mem-
bers of the Civil Service
Employees Association.
The vote on Wednesday
for the full year of fund-
ing was 14-5.
Legislature Minority
Leader Jeffrey Berkman,
who supports the fund-
ing, said making it work
will depend on a lot of
“ifs” — ‘if cost-cutting
measures are instituted;
if we get cooperation from
the employees, the union;
if we get the cooperation
of the county executive
in providing management
and better oversight; if
we get a management
team that does respon-
sible actions by giving
us monthly reports, as
they are obligated to do,
which didn’t happen in
the past.”
Legislator Michael
Anagnostakis crafted the
arrangement to keep the
nursing home open and
in county hands.
Diana is likely to veto
the spending, and it will
take 14 votes among leg-
islators to override it.
Diana called the full-
year funding plan “both
implausible and irrespon-
sible.”
Late Wednesday, Diana
said he had notified the
current operator of the
nursing home — Orange
Administrative Services
— that he was terminat-
ing its contract at the end
of the year.
‘Account: 23070 (13818)
Nvsie
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WARWICK ADVERTISER Date: Friday, November 16, 2012
Location: WARWICK, NY
Circulation (DMA): 8,000 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 932
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Valley View reprieve likely, Diana to OAS: You're fired
BY EDIE JOHNSON
GOSHEN -— After an especially acrimonious
legislative session Wednesday, the county-owned
Valley View nursing home was granted a year's re-
prieve, with new management.
Midway through the session, County Executive
Edward Diana entered the room with his accoun-
tant, submitted two surprise documents. One was
a letter informing the administrator of Orange Ad-
ministrative Services (OAS), Bill Pascocello, that
the county would no longer be needing his services
after Dec. 31. The legislative committee tasked to
investigate Valley View recently produced a with-
ering review of OAS's management of money and
personnel.
The second document was a letter to the facil-
ity's union workers asking them to stop negotiat-
ing their salaries "through the news media," and to
come to the table with a written proposal.
“The door is open," Diana said.
Employees have already offered concessions, in-
cluding implementing tiered scheduling to reduce
overtime and freeze wages for a year. Union leaders
also offered to split the nursing home's workers into
a bargaining group, separate from the larger CSEA
union representing county workers. That means
chances are Valley View will stay in county hands,
at least for the next year or longer, with closer over-
sight and a new manager. But Diana said the agree-
ment will hold only if the unions offer acceptable
concessions when they meet with him, as they have
in private meetings with legislators.
Apress release from Diana published after the
meeting criticized the plan by unions and other
legislators to keep Valley View as "implausible."
“The union has yet to provide any tangible or
significant concessions that will have a measurable
impact? said Diana.
Legislators agreed to fund Valley View through
2013.
"I felt as though I was looking at a room full of
smoke and mirrors, and all of a sudden the smoke
SEE VALLEY VIEW, PAGE 32
lifted," said Democratic Legislator Roxanne Don-
nery of Highland Falls, who, with Republican Leg-
islator Mike Anagnostakis were members of the
committee investigating Valley view, and who led
the fight to keep the home in county hands.
A painful fight
Before Diana's entrance, legislators fought bit- Page 1 of 3
terly over whether to include Valley View in the
© 2012 WARWICK ADVERTISER,
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WARWICK ADVERTISER Pate Fier November 16,2012
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Keyword: CSEA
county budget for next year. Numbers flew back
and forth so fast, no one could keep them straight.
Legislators also traded insults, taking umbrage at
the affronts hurled at them before hurling back in-
sults of their own.
At one point Anagnostakis vigorously shook his
head.
"You attack my plan because you think the ex-
pectation that the unions will give up 10 percent in
wages is too aggressive," he shouted. "And yet you
propose requiring them (the unions) to cut 25 per-
cent in salaries and 30 percent in benefits."
Laughter broke out when legislative Chair Mi-
chael Pillmeier cut off legislators' comments about
the Anagnostakis/Donnery plan, stopped discus-
sion of Donnery's resolution to leave the facility in
county hands for two years, and ignored other two
legislators still with raised hands — but allowed Re-
publican R.J. Smith of Pine Bush to roll out his plan.
Donnery told Smith that she was "glad to see he
had come to see the light...Elections have a funny
way of doing that."
Smith's re-election to represent the Wallkill/
Crawford district is still in question while absentee
ballots are counted.
Smith challenged his critics.
"Stop pointing fingers at each other," he said.
"Everyone was asleep at the wheel. If we can't save
$30,000 per year, per patient, shame onus." Dem-
ocrats later relented, saying it was the process they
were frustrated with, and not him. They praised
Smith for his hard work in coming up with a com-
promise plan.
Republican Dan Castricone of Tuxedo proposed
a set of compromises that worked for all but three
of the legislators present. With everyone agreeing
that revenue had probably been underestimated, he
proposed moving $3.2 million of the overall county
budget from "austerity and/or personnel and con-
tract" into social service funding. This would as-
sure that an intergovernmental transfer could later
be moved back to Valley View as contingency fund-
ing if labor negotiations turned out to be costlier
than expected.
Legislators hope the new manager will cost less
than OAS, which was allocated $550,000 in the
budget before Diana's decision to terminate their
services.
Because legislators were essentially moving
around sums, none of the latest budget changes are
expected to affect property taxes.
As the two proposals grew more alike, tempers
settled. Legislators took heart knowing their deci-
sions could be modified if they proved unsuccess-
ful. Page 2 of 3
The two remaining challenges for legislators are
© 2012 WARWICK ADVERTISER,
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CSEA
to find a replacement manager by Jan. 1, and to
come up with a contingency plan that might involve
Elant, a local nursing care group, during the transi-
tion if the county's renewed efforts to keep Valley
View fail.
PHOTO BY JOSHUA ROSENAU
William Pascocello, the administrator of Valley View,
speaks at a hearing in September. The county executive
has announced plans to terminate Pascocello from his
position.
© 2012 WARWICK ADVERTISER,
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Page 3 of 3
BALDWIN HERALD
Date: Thursday, November 15, 2012
Location: LAWRENCE, NY
Circulation (OMA): 3,773 (1)
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Page: 13
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Marines kick
off Toys for
Tots drive at
Coral House
Akickoff event for the U.S. Marines Toys
for Tots drive — which will provide toys for
hundreds of local children in need this holi-
day season—was held recently at the Coral
House in Baldwin. Joining the Marines were
members of CSEA Nassau Local 830, who
said they were proud to participate in the
event for the second straight year
CSEA Nassau Local 830 president, Jerry
laricchiuta, will once again serve as a pro-
gram co-chair. Laricchiuta has helped pro-
vide toys for local community groups every
year since taking office in 2005. So far Laric-
¢hiuta has worked with groups including the
Economic Opportunity Commission of Nas-
‘“ County, the Coalition for Community
Vell Being and the Uniondale Early Child-
hood Center. But he believes teaming up with
the Marines will help his group’s efforts
reach even more children as Toys for Tots is
the nation’s largest holiday gift program.
“With the economy being what it is. it’s
become increasingly difficult for families to
provide toys for their children the past few
holiday seasons. Teaming up with the
Mirines Toys for Tots program gives us an
¢pportunity to do our part towards creating
m«morable holiday seasons for local chil-
dren.” Laricchiuta said.
The CSEA contribution will consist of
tavs collected from union members at their
annual Holiday party. to take place Dee. 19 at
{1+ Crest Hollow Country Club.
ac
pM
CO-CHAIR of the Toys for Tots program
Jerry Laricchiuta addressed the crowd.
© 2012 BALDWIN HERALD
Al Rights Reserved,
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Date: Thursday, November 15, 2012
BALDWIN HERALD Location: LAWRENCE, NY
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13
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
A ae
FROM LEFT TO RIGHT, Gunnery Sergeant Covington, CSEA Local 830 President
Jerry Laricchiuta, Toys for Tots Chair Major Chuck Kilbride, Staff Sergeant
Stahlecker and Gunnery Sergeant Worster.
2102 ‘GT Jaqwanon — G1vY3H NIMGTVE
Page 2 of 2
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Al Rights Reserved,
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mm JOURNAL =
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Wednesday, November 14, 2012
OGDENSBURG, NY
Main
CSEA
County Cuts 32 Health Jobs
By MARTHA ELLEN
CANTON — Amid cries
from St. Lawrence County
Public Health employees that
they had been betrayed, leg-
islators voted 14-1 Tuesday to
eliminate 32 jobs by closing
the county's Certified Home
Health Agency and Long Term
Home Health Care Program
and transferring the patients
to one of its competitors in the
private sector.
“You weren't given all the
facts,” Public Health employee
Diana Caswell said. “We know
we, the employees, have not
had avoice.”
Despite the appeals of more
than 50 Public Health employ-
ees and their supporters who
forced the legislative budget
review session to the state Su-
preme Courtroom where there
was more room, legislators
agreed to negotiate an agree-
ment with Health Services of
Northern New York, another
certified home health agency.
The closure of the county
agency, which was projected
to have a net county cost in
2013 of $648,444, will likely not
save the county much money
next year because it will not
be phased down for some
months. Officials planned to
spend the next few days deter-
mining which employees could
move to other positions, how
much the county could expect
to pay for unemployment, and
how much it might save on
health insurance. Of the 32 em-
ployees, four are home health
aides, 11 are clerical and 17 are
nurses.
If the transfer is completed
by April 1, there will be few
changes in the total cost for
next year. Some costs that had
been reimbursable through the
© 2012 JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
CHHA would have to be picked
up by other Public Health pro-
grams.
“This is an estimate based on
assumptions,” Public Health
fiscal manager Debra L. Bridg-
es said.
In March, legislators reject-
ed an offer for $80,000 from
Northern Lights, a nonprofit
that is a partnership of Can-
ton-Potsdam Hospital, Clax-
ton-Hepburn Medical Center,
Hospice and Palliative Care of
St. Lawrence Valley and United
Helpers Management Co. for
the two agencies. Northern
Lights, which was recently ap-
proved by the state to operate
aCHHA, is no longer interested
in the county agencies because
it has developed its own busi-
ness plan, County Administra-
tor Karen M. St. Hilaire said.
Health Services, whose
parent company is Hamister
Group, Williamsville, previ-
ously offered $2 for the county
agencies’s two operating cer-
tificates.
“More than the money,
we're looking for a smooth
transition,” Ms. St. Hilaire said.
“We have not met yet to talk
about the particulars. One of
the issues we will talk about is
See Jobs A2
employment of our people.
That will be akey issue.”
After legislators turned
down the offer from Northern
Lights, they pledged to rebuild
the county agency so it could
compete.
Amy J. Simmons, president
of the county's Civil Service
Employees Union, said she
questioned the purchase of
computer software, money for
outside agencies, the hiring of
a trails coordinator and a lob-
byist but thought the expen-
ditures acceptable if county
workers were not cut.
“Unfortunately, it doesn’t
appear the CHHA has that
same level of support,” she
said. “Are you willing to put 35
workers on the unemployment
line on ifs and maybes?”
Other Public Health employ-
ees criticized Director Susan J.
Hathaway for not believing the
agency could succeed.
The promise of strong man-
agement and 100 percent sup-
port did not materialize, Public
Health employee Mary Grady
said.
“We do not feel our true
needs were brought by man-
agement,” she said.
Ms. Hathaway said coun-
ty legislators supported the
CHHA by allowing the depart-
ment to hire nurses, train them
and take on patients, but that
the financials were not in the
county’s favor because of state
goals to cut Medicaid costs.
The county CHHA receives
a Medicaid reimbursement
rate of $179 because its costs
are higher based on its ben-
efit package, while the rate for
a visit by Health Services of
Northern New Yorkis $104.
“We have done our job and
done it well,” she said. “The
bottom line is New York state
no longer supports publicly-
run CHHAS.”
Earlier this year, the state
lifted a moratorium on new
CHHAs to coincide with a rede-
sign of Medicaid. Health Care
of Rochester and Visiting Nurse
Service of New York CHOICE
have also applied to operate in
the county.
Rather than have the county
CHHA wither away, Ms. Hatha-
way said it made more sense for
Account: 23070 (13843)
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Wednesday, November 14, 2012
OGDENSBURG, NY
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CSEA
the county to provide a transi-
tion under which its employees
could seek jobs with the other
incoming agencies so that they
could have long-term security.
Legislator Frederick S. Mor-
rill, D-DeKalb Junction, who
raised questions about wheth-
er the private agencies would
serve patients in remote parts
of the county, was the sole nay
vote.
Public Health was not the
only department scrutinized
by legislators Tuesday.
At the request of Emergency
© 2012 JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
Services Director Joseph M.
Gilbert, legislators also elimi-
nated the position of his depu-
ty, who was paid approximately
$49,000. Mr. Gilbert had earlier
sought a dispatcher manager
but said he wanted to assess the
department more before pos-
sibly returning next year to ask
for the position.
Overall, the employee losses
approved Tuesday, plus about
10 expected retirees and other
personnel cuts made earlier,
could bring the number of staff
reductions to 50 for next year.
Account: 23070 (13843)
NVSId
Legislators also approved
cuts of $291,201 from the De-
partment of Social Services
proposed by Director Christo-
pher R. Rediehs that do not in-
clude further staff reductions.
The tentative budget of
$55,711,312 in county costs ini-
tially carried a tax levy increase
of 20 percent, but reductions
by legislators in recent weeks
has cut the levy increase below
15 percent. Last year, legisla-
tors approved a tax levy of $46
million that carried an increase
of 5.5 percent.
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 2
Date:
Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Location: LONG ISLAND, NY
Circulation (DMA): 297,601 (1)
Page: ANG
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
HELPING STAFF
LI hospitals
extend a hand to
displaced workers
BY RIDGELY OCHS
ridgely.ochs@newsday.com
Several Long Island hospitals
are providing housing, food and
even loans to staff left homeless
by Sandy, while others are still
trying to find out how many em-
ployees need help.
No one knows how many of
Long Island’s more than 47,000
hospital workers remain home-
less more than two weeks after
the superstorm — even while
many continue to go to work.
“It’s safe to say it’s in the thou-
sands,” said Janine Logan, spokes-
woman for the Nassau-Suffolk
Hospital Council, which has set
up the Hurricane Sandy Health
Care Employee Relief Fund.
Long Beach Medical Center,
which was evacuated before
the storm and remains closed,
is still trying to reach many of
its 1,200 employees, about half
of whom lived in the Long
Beach area, spokeswoman
Sharon Player said. “We still
have to quantify the number,”
she said. “We know we still
have staff living in shelters.”
She said the hospital hopes to
reopen its nursing home in four
to six weeks. How soon the more
badly damaged hospital can re-
open is unclear, she said. Mean-
while, those employees who
have continued to work — such
as nurses who went with their pa-
tients who were evacuated to
other hospitals — are getting
paid. Player said the hospital is
encouraging those not getting a
paycheck to apply for disaster-re-
lated unemployment benefits.
Paul Giordano, vice presi-
dent for human resources at
© 2012 Newsday ine,
All Rights Reserves,
South Nassau Communities
Hospital in Oceanside, said
about 400 employees have
come forward so far looking
for help; about half of them
have said their homes are unin-
habitable, he said.
But the number could be high-
er: “We're not really sure,” he
said. Like other officials inter-
viewed, Giordano said many
people may be reluctant to
come forward. “People don’t
like asking for help,” he said.
The hospital has been distrib-
uting water, Meals Ready to
Eat, diapers and toilet articles,
and offering counseling and di-
saster information to employ-
ees, Luiza Pinto, a recruiter in
human resources at South Nas-
sau, said fellow workers have
given her clothes, shoes and
boots after her Oceanside
condo was flooded.
Other hospitals have provid-
ed temporary housing for their
workers. Nassau University
Medical Center in East Mead-
ow has opened up 38 apart-
ments on its campus for em-
ployees and their families.
CSEA Nassau Local 830 has
provided them with cots and
linens, and the nonprofit Island
Harvest has donated food.
About 100 employees at Win-
throp-University Hospital in
Mineola are unable to live in
their homes, spokesman Ed
Keating said. The hospital has
found temporary housing for a
handful and has worked to help
others find housing. Employees
have donated food and cloth-
ing, he said, and the hospital is
providing counseling.
The North Shore-Long Island
Jewish Health System, the larg-
est health care provider in the re-
gion, has started the most com-
prehensive relief effort for its
employees. The health system
raised $2.3 million from a fund-
raiser Nov. 5 and from employ-
ees and trustees, three-quarters
of which is going to help staff,
said spokesman Terry Lynam.
So far, the health system has
placed 250 people into tempo-
rary housing — either by put-
ting them in houses used by
medical residents or in rented
apartments, for which the
health system has paid the secu-
rity deposit and first month’s
rent. North Shore-LIJ is also
providing interest-free loans of
up to $7,500 to employees who
suffered major storm losses.
To help non-employees, the
health system has_ given
$250,000 to Newsday’s Hurri-
cane Sandy Long Island Disaster
Relief and $250,000 to the
Stephen Siller Tunnel to Towers
Foundation, which was started
after 9/11, to help Sandy victims
on Staten Island and in Queens.
For health care workers left
homeless, the temporary hous-
ing has been a godsend.
“I was desperate. This was
the greatest thing,” said Shyni
Charley, a nurse manager at
NUMC. A tree caved in the
roof of her Island Park home.
