Page 7 - Work Force June 2021

Education chief visit
showcases CSEA
member efforts
WHITE PLAINS — CSEA White Plains School District Unit members recently helped roll out the red carpet for a very special visitor.
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona toured White Plains High School recently as part of the “Help is Here” whistle-stop tour touting education funding secured through the federal American Rescue Plan. Two CSEA unit officers took part in the day’s events.
“It was exciting, both that he was coming to White Plains High School and that we were being recognized for this effort in getting our students back in the classrooms,” said White Plains School District Unit Secretary Elizabeth Ramos, who attended as
a CSEA representative. “As union members, our power is in numbers. Using our voices in advocating for federal aid has made a big difference for schools.”
White Plains School District Unit Unit 2nd Vice President Rudy Rivera, head custodian at White Plains High
School, took part in a roundtable discussion with Cardona and other district staffers, where Cardona praised Rivera for the work he and the 18 custodians working with him have done to get the high school ready for daily, in-person classes.
According to media reports, 70 percent of White Plains High School students are back in the classroom five days a week. For the district’s elementary schools, that figure is closer to 90 percent.
“It was a privilege to meet [Cardona],” said Rivera. “He said he appreciated the teamwork among the staff to get kids back in school. It was great, too, that he walked through the school to meet the teachers and speak with the students.”
Rivera and the other custodians
in the district’s schools have worked hard making the modifications necessary to get kids back in the classroom, including distancing desks as recommended by the Centers
for Disease Control and Prevention
U.S. Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona, left, poses with White Plains School District Unit Secretary Elizabeth Ramos during Cardona’s visit to the district’s high school. (Photo provided by AFSCME)
American Rescue Plan bolsters library clerk’s confidence
ROCHESTER — The passage of
the American Rescue Plan (ARP)
will not only help state and local governments sustain essential services to our communities, but will help working families economically recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Working people began feeling
the benefits of the ARP almost immediately after President Joe Biden signed into law the $1.9 trillion coronavirus aid package. CSEA members had been fighting for this federal aid since soon after the pandemic began in March 2020.
Carmen Gonzalez, a CSEA member and library clerk at the Sully Branch Library in Rochester, said she is grateful for any financial help she receives, especially because she works part time and considers herself underemployed.
June 2021
“When the stimulus came through, I was able pay some bills and then pay some more bills,” said Gonzalez.
She added that
while her recent
stimulus payment
wasn’t a cure-all for her family’s budget woes, it helped get Gonzalez and her family back on track since the pandemic began last year.
“I have given my all to this job, and I really love working here at
my local neighborhood library,” Gonzalez said. “For folks who are underemployed or do not make a living wage, the ARP plan is a lifeline. Without this help, I believe many
of my friends and my library co-workers would be out of a
job right about now.”
Once fully implemented, the ARP will have an even larger impact on all working families. The plan contains nearly $700 billion to support public services and front-facing workers like Gonzalez, including $350 billion in unrestricted aid to states, cities, municipalities, libraries and schools.
The spending bill will critically help many localities fill in for revenue losses, stem budget cuts and respond with important flexibility over the next few years to massively increased fiscal demands caused by the pandemic.
Hearing members’ voices
Throughout the pandemic, CSEA members relentlessly lobbied legislators to fund the front lines. CSEA and other labor union activists also mobilized members and worked hard to elect pro-worker leaders
who understand the value of public services and the virtue of working people.
CSEA President Mary E. Sullivan noted that members’ political action efforts played a pivotal role in getting the ARP passed.
The ARP’s passage means library workers like Gonzalez, who was instructed by her employer to go on unemployment insurance last summer, can continue to work
with less fear of further layoffs or furloughs.
“I feel like things are going to
get better,” said Gonzalez. “Now I have more confidence in my federal government doing the right thing when it comes to representing working people. Elections really matter. Congress heard our voices.”
— Ove Overmyer
(CDC) guidelines; and installing Plexiglas barriers and hand sanitizer dispensers. They use Clorox 360 machines to sanitize rooms several times per week, in addition to daily disinfection efforts.
In her role as an office assistant in the district’s Facilities and Operations Department, Ramos helps the district’s facilities director process supply orders, a process that was especially busy during the height of the pandemic. She said she expects federal aid will help
the district recover financially from costs incurred for cleaning supplies, personal protective equipment (PPE) and upgrading ventilation systems.
Ramos said she is proud to be part of a team of CSEA members that
includes custodians, school nurses, food service workers and other workers, who are helping keep the district running during a time period filled with uncertainty.
The fact that Cardona has experience as a classroom teacher also heightened the excitement. Joining Cardona in the visit was American Federation of Teachers President Randi Weingarten, who previously taught high school in Brooklyn.
“It’s exciting knowing that he visited our district and he was then going back reporting to his boss, the President of the United States, [Joe Biden],” Ramos said. “This put White Plains on the map.”
— Jessica Ladlee
Gonzalez
The Work Force 7