Page 8 - Work_Force_May_2018

“Out of the box” idea boosts meeting turnout
HERKIMER — Boosting membership meeting turnout can be a challenge for many local and unit officers.
But Herkimer BOCES Unit officers used “out-of-the-box” thinking
to figure out a way to more than quadruple the number of attendees at a recent membership meeting.
Because the BOCES runs an early childhood program for students, Richards came up with an innovative win-win arrangement to have some of the program’s students provide free daycare during the meeting. Her members had someone to watch their children, and the students received required work-based learning hours.
Richards didn’t stop there. She held her meeting after work, when people were likely to be eating dinner, so she arranged for students in the BOCES culinary program to provide a catered dinner for her members.
She also had representatives from our union’s member benefits and insurance programs attend to provide valuable information.
The result? Overall, about half of the unit members showed up.
“We had probably 15 members who had never attended a meeting
Herkimer BOCES Unit President Lucinda Richards was tired of holding meetings at which only the same handful of people showed up. She also knew why some members weren’t coming to meetings.
Herkimer BOCES Teacher Aide Melissa Smith drops off her children for the child care provided during her union membership meeting.
“A lot of the members didn’t attend past meetings because they had little ones at home that they didn’t have daycare for,” she said.
Richards
before,” Richards said. “I think it was very successful. We just had to think of things out of the box to encourage members to attend.”
For members with young children, it was a welcome change.
“It’s hard having to get a babysitter, so I don’t usually go to union meetings,” said Teacher Aide Melissa Smith, who brought
her young children with her to the meeting.
“I think it’s a really good thing that our union did this for us so we can hear first hand what’s going on,” said Teacher Aide Jamie Elthorp, mother of two young children. “This made
it a lot easier and possible for me to come.”
— Mark M. Kotzin
Our union working for wage justice
MINEOLA — CSEA is working to get justice for Nassau County employees after county officials filed a lawsuit claiming a signed agreement
that restored longevity pay
to workers is invalid.
Laricchiuta
Because the agreement was signed and ratified by CSEA members, Nassau County Local President Jerry Laricchiuta said that this makes the agreement binding.
“The county claims that the language in the original agreement requires that both NIFA (Nassau Interim Finance Authority) and the Nassau County Legislature agree to the deal,” said Laricchiuta.
Laricchiuta also said there is a clarification letter that specifically states longevity pay and education pay would need to be separately negotiated.
“It’s our contention that those specifics were limited to the four- year period of the NIFA agreement,” said Laricchiuta. “Once that agreement expired, we would get the longevity pay back, just like we got the steps back, under the old contract.”
“Those hired prior to 1999 received their step increase on
January 1, while post-1999 hires received their step increase on their anniversary,” said Laricchiuta. “Under the four years of the NIFA contract, all step increases were received in September. We didn’t have to negotiate; step increases were automatically set back to
the way they were before the NIFA agreement. So, why wouldn’t the longevity and education pay set back to the way it was under our old contract?”
During the longevity pay agreement negotiations, county officials asked the unions to
come up with a way to save the county in the first year of the contract, because paying all union employees’ longevity pay at one time would cost the county $10 million.
“We told them that in year one, instead of paying us in one lump sum, they could give us the frozen amount on March 31,” said
Laricchiuta. “Then when payments are made on April 1 and July 1, give us half of the difference with the other half going into a bank for the employee, which the worker would receive once their relationship with the county dissolves.”
That agreement saved the county $5 million.
“Going into 2019, everyone should get the proper step, as if they had never been frozen,” said Laricchiuta.
CSEA will now go to court to ensure that the agreement we made with the county is valid. Our union’s Legal Department is helping in the case.
“The members here who don’t make high salaries were the ones who were the most deeply affected,” said Laricchiuta. “We want to get that money back for them and we think they’re entitled to it.”
— Wendi Bowie
The county, which also sued four other unions representing county workers, is alleging that both our union and representatives from former County Executive Ed Mangano’s administration were misinformed about when longevity pay would be reinstated when the agreement was made.
The county also alleges that
the county representatives who negotiated the deal did not have the authority to do so.
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The Work Force
May 2018