The only other option for her,
her husband and their two chil-
dren was to live with another
family already putting up two
other families, she said.
Mary LaPorta, a part-time em-
ployee in admitting at Franklin
Hospital in Valley Stream, had
been living in “two tiny” unheat-
ed rooms with eight other family
members at the top of her Broad
Channel home after it was flood-
ed. On Saturday they moved into
a five-bedroom house near the
hospital provided by North
Shore-LIJ. The hospital got pre-
scriptions filled for her disabled
nephew and brought them food,
clothes and linens, she said.
“I don’t know how I would
have lived through this without
their help.”
Account: 23070 (13798)
NY-56,
For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www NewsdayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
————
LE
|
ae
Page 1 of 2
Date: Wednesday, November 14, 2012
Location: LONG ISLAND, NY
Circulation (OMA): 297,601 (1)
Page: Aid
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
3
iq
iS
2
tg
2
ie
Bi
~=
VALLEY STREAM. Mary LaPorta, a Franklin Hospital employee, with her dog Ruby and her son
Anthony, 17, in a five-bedroom house provided by North Shore-LIJ after her home was destroyed.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 Newsday in,
All Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13798)
Nv-563
For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www: NewscayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
The Daily Star %=
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Wednesday, November 14, 2012
ONEONTA, NY
11,343 (169)
Newspaper (D)
1,2
Main
CSEA
Otsego could cut 10 jobs in 2013
BY JOE MAHONEY
‘STAFF WRITER
COOPERSTOWN — ‘As the
rough parameters of Otsego
County’s 2013 budget take
shape, it appears that about 10
county jobs will be eliminated
and some public services will
be reduced, county Treasurer
Dan Crowell said Tuesday.
Crowell said he still seeks to
carve about another $200,000
in spending from the draft
spending blueprint. A final bud-
get for the coming fiscal year is
expected to be adopted by the
county Board of Representa-
tives by early December.
The treasurer said he expects
total expenditures in that plan
will come to about $125 million,
up from about $117.4 million in
the current budget.
Because about 20 county jobs
have been slashed in recent
years because of the national
economic downturn, Crowell
said, it has becoming increas-
ingly difficult to identify cost
savings without scaling back on
services provided by the county.
“At this point, when a position
is being cut, there is going to be
a reduction in service,” he said.
Crowell said several of the job
qj reductions will
| come through
attrition — by
leaving vacant
openings cre-
ated = through
retirements.
The Board
of Representa-
tives, he said,
DELAWAREHOLDS §= has reached
hearings ontaxhike, consensus on
PAGE2 eliminating
a one Office on
Aging worker
involved in dispensing informa-
tion to senior citizens regarding
federal government services.
Crowell
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserved,
It also appears that the board
will retreat from an initial push
to cut two road patrol jobs from
the Sheriff's Department after
Sheriff Richard Devlin Jr. as-
sembled an array of statistics
showing that crime reports, jail
admissions and drug investiga-
tions have all risen markedly in
recent years, Crowell said.
The tentative budget plan
calls for an increase in the
county subsidy to the 174-bed
Otsego Manor nursing home
to $5.5 million. Currently, the
county spends about $3.3 mil-
lion to keep the nursing home
running. County lawmakers
seek to line up a private opera-
tor to run the home, a process
expected to take at least a year
to complete.
John Imperato Sr, president
of the local unit of the Civil Ser-
vice Employees Association, said
while he as not reviewed the
draft budget plan, he has strong
concerns about the apparent
readiness to cut jobs, including
the staffer at the Office for Aging.
“The county is down to the
bone” when it comes to staff-
ing, he said. “I feel bad for the
department heads.”
SEE OTSEGO ON PAGE 2
Imperato said an unwill-
ingness by county law-
makers to consider even
a modest tax increase will
likely contribute to addi-
tional deterioration of the
county’s infrastructure,
such as roads. He added
that it would behoove the
county to put contingen-
cy plans in place to fund
needed capital projects
that could stimulate the
region’s economy.
“I think the fact they
have been so frugal is
backfiring now,” he said.
At the same time, Im-
perato, who works in the
9ll emergency services
call center, said he was
pleased that the board is
apparently not going to
cut jobs at the Sheriff's
Department. He suggest-
ed that do so would have
jeopardized public safety
at a time when public
demand for law enforce-
ment services is growing.
One lingering issue
facing county lawmak-
ers is whether to extend
the staff cuts to the office
of county Clerk Kathy
Sinnott-Gardner. She has
indicated that any job
cuts would be highly det-
rimental to the office and
hurt its ability to produce
revenue for the county.
The clerk's office, which
has had jobs taken in pre-
vious budgets, operates
the Department of Motor
Vehicles offices in Oneon-
ta and Cooperstown.
Account: 23070 (13857)
Nya
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The Post-Journal *««.,,
Type (Frequency):
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Section:
Keyword:
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
JAMESTOWN, NY
15,168 (49)
Newspaper (D)
5
Region
CSEA
Santa
Sheriff
Donations
Accepted
Fundraising
Goal Is $10,000
Donations are being accept-
ed for the Cattaraugus County
Sheriff's Office’s Santa Sher-
iff program.
Deputy Brian Keis, pro-
gram coordinator, recently
said fundraising efforts are in
full swing and donations are
still coming in. Keis contin-
ues to send out letters to
county businesses to help
‘ raise more money, as the pro-
gram has received $1,000
less than organizers hoped.
, Previous fundraisers
. include monthly basket give-
saways and letters to area busi-
‘nesses seeking local support
‘through monetary donations.
‘The donations will help the
‘program purchase gifts for
| families in the community.
The Santa Sheriff’s Pro-
gram, modeled after a similar
initiative in Texas, began in
© 2012 POSTJOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
$2004
and has
been
steadily
growing.
Partner-
ing agen-
cies and
schools
raise
money
and refer
less for-
tunate
Cattarau-
gus
County
families
to the
program.
Gifts are purchased at area
businesses.
Youth and volunteers from
area schools and other county
agencies wrap the gifts and
package them for delivery.
In 2004, the goal had been
to serve five families; the pro-
“gram grew to 26 families in
2010 and 2011 providing a
total of 117 men, women and
children.
The families were provided
gifts, as well as a complete
Christmas dinner, along with
dry goods donated through the
‘efforts of the staff and stu-
_dents at the Salamanca Mid-
dle School.
The program hopes to raise
the money to provide Christ-
mas to 40 families this year.
As in the past years, the
“Sheriff's Office has also
“pledged funding to the pro-
Account: 23070 (13825)
Nvsid
-gram through a donation from
the Employees’ Association
and the Supervisor Units, as
well as receiving donations
from the CSEA Supervisory
Unit.
Keis sees the Santa Sher-
iff’s Program as, “a way for
us to give back to the commu-
nity.” Fundraising efforts con-
tinue to grow each year
_ adding new partners.
This year the program is
looking to raise nearly
‘$10,000 so that the needs of
area families can be met.
For more information about
donating to the Santa Sheriff
Program, call Sheriff Timothy
Whitcomb at 938-9191, ext.
2247, or Deputy Brian Keis
at 938-9191, ext. 2899,
Contributions can be made
payable to the Santa Sheriff's
Fund, c/o Cattaraugus County
Sheriff's Office, 301 Court
St., Little Valley, NY 14755.
The Santa
Sheriff
Program is “a
way for us to
give back to
the
community.”
Deputy
Brian Keis,
program
coordinator
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 1
TIMES
HERALD-
D
Date:
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Saturday, November 10, 2012
MIDDLETOWN, NY
53,140 (1)
Newspaper (D)
3
Main
CSEA
CSEA offers Valley View terms
Concessions
aim to stop
privatization
BY CHRIS MCKENNA
Times Herald-Record
GOSHEN — The union repre-
senting employees at Orange
County’s nursing home offered
major concessions on Friday to
lower the cost of running the
facility and induce lawmakers
to keep it in county hands.
William Oliphant, president of
the county’s Civil Service Em-
ployees Association units, said
workers at the Valley View Cen-
ter for Nursing Care and Reha-
bilitation had agreed to work
four-day weeks, form their own
bargaining unit and forgo ret-
roactive pay raises for 2012.
The union demands in return
that the county replace the fa-
cility’s contracted management
and put the potential sale of the
home on hold for two years.
“We’re prepared to work this
out, and we’re prepared to stay
at the table as long as it takes,
because we’re committed to
keeping Valley View as a coun-
ty function,” he said.
Oliphant and other union
leaders announced their pro-
posal outside Valley View at a
news conference led by county
Legislator Roxanne Donnery, a
Democrat who held extended
talks with the union to produce
the offer.
The proposal came less than
a week before a critical budget
decision affecting the future
of the 360-bed nursing home.
Lawmakers are set to meet
Wednesday to decide whether
to amend County Executive Ed
Diana’s 2013 budget proposal,
which would fund Valley View
only through Feb. 1. Diana has
© 2012 Dow Jones Local Media Group, he
Al Rights Reserved,
been pushing the Legislature to
sell the facility to a private op-
erator because of its cost.
At Friday’s news confer-
ence, Donnery said the union
had picked up the gauntlet Di-
ana threw down in his budget
speech in October, when he
quoted from a report that said
only “significant changes” at
Valley View would lower its
cost to a sustainable level.
“It’s in his court,” Donnery
declared. “We’ve got to make
him move on it.”
Joining Donnery at the news
conference, Republican Leg-
islator Mike Anagnostakis ar-
gued that the proposal could
shrink the county’s share of
Valley View’s cost to nothing,
leaving no rationale to sell it.
“With these union conces-
sions, it is now a no-brainer
to keep Valley View county-
owned,” he said.
Diana issued a statement after-
ward that said: “Orange County
has held at least 10 negotiation
sessions with CSEA. They have
never brought any concessions
regarding Valley View to the ta-
ble. Instead, they are pursuing
negotiations through the media.
As County Executive, I have an
open door policy and look for-
ward to receiving from the union
aprinted copy of the concessions
they provided to the media.”
The willingness to split Val-
ley View employees away from
the rest of the county’s work
force marks a major shift for
the union, which had resisted
such demands until now. Oliph-
ant said the county could save
as much as $4 million a year by
negotiating a separate Valley
View contract with 10 percent
pay cuts and higher health in-
surance contributions.
Switching the schedule so that
employees work 10 hours each
day, four days a week could save
more than $3 million a year, he
said. Forgoing raises for 2012,
which are currently under ne-
gotiation, would save another
$500,000, based on the assump-
tion of 2 percent raises that were
built into the 2012 budget, Oliph-
ant said.
Three of the four business-
es that submitted bids in May
to buy Valley View and run it
have agreed to keep their of-
fers on the table until the end
of next week. Lawmakers
haven’t discussed the propos-
als since June, and no meetings
have been scheduled to resume
those talks before Friday.
“It’s in (Diana’s) court.
We've got to make him
move on it.”
ROXANNE DONNERY
Orange County legislator
Account: 23070 (13789)
Ny-1380
For reprinis or reuse, please e-mail sean polay@dowjones.com or,
send aleler fo Sean Polay, Dow Jones Local Mecia Group, Box 580, Miccletown, NY 10940
Page 1 of 2
= Date: Saturday, November 10, 2012
TIMES Location: MIDDLETOWN, NY
Circulation (DMA): 53,140 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
(CHET GORDON/Times Herald-Record
William Oliphant, left, president of Orange County’s CSEA locals, joined Legislators Mike Anagnostakis and
Roxanne Donnery as they announced union concessions designed to keep Valley View in county hands.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 Dow Jones Local Media Group, he
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13789)
Ny-1380
For reprinis or reuse, please e-mail sean polay@dowjones.com or,
send aleler fo Sean Polay, Dow Jones Local Mecia Group, Box 580, Miccletown, NY 10940
WESTBURY TIMES
Date: Friday, November 09, 2012
Location: MINEOLA, NY
Circulation (DMA): 3,745 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 439
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
US. Marines Kick Off Annual
Toys For Tots Drive
Toys For Tots gives special nod to the late Peter Schmitt
By Curisty Hinko
chinko@antonnews.com
As tragic news of the death of NCPD
ESU Officer Arthur Lopez unfolded
during the afternoon on Tuesday. Oct.
23. hundreds of civic, business. com-
munity and elected officials gathered
in Baldwin at the Coral House to sup-
port the annual kick-off of the Long Is-
land Toys for Tots Drive. The toy drive
is the nation’s largest program for
children during the holiys.
Special presentatioss in memory of
Presiding Officer of ne Nassau County
Legislature P-.-: scnmitt, and recently
fallen NCPD Officer Joseph Olivieri
were made, including special toy pre-
sentations to Schmitt's infant grandson.
Logan. and Schmitt's wife. Lois. by
county officials.
Major Chuck Kilbride gave special
recognition to the dozens of people who
make Toys For Tots possible locally.
such as the U.S. Postal Service workers
and local marines, local legislators, and
the police and fire departments who
work tirelessly to collect toys each year.
The hundreds of guests were treated
to special performances by the
continued on page 39
F.R.E.E. Players Jazz Ensemble, and the
Bombshells trio. Guests also enjoyed spe-
cial appearances by Miss Universe Leila
Lopes, 26, of Benguela, Angola and from
Santa Claus, himself.
Following the Marine Corps Color Guard
presentation and the national anthem deliv-
ered by Angela Powers of the Stewart
Manor-New Hyde Park Republican Club,
Rabbi Anchelle Perl gave the invocation.
“Year after year Major Chuck Kilbride
and the U.S. Marines bring joy to children
who may otherwise not receive a toy for
the holidays,” said Comptroller George
Maragos. “I am honored to support them
as an honorary vice chairman.”
Coral House owner Butch Yamali told
Anton Newspapers that it was a pleasure to
host such an event; as a parent of three
© 2012 WESTBURY TIMES
All Rights Reserves,
children, he said, “It’s important to give, so
that children who don’t have, can have.”
This was the first time the Toys For Tots
kick-off event was held at Coral House.
During the course of the announcements,
Yamali, without hesitation, agreed to allow
Kilbride and the Marine Corps to hold the
event at Coral House again next year.
“With the economy being what it is, it's
become increasingly difficult for families
to provide toys for their children the past
few holiday seasons,” CSEA Nassau Lo-
cal 830 President and Toys For Tots Co-
Chairman Jerry Laricchiuta said. “Team-
ing up with the Marines Toys for Tots pro-
gram gives us an opportunity to do our
part towards creating a memorable holi-
day season for local children.”
Toys from communities across Nassau
and Suffolk counties are collected by indi-
viduals and businesses, then distributed
by the members of the armed services lo-
cally to underprivileged children.
For more information about collection
sites and donation information visit:
http://garden-city-ny.toysfortots.org of con-
tact Staff Sergeant Kyle Stahlecker, Gun-
nery Sergeant Steven Covington or Staff
Sergeant Brian Gomez at (516) 228-3697.
Account: 23070 (13822)
NY-739
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
Date: Friday, November 09, 2012
WESTBURY TIMES Location: MINEOLA, NY
Circulation (OMA): 3,745 (1)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 4,39
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 WESTBURY TIMES
All Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13822)
NY-730
For roprinis or rights, please contact the publisher
OLEAN TIMES HERALD pas
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
‘Type (Frequency):
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Keyword:
Saturday, November 03, 2012
OLEAN, NY
11,212 (49)
Newspaper (D)
2
Main
CSEA
Civil Service Employees Union:
City of Olean stopped negotiations
Union hopes for
public support
By Christopher Michel
Olean Times Herald
OLEAN — Dissatisfied
with an apparent lack of
progress in contract nego-
tiations with the city, mem-
bers of the Civil Service
Employees of America
announced Friday a
new campaign they hope will
garner the public’s support.
According to union repre-
sentatives, the city and CSEA
reached an impasse in con-
tract negotiations in April.
“Since that time, the city
has stopped negotiating,”
Brad Camp, president of the
CSEA’s Olean Unit, stated in
a press release. “We want city
residents to know that we are
working hard for them, even
though the city apparently
does not want to negotiate
with us.”
© 2012 OLEAN TIMES HERALD
All Rights Reserves,
Though specifics of what
caused the impasse were not
detailed, at issue are cost-sav-
ing measures in employee
benefits — primarily with
without a contract for 18
months.
Noting the union is “and
always has been ready and
willing to negotiate” with
healthcare coverage. the city, Mr. Camp said the
To bring attention to their union did agree to changes
cause, the 78 city workers in healthcare coverage that
represented by the CSEA are would save money.
distributing “Contract Now” Mayor Linda Witte
lawn signs to supporters. declined to comment on the
“We work hard every day matter so as not to jeopardize
to provide essential services any upcoming talks between
to city of Olean residents,” the city and union.
Me Cone said. “We under- The Times Herald was
oer these are difficult eco-
nomic times. We are taxpay-
ers, and we also struggle to
raise our families and make
ends meet. We don’t under-
stand why the city has given
up on negotiating a deal that
recognizes the importance of
the work we do.”
Friday’s announcement
comes alter the 78 city
employees have worked
unable to reach Joe Braccio,
an attorney from the
Buffalo-based labor law firm
Hodgson Russ LLC Attorneys
who is representing the city in
the negotiations, to comment
on the matter.
(Contact reporter Christopher
Michel at cmichel@olean-
timesherald.com. Follow him on
Twitter, OTHChris.)
