Page 6 - Work Force June 2024

SYRACUSE — CSEA has endorsed
State Sen. John Mannion in the June
25 Democratic primary for the U.S.
House of Representatives’ New York
22nd Congressional District, which
includes Syracuse, Utica and Auburn.
Mannion, a former teachers’ union
president, strongly supports working
people.
As a state senator, Mannion has
fought for the creation of good-
paying union jobs and funding for
education, health care and other
vital services. He has also advocated
for recruitment and retention of
public employees.
As a moderate Democrat in
the Senate, Mannion has shown a
willingness to work across party
lines. This advocacy will continue in
the House, which has recently been
facing turmoil and inaction.
“Throughout his years as a public
schoolteacher and labor activist,
John Mannion has fought for the
working people of Central New York,”
said CSEA Central Region President
Kenny Greenleaf. “It’s important to
have a seat at the table and a voice
for labor. John Mannion understands
the needs of working families in this
region, and we are proud to endorse
his candidacy for Congress.”
“It means a lot to have labor’s
support because if you stand alone,
you’re in trouble,” said Mannion.
“Labor unions have always stood
with me when I’ve ran for office. I
wouldn’t have run had I not known
that I would have that support from
labor.”
Union roots, union involvement
Mannion was raised in a union
family, with his grandfather and both
parents belonging to unions.
“I’m always going to stand with
labor because it’s a part of my
history and it’s a part of this region’s
history in Central New York and
beyond,” said Mannion. “Labor and
working people are imbedded into
the fabric of my family.”
Mannion was a teacher for almost
30 years, teaching at Syracuse City
School District and West Genesee
Central School District. He was a
member of New York State United
Teachers (NYSUT) and served as
president of the West Genesee
Teachers Association for eight years.
“We were in a time where there
was decreased funding for school
districts,” said Mannion. “We opened
a contract and took a zero percent
and that was very impactful on me.
This was before I was a union leader,
because I knew it wasn’t the will of
the people.”
This inspired him to become a
union representative. Soon, Mannion
became union president at his
district because of his frustrations
with the state’s overemphasis
on testing and a defunct teacher
evaluation system.
In the first contract he
negotiated, Mannion helped secure
significant wage increases, helped
get justice for workers on parental
leave who had lost wages and
bolstered retiree health care. The
contract was unanimously ratified.
Mannion stands
strong with labor
State. Sen. John Mannion joins CSEA Central Region members, staff and other labor union members for a recent
labor walk in Dewitt and Manlius to support Mannion’s Congressional campaign. From left are SEIU Local 1199
member Sara Cooper, AFT member Adam O’Neill, CSEA Political Action Coordinator Josh Schick, State Sen.
John Mannion, CSEA Onondaga County Local President Dan Vadala and CSEA Syracuse State Employees Local
President Diane Burton. (Photo by Kate Evans, field coordinator, Central New York Area Labor Federation.)
From left, State Sen. John Mannion, CSEA Onondaga County Local
President Dan Vadala and CSEA Central Region President Kenny
Greenleaf march in the 2023 Syracuse Labor Parade at the New York State
Fairgrounds.
Friend of labor
Mannion said he likes to use
a line from State Comptroller
Tom DiNapoli, also a strong labor
supporter: “Everyone’s ‘American
Dream’ starts with a good job, and
almost undeniably, that good job was
a union job.”
Mannion is committed to ensuring
the future of those good jobs.
In 2017, Mannion went door-to-
door to urge voters to oppose a
state constitutional convention. A
convention would have opened the
state constitution and potentially
jeopardized public worker pensions.
After the U.S. Supreme Court
issued its Janus opinion in 2018.
Mannion proactively ensured
members were signed up and
informed why their union was
valuable to them.
Mannion said he knows what it
is like for unions to face challenges
because he has also stood strong
against them. He continues to stand
with union members in his current
role.
“My message to is this: stick with
your union and listen to your union
because there are elected officials
and candidates who are hostile
toward organized labor and workers
for whatever reason,” said Mannion.
“Support the people who support
you.”
— Nicholas Newcomb
6 The Work Force June 2024