Page 4 - Work Force June 2022

4 The Work Force
June 2022
President Mary E. Sullivan in touch with
WorkForce ISSN 1522-1091
Official publication of
CSEA Local 1000, AFSCME, AFL-CIO 143 Washington Ave. Albany, NY 12210-2303
Mary E. Sullivan, President
MATHEW L. CANTORE
Acting Director of Communications and Publisher
JANICE GAVIN Editor
JASON D. HOSIER Graphic Production Specialist
KATE POHLMANN Graphic Production Specialist
JOELLE LUCENTE Communications Assistant
CommuniCations speCialists
Long Island Region: WENDI BOWIE (631) 462-0030
Metropolitan Region: DAVID GALARZA (212) 406-2156
Southern Region: JESSICA LADLEE (845) 831-1000
Capital Region:
THERESE ASSALIAN JILL ASENCIO
(518) 782-4400
Central Region: NICHOLAS NEWCOMB (315) 728-3375
Western Region: MADISON RUFFO (716) 691-6555
Headquarters: (518) 257-1276
Marie Snyder, Chair Marnie Rounds, Vice Chair Karen Bright
Tim Finnigan Michele Kiuber Chris Vogel
The Publications Committee:
The Work Force (USPS 0445-010)
is published monthly by
The CSEA Publication Office:
143 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12210. Periodical Mail Postage paid at
Post Office,
Albany, New York 12288,
and additional mailing offices.
Postmaster: Send address changes to: CSEA, Attn: Membership Department, 143 Washington Ave., Albany, NY 12210
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first want to take a moment to
Most of us know of someone who has gone through this, and we know what would have happened if CSEA wasn’t involved.
The
WorkForce
The responsibility to keep our Union strong
SIisters and brothers,
acknowledge the tragic events that unfolded in Buffalo on May 14th. We should all keep the victims of this horrible hate crime and the City of Buffalo community in our thoughts and hearts as the recovery and healing process continues.
This month we celebrate Juneteenth, an historic day that marked the end of slavery in our country. It is just one of many steps towards true equality and while we have taken many of those steps, it is clear from the events that continue to unfold in our country today we still have many more steps to go.
As a result of the pandemic, it has been challenging to welcome new workers to our Union family. It is so important that we are able to reach these workers and let them know about the irreplaceable benefits we all enjoy as members.
This month is also Pride Month and we fully support all of our Union members and everyone else in the LGBTQ+ Community as we continue to fight for their equality.
You can bet that management keeps a careful eye on membership levels within their workplaces, and when they see the number of members decreasing and the number of non-members rising, they know they can start to divide us more easily and take advantage of the weakness they create by doing so.
All of these things remind us that our strength to defend our rights and promote equality for everyone lies largely in the number of active members CSEA has.
It really is up to all of us to keep our union strong. We can all have conversations with our coworkers about how important it is to be a member. If we want to remain as strong as we are, we can’t wait for someone else to come along and sign up more members. We have to do it ourselves. Every one of us.
As we continue to navigate the world
of volunteer unionism brought about by
the Supreme Court a few years ago, we continue to see anti-labor groups stepping up efforts to try to convince members to leave. While recent organizing victories at Amazon and Starbucks and our own victory at Northeast Children and Family Services give us hope, the question needs to be asked: whose responsibility is it to keep our Union strong?
For anyone who needs a little more information, take a look at cseany.org/ advantage. Invite your coworkers to look at it, especially if they aren’t members yet. It can further help them see why being a member makes such a big difference.
The direct answer is it’s up to all of us. We’re all members because we understand the true value of being union – we understand the representation we get and the benefits our membership provides
to us and our families. When there’s an injustice at work, whether it affects one or a thousand members, we are there to fight it.
Thank you for doing your part to keep us union strong!
In Solidarity,
Mary E. Sullivan, President