‘Account: 23070 (13788)
NY5I9
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
be]
Page 1 of 1
OLEAN TIMES HERALD
Date: Friday, November 02, 2012
Location: OLEAN, NY
Circulation (OMA): 11,212 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: AS
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 OLEANTIMES HERALD
Al Rights Reserved,
Cancer benefit set
OLEAN — A fundraiser to
benefit breast cancer patients
will be held at 7 p.m. today at
the Olean High School audi-
torium.
The benefit, dubbed “50s in
Synch to Benefit Pink,” is spon-
sored by the city’s fire, police
and CSEA local unions and the
Olean Theatre Workshop.
Tickets cost $5 and can
be purchased at the Sports
Locker, Tops, at the door of the
event or by‘ calling 378-5538.
Account: 23070 (13766)
NY5I9
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 1
ILLUSTRATED NEWS
Date: Friday, November 02, 2012
Location: MINEOLA, NY
Circulation (DMA): 3,000 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 131
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
U.S. Marines Kick Off Annual Toys For Tots Drive
Toys For Tots gives
special nod to the
late Peter Schmitt
By Curisty Hinko
chinko@antonnews.com
As tragic news of the death of NCPD ESU
Officer Arthur Lopez unfolded during the af-
ternoon on Tuesday, Oct. 23, hundreds of
civic, business, community and elected offi-
cials gathered in Baldwin at the Coral House
to support the annual kick-off of the Long Is-
land Toys for Tots Drive. The toy drive is the
nation’s largest gift program for children dur-
ing the holidays.
Special presentations in memory of Presid-
ing Officer of the Nassau County Legislature
Peter Schmitt, and recently fallen NCPD Offi-
cer Joseph Olivieri were made, including spe-
cial toy presentations to Schmitt's infant
grandson, Logan, and Schmitt’s wife, Lois, by
county officials.
continued on page 31
Major Chuck Kilbride gave special
recognition to the dozens of people who
make Toys For Tots possible locally, such
as the U.S. Postal Service workers and lo-
cal marines, local legislators, and the po-
lice and fire departments who work tire-
lessly to collect toys each year.
The hundreds of guests were treated to
special performances by the F.R.E.E.
Players Jazz Ensemble, and the Bomb-
shells trio. Guests also enjoyed special ap-
pearances by Miss Universe Leila Lopes,
26, of Benguela, Angola and from Santa
Claus, himself.
Following the Marine Corps Color
Guard presentation and the national an-
them delivered by Angela Powers of the
Stewart Manor-New Hyde Park Republi-
can Club, Rabbi Anchelle Perl gave the
invocation.
“Year after year Major Chuck Kilbride
and the U.S. Marines bring joy to children
who may otherwise not receive a toy for
© 2012 ILLUSTRATED NEWS
Al Rights Reserves,
the holidays,” said Comptroller George
Maragos. “I am honored to support them
as an honorary vice chairman.”
Coral House owner Butch Yamali told
Anton Newspapers that it was a pleasure
to host such an event; as a parent of three
children, he said, “It’s important to give,
so that children who don’t have, can have.”
This was the first time the Toys For Tots
kick-off event was held at Coral House.
During the course of the announcements,
Yamali, without hesitation, agreed to allow
Kilbride and the Marine Corps to hold the
event at Coral House again next year.
“With the economy being what it is, it’s
become increasingly difficult for families
to provide toys for their children the past
few holiday seasons,” CSEA Nassau Lo-
cal 830 President and Toys For Tots Co-
Chairman Jerry Laricchiuta said. “Team-
ing up with the Marines Toys for Tots pro-
gram gives us an opportunity to do our
part towards creating a memorable holi-
day season for local children.”
Toys from communities across Nassau
and Suffolk counties are collected by indi-
viduals and businesses, then distributed
by the members of the armed services lo-
cally to underprivileged children.
For more information about collecti
sites and donation information vi
http://garden-city-ny.toysfortots.org of con-
tact Staff Sergeant Kyle Stahlecker, Gun-
nery Sergeant Steven Covington or Staff
Sergeant Brian Gomez at (516) 228-3697.
Year after year
Major Chuck Kilbride and
the U.S. Marines bring
joy to children who may
otherwise not receive a
toy for the holidays,”
—Comptroller George Maragos
t
Account: 23070 (13841)
Nvai2
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
Date: Friday, November 02, 2012
ILLUSTRATED NEWS Location: MINEOLA, NY
Circulation (OMA): 3,000 (1)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
131
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
The performing tlotthelombshelis stop by to daliver aispeciallact to the kick
off guests.
= 24
“Toys Foe Tots and local officials presented a special placque to the late Peter Schmitt's family.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 ILLUSTRATED NEWS
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13841)
vai
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Sunday, October 28, 2012
DAILY STAR Location: ONEONTA. NY
Circulation (OMA): 12,310 (169)
Type (Frequency): — Newspaper (S&S)
Page: 3
Section: Commentary
Keyword: CSEA
IN OUR OPINION which would leave the county
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserved,
Board must
reconsider
Manor vote
o real financial choice.
N That’s how Rep. Kather-
ine Stuligross, D-Oneon-
ta, described the Otsego County
Board’s decision to sell Otsego
Manor, the county nursing home.
Not everyone, obviously, ac-
cepts this. There are more than
1,000 people who have signed a
petition urging the county board
to reconsider its decision and
believe there must be another
solution.
If we take Stuligross and her
colleagues on the board who
voted to sell the Manor (which
all but Rep. Keith McCarty, R-
Springfield, did) at their word,
then we would have to believe
that there is no point to that
petition — or to the protest resi-
dents planned to stage Friday, or
to the lawsuit filed by the Civil
Service Employees Association,
which alleges that the board’s
decision violated the state Open
Meeting Law.
But we don’t accept it. And we
urge the members of the county
board to open their minds to
other possibilities.
Back in June, County Treasurer
Dan Crowell warned that reim-
bursements for Medicaid were
scheduled to drop dramatically,
paying millions of dollars of the
facility’s operating costs.
“It’s become increasingly clear
that if we are to maintain the
high quality care that the facility
offers, it would necessitate a 30
percent to 40 percent increase
in the property tax bill,” Crowell
told The Daily Star in June.
Crowell went on to say that the
board must consider the spec-
trum of options available to it,
with some urgency.
Well, the “urgency” part of his
message certainly got through.
Not three months later, the board
voted to privatize the facility.
Gone was all talk of other op-
tions, such as a public-private
partnership, or changes to the
Manor’s model of care that might
reduce costs.
When the vote was taken, Mc-
Carty expressed his concerns as
follows:
“I think they’re kind of jump-
ing the gun a little bit here,” he
said. “What bothers me is that
we're owed money from the state
and federal government for this
thing, and we're not going after
its”
We believe that the members
of the Otsego County Board who
voted to sell the Manor had their
hearts in the right place.
“We view this as a matter of
saving quality nursing care in
Otsego County,” Stuligross said.
But we do not believe — we
cannot accept — that this is the
only option. We urge the board
to listen to constituents and go
back to the drawing board to
seek alternatives to privatiza-
tion. It certainly cannot hurt to
continue the conversation.
Account: 23070 (13736)
Ny-1633
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Orion
Page 1 of 1
Date: Friday, October 26, 2012
Location: NEW YORK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 26,418 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 214
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
Cuomo Offers Quid Pro Quo
Amid Worker Pay Freeze,
Legislators Hope for Hikes
By MARK TOOR
A three-year pay freeze was good
enough for state-employee unions, but
state legislators apparently feel they
are entitled to a salary increase, per-
haps one of more than 25 percent. The
unions, not surprisingly, disagree.
There’s been a lot of muttering
about hiking the base pay of legisla-
tors, which since 1999 has been set at
$79,500 for the part-time job. But few
have been willing to attach their
names to such a proposal. Last week,
Governor Cuomo brought it into pub-
lic consciousness by saying that he
might approve an increase if the law-
makers met three conditions.
Minimum Wage, Pot Bill Demands
“I would not consider a legislative
pay raise [unless] the people's busi-
ness was being done in a thorough, re-
sponsible way,” Mr. Cuomo told re-
porters Oct. 16. “The concept of the
pay raise is—well, the Legislature's
really done a good job and they
haven't gotten a pay raise in a long
time, but the premise is they're per-
forming well...to perform well in my
book means, do the people’s business.”
Mr. Cuomo defined “the people's
business” as two proposals he made
during this year’s legislative session
that were not passed. One was a bill
raising the state’s minimum wage
from $7.25 to $8.50 per hour. The oth-
er was a bill making public display of
small amounts of marijuana a viola-
tion. It is currently a misdemeanor for
which people can be arrested; viola-
tions earn only a summons.
‘Advocacy groups in New York City
charge that police officers on stop-
and-frisk missions make young peo-
ple empty their pockets and, if they
pull out a small amount of marijuana
that is otherwise legal for them to pos-
sess, arrest them for bringing it into
view.
The vast majority of pot arrests
made in the state last year occurred
in New York City, which reported
more than 50,000. Police Commis-
sioner Raymond W. Kelly ordered a
year ago that officers should no longer
make such arrests, but drug-policy ex-
perts claim that has not appreciably
reduced them.
Open Records to Public?
Later in the week, Mr. Cuomo added
another condition: The Legislature
must put itself under the Freedom of
Information Law, which would give
members of the public access to their
records. The body is currently exempt
from the state’s FOIL. The Governor
said the request was prompted by
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver's
confidential settlement of a sexual-
harassment lawsuit against Assembly-
man Vito Lopez.
“The Legislature has no FOIL, so
you have no vehicle to get these con-
fidentiality agreements,” he said in a
radio interview. “That's the real issue
on the confidentiality.”
In the months before the 2012 leg-
islative session began, Mr. Cuomo and
his minions browbeat the Civil Ser-
vice Employees Association and the
Public Employees Federation into
new contracts that contained a three-
year pay freeze, nine unpaid furlough
days and increases in health-care pre-
miums of up to 60 percent.
The State Legislature had ap-
proved a budget submitted by Mr
Cuomo that called for lowering the
cost of the state's mostly-unionized
workforce by $450 million. If he could-
n't negotiate those savings, the Gov-
ernor and his aides said repeatedly
and emphatically, the state would lay
off as many as 9,800 employees.
Cuomo’s Odd Strategy
The unions are also unhappy with
Mr. Cuomo’s Tier 6 pension plan,
which makes newly-hired state em-
ployees pay more into the system in
return for lower benefits when they
retire. He gained legislative passage
of the measure through a midnight
deal with the Republican-controlled
State Senate—with the Democratic-
led Assembly consenting—in which
they agreed to approve it in return for
carte blanche in redrawing the lines
of legislative districts.
The deal all but guarantees a Re-
publican majority in the Senate for
the next 10 years. Ironically, it was
the Senate Republicans who killed
Account: 23070 (13676)
Nv-425
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Page 1 of 3
Date: Friday, October 26, 2012
Location: NEW YORK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 26,418 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
i 214
Main
I: CSEA
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
the minimum-wage and marijuana-
law proposals.
PEF President Susan M. Kent is-
sued a statement saying, “While I am
not in favor of denying a group of
workers a pay raise for over 13 years,
IT also cannot advocate for a raise for
New York State legislators when
many of them insisted on balancing
the New York State budget on the
backs of PEF members.”
“Our members are in no mood to
even hear them entertain the idea of
raises,” said CSEA spokesman Stephen
Madarasz. “They're facing contracts
with zeroes and furloughs. The tax cap
is wreaking havoc on local workers.
What has the Legislature done to de-
increase?”
Pay Nation’s Third-Highest
New York State Assembly Members
and Senators are the third-highes'
paid state lawmakers in the country,
according to data compiled by the Em-
pire Center for New York State Po
cy. California pays $95,291, and Penn-
sylvania’s salary is $82,026. New
York’s neighbor New Jersey pays
$49,000 a year and Connecticut pays
$28,000 a y
Neither of those two states pays
per-diems to cover expenses while
their legislature is in session. In con-
STEPHEN MADARASZ:
Fears worker ‘meltdown.’
trast, New York pays lawmakers who
are not from the Albany area $165 for
each full day and $61 for each half-
day they spend in the capital. Travel
is also reimbursed. Legislators who
drive to Albany get 55 cents per mile,
plus tolls, and train and plane fare is
also paid for.
Lawmakers also receive stipends of
$9,000 to $41,500 for leadership posi-
tions.
Legislators have been champing at
the bit to increase their salaries for
years, but have been worried about
polls that show the public does not ap-
prove of the way the Legislature does
its business in general and opposes a
raise in particular.
There's a feeling that under Mr.
Cuomo the Legislature has at least
partially cleaned up its act, passing
the last two budgets by the April 1
deadline and generally giving the
popular Governor what he wanted.
Lawmakers hope this will mollify a
disgruntled public. No one has come
out in favor of a specific raise, but the
figure of $100,000 is often whispered.
The legislators are not expected to
vote on a raise until after Election
Day, possibly in a Special Session to-
ward the end of the year.
GOVERNOR CUOMO: Dang-
ling another carrot.
Account: 23070 (13676)
Nv-425
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Page 2 of 3
Date: Friday, October 26, 2012
Location: NEW YORK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 26,418 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Al
Main
CSEA
SUSAN M. KENT: Hypocrisy
in the air.
Page 3 of 3
© 2012 CHIEF
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13676)
Nvd25
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Rockland Journal-News
Date: Friday, October 26, 2012
Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: 4
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
Rockland CSEA
feels betrayed
on labor deal
> we = \i
> i
David McKay Wilson
THE TAX WATCHDOG
It hurts to get stabbed in the back.
Rockland County’s Civil Service
Employees Association felt the pain on
Tuesday after County Executive Scott
Vanderhoef ended a spell of workplace
comity in what the union says is a vio-
lation of a labor pact that called for no
CSEA layoffs for “budgetary reasons.”
The workers had made the deal in
exchange for a long litany of give-
backs, so prized by government lead-
ers these days — a salary freeze over
three years, elimination of step-raises
valued at $1.2 million for 2013, deferred
pay for 10 days worked in 2012 and
2013, and an increase in health-premi-
um payments for all new CSEA mem-
bers.
It’s an uneasy time for public em-
ployee unions. Pushed to the wall by
the state tax cap and calls for austerity,
the unions walk a delicate line as they
fight to hold onto wages and benefits
they’ve negotiated in the past while
preserving their government jobs into
the future. Westchester County Exec-
utive Rob Astorino kicked off his 2013
budget campaign with calls for the
Westchester CSEA unit to begin paying
part of the premium on their health in-
surance costs.
He said up to 800 union jobs were on
the chopping block if his calls for give-
backs go unheeded.
The labor accord was a tough sell for
Rockland CSEA leaders. But they con-
vinced their rank-and-file — who ap-
proved the pact by more than 2-to-1 in
early September — that it was the best
they could do to save their county jobs,
while helping out a public employer
mired ina deficit of $95 million and the
lowest bond rating among New York’s
NEWS (ROCKLAND EDITION)
62 counties, just one step above junk-
bond status.
“We sold them on the agreement by
telling them we were protecting their
jobs, protecting their benefits, and
helping out the collective good,” says
Rockland CSEA President P.T. Thomas.
“They agreed.”
Seven weeks later, Vanderhoef un-
veiled his $737 million budget for 2013.
To CSEA’s astonishment, it called for
about 55 CSEA layoffs in a proposal
that hiked the property tax by 18 per-
cent to bring in additional revenue of
$15 million, and included $14 million
from the first full year of the county’s
residential energy levy.
Most of the layoffs were targeted
for the food service at Rockland’s Sum-
mit Hill nursing home and in the secu-
rity detail that guards county build-
ings. These public workers would be
replaced by lower-paid employees
working for private companies.
“Tt was a leap of faith on the part of
our members to ratify that contract,”
said Jessica Ladlee of CSEA’s southern
regional office, which has threatened
to sue to enforce the pact. “The ink is
barely dry on the document. And now
they’ve been betrayed. Morale couldn’t
be worse.”
Vanderhoef, who in January will be-
gin the final year of his fifth-term,
trumpeted the fact that the outsourc-
ing deals would provide a bonanza of
savings for the cash-strapped county,
and his troubled budget. Privatizing
the security detail would save $1 mil-
lion. The private food-service workers
would come $350,000 cheaper than
their public counterparts.
I called the county executive’s of-
fice, hoping to ascertain how Vander-
hoef’s layoffs to save more than $1.3
million would not be considered “for
budgetary reasons” when the private
workers were replacing the public em-
ployees doing the same work. Vander-
hoef spokesman Ron Levine told me
that the administration was viewing
the changes as “programmatic,” but he
declined to say how that differed from
“budgetary.”
“We aren’t about to give you our
thought process on how we came to
this,” Levine said. “The county execu-
tive has checked with our counsel.”
Rockland has company addressing
mounting pension and health care
costs, and pressures to keep taxes low
in the state’s tax cap era. Westchester
Account: 23070 (13683)
N¥510
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
rr Date: Friday, October 26, 2012
Rockland Journal-News Ci. Pract
Circulation (OMA): 76,272 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
4
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {ROCKLAND EDITION)
Al Rights Reserved,
has its troubles too, and CSEA give-
backs are part of County Executive As-
torino’s strategy.
