Page 15 - Work Force July-August 2018

Legislative session ends with gains for working people
WORKERS’ COMPENSATION
MEMBERS ONLY INFORMATION
KNOW RIGHTS
If you are injured at work or you have a work-related medical condition (such as a repetitive stress injury like carpal tunnel syndrome) or an occupational disease, notify your employer and see a physician who accepts Workers’ Compensation.
If your physician says you have medical conditions that prevent you from working for at least a year, if you are under retirement age, or even if you are collecting a pension or ready to retire, you may be eligible for Social Security Disability Benefits (SSDB).
PERSONAL INJURY CLAIM
If you have been injured in an auto accident outside of work, or from a dog bite, from a non work-related slip and fall or due to a malfunctioning product, you may have a personal injury claim.
VETERANS DISABILITY CLAIM
If you are a veteran and have been denied a service-related medical disability for medical issues such as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, effects from Agent Orange or other chemicals, you may have a veterans disability claim.
PERSONAL LEgAL SERVICES PLAN
Provide you and your dependents with the knowledge and affordability to protect your legal rights in personal matters.
TAKINg CARE OF BUSINESS
Illness or disability requiring long-term care can happen at any time to you, your spouse, child or parent, and threaten savings or your home ownership. Access attorneys who specialize in these areas.
WE CAN HELP!
SOCIAL SECURITY DISABILITY BENEFITS
The CSEA Legal Department oversees the Legal Services Program and CSEA has endorsed the statewide law firm of Fine, Olin & Anderman, LLP, to represent members for injury-related matters. Call CSEA at 1-800- 342-4146, and follow the prompts for “Legal Services, Injury-Related Matters” and/or “Non-Injury Related Matters.” You will be connected to Fine, Olin & Anderman, LLP, or the Legal Services Program administrator.
The state legislative session ended June 20. While big-picture items such as sports betting were not acted upon, CSEA was successful in achieving numerous legislative goals.
As this edition went to press, the governor has not signed any of these items into law. Here are some of the legislative goals we have achieved:
• Granting Section 75 disciplinary rights to labor class employees who have been in the labor class for five years;
• Prohibiting the privatization of state-operated Office for People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) individualized residential alternative (IRA) programs;
• Requiring the state to reinvest 85 percent of all proceeds from the sale of OPWDD property into state-operated OPWDD programs;
• Requiring 30 days of notice from a municipality to retirees before they change the terms of their retiree health insurance;
• Restoring the full value of a public-sector retiree’s pension after they have repaid any outstanding pension loan. Currently, if an employee retires with an outstanding loan from the State and Local Employees Retirement System, their pension is reduced to pay back the loan. However, this reduction lasts forever, regardless of when the loan is repaid during retirement;
• Authorize Nassau County employees to continue to receive step increases if the control board implements another wage freeze;
• Limit a notice to close or downsize an Office of Mental Health (OMH) hospital to no more than two years. Currently, the state is required to give a one-year notice before closing or downsizing a facility. However, many times they keep this notice in place for years, causing unease among employees and patients;
• Precedent-setting legislation relating to SUNY Stony Brook University Hospital. This legislation, which addressed
a land-lease to build a new hospital for Southampton, creates new and comprehensive anti-outsourcing language, prohibits classified employees from being transferred to the unclassified service, prohibits the co-mingling of funds between SUNY and the new hospital and prohibits classified employees
at Stony Brook Hospital from being transferred to the SUNY Research Foundation or StaffCo. CSEA has fought for many of these provisions for years and this legislation will help set a precedent going forward relating to the SUNY hospitals.
Visit cseany.org for more information on state legislation that is of interest to our members.
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15
July-August 2018
The Work Force
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