Karen Pecora, Westchester CSEA
president, says her 3,200-member unit
is looking for a no-layoff provision,
along the lines of the accord that her
Rockland compatriots wrested from
the Vanderhoef administration.
“Rockland has no money and they
were able to get it,” she said in an in-
terview before Vanderhoef’s layoff an-
nouncement. “Our issue is that we have
to save jobs. That’s the bottom line.”
Account: 23070 (13683)
N¥510
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 2
Arcade Herald
Date: Thursday, October 25, 2012
Location: ARCADE, NY
Circulation (OMA): 5,000 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: AI7
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
© 2012 ARCADE HERALD
Al Rights Reserved,
Catt. Co.
Santa Sheriff's
program seeks
donations
Jolly Old St. Nick
made an early visit to
the Cattaraugus County
Sheriff's Office to meet
with the Santa Sheriff's
Program Director Deputy
Brian Keis to discuss the
growing need for area
families this year.
Partnering agencies
and schools raise funds
for, and then refer less
fortunate Cattaraugus
County families to, the
Santa Sheriffs Program.
Gifts are then purchased
at area businesses, and
youths and volunteers
from area schools and
other county agencies
wrap the gifts and package
them for delivery.
In 2004, the goal was
to serve five families; the
program grew to 26 fami-
lies in 2010, and in 2011
served a total of 117 men,
women and children. The
program goal is to raise
$10,000 this year,soSanta
Sheriff's can make a nice
Christmas for 40 fami-
lies. The Sheriff's Office
has also pledged funding
through a donation by the
Employee’s Association,
the Supervisor Units and
the CSEA.
Individuals interested
in donating to this project
may contact Sheriff Timo-
thy Whitcomb at 716-938-
9191 ext. 2247 or Deputy
Brian Keis at 716-938-
9191 ext. 2899. Contri-
butions can be made pay-
able to the CCSO Santa
Sheriff's Fund, c/o Deputy
Brian Keis, Cattaraugus
County Sheriff’s Office,
301 Court Street, Little
Valley, New York 14755.
Account: 23070 (13698)
Nv-24
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 1
TIMES UNION
Date: Thursday, October 25, 2012
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (56)
Newspaper (D)
441
Nursing
home
vote
rankles
Amid protests, panel advances
private takeover of Maplewood
Manor, citing deep deficits
By Dennis Yusko
BALLSTON SPA — Saratoga County
Page: ;
Section: Capital Region
Keyword: CSEA
ing jobs at the sheriffs.” Employees Union leaders urged
Under the plan, the county
would lease Maplewood Manor to
the limited development corpora-
tion, which would then lease it back
to the county. The corporation,
unlike the county, could leverage
money from the from the facility’s
equity — its value is placed at $13
million to $15 million — to pay for
its operations while it negotiates the
nursing home’ sale.
County supervisors and officials
would serve as corporation’s board
members. The facility would re-
main open and employees would
continue to work for the county
until it is sold to a private entity.
Supervisors Patricia Southworth
of Ballston and Joanne Yepsen of
county officials to delay the vote
and keep the nursing home pub-
lic. CSEA represents most of the
facility’s 315 full-time employees.
Kathy Moran, president of the
CSEA Saratoga County Chapter,
said she was disappointed by what
she called a “closed process.”
If a newly formed corporation
sells the nursing home, its new
owners may or may not hire back
existing employees, and salaries
could be lower, Moran said. A pri-
vately owned nursing home would
provide drastically reduced servic-
es, and could “cherry-pick” patients
who can afford to pay for beds in
order to turn a profit, union lead-
ers said.
would transfer ownership of its public Saratoga Springs voted against the
nursing home to a limited development dhaviee: Southworth said shevhad
corporation run by county leaders early Be
next year, and that entity would then try to
sell it to a private operator by December
2014, under a plan approved by a commit-
State Comptroller Thomas Di-
Napoli last year called for legisla-
tion that would limit local govern-
ments’ use of limited development
corporations and increase state
concerns about limited develop-
ment corporations and if the qual-
ity of care would decline under
private ownership.
tee on Wednesday. r oversight of them.
c a Levels of care weighed heav-
Team Pica Connives yon the mio on ite, men hros can ade
yore ip envorse ge “80, of Burnt Hills, who attended a ‘F /MDany ty Orsi e
Maplewood Manor over to private hands.
The vote took place in the county office
complex over protests of about 40 nursing
home employees, some of whom held signs
saying “Keep our Nursing Home public”
and “Help Save Maplewood Manor.”
‘The initiative now requires passage by
the county’s Law and Finance Committee
and entire Board of Supervisors.
County leaders said exploding annual
deficits at the facility, caused mostly by de-
clining Medicaid reimbursements from the
Please see MANOR D11 >
state, made the status quo unsus-
tainable. The county has covered
nearly $45 million in deficits at the
nursing home since 2004, budget-
ed for a nearly $10 million short-
fall this year, and does not have the
financial reserves to fund it beyond
that, county officials said.
“This county is almost bank-
rupt,” committee Chairman Arthur
Wright said to boos and hissing
from the crowd. “This facility has
caused us to cut back on our capital
projects, and we're no longer fill-
© 2012 TIMES UNION
All Rights Reserves,
rally with nursing home employ-
ees before the meeting. His wife,
Becky, suffers from Alzheimer’s
disease, and is totally dependant
on the staff at Maplewood Manor.
“I would hate to see it privatized,”
Don Boucher said. “The care she
gets is just amazing.”
Maplewood Manor runs on
an annual budget of $28 million.
About 83 percent of its beds are
paid for through Medicaid, which
does not cover about $157 a day
per recipient. The county would
have to increase taxes by at least
20 percent or lay off 120 employ-
ees — 35 percent of its workforce
— to maintain the nursing home’s
public status, Wright said. Critics
called that a false choice, and the
vote was about priorities.
The vote Wednesday came
through recommendations by the
law firm Harris Beach, which the
county paid $50,000 for a report
on the nursing home’ future.
Workers and Civil Service
‘Account: 23070 (13674)
NVI
workers pleaded with legislators
to not lease that site to the private
firm Upstate Services Group for
10 years. Albany County leaders
say that move would save taxpayers
$70 million over the 10 years.
Harris Beach completed a simi-
lar study for Ulster County that led
its leaders last December to form
a limited development corpora-
tion for its 280-bed nursing home.
In July, six companies bid at least
$10.5 million for the Golden Hill
Health Care Center, reports said.
‘The Saratoga County Law and
Finance Committee could vote
on the measure next month, and a
public hearing will be in December
or January. The corporation would
issue requests for buyers in March,
select a private owner in July and
complete the sale by December
2014, according to the timetable.
> dyusko@timesunion.com = 518-
454-5353 © @DAYusko
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
TIMES UNION
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Thursday, October 25, 2012
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (58)
Newspaper (D)
141
Capital Region
CSEA
JOHN CARL D’ANNIBALE/TIMES UNION
CONSULTANT JUSTIN MILLER of Harris Beach, at left, addresses Wednesday's Maplewood Manor meeting.
The privatization proposal now moves to another county committee, then to a public hearing.
JOHN CARL D’ANNIBALE/TIMES UNION
KATHY GARRISON of the CSEA speaks
about Maplewood Manor's privatization.
Opponents say services could suffer.
© 2012 TIMES UNION
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13674)
N10
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 2
TIMES UNION =
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Keyword:
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
ALBANY, NY
66,507 (58)
Newspaper (D)
7
Capital
CSEA
Maplewood idea rapped
Nursing home vote, rally
planned on possible
Saratoga County transfer
By Dennis Yusko
BALLSTON SPA —A Saratoga
County plan to privatize its nurs-
ing home drew fire Tuesday from
the state’s largest public employee
union and a local supervisor, who
referenced the concerns of leading
state officials.
The county’s Public Health
Committee will hold a special
meeting at 3 p.m. Wednesday to
discuss, and possibly vote, on trans-
ferring the 277-bed Maplewood
Manor to a limited development
corporation, a type of ownership
the state comptroller and attorney
general have criticized.
Nursing home employees, resi-
dents and their family members
will join Civil Service Employees
Union officials at the county com-
plex before the meeting to protest
“the county’s rush to privatize Ma-
plewood Manor.” CSEA represents
most of the 315 full-time employ-
ees at the home.
“Our immediate concerns have
to do with lack of transparency in
this process,” CSEA spokeswoman
© 2012 TIMES UNION
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Therese Assalian said. “Everything
we learn about LDCs points to a
huge potential for malfeasance.”
County leaders say they can no
longer afford to subsidize Maple-
wood Manor's losses, due mostly
to declining Medicaid reimburse-
ments from the state. The facility
has needed nearly $44 million from
the county since 2004 to make up
annual deficits, according to Coun-
ty Administrator Spencer Hellwig.
The county budgeted $9.7 million
in losses for the nursing home this
year, and starting next year, will no
longer have enough reserve funds
to cover the losses, he said.
“It’s basically bankrupted the
general fund,” Hellwig said.
County supervisors paid $50,000
to the Harris Beach law firm and
Arthur Webb Group for a report
examining options for the nursing
home’s future. They presented the
study to county leaders in August.
It identified a need for 1,004 total
nursing home beds in the county,
or 215 more than what it has, and
recommended the county consider
moving Maplewood Manor to a
local development corporation.
Supervisor Joanne Yepsen, D-
Saratoga Springs, criticized county
leaders for evaluating the Harris
Account: 23070 (13670)
NVI
Beach report behind closed doors.
“There are hundreds of jobs and
families that will be affected with
a change, and an LDC is not the
answer toward more transparency
and accountability,” she said.
Hellwig defended the process
and said any change would also
require approval from the county’s
Law and Finance Committee and
entire Board of Supervisors. “I think
one of the most appealing benefits
of an LDC is they have the abil-
ity to borrow against the equity in
Maplewood Manor,” Hellwig said.
The facility is valued at $13 million
to $15 million. The county could
borrow some of all of that to fund
short-term operations while an
LDC seeks a private buyer, he said.
State Comptroller Thomas Di-
Napoli has called for legislation
that would limit local governments’
use of LDCs. LDCs were intended
to spur economic development and
employment opportunities, but, in
some cases, have been used as a
shadow entity to circumvent state
laws and oversight, and ended up
driving up costs for taxpayers, ac-
cording to DiNapoli’s office.
> dyusko@timesunion.com = 518-
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TIMES
HERALD-
D
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Saturday, October 20, 2012
MIDDLETOWN, NY
53,140 (1)
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Main
CSEA
Diana has lost credibility; legislators must save Valley View
BY WILLIAM OLIPHANT
Can he do the job and has he
earned my trust? These are the
two key questions most voters
weigh before choosing a candi-
date and casting
a ballot.
MY Coens
conclusions
VIEW come more from
opinion than fact,
but with County
Executive Ed Diana we have
evidence our county executive
has lost his credibility entirely.
This was obvious during the
county budget unveiling, which
turned into an angry rant where
Diana openly taunted his politi-
cal opponents, and when he met
with the Times Herald-Record
Editorial Board. If Diana is
allowed to continue down this
destructive and vindictive path,
the people of this county lose.
Let’s address credibility.
In the past year, we’ve been
subjected to withholding of
information on the Govern-
ment Center. We learned from
investigatory committees that
the irreparable damage Diana
claimed existed at the Govern-
ment Center was actually fix-
able and stemmed largely from
years of negligent maintenance,
not a hurricane.
Diana was called on his as-
sertions and legislators sent his
plans for a new building down
the tubes, leaving unanswered
questions about his credibility
lingering.
Almost simultaneously, Diana
announced his plan to defund
Valley View, knowing it would
take an “act of God” for the
Department of Health to ap-
prove his plans to close or sell
Valley View in his fast-tracked
time frame. Diana proceeded,
causing traumatic upheaval and
anxiety for the residents and
fear and mayhem for the work-
ers.
To date, he still hasn’t met
© 2012 Dow Jones Local Media Group, he
Al Rights Reserved,
with either as a group to explain
his plans. We are grateful a ma-
jority of legislators saw through
the half-truths and misinforma-
tion (including an anti-Valley
View propaganda mailer for
which taxpayers footed the bill)
and funded the facility for 2012.
Currently, we’re in the same
place we were last year. Talking
to the Record, Diana claimed
his refusal to testify under oath
before the investigatory com-
mittee was because of certain
members’ biases. Would Diana
have testified under oath if the
committee were made up exclu-
sively of Legislature members
who vote in lockstep with him? I
doubt it, because he’s had a seri-
ous problem when it comes to
raising his hand to tell the truth.
This is where continued ques-
tions of fitness for office come
in. Diana admitted to the Record
that the $20 million in surplus
funds needed for Valley View in
2013 was actually $12.5 million.
This is a serious discrepancy
that should make any person
question where else his numbers
are off.
Legislator Mike Anagnostakis
has repeatedly proven Diana’s
financial projections are wildly
inflated, showing that even that
$12.5 million figure is high.
Between Diana and his financial
team, it’s tough to believe this
was a mistake of basic arithme-
tic.
Diana’s downward spiral
has gone so far that he’s now
throwing out any number to
suit his needs. He got creative
when discussing CSEA contract
negotiations, neglecting to tell
those attending his speech that
he canceled negotiations with
CSEA two days prior, making
for three cancellations so far,
and that his negotiations team
refuses to discuss counteroffers
regarding Valley View.
Don’t buy his hype: CSEA is
ready to sit and negotiate as long
as it takes to get a deal done that
is fair for all.
CSEA members are together
in this fight. We know Diana’s
threat of layoffs across depart-
ments is not based on facts, but
is simply an effort to divide the
workforce. We ask that all leg-
islators have the courage to do
the right and moral thing, which
means implementing efficiency
measures that will save millions
at Valley View while continuing
this service that has endured
during good times and bad.
William Oliphant is president
of CSEA Local-Unit 7900/02.
‘Account: 23070 (13643)
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send aleler fo Sean Polay, Dow Jones Local Mecia Group, Box 580, Miccletown, NY 10940
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MALONE TELEGRAM Date: Satine Deminek en; amie
Location:
Circulation (OMA): 5,752 (90)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: AA
Section: Main
Keyword: United Public Service Employees Union
Union takes one
for the team
Te: unionized employees of Franklin County
have signed a contract-— finalized by county
officials on Thursday - that not only gives
them raises that are unlikely to exceed the current
rate of inflation, but could result in their having to
spend more money for health care. In short, this
was nota great deal for the members of the United
Public Service Employees Union (UPSEU), but in
light of threats ofTayoffs and exorbitant tax rates
for property owners without a deal in place, it was a
contract that the rank and file were more than gra-
cious in accepting.
From the county's standpoint, County Manager
Tom Leitz should be applauded for his efforts,
which some might call strong-arm tactics, to bring
the protracted negotiations with the union toa
conclusion. On behalf of the county, Leitz unilat-
erally declared an impasse with the union a few
weeks ago, effectively leaving the union in the dust
—and with no contract. It appears the move was a
good one, at least for the county, because shortly
thereafter the union brass cleared the contract fora
full vote by the membership.
The new contract give county employees no
raises for 2012 and 2 percent raises in 2013 and
2014. With the rate of inflation - roughly speaking,
the rise in costs for goods and services— hovering
around 2 percent, the raises will barely keep up
with the inevitable increase in the cost of living.
And while many people working in the private sec-
tor would welcome even a2 percent raise, the fact
remains that the raise is a meager one.
Regarding health insurance benefits, employ-
ees will be getting a break on the monthly amount
they will be paying into the system, which is a good
thing. On the other hand, costs for anyone using
the system (including co-pays, lab tests, etc.) will be
rising, so, again, not a great deal for the union. For
the county’s part, Leitz said the new health ben-
efits package will save the county about $5,000 per
employee, which is good news for property owners
anxious to find out how much extra they'll be pay-
ing on their tax bills this year. Page 1 of 2
While the power of unions may be waning in the
i
© 2012 MALONE TELEGRAM
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Nv-361
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MALONE TELEGRAM Pits
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Saturday, October 20, 2012
MALONE, NY
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Aa
Main
United Public Service Employees Union
© 2012 MALONE TELEGRAM
Al Rights Reserved,
past few decades, the fact is that unions are still
able to bring companies - or municipalities -to
their knees through relentless negotiations and
strikes. We are relieved that things did not degrade
to that level in this case. And it has been duly noted,
with appreciation, that in difficult financial times
such as these, the UPSEU has relented and signed
acontract that benefits the county far more than it
benefits the union members themselves.
Account: 23070 (13665)
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Page 2 of 2
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Cortland Standard So. Be"
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Hi 3
Main
CSEA
City unions leery of health care change
2013 budget proposal relies on $1 million saving from joining health care consortium
By NEIL BENJAMIN JR.
Staff Reporter
nbenjamin@cortlandstandardnews.net
Aftera lengthy discussion, Mayor Brian Tobin's
2013 tentative city budget was received Tuesday
by an 8-0 vote of the city Common Council.
The proposal includes no layoffs or major tax
increases over the next three years.
Much of the budget discussion at the meet-
ing focused on the council’s decision to join
the Tompkins County Health Care Consortium,
which would reduce city health care costs by
about $1 million next year.
At least one union, the Civil Service Employ-
ees Association, was not in favor of joint he
consortium, Tobin said.
Director of Administration and Finance Mack
Cook outlined what would happen over the next
three years if the city does not join the consor-
tium due to union objections.
In the first year, the city would either have to
raise the tax rate from $15.02 per $1,000 of as-
sessed property value to $17.34 to make up for
the increase in health care costs. That, or 12 city
employees would have to be laid off.
The following year, the city would see another
13 percent increase in health care costs. To make
up for that, another 8.3 percent increase in taxes
would be made, or another six jobs would be cut.
In the third year, Cook sees another 13 percent
health care cost increase, requiring an 8.7 percent
tax increase.
None of those numbers factor in other cost in-
creases the city will face over those years.
“This seems pretty clear cut to me,” said Alder-
man Katy Silliman (D-2nd Ward). “If there is op-
position to this, I'd really like to hear from those
people.”
The issue surrounds prescription copays. Cur-
rently, with Excellus, city employees pay noth-
ing for generic drugs and $10 for preferred drugs.
With the move to the consortium, that would
raise copay rates to $10 for generic, $25 for non-
preferred and $40 for preferred.
Tobin would not specify which unions oppose
joining the consortium. He said the ongoing ne-
gotiations with the unions are the last thing hold-
ing up joining.
© 2012 CORTLAND STANDARD
Al Rights Reserved,
“We're looking for support from the bargain-
ing units,” he said.
The city is working on negotiations with all city
unions on new contracts. If a move to the consor-
tium is made, the city is offering a | percent sal-
ary raise to city employees. If the city stays with
Excellus, the city will not offer any raise.
Tobin sent out a memo to all city employees
that explained the move to the consortium on
Oct. 14. It said that remaining with Excellus will
force a 17 percent increase in cost to the city and
city employees in health care premiums. With
the consortium move, the city would save nearly
$1 million as opposed to staying with its current
provider. The city pays 86 percent of health care
premiums, while the employees pay 14 percent.
‘There were not any union representatives in at-
tendance.
The $18.9 million spending plan would raise
the tax rate 2.3 percent to $15.53 from $15.02
per $1,000 of assessed property value. The tax
levy would increase to $8,132,731, which is
$159,465 more than 2012's levy.
In other council news:
The council voted 7-1 to reassign the duties of
the public safety electrician to other city employ-
ees. In tum, this will lead to the dissolution of the
city’s Public Safety Department. Alderman Car-
los Ferrer (D-6th Ward) voted against the move.
The employee, Tom Tobin (no relation to Brian
Tobin), will be reassigned to the position of pub-
lic safety electrician under the Code Enforcement
Division. The duties to be reassigned include
painting and striping city streets, crosswalks and
parking lots, maintaining city owned street lights
and traffic control devices and maintaining sea-
sonal decorations.
Mayor Tobin said the next step is to change the
City Charter to eliminate the department. He also
said this was a few years in the making.
“The individual is not losing his or her job,”
Tobin said. “We've been working on this for a
few years, and now it’s coming to fruition.”
The memorandum of agreement between the
city and the Cortland Professional Firefighters
Association states the city will provide adequate
training to firefighters, including those already
trained in code enforcement.
‘Account: 23070 (13658)
Nva7e
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_tosalivons
ng
Page 1 of 1
Date: . Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Cortland Standard S200. Se"
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Page: 1
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Union upset by
city’s health
care proposal
CSEA doesn’t want Cort-
land to join the Tompkins Coun-
ty Health Care Consortium.
— Page 3
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 CORTLAND STANDARD
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13657)
NYT
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
POST-STAR
Date:
Saturday, October 13, 2012
Location: GLENS FALLS, NY
Circulation (DMA): 24,678 (58)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: A1A10
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
° they worktoputa2013county —_ proposal would have given
n 10 n budget in place that does not county workers no raises
exceed the state tax cap. this year, flat $500 bonuses
workers
reject
contract
Nearly 90 percent
voted down deal
with Warren County
By DON LEHMAN
dlehman@poststar.com
QUEENSBURY ¢ Union
workers in Warren County
overwhelmingly voted down
a proposed labor contract
Thursday night, leaving
county officials trying to fig-
ure out how to close a budget
gap that stems in part from
increased benefits costs for
employees.
The Warren County unit of
the Civil Service Employees
Association voted downafive-
year contract that would have
givenworkers no raise this year
but boosted their pay the next
four years, and would have in-
creased worker contributions
to health insurance costs.
Nearly 90 percent of the
300 orsounion members who,
voted cast ballots against the
contract.
County leaders had been
counting on health insurance
concessions in the contract as
Warrensburg Supervisor
Kevin Geraghty, the county’s
budget officer, said Friday
it was too early to speculate
on what cuts will be needed
and whether layoffs will be
discussed.
County leaders recently
learned health insurance costs
are expected toincrease nearly
10 percent next year instead
of the 5 percent they had ex-
pected, Geraghty said. That
rise, coupled with a $1.1 mil-
lion increase in state pension
contributions, would put the
county budget well over the
tax cap without cuts.
“Thave real concerns about
meeting the cap,” he said.
The county Board of Su-
pervisors scheduled a special
Personnel Committee meet-
ing Tuesday to discuss the sta-
tus of contract negotiations.
Geraghty said the county’s
See CSEA, Back Page
negotiating teamneeds de-
tails on what aspects of the
contract weremost trouble-
some to union members.
“T thought we had an
agreement and the union
thought we had an agree-
ment,’ Geraghty said.
Queensbury Supervisor
Dan Stec, chairman of the
county Board of Supervi-
sor, would not discuss the
county’s options for cuts.
“We'llhave to getback to
thetable andhear what they
have to say and keep work-
ing toward a solution,’ he
said.
The union's contract ran
out at the end of 2011. The
next year and raises of 2
percent in 2014, 2 percent
in 2015 and 0.52 percent in
2016.
Health insurance con-
tributions would rise from
8 percent now to 10 percent
in December, 11 percent
in December 2013, 12 per-
cent in December 2014 and
13 percent in December
2015.
Anyone hired after the
contract was ratified would
start at a 20 percent health
insurance contribution, and
reimbursement of co-pays.
would also be eliminated.
The CSEA represents
about 500 county workers.
Gene Rounds, president
ofthe CSEA Warren County
Unit, could not be reached
for comment Friday.
David Duell, the local
president for CSEA in War-
ren County, which oversees
the county worker unit, said
theconcernis supervisors will
turn to layoffs to make cuts if
they can’t get savings through
contract negotiations.
The union is dealing with
municipal budget troubles
across the state, he said.
“You turn a deal down and
they’lllook at layoffs)” he said.
“They'll try to get it (savings)
one way or another.”
Therese Assalian, aspokes-
woman for CSEA, said “mem-
bers of the negotiating team
are getting feedback from
members and willuse that in-
formation to determine a next
step.”
“You turn a deal down and
they'll look at layoffs.”
DAVID DUELL
local president for CSEA in Warren County,
‘on the rejected deal by county workers
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 POST-STAR
Al Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (13630)
Nv-252
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FREEMAN'S JOURNAL
Date: Thursday, October 11, 2012
Location: COOPERSTOWN, NY
Circulation (OMA): 10,000 (169)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: AA
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
CAROL KIEHN KIRKEY
OTHER VOICES
For Kirkeys, Otsego Manor Has Been A Blessing
Editor's Note: Carol Kiehn Kirkey
of Oneonta read this statement dur-
ing the public comment section of the
county Board meeting Wednesday, Oct.
3,
y husband, Terry, has been a
resident at Otsego Manor for
the last four and a half years.
He suffers from young onset Alzheim-
er’s disease and was diagnosed at age
52. As you are all aware, the numbers
of younger people afflicted with this
degenerative and fatal disease in this
county and across the nation is rapidly
growing.
Before moving to The Manor, Terry
spent two months at Countryside Care
Center in Delhi. He received compe-
tent, loving care there, but we were de-
lighted when our wait for a bed at The
Manor ended. Not only did it mean an
easier ride for my daily visits, but The
Manor was/is a state-of-the-art facil-
ity whose mission promised to nurture
and care for Terry both physically and
emotionally. Staff have succeeded in
carrying out that mission and Terry
and IJ are blessed and proud to be part
of that family.
Terry was denied admittance to
every skilled nursing facility (all
privately operated) close to our home
in Oneonta. He was young, strong,
ambulatory and his decline would
most likely bring difficult behaviors
they chose not to handle.
The Manor accepted Terry and staff
have worked diligently to manage his
care — no simple task given the com-
plexities of his disease. True to the
mission set forth almost 200 years ago
in the days of the county poorhouse,
The Manor has cared for Terry and
me — we have a quality of life I never
thought possible.
And now it is for sale. It’s hard
to understand why it can’t be saved
© 2012 FREEMANS JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
from privatization. I have been in
touch with all of you and thank you
for your thoughtful responses. I have
taken your advice and have spent time
becoming better informed about the
issues surrounding profitable opera-
tion of this remarkable facility. I don’t
pretend to know enough to “save the
day.” But I have learned that there are
possibilities yet to be explored.
If we are committed to keeping The
Manor in county ownership, there is
a daunting task before us. It will take
strong, rational, conciliatory leadership
from the county Board of Representa-
tives, CSEA, and Manor administra-
tion to make difficult choices and to
craft creative solutions to achieve this
goal.
It troubles me to hear from Manor
officials that CSEA won’t budge, to
hear firsthand that an administrator at
The Manor is “done with this” and to
learn that the county Board of Repre-
sentatives passed a resolution to sell
The Manor, a resolution that was not
on the agenda for that meeting.
Taxpayers in this county deserve
better and many are willing to help.
As you deal with this issue, please be
mindful of the needs and wishes of
county residents including those who
currently reside at The Manor. I have
already communicated my concerns
about the future of the dementia unit,
Serenity Place, which is the only unit
of its kind in Otsego County.
Communication is key as we
proceed. Manor residents especially.
deserve the courtesy of regular up-
dates in the days and months ahead
— the insecurity of not knowing what
will become of their home is a heavy
burden to bear.
Thank you for your attention.
Account: 23070 (13598)
NvATL
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
FREEMAN'S JOURNAL Date: Thursday, October 11, 2012
Location: COOPERSTOWN, NY
Circulation (OMA): 10,000 (169)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: AA
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Cooperstown’s Rena Lull,
whose mother, also Rena, is 92
and lives in The Manor, issues a
plea for the facility's preserva-
tion. Behind her is Tanya Sha-
lor, Opportunities for Otsego
Head Start coordinator.
Oneonta’s
Carol Kir-
key tells the
county Board
Jim Kevlin/The Freeman's Journal
© 2012 FREEMANS JOURNAL
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13598)
NvATL
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Page 2 of 2
JOURNAL NEWS Date: Wednesday, October 10, 2012
(WESTCHESTER/PUTNAM) Ghedlaton (OMAY: 7oz7eC)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
Sean: Main
Keyword: CSEA
City workers may pay to park
New Rochelle
mayor says fee
part of GreeNR
By Ken Valenti
klvalent@lohud.com
NEW ROCHELLE —
Mayor Noam Bramson
wants the City Council to
consider the idea of
charging city and school
district employees to
park in the City Hall lot.
“IT can envision that
there may be very seri-
ous objections, which I
respect,” Bramson said
Tuesday. He wants to ex-
plore the idea, “but I’m
not necessarily sold on
it.”
He has placed the
idea of setting a “modest
fee” on the agenda for to-
night’s 7:30 City Council
meeting to begin the dis-
cussion.
It was one idea raised
in the GreeNR report,
adopted last year, on
how to ease the city’s im-
pact on the environment.
The aim is to reduce pollu-
tion and free parking
spaces for visitors by en-
couraging employees to
carpool, walk or bicycle to
the building.
Taking the bus may not
be a practical alternative
because the Bee-Line sys-
tem charges $104 for a 30-
day pass.
The city would not gain
any money from the fee,
which would be set by the
council. The funds col-
lected from employees
who drive to work would
be distributed among
those who don’t asa “cred-
it” and incentive to en-
courage them to find oth-
er ways to get to work.
Currently, 340 of 422
daytime employees ob-
tain free permits to park
in the lot, according to a
memorandum from the
mayor. If the same num-
ber were to buy permits at
$120 per year — a hypo-
thetical fee calculated in
the memo — the city
would collect $40,800.
That would be converted
intoa credit of about $500
for each of the 82 employ-
es who didnot park in the
lot. .
Bramson, whose job of-
ten requires him to attend
meetings away from City
Hall, would buy a permit,
he said.
Union leaders said
they had not had a chance
to explore the idea, but ex-
pressed concerns about it.
“Tt doesn’t seem fair,”
said Martin Daly, presi-
dent of the New Rochelle
Federation of United
School Employees.
“Who’s going to walk to
work in the winter? What
happens if your car pool
ride calls in sick that day?
Are you going to have to
run out to the meter every
two hours?”
John Caldararo, presi-
dent of the city’s Civil Ser-
vice Employees Associa-
fion unit, said a few city
employees have told him
they don’t like the idea of
paying more out of pock-
et. Many of the union
members are clerical em-
ployees with children in
school, he said.
“It would be pretty
hard for them to carpool
taking kids back and forth
to school,” he said.
(© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS {WESTCHESTERIPUTNAM)
All Rights Reserves,
But he said the idea
was still new, and that he
would discuss it further
with the membership if it
moves forward. He noted
that some members may
make money on the ideaif
they find other ways to
get to work.
Account: 23070 (13582)
Ny.
2872
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The Daily Star 2...
Type (Frequency):
Page:
Tuesday, October 09, 2012
ONEONTA, NY
12,310 (169)
Newspaper (D)
3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Manor patients sign letter contesting sale
BY JOE MAHONEY
‘STAFF WRITER
COOPERSTOWN — _ Otsego
Manor patients upset with the re+
cent decision by county lawmakers
to privatize the nursing home have
found a new advocate to make their
case: themselves.
A total of 76 patients at the facility
have signed letters to Gov. Andrew
Cuomo; Sen. James Seward, R-Mil-
ford; and Assemblymen Pete Lopez,
R-Schoharie; Bill Magee, D-Nelson;
and Marc Butler, R-Johnstown, im-
ploring them to go to bat for the
174-bed nursing home, said Maureen
Culbert of Springfield, who worked
with the patients in drafting the let-
ter.
She said patients at the Manor’s
Alzheimer’s wing were not asked to
show their support for the letter.
“We are frightened that Manor
will be sold out from under us,” the
one-page letter states. “If privatized
to a for-profit group, we are con-
cerned that the care will be nega-
tively affected.”
The letter continues: “We are con-
cerned that this decision was done
behind closed doors by the county
and without input from the county
residents. .. We are outraged that
this could be started without input
from the people who are most in
need.”
Culbert said the Manor residents
are upset that they had no chance
to voice their concerns before the
Board of Representatives opted to
sell the facility to the highest “re-
sponsible” bidder.
“One woman there was crying she
was so upset,” she said. “She felt
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserved,
that she wasn’t being heard, and that
they (county representatives) don’t
get it that this is their home. Most
of these people have given up their
homes. They have no homes to go
back to now.”
The patients, she said, have also
begun to circulate a petition de-
crying the decision to privatize the
Manor. That can be signed by any-
one who stops at the nursing home,
she noted.
Members of the county board who
last month voted to privatize the
Manor said keeping the facility as
a county-owner property would be
financially unsustainable. The an-
nual taxpayer subsidy to the nurs-
ing home — partly as a result of a
reduced Medicaid reimbursement
rate and costs spiraling — has been
projected to grow from $3.2 million
to $6 million in 2014, they said. Only
one county lawmaker voted against
the privatization plan: Rep. Keith
McCarty, R-Springfield.
Culbert said she will read the let-
ter approved by the patients to the
county board’s Otsego Manor Com-
mittee, chaired by Rep. Katherine
Stuligross, D-Oneonta, at the panel’s
meeting at 9:30 a.m. Oct. 16 on the
nursing home’s second floor.
Last week, the Civil Service Em-
Ployees_ Association, representing
more than 250 Manor workers, ini-
tiated a lawsuit against the county
board, contending board members
deviated from state Open Meeting
Law prohibitions against secret de-
liberations on public policy deci-
sions when they discussed the Man-
or’s fate.
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DAILY NEWS ®2e:u
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Keyword:
Monday, October 08, 2012
NEW YORK, NY
556,531 (1)
Newspaper (D)
10
Main
CSEA
Union ire
at Albany
pay hikes
KENNETH
LOVETT
ALBANY
INSIDER
LBANY — After agreeing
to freeze their own sala-
riesfor several years, state
government-worker
unionsare livid over talk
ofa possible pay raise for lawmak-
ersand agency commissioners.
Gov. Cuomo andlegislative
leaders are said to be considering
aspecial session after the Novem-
berelections that would include
the first pay hike for state lawmak-
ersand commissioners since
1999.
“Should they do that, their
credibility would be significantly
undermined,” said Stephen
Madarasz, spokesman for the
66,000-member Civil Servi
Employees Association.
sto tltourmenbersb: ically
they'd have to eatit for the term of
this contract and then go out and
give themselvesa raise, I think our
people would meltdown over
that,” Madarasz added.
Tohelp close sizable deficits,
Cuomo demanded the unions
sacrifice. Henot only negotiated
multiyear contracts with no
raises, butalso pushed the Legisla-
ture to reduce pension benefits for
future employees.
Madarasz argued raises would
also beakickin the shin ata time
when Cuomotold his stateagen-
cies to expect another year of zero
growth in their 2013 budgets.
Payraise supporters argue the
unionsreceived big hikes in the 13
years lawmakers and commission-
ers have gone without. Cuomo
said higher salaries would make it
easier to recruit top talent. Some
commissioners actually make less
than their deputies.
Theunionsaren’tbuyingit, and
polls show the public overwhelm-
ingly on theirside.
“You can rationalize anything
you wantto rationalize,” Ma-
darasz said.
Susan Kent,
president of the
56,000-member
Public Employ-
ees Federation,
said that “while I
am not in favor of
denyinga group
of workers a payraise for over 13
years, [also cannotadvocate fora
raise for New York State legisla-
tors when many of them insisted
on balancing the New York State
budget on the backs ofmymem-
bers.”
eee
Attorney General Eric Schnei-
derman has seen amass exodus
from his office in recent months,
particularly in his communica-
tionsshop.
Thelatestsetto
leaveis press
officer Michelle
Dufly, whois
going toworkfor
Cuomo. She
follows press shop
alumni Danny
Kannerand Dani Lever, who both
leftto join the Obama campaign,
Jennifer Givner, who went to
work forthe Cuomo administra-
tion, and Lauren Passalacqua,
who joined lame-duck Mayor
Bloomberg's pressshop.
Inaddition, Blake Zeff, a
former Hillary Clinton aide,
quietly left recently to write about
the presidential race, and several
lawyers have also departed orare
inthe process of doingso, insiders
said. Several sources cited low
morale in the office stemming
from Schneiderman’s hard-charg-
ing chief of staff Neal Kwatraas at
least a factor in some departures.
But others said most who left
went on to better or higher-paying
jobs.
eco
Cuomo has quietly transferred
hisappointments unit—longseen
asthe patronage arm of governors
—from his second-floor Capitol
office suite to the 19th floor ofa
nearby building that houses the
Office of General Services.
Some sources say by offloading
the 10employeesto OGS, Cuomo
wants to make it appear like he’s
reducing his own executive office
budget by hundreds of thousands
of dollars when asking other
agenciesto absorb budget freezes
again this comingyear.
But Secretary to the Governor
Larry Schwartz insists Cuomois
seekingto end the days when the
appointments office wasa “politi-
cal patronage dispensing ma-
chine” turningit into a “profes-
sional recruitment and executive
search firm operation forstate
government.”
Appointments Secretary Judge
Leslie Leach quietly left in August
fora gig at City University. As part
ofthe restructuring, “top profes-
sional recruiting staff” will be
hired, Schwartz said.
Klovett@nydailynews.com
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 Dally News LP.
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JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY Patan ier aa 22
(ROCKLAND EDITION) Cisiiaton (OMA: 108549 (1)
Type. Frequency) Newspaper (8)
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
e
All but 3 county officials to defer pay
Legislator: Plan
wouldn’t help
By Laura Incalcaterra
lincalca@lohud.com
NEW CiTy — All but
three Rockland County
officials have voluntarily
agreed to participate in a
deferred-salary payment
program that applies to
nearly every rank-and-
file county government
worker.
County Legislators Joe
Meyers, D-Airmont, and
Nancy Low-Hogan, D-
South Nyack, and county
Medical Examiner Dr. Mi-
chael Taff did not submita
voluntary participation
form to the county Per-
sonnel Department to de-
fer their pay, according to
information obtained by
The Journal News under
the Freedom of Informa-
tion Act.
That means that while
every other county elect-
ed official, department
head and commissioner
has volunteered to defer
pay, Meyers, Low-Hogan
and Taff will still get full
paychecks.
New contracts be-
tween the county and
three of its unions, includ-
ing the two largest, the
Civil Service Employees
Association and the Rock-
land Association of Man-
agement, require union
members to work five
days each in 2012 and 2013
without pay, for which
they would be reimbursed
in 2014.
County Executive C.
Scott Vanderhoef said the
deferments will help im-
prove the county’s cash
flow for 2012 and that im-
proved revenues next
year might mean no defer-
ments in 2013.
Legislature Chair-
woman Harriet Cornell,
D-West Nyack, on Sept. 17
asked her 16 colleagues on
the board to join her in
voluntarily deferring
their paychecks.
Two days later, the
board voted 14-2 to ap-
prove the union contracts
and also voted 14-2 to re-
quire nonunion nonman-
agement employees to
work under the same
terms as the union con-
tracts.
The Legislature, by the
same margin, also voted
to have the terms apply to
nonunion management
workers, including Taff,
on a voluntary basis.
Meyers and Low-Ho-
gan voted “no” on each of
the resolutions. They said
the contracts offered no
real cost savings and
could hinder the county's
ability to address its oper-
ations, in part because
they contain “no-layoff”
clauses running through
the end of 2013.
Low-Hogan and Taff
did not return calls seek-
ing comment on the de-
ferred-paycheck pro-
gram.
Rockland County
Health Commissioner Dr.
Joan Facelle said she
“reached out” to Taff,
whose office is part of the
county Health Depart-
ment.
“He said to me that he
has not done the paper-
work but he intends to de-
fer,” Facelle said.
Meyers said that he
and Low-Hogan declined
to participate for good
reasons.
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY (ROCKLAND EDITION}
Al Rights Reserved,
“It’s smoke and mir-
rors,” Meyers said. “We
wanted actual salary sav-
ings. The county still has
to pay all those people and
there’s no plan to do that.”
He said deferring pay-
ments would not solve
problems.
“They’re just giving
themselves a balloon pay-
ment while trying tomake
the budget look better in
2013,” Meyers said.
The county has laid off
74 workers this year and
is grappling with a budget
deficit of more than $96
million as well as the low-
est credit ranking of all
counties in the state, just
one grade above junk sta-
tus.
PT. Thomas, president
of Rockland CSEA, said
all of the officials should
have participated in light
of the union sacrifices.
“Nancy Low-Hogan
and Joe Meyers should be
ashamed of themselves
because they talk the talk
but they don’t walk the
walk,” Thomas _ said.
“They were the ones
fighting against any em-
ployee benefits. It’s a
shame that they didn’t
contribute anything.”
Meyers said only he
and Low-Hogan voted in
support of his proposal
this year for a 10 percent
pay cut for all elected offi-
cials, county legislators
included.
He said actually cut-
ting expenses in the coun-
ty budget — versus mere-
ly delaying paychecks —
was a meaningful way of
addressing the county’s
fiscal situation.
All other county elect-
Account: 23070 (13551)
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Page 1 of 2
Date: Sunday, October 07, 2012
JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY Location: WHITE PLAINS, NY
(ROCKLAND EDITION) Circulation (DMA): 103,543 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
Page: 3
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
ed officials volunteered to
defer, including Vander-
hoef, Sheriff Louis Falco,
Workers in the seven
other county government
worker unions are not re-
ed or soon will be, county
Personnel Director Joan
Silvestri said.
County Clerk Paul Pipera- quired to participate in Friday marked the
to and District Attorney the program, and haven’t first pay period in which
Thomas Zugibe. volunteered to do so. county employees in the
Vanderhoef also took a
voluntary 5 percent pay
cut earlier this year.
Contracts with those
smaller unions are in the
process of being negotiat-
deferred-pay program
worked but were not paid.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 JOURNAL NEWS SUNDAY (ROCKLAND EDITION}
Al Rights Reserved,
Account: 23070 (13551)
Ny-2400
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Sunday, October 07, 2012
Si ] nd ay Location: DUNKIRK, NY
Circulation (DMA): 83,300 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (S)
Page: A7
Section: Main
Ke CSEA
ceyword:
“Isn't quality care what you would want for yourself
or your loved one in a time of need?”
Facility must be ‘people’s home’
By DAVID FAGERSTROM
In a recent commentary in The Post-
Journal, a writer claims “there is utterly
no justifiable humanitarian, economic,
patient care or public benefit rationale”
for not selling the Chautauqua County
Home. His statement could not be more
false, misguided or closed-minded.
Does that writer not care at all about
the county’s frail elderly? We think most
county residents would agree that quality
care from an experienced, educated, lov-
ing and consistent staff is humanitarian
reason enough to stop the sale of the
County Home. Isn’t quality care what you
would want for yourself or your loved one
in a time of need?
In his misguided opinion piece, the
writer also claims CSEA is trying to stop
the sale simply to keep county jobs and
union members. This is also false.
The writer may not realize that CSEA
also represents private-sector workers.
That means our fight to keep the County
Home from being sold is not about num-
bers. It is about ensuring the best care for
all Chautauqua County residents today
and in the future. As the writer repeatedly
pointed out, there are 219 County Home
residents. These men and women should
have the best care available from the best
staff. Without the public County Home,
this care may not be available.
According to a recent Monday Morning
Memo from County Executive Greg
Edwards, 78 percent of County Home res-
idents ar~ on Medicaid. Private nursing
homes are only required to admit a hand-
ful of Medicaid patients, while the County
Home accepts residents regardless of abili-
ty to pay or the complexity of care needed.
For the majority of people living in
Chautauqua County — for anyone who
has not amassed great personal wealth —
© 2012 SUNDAY OBSERVER
All Rights Reserves,
the County Home may be the only avail-
able option when long-term care is need-
ed. If the home is sold and the number of
Medicaid beds is reduced, where will peo-
ple go?
Private homes have also been known to
send people on Medicaid and residents
with difficult-to-treat conditions to hospi-
tals and then give away that person’s
nursing home bed. Then, that person must
find somewhere else to live. Sudden and
dramatic change is absolutely not healthy
for frail elderly.
In Delaware County N.Y. legislators
sold the public nursing home to a private
enterprise and now that business has
failed. The home will close and those liv-
ing there will have to be shuttled to anoth-
er facility. This will result in Relocation
Stress Syndrome for some of the residents
and they will die.
We believe most people will agree that
the frail elderly deserve the best medical
care in a stable home with loving care-
givers. That is why we fight this fight to
stop the sale of the County Home. The
men and women who live in the County
Home have lived their lives in
Chautauqua County. They worked hard in
factories and offices throughout the coun-
ty. The lived modest lives and made sacri-
fices to make sure their families’ needs
were met. They relied on pensions that
have been taken away.
They are not wealthy, but that does not
make them any less deserving of high
quality care and loving caregivers. The
Chautauqua County Home needs to
remain the people’s home not only for res-
idents today, but for the future residents
of tomorrow.
David Fagerstrom is CSEA Unit 6300
president.
Account: 23070 (13623)
Ny-1840
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=~ od Date: Friday, October 05, 2012
s —_ = Location: HUDSON, NY
Circulation (OMA): 4,177 (58)
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AS
Main
United Public Service Employees Union
| COLUMBIA COUNTY
County agrees to pay worker for lost salary
Editor's note: This story said he objected to the Lyons to his old position
originally appeared in the rewarding of the retroactive would allow for more work to
online edition Sunday. pay, maintaining that the be done in the department.
| county did not violate its Rutkey said it would allow
By Nathan Mayberg agreement with the union. the county to be reimbursed
(hacen Cane Neseoepas Grattan referred comment more through outside govern-
Last year, John Lyons — a to Kathy Wright, the UPSEU ment funding.
psychiatric social worker regional coordinator, due to On Thursday, Staats was
assistant in the Department of what he described as issues joined by Supervisor Roy
Human Services — took a regarding the confidentiality Brown in opposition, during
pay cut from $67,490 to of the agreement. Wright said 4. Salary and Budget Com
$61,212. the grant funded not only tee. That vote followed an
The grant which funded Lyons’ job, but other posi- eeecltave Session Gn te mals
his job expired. Rather than tions. That couldn’t be con- ve
lay off Lyons or a worker in _ firmed as of press time. a ‘ Sh e
his department, the county She said the case initially revious to. the executive
found a vacancy in the went to arbitration but was Session, town of Claverack
department for Lyons with an _ settled thereafter between the Supervisor Robin Andrews
almost identical title but at parties. Wright said that had voted with Staats against
the lower salary grade, begin- Lyons was entitled to “certain the union agreement. Follow-
ning Sept. 1, 2011. rights,” under the union’s col- ing the executive session, she
Department of Human Ser- lective bargaining agreement said she would change her
vices Director Michael Cole with the county. She said the vote “for the good of the
said there was “not an issue county didn’t have to cut his county.” Supervisor Rick
of performance” in regard to pay. Scalera, D-Hudson5, who had
the long-standing employee. At that time, Staats was initially abstained from vot-
|. Lyons and his union — the _ the lone vote against a resolu- ing due to a lack of informa-
i i i tion in the Health and Med- tion on the contract, voted to
Employees Union (UPSEU) ical Services Committee to support it.
= Tiled grievance seeking reinstate Lyons at his previ- Also voting for the agree-
that his pay be returned to the ous pay grade. ment with the union were
Prior level. “The retroactive pay WaS Grattan, Supervisor Lawrence
More than a year later, an my biggest concern,” said Andrews, R-Ghent, Supervi-
agreement to give Lyons his Staats. “I didn’t agree with 4) Art ‘Bassin D-Ancram
old salary back, plus the dif- the way the contract was Writ- 214 Supervisor Matt Murrell.
ference in salary retroactive ten.” . ie is 7
[to Jan. J, -was, reached. Rutkey said the county "7" id —
between the'union, the count) Awatable to pidtail biftetamn- DOS eee
ty’s labor attorneys, Board of
Supervisors Chairman Patrick
Grattan and Human
Resources Department Direc-
tor John Rutkey.
On Thursday, for the sec-
ond time, Supervisor Ray
Staats, D-Clermont, voted
against the agreement. Staats
ing the retroactive pay back
to January. The union had
sought to grant Lyons retroac-
tive pay back to September
2011. He said the agreement
followed several months of
discussions with the county’s
labor firm.
Cole said the return of
mesiage left at his office.
The, contract will still
require a sign-off from the
full board.
Boag
To reach reporter Nathan
Mayberg, call 518-828-1616,
ext. 2513, or e-mail nmay-
berg @registerstar.com.
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 REGISTER STAR
Al Rights Reserves,
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Nv-208,
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The Daily Star 2...
Type (Frequency):
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Keyword:
Friday, October 05, 2012
ONEONTA, NY
12,310 (169)
Newspaper (0)
AZ
Main
CSEA
Union set to sue over Manor’s sale
BY JOE MAHONEY
‘STAFF WRITER
COOPERSTOWN — The
largest union for Otsego Coun-
ty’s government employees has
informed the Board of Repre-
sentatives that it has prepared a
Jawsuit that seeks to nullify the
panel’s recent decision to priva-
tize the Otsego Manor nursing
home based on alleged viola-
tions of the state Open Meeting
Law.
Board members were scolded
this week by Karen Carpenter, a
representative for the Civil Ser-
vice Employees Association —
the union that represents more
than 250 workers at the 174-bed
nursing home — for allegedly
attempting to shut the public
out of its deliberations regard-
ing the plan to sell the Manor to
the highest “responsible” bidder.
A CSEA spokesman con-
firmed Thursday that the law-
suit has been prepared by the
union’s in-house lawyers and
will be filed as early as today in
state Supreme Court in Cooper-
stown.
“The resolution to sell the
Manor clearly came out of thin
air after they came out of exec-
utive session,” spokesman Mark
Kotzin said.
The plaintiffs in the lawsuit
are local CSEA President John
Imperato Sr. and Vice President
Crystal Davidson-Miller, he
© 2012 DAILY STAR,
Al Rights Reserves,
said.
In a statement provided to
The Daily Star, Imperato said:
“This was a back-room deal,
done behind closed doors, with
the purpose of trying to fly un-
der the radar of public review
and not to allow public com-
ment. The actions of the Otsego
County board go completely
against the principles of trans-
parency and_ representative
government. We will demand
that the courts strike down this
resolution and force them to
open this shady deal to the light
of public scrutiny.”
Rep. Kathleen Clark, R-Otego,
the chairwoman of the board,
defended her board, saying
members held “an open discus-
sion” in public on the resolution
before voting on it. She also
said that it is not uncommon
for late resolutions to emerge in
the course of board meetings.
Additionally, Clark said that
the board had earlier public
discussions about the Manor,
including one in August, when
it voted to authorize her to seek
a consultant to advise the coun-
ty on its options regarding the
nursing home.
As for the lawsuit, however,
Clark said that she could not
comment on it because she has
not seen it.
“Nothing surreptitious hap-
pened there,” she said in re-
sponse to the CSEA allegations.
She called the union “a little
confused.”
Board members have said
they reluctantly decided to seek
a private buyer for the Manor
only because the facility has
become financially unsustain-
able to operate. County officials
have said the current annual
taxpayer subsidy to the Manor
will grow from $3.2 million to
an estimated $6 million by 2014.
This week, at the board’s reg-
ular monthly meeting, several
county residents implored the
representatives to reverse their
decision and keep the facil-
ity with the county. They cited
the scheduled Oct. 12 closure
of where the quality of care
reportedly deteriorated after
it went from being a publicly
operated nursing home to a pri-
vate facility in 2006.
“It’s hard to understand why
(the Manor) can’t be saved
from privatization,” said Carol
Kirkey of Oneonta, whose hus-
band is an Alzheimer’s patient
at the Manor.
Kotzin said, “We want to pre-
vent what happened in Dela-
ware County from happening
in Otsego County.”
Account: 23070 (13621)
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LONG ISLAND GRAPHIC
Date:
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Circulation (OMA):
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Thursday, October 04, 2012
FREEPORT, NY
4,244 (1)
Newspaper (W)
1
Main
CSEA
Lack of guards leaves some crossings unmanned
By AARON AXELSON
aaxelson@liherald.com
Parents who let their children walk to school may want to
take extra precautions this year: Nassau County has left
some crossing guard posts unmanned.
As a result of a hiring freeze and work force reduction
through retirement incentive plans, the number of crossing
guards in the county has dropped by nearly a third in the
past three yea
Parents in Island Park voiced concerns when they real-
ized that on Sept. 5, the first day of school, the crossing guard
was missing from the corner of Austin Boulevard and Trafal-
gar Boulevard, a busy intersection near the Lincoln Orens
Middle School. When Nassau County Legislator Denise Ford,
a Republican from Long Beach, found out that the post was
unmanned, she called Deputy County Executive Rob Walker,
who told her that because a number of guards retired last
year and had not yet been replaced, some posts were tempo-
rarily unmanned.
According to Ryan Mulholland, director of communica:
tions for the Nassau County Civil Service Employees Associ-
ation Local 830 — the union for the civilian county work force
— there were 424 full-time crossing guards in 2009, but this
year there are only 301 full and part-time guards.
While full-time guards are required to remain in the vicin-
ity of their crossing for an entire eight-hour shift, part-timers
are allowed to leave between shifts, union President Jerry
Laricchiuta explained.
According to Inspector Kenneth Lack of the Nassau Coun-
ty Police Department, some of the unmanned posts are being
filled by police officers — a common practice when crossing
guards are sick.
Mulholland said that each day there are 15 to 20 officers
manning posts that are without crossing guards, but he
added that he was not sure whether every post was occupied.
“This happens all the time,” said Lack. “If a crossing
guard gets sick, an officer will fill in. It ebbs and flows, but
they're called in when posts need to be filled. The children
are a priority.”
Mulholland said that the CSEA was told that 48 new part-
time crossing guards would be hired for the first day of the
school year, but as far as he was aware, none actually were.
Some school districts in the county have received letters
in recent weeks from the NCPD concerning potential cuts in
crossing guard posts.
A countywide survey of crossing guards is done every five
years, Lack said, to gauge efficiency and necessity. Lack
added that over time, the number of children using a cross-
ing varies.
According to Laricchiuta, the union was told that the
NCPD would switch this year to the “ABC” system, used in
New York City, in which crossings are designated as A, very
© 2012 LONG ISLAND GRAPHIC
Al Rights Reserved,
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Nv-200
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LONG ISLAND GRAPHIC
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Location:
Circulation (DM/
Thursday, October 04, 2012
FREEPORT, NY
1,244 (1)
Newspaper (W)
1
Main
CSEA
essential; B, somewhat essential; or C, not essential.
“The Police Department has decided that there are some
posts that will not be held if there is not proper staffing,” Laric-
chiuta said. “Who's going to determine that a kid is not essen-
tial?
The East Meadow School District did not return calls
seeking comment before the Herald went to press.
While some schools have said they believe the cuts in
crossing guard posts have been finalized, Lack said that the
county had not yet done so. “Nothing has been decided yet,”
he said. “We're not making an: ions about cuts until the
survey is complete. The letters we sent were only meant to
show our preliminary survey findings to the school districts
and receive feedback.
“Now that many crossing guards are being hired in part-
time positions, they can cost as little as $15,000, but the servic:
es they provide are immeasurable,” Ford said. “In this day
and age, we need to increase the school crossing guards, not
reduce them.”
CROSSING GUARD Debra Bemhardt held back traffic as children and their parents crossed Merrick Avenue on the way to Camp Avenue School in Merrick. Many
crossings were manned by police officers on the first day of school, while some were left unguarded.
© 2012 LONG ISLAND GRAPHIC
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13569)
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Page 2 of 2
Rockland County Times i
Date: Wednesday, October 03, 2012
Location: NANUET, NY
Circulation (OMA): 2,500 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 1A,2A
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Controversy at Rockland County Legislature Meeting
Legislators vote confirm award transit contract to
Brega Tansportation Corp. and CSEA Contract moves one step closer
By Michael Riconda
ensions flared last Wednesday
| ening as county legislators vot-
ed to award the Brega Transpor-
tation Corp. a county bus transit contract,
drawing lawsuit threats from competitor,
MV Transportation Corp.
“I believe that we are under an obliga-
tion to award the contract to the lowest
responsible bidder,” said Legislator Ilan
Schoenberger.
According to Schoenberger, the legis-
lature conducted a thorough review and
decided on Brega because of their abil-
ity to complete the project and their bid
amount.
During the public participation portion
of the meeting, MV Transportation law-
yer Mathew Dawes accused Brega of op-
positional, counterproductive behavior.
Dawes said that there was no choice but
to sue Brega and the legislature for exhib-
iting local preference. Several unnamed,
individual legislators could also face law-
suits from the firm according to Dawes.
In a scathing rebuttal, Legislator Wolfe
called the firm’s approach offensive and
unnecessary. Wolfe explained that favor-
itism had no role in the decision. “This
tactic doesn’t work in Rockland County,”
said Wolfe, “Maybe it works in New York
City, but it doesn’t work here.”
Two of the legislators present did not
vote on the resolution. Legislator Naney
who said that all of the bid-
ions were flawed and should
not have been accepted, cast the sole dis-
senting vote.
l tor John Murphy abstained be-
cause his position as chairman at Camp
Venture is directly affected by Brega’s
transportation services and could present
a conflict of interest.
Another item of discussion was the Civ-
il Service Employees Association (CSEA)
All members of the legislature
ied the contract save for Leg
Christopher Carey, who was absent, and
Legislators Joseph Meyers, and Low-Ho-
gan who voted against it.
The CSEA and. county executive recent-
Iv released a memorandum of understand-
islator
© 2012 ROCKLAND COUNTY TIMES
Al Rights Reserved,
ing, a tentative agreement that requires
approval by both parties before ratifica-
tion by the legislature. With the endorse-
ment of both the union and the legislature,
the memorandum survived a major hurdle
and is one step closer to becoming a le-
gally binding contract.
The new contract would contain no new
expenses and build in a temporary cash
flow boost through a 10-day pay defer-
ment, which would be reimbursed in 2014.
However, despite the apparent agreement
of negotiators concerning, there was still
the issue that the contract would not pro-
vide cnough real savings for the county,
and could become a liability.
Low-Hogan, who voted against the
measure with Meyers, said that without
the 2013 budget, it was too risky to ratify.
The majority of legislators though have
shown support for the bill. As part of a
resolution approved that night, Legisla-
ture Chairwoman Harriet Cornell prom-
ised that as a county employee, she would
voluntarily accept the deferment. She said
she expects several other legislators to
voluntarily subject themselves to the de-
ferral as well.
“We're really joining because we want
to show resolve with employees of the
county government,"
frontinued on pz
Cornell stated.
According to Legislator Ed
Day, the contract is a fair deal
where the county benefits from
apause in salary increases, and
a pay deferral without having
to resort to layoffs. Day said
it was consistent with similar
settlements during times of fi-
nancial strain.
“In some ways, the contract
is even tougher than these set-
tlements,” said Day.
Two reports concerning the
Summit Park Medical Facil-
ity were also submitted for
receipt by the legislature. One
being an evaluation by audit
firm KPMG and the other, the
Comprehensive Annual Finan-
cial Report.
Account: 23070 (13521)
Nv277
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
The latter report, presented
by Bennett, Kielson, Storch,
and DeSantis accounting part-
ner Nicholas DeSantis, broke
down several of the expendi-
tures and deficiencies in the
2011 budget.
Both reports painted a grim
picture of the financial situa-
tion at Summit Park. DeSan-
tis said that in order to stabi-
lize the facility’s finances, the
county would have to pay off
outstanding bonds, and any
current liabilities.
The county would also need
to offset the balance of the pro-
ceeds in an investment account
to pay retiree health insurance,
which requires $7 million in
cash each year.
Murphy said that the num-
bers “spell the death knell of
this hospital,” presenting a
difficult situation for a facil-
ity that is rapidly becoming
a financial black hole. This is
also coupled with an impossi-
bly small timetable for solving
the problem and no immediate
options available.
“There’s nothing that we can
do in the next year’s operating
budget to stem this hemor-
thaging,” Murphy said.
Summit Park, which has
been frequently characterized
as a facility of last resort, has
been a significant budgetary
issue due to its significant $13
million deficit and an overall
loan debt of $32 million.
Suggestions have been made
to privatize the hospital’s
services, sell the facility, or
transfer the population whilst
shutting down — operations
completely, raising the ques-
tion of what will happen to the
facility’s residents,
Page 1 of 1
MINEOLA AMERICAN (NYC MARKET
AREA)
Date: Wednesday, October 03, 2012
Location: MINEOLA, NY
Circulation (DMA): 4,000 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: AL AIT
Section:
Main
Keyword: United Public Service Employees Union
Village Responds To
Grievance From
Employees Union
Mineola: ‘We will
abide by the contract’
By RIcH ForEsTANO
rforestano@antonnews.com
The Mineola Village Board re-
sponded to a grievance made by the
Mineola union reps from the United
Public Ser Employees Union
(UPSEU). The union held that vil-
lage employees wanted vacation
time awarded in a calendar year
(Jan. 1) rather than on each employ-
ee’s anniversary work date.
Mineola is currently in contract
talks with village employees. The
previous contract stipulations are
still in effect, aligning with the*Tri-
borough Amendment in the Taylor
Law. The law prohibits a public em-
ployer from changing any part of an
expired labor agreement until a new
one is reached.
According to village officials, the
contract currently states that em-
ployees are supposed to attain vaca-
tion time awarded on their anniver-
sary date, not Jan. I. Therefore,
officials said, the board is ap-
proving to abide by the details
of the union contract.
. Village Attorney John Spell-
man stated the union felt Mine-
ola was in violation of the col-
lective bargaining agreement,
continued on page 17
by “unilaterally changing vacation accru-
al, and the union demands that the Village
of Mineola cease and desist this action
and further demands that all affected
members be made whole for all benefits
lost as a result of this violation.”
The contract, according to Spellman,
indicates the village cannot award vaca-
(© 2012 MINEOLA AMERICAN (NYG MARKET AREA)
Al Rights Reserved,
tion time based on an apparent “account-
ing practice error” that occurred, giving
employees their vacation authorization on
Jan. 1.
Mineola performed an audit and found
the discrepancy and notified the UPSEU,
a Ronkonkoma-based organization. The
union did not retum calls for comment.
The UPSEU could bring the issue to
New York State’s Public Employment Re-
lations Board (PERB) to attempt to force
the village’s hand. Mineola officials have
not received notice if the union will pur-
sue the PERB option.
“We cannot award vacation before it is
eamed,” Spellman stated. “As a result, we
are going to correct the situation and follow
the terms of the contract, which provide that
vacation is awarded on anniversary dates.”
The village’s decision rested on follow-
ing what was agreed upon when the cur-
rent union contract was ratified. Village of-
ficials told the union that any employee
who feels wronged, should notify Mineola.
“For example, if a person booked a
cruise, counting on that much accumulat-
ed time, we could move some sick time
over temporarily until the vacation time is
eamed,” said Spellman.
The union in tum, filed the grievance
and Mineola officials needed to decide if
the charge had any merit. Village counsel
recommended that they follow what’s
been set in the agreement between the
employees and Mineola.
“By awarding vacation time on an an-
niversary date, we would be abiding by
the contract that is in agreement with the
union,” Mineola Mayor Strauss stated.
Trustee Larry Werther revealed that to
his knowledge, there are a number of fac-
Account: 23070 (13545)
Ny-398,
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 2
MINEOLA AMERICAN (NYC MARKET
Circulation (OMA): 4,000 (1)
AREA) Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: AL AIT
Section: Main
Keyword: United Public Service Employees Union
Date: Wednesday, October 03, 2012
Location: MINEOLA, NY
tors that come into play. According to
Werther, this error occurred before any cur-
rent bookkeeping employees were working
for Mineola. Furthermore, Werther said, “if
a village entity gives vacation time before
they’re entitled to it, it is a gift of taxpayer
money that is not permitted.
“The unfortunate part is, if we find out
there is something going on that is costing
(© 2012 MINEOLA AMERICAN (NYG MARKET AREA)
Al Rights Reserved,
taxpayer money, if we don’t work to cor-
rect, then the board becomes personally
liable for those monies,” Werther contin-
ued. “So by enforcing the rules of the
contract, we're doing what’s fair. A rea-
sonable effort has and is being made to
take care of any employees...if they were
prejudiced in any way.”
Account: 23070 (13545)
N¥-398,
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 2
Newsday
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
‘Type (Frequency):
Page:
Section:
Keyword:
Tuesday, October 02, 2012
LONG ISLAND, NY
297,601 (1)
Newspaper (D)
AiO
Main
CSEA
Oyster Bay could cut
as many as 200 jobs
BY BILL BLEYER
bill.bleyer@newsday.com
The Town of Oyster Bay,
which threatened to lay off 150
employees amid a $13 million
budget shortfall and rising
health and retirement costs, is
now proposing to cut as many
as 200 workers next year.
Under its 2013 preliminary
budget scheduled to be adopt-
ed today by the town board,
Oyster Bay will increase its
spending by about 1 percent
to $265,190,651 from this
year’s $262,464,593, said
Town Comptroller Robert
McEvoy. The proposed lay-
offs would be on top of the
89 workers who took buy-
outs this year.
“The employees are very
afraid,” said Civil Service Em-
ployees Association Local 881
president Robert Rauff Jr. The
union represents about 90 per-
cent of the town’s workforce
of about 1,260.
Despite the possible lay-
© 2012 Newsday ine,
All Rights Reserves,
offs, McEvoy said, current
services for residents would
not be reduced. But Rauff in-
sisted the town cannot con-
tinue to provide the current
level of services under the
proposed layoffs.
“It will be devastating to the
residents,” he said.
Last year, the town’s budget
increased by 7.6 percent. This
year, the town saw its bond
rating downgraded by Stan-
dard & Poor's.
The town tax rate will rise
about 3.8 percent after no in-
crease last year. But McEvoy
said the town would not ex-
ceed the 2 percent state cap
on tax increases because of
credit allowed for not exceed-
ing the cap last year and exclu-
sions such as increased pen-
sion contributions.
The budget includes a re-
duction of $10 million in sala-
ry and benefit costs from antic-
ipated layoffs in addition to
the $10 million savings from
the buyouts this year. To
reach the layoff savings, 150 to
200 employees would be elimi-
nated, depending on their sala-
ries, McEvoy said.
McEvoy said the town is fac-
ing a large increase in retire-
ment costs, while health insur-
ance costs increased $2.3 mil-
lion.
The comptroller said there
would be no increase in cash
reserves next year but the per-
sonnel reduction would allow
the cash reserves to increase
in future years to try to satisfy
the concern of bond rating
agencies.
A drop in cash reserves
from $20.3 million in 2005 to
less than $1 million last year
was one reason Standard &
Poor’s Ratings Services low-
ered the town’s bond rating in
June by three steps to A.
Local 881’s Rauff said union
officials would continue to talk
to town officials. “The union is
doing everything in its power
to come up with a solution to
avoid layoffs,” he said.
Account: 23070 (13492)
NY-56,
For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www NewsdayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
VV
Yj
y
Page 1 of 1
Date:
Location:
Circulation (OMA):
Type (Frequency):
Saturday, September 29, 2012
LONG ISLAND, NY
297,601 (1)
Newspaper (D)
A13
Page:
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Huntington mulls layoffs
BY DEBORAH S. MORRIS
deborah.morris@newsday.com
The Town of Huntington’s
2013 spending plan calls for pos-
sible layoffs and hikes in bus
fares, parking and refuse fees
to help plug a projected $8 mil-
lion loss in revenue.
Town Supervisor Frank
Petrone unveiled his prelimi-
nary $181.7 million operating
budget and $8.6 million capital
budget at a special town board
meeting yesterday. The budget
represents a 0.83 percent in-
crease in the town’s total tax,
about $19 a year for the average
homeowner.
Petrone blamed projected in-
creases in pension contribu-
tions and health insurance and
© 2012 Newsday in,
All Rights Reserved,
reduced mortgage tax receipts
for the gap.
He said a $4 million, one-
shot revenue boost for the 2012
budget from debt service re-
serves related to the Covanta
resource recovery facility has
also been lost.
“We're dealing with a budget
hole over last year . . .” Petro-
ne said.
Petrone said he is working
with the Civil Service Employ-
ees Association union to avoid
15 possible layoffs.
Rich Popkin, union chapter
president, did not return calls
seeking comment.
While taxes would rise only
slightly under Petrone’s budget
plan, several town fees would
become sharply higher.
Account: 23070 (13464)
NY-56,
At the 1,900-space Hunting-
ton Station garages, the permit
fee will go from $50 a year to
$600 a year, but the permit will
be for a guaranteed spot. Fees
for the town’s parking lots will
increase from $50 to $75 a year.
Fares for a single adult ride
on the Huntington Area Rapid
Transit system will go from
$1.25 to $2; rides for the elderly
will go from 50 cents to 75
cents, and student fares from
75 cents to $1.25.
The town is also increasing
the tipping fee for residential
and commercial waste disposal
at the resource recovery facili-
ty from $75 to $80 a ton.
There will be public hearings
on the budget and its related
proposals on Oct. 16.
For reprinis or rights, posters and plagues, please visi www: NewscayReprinis.com or cal (212) 221-9505
Page 1 of 1
MASSAPEQUAN OBSERVER
Date: Friday, September 28, 2012
Location: MASSAPEQUA PARK, NY
Circulation (DMA): 1,800 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 5
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
CSEA Waits For Supervisor Venditto’s Answer
Oyster Bay layoffs in
limbo as supervisor and
union president wait it out
By Dacmar Fors Karppt
dkarppi@antonnews.com
Robert Rauff, Jr., CSEA Local 881
president is hoping to find out what the
definition is of hope, as in Supervisor
John Venditto saying, “When there is time
there is hope.” Mr. Rauff said, “When I
call him, he does get back to me, but
when he calls is another story.”
He said, “I'm ready to go forward with
what they requested but with a two-year
extension and a no layoff clause.” He
added that beyond that he is still willing to
negotiate. He said, “John Venditto is com-
ing up with a lot of ideas that I won’t even
entertain.”
How the Town of Oyster Bay has ended
up in debt is difficult to explain. Over the
recent economic times. Supervisor John”
Venditto has stated that Oyster Bay, unlike
Nassau County, had a good grasp on its fi-
nances. Previously, they didn’t have to lay
people off and they could raise taxes as
needed because as the supervisor said, the
Town of Oyster Bay residents were more
interested in their quality of life. Therefore,
while other municipalities were in trouble,
the town was still giving raises but they
were also using up their reserves. This year
the town’s financial news changed as their
bond rating fell as a result.
Faced with rising debt costs, the town
is looking to find money by reducing
staff, first by offering a retirement incen-
tive and then by layoffs. Mr. Rauff said
as to the incentive offer, 94 workers
were considering the retirement offer. Of
them the first 89 did so and retired on
Aug. 30. Currently two more people ac-
cepted the retirement as of Dec. 31: the
retirement incentive is age-related: they
must have worked for the town for five
years and be 55 years of age. All those
who were eligible for retirement were
identified by the town before the offer
was originally made.
CSEA President Rauff said, “The very
people that serve the residents are being
laid off and that isn’t the way to go.” Mr.
Rauff said he has been trying to meet
with the supervisor as early as April and
(© 2012 MASSAPEQUAN OBSERVER,
Al Rights Reserves,
May of 2012, and as early as December
of last year. “It had nothing to do with
the financial picture. We had already
signed the contract for six years. They
have been in a hole for a long time.
When they signed the contact last year
they were already in debt.”
The Contract
The current CSEA Local 881 six-year
contract was negotiated from Feb. 2009 to
May 2010. In June 2010 the members vot-
ed on it and it went into effect on July 1,
2010, Mr. Rauff said, “But we were cov-
ered by the Taylor Law so we didn’t lose
our benefits during that negotiation time.
There was an overwhelming response
from our local members. There are over
1,200 CSEA union members and 83 per-
cent voted for the contract.” Mr. Rauff
said it was a good contract.
He continued, “I’ve always been very
supportive of John Venditto. I'm an opti-
mist and I believe the supervisor will con-
tinue to take care of his employees — my
members. Although he has threatened lay-
offs. he has not done so.
“Still, if they get rid of every employee,
that will not pay off the situation for five
years because of their $754.2 million in
bond debt. It’s unfortunate but it’s a na-
tionwide problem — the economy.”
Mr. Rauff said he has been working
with the town for 36 years. He started as a
part-time laborer in sanitation, picking up
garbage as a temp in August 1977. His fa-
ther worked his way up through the years
from 1959 to the rank of deputy commis-
sioner of sanitation in the early 1990s. His
two brothers work in recycling and parks.
“When I started with the town I made
$2.93 an hour.” he said. [As supervisor
Venditto has said of the town, they are
family. with many family members work-
ing for the town.]
“We've always stood up for the supervi-
sor. We offered the town over $40 million
in savings with a pay lag, if it had taken
place in the second pay period in August,
as the best direction we could go.”
Mr. Venditto. in his Sept. 13 letter to the
town employees said he had suggested a
pay lag but Mr. Rauff said it had been a
union offer. Mr. Venditto’s letter said,
“The Administration’s request was for an
immediate payroll lag, no pay increases in
Account: 23070 (13539)
NYs7a
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 1 of 3
MASSAPEQUAN OBSERVER
Date: Friday, September 28, 2012
Location: MASSAPEQUA PARK, NY
Circulation (DMA): 1,800 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 5
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
either 2013 or 2014, with a retum to the
contractual increase in 2015 (4 percent
pay increase plus a step). The offer also
included a no-layoff clause, with no
change to your health benefits.”
Mr. Rauff said, “When the union of-
fered the pay lag it was the best direction
we could go in. Mr. Venditto said he never
agreed to it.”
Mr. Rauff said. “He’s called us a work-
force second to none. At his fundraiser
last year and at a town board meeting he
said before he lays off one of his employ-
ees he will resign himself.
“| don’t want to see him resign or any
of his workers, my people, lose jobs. It's
very politically oriented. It’s terrible on
the members of the union. It is almost
union busting.”
Mr. Rauff said the town has been under-
staffed for years. He said of his members,
“They are not crying about it because they
are paid well. Some union member town
employees do two and three jobs.” That is
true for the executive staff as well. The
Deputy Supervisor Len Genova is also the
town attorney.
The union leader said. in the aftermath
of the Sept. 18 storm he had five workers
out pulling trees and making the roads
safe.
Mr. Rauff said the supervisor’s request
of no raises in 2013 or 2014 wasn’t possi-
ble since they had already signed an
agreement for those years and that the 4
percent raise suggested for 2015 was al-
ready in the agreement.
Union Policies
Mr. Rauff went on to say, “We were
ready to go forward with the lag and zero
raises in 2013 and 2014 and the raise for
2015 but according to union policies we
need an extension to the contract. | am not
the sole decision maker. We too have to
follow the rules. We are in the midst of a
contract, now to follow the union rules.
we would have to reconstruct a contract.
That calls for a two-year extension with
an equitable raise of | or 2 percent a year.
Their chief of staff, at the beginning of ne-
(© 2012 MASSAPEQUAN OBSERVER,
Al Rights Reserves,
gotiations, was positive on the idea of a 2
percent raise then at the next meeting they
offered us nothing. We will never make up
what we are losing, but with those give-
backs we could have saved the town the
$40 million.
“A lot of other union representatives think
1 am being too soft. but I feel the supervisor
wants to make it look good in the eyes of
residents. The town tax is only 11 cents ona
dollar is when he says what talking to resi-
dents. I'm a resident and I pay it. it.
“It’s about the debt from things like the
forced mortgage tax, loss of sales tax, all
those taxes. The money/revenue the town
brought in has decreased. For me. | took a
vacation once a year. now it is just in
days. | cut back.”
He said the town has frozen all over-
time. “The town has made moves.” But he
said the people who retired have not been
replaced and. “Wait until tax collection
time; the lines will be out the door. They
don’t have people to cover the jobs.”
The town’s financial woes are still
mounting, he said. “In February 2013 the
town has to pay off borrowing of $13 mil-
lion to pay the salaries for 2012.”
A Good Job, A Hard Job
Mr. Rauff said the union work is over-
seen by the town attorneys. “We have
penalties for not being on time. It’s a
tough system but it should be. They are
very good jobs, until they fire the first per-
son. Now, they are all walking on eggs.”
Mr. Rauff said. “We built up a good re-
lationship and trust. | don’t know if it is
that way any more. It’s sad.”
As we go to press, things are still up in
the air, although Mr. Rauff said the super-
visor called him over the weekend. He
hadn’t gotten back to him as we spoke on
Monday moming. The town does have an-
other option. On May 15 they tabled Res-
olution 471 that would have allowed them
to exceed the state budget cap of 2 per-
cent. If they want to, they can put the res-
olution back on the table at any upcoming
meeting and solve their problems with a
tax increase. The town board has a lot to
think about.
Account: 23070 (13539)
NYs7a
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Page 2 of 3
Date: Friday, September 28, 2012
MASSAPEQUAN OBSERVER Location: MASSAPEQUA PARK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 1,800 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: 5
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Page 3 of 3
© 2012 MASSAPEQUAN OBSERVER,
Al Rights Reserved,
‘Account: 23070 (13539)
nvr
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Friday, September 28, 2012
OBSERVER-DISPATCH oi, G2
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (D)
3B
Page:
Section: MV
Keyword: CSEA
MADISON COUNTY Spinelli, Camille Vinci,
Jeffrey Watkins, Virginia
Employee Zombek.
recognition set
Every year Madison
County recognizes its
long-term employees for
their years of dedicated
service to its citizens.
A reception will take
place at 1:30 p.m. Tues-
day, Oct. 9, in the Super-
visors’ Chambers, honor-
ing long term employees
from Management, the
Teamster Local 182, the
Madison County Deputy
Sheriff's Police Benevo-
lent Association, the
CSEA Blue and CSEA
White Collar Units.
Those being honored
include:
= 35 Years: Virginia
Brooks, Mark McLcan.
= 30 Years: Bonnie Cur-
tis, Kevin Loveless,
Joseph Stevens, Diana
Wilson.
m 25 Years: Susan
Brown, S. John Cam-
panie, Joseph DeFran-
cisco, Melissa Maine, Jay
Pokorny.
= 20 Years: LeeAnn
Andrae, Kathleen Hiller,
Lynne Jones, Kirk E.
Palmer.
= 15 Years: Teresa But-
ler, Charles Gibson,
Carol Harvey, Pamela
Heintz, Linda Jackson,
Chrystal Johnson, Linda
Khan, Lyle Malbouf Jr.,
Kevin Parker, Sharon
Salisbury, Catherine See-
ber, William Wilcox, Lau-
rie Winters.
a 10 Years: Eric Ali,
Jayne Black, Eric
DeGroat, Elizabeth
Holmes, Eileen Hub-
bard, Tracy Lagoy, Aaron
Lazzara, William Looft,
Loretta Lyrek, Denise
Molinari, Jon Otts Jr., Jef- Page 1 of 1
frey Sawyer, Janine
© 2012 OBSERVER DISPATCH
Al Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (13526)
NY-708,
For reprints or rights, please contact the publisher
Date: Friday, September 28, 2012
oc an Location: WEST NYACK, NY
Circulation (OMA): 25,100 (1)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Aa
REVIEW ain a
Keyword: CSEA
To the Editor:
Now that the CSEA county contract has
been ratified by the Rockland County Leg-
islature, I have to commend all parties in-
volved who worked together to formalize
the agreement.
Our members are making some
serious sacrifices in order to help the coun-
ty through these tough times, which shows
their dedication to the citizens they serve.
While we’ve had differences of opinion at
times, the way in which CSEA was able to
work with legislators and the county exec-
utive show a mutual dedication to helping
the county move forward and regain fiscal
stability. | have to commend the legislators
who agreed to make similar sacrifices in
pay; this show of solidarity with the CSEA
workforce is a welcome gesture of good-
will and shows these legislators don’t just
talk the talk.
It took a lot of guts for our CSEA
membership to approve this contract. How-
ever, the job security included is critical
for them and even more important for the
people of the county, all of whom benefit
from the services provided. | commend
my members on approving this contract by
such a large margin. It was the right thing
for Rockland.
Billy Riccaldo
CSEA Southern Region President
West Haverstraw
Page 1 of 1
© 2012 ROCKLAND REVIEW
Al Rights Reserves,
Account: 23070 (13524)
Ny-408,
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VILLAGE BEACON RECORD
Date:
Location:
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Thursday, September 27, 2012
SETAUKET, NY
7.019 (1)
Newspaper (W)
AG
Main
CSEA
Residents ask to spare social service programs
BY ELANA GLOWATZ
Residents implored the Brookhaven Town Board to
save various social services in the 2013 budget during
public comment at the Thursday night board meeting.
Mickie Tinkler, supervisor of the town’s adult day
care program, said unlike on the Titanic, where women
and children were put into lifeboats first, the town is
operating under the policy of “first overboard for our
most vulnerable residents, to their great shame.”
Former Supervisor Mark Lesko’s budget proposal
includes cuts to noncore services. The adult day care
centers in Mount Sinai and Yaphank would be elimi-
nated from the budget, as would the Brief Respite program,
which gives older residents a break in caring for a rela-
tive 60 years or older. The Office of Women’s Services,
which includes support groups for domestic violence
and employment assistance, would also be eliminated.
The town’s Youth Bureau would be cut to eliminate
duplicative services.
‘The $247 million budget, which is a decrease of al-
most $14 million from the 2012 budget, also proposes
closing the Holtsville complex, which includes the ecol-
ogy center, a pool, greenhouse and Safety Town, which
teaches kids about road safety.
Other programs facing cuts include those in the Division
of Veterans Services and the Office of Mobility Services.
Where possible, clients would be referred to other
organizations that offer similar services.
Lesko said at his budget presentation on Sept. 13 that
the town is facing a tough economic situation.
At the meeting on Sept. 20, Theresa Leuffen, direc-
tor of women’s services, said this “is a time when our
services are needed the most.”
The Office of Women’s Services offers assistance
to women who are looking for employment, includ-
ing through job coaching and helping women dress
for interviews.
Leuffen asked the Town Board to cut responsibly in-
stead of eliminating the entire program. “Defunding a
program of this caliber ... would be a tragedy.”
Nancy Ellis, chair of the Women’s Services Advisory
Board, echoed Leuffen’s sentiments, saying that “women
are disproportionately affected by the economy” and to
cut the services from the 2013 budget would be “just
plain short-sighted.”
Most speakers who called for the Town Board to save
the noncore programs received applause from the other
residents in the packed meeting room. After speaking
on behalf of the adult day care program, Tinkler re-
ceived a standing ovation.
She questioned why that program would be elimi-
nated from the budget when other programs, such as
© 2012 VILLAGE BEACON RECORD
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VILLAGE BEACON RECORD Date: Thursday, September 27, 2012
Location: SETAUKET, NY
Circulation (OMA): 7,019 (1)
‘Type (Frequency): Newspaper (W)
Page: AG
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
those provided by the Department of Parks and Recre-
ation, would be “surviving relatively untouched.”
Tinkler asked, “Does the administration view our
programs as weak and easy targets [for cuts] because
they are for old people, women, children, veterans and
the handicapped?”
One woman, a single mother of two, spoke in defense
of the Youth Bureau. She sounded like she was choking
up as she described how it was a refuge for her family.
“My son has expressed to me that this is the only place
where he can feel safe to open up completely,” she said.
Though she talked about restoring funding to many
areas of the budget, Meg Shutka, the president of the
white-collar portion of the Civil Service Employees
Association, singled out the Youth Bureau as an area
needing continued funding. “Are our youth any better
or healthier than they were in the "70s? No.”
Shutka said Lesko’s proposal was not a responsible
budget.
Tinkler said those who use these noncore services
slated to be cut or eliminated are not easy targets. “You
will hear more from us, I promise.”
Photo by: Elana Glowatz
The crowd applauds in support of one of the many speakers who defended the town’s social services.
Page 2 of 2
© 2012 VILLAGE BEACON RECORD
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OLEAN TIMES HERALD
Date: Saturday, September 22, 2012
NY
Location: OLEAN,
Circulation (DMA): 11,212 (49)
Type (Frequency): Newspaper (0)
Page: AL AZ
Section: Main
Keyword: CSEA
Cattaraugus Co.
faces labor charge
By Rick Miller
Olean Times Herald
LITTLE VALLEY — The
Cattaraugus County
Civil Service Employees
Association (CSEA) has filed
improper labor practices
charges against Cattaraugus
County over the way
the Community Services
mental health clinics were
transferred to Cattarau;
Community Action ma
Jamestown Psychiatric.
The Human Services
Committee was informed
of the action the union
took with the state Public
Employee Relations Board
(PERB) during an executive
session Wednesday, when
county attorney Thomas
Brady outlined the charges.
Rose Teachman, president
of CSEA Local 805, told the
Times Herald on Friday the
charges would be heard by
a PERB administrative law
judge next month.
e county's remain-
ing mental health clinic
employees will either be
laid off or transferred to the
Community Action payroll
Oct. 1. In the 2012 bud-
© 2012 OLEANTIMES HERALD
get, the county legislature
only funded the depart-
ment through Oct. 1, when
Community Action will
employ the therapists and
support staff.
Jamestown Psychiatric
will supply a medical direc-
Please see Lawsuit, page A-2
tor. The clinics will continue
to be held in the County Office
Building in Olean, as well as
other locations.
“We advised the county
we planned to do this,” Mrs.
Teachman said.
She did not s; ecty what the
charges were other than to say it
involved “retaliation for protected
union activities.” She also said
the PERB action “would not hold
anything up” with regard to the
transfer of mental health therapy
for about 1,400 individuals to
Community Action, which has a
15-month contract to provide the
services.
Mr. Brady said he did not
believe the filing of improper
labor practices with PERB would
delay the Community Services
changeover.
(Contact reporter Rick Miller at
rmiller@oleantimesherald.com)
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Page 1 of 1
