Page 3 - Work Force November 2018

New contract in place in Westchester County
WHITE PLAINS — After working under an expired contract since the beginning of 2012, Westchester County Unit members have a new agreement in place.
A majority of the membership voted in early October to approve a 10-year contract, an agreement county legislators unanimously ratified Oct. 15. CSEA reached
the deal with County Executive George Latimer following years of stalled negotiations with Latimer’s predecessor, Rob Astorino.
“I want to thank our members for the support they’ve given through our many years of negotiations,” said Westchester County Unit President Karen Pecora. “We know there was a lot of debate over this offer and we listened to all the feedback from our members. We appreciate everyone who took the time to vote. Now that we finally have a contract in place, we’re moving forward in a positive manner and already planning for our future negotiations.”
Workers will receive wage increases in eight years of the 10-year
contract,
Part of the Westchester County Unit negotiating team discusses the unit’s new contract. Pictured, from left: Ralph Hansen, Karen Pecora, Teri Rella, Kimberly Giuliani, Pamela Ashford, Juliet Aguiar and Elio Giuliani.
as well as several longevity increases. The agreement also includes an expansion of bereavement leave language, the creation of a rotation list to
Westchester County Unit President Karen Pecora, negotiating team member Pamela Ashford, and Executive Vice President Hattie Adams look on as County Executive George Latimer signs a new 10-year contract for the unit. (Photo courtesy of the CSEA Westchester County Unit)
who met
with us more times in six months than the previous administration met with
us over six years,” said Westchester County Local President John Staino. “While not getting everything we wanted, our union was able to bring back an offer that had raises and retroactive pay
ensure fair
distribution
of overtime,
and creation
of labor-
management committees to address several issues of concern members brought to the unit leadership.
for our members. The contract went forward with a majority of members voting for the agreement.”
Southern Region President Billy Riccaldo said the new contract allows the unit to close a challenging
Members previously rejected a memorandum of agreement brought to a vote during Astorino’s tenure.
November 2018
The Work Force 3
More recent negotiations included the added challenge of Latimer’s team discovering that county finances were in worse shape than the Astorino administration let on.
“We finally have a county executive
chapter of its history.
“Our members stood strong as
we faced eight years of the Astorino administration’s anti-union attitude, which made it impossible to reach an agreement that our members
felt was fair,” Riccaldo said. “It is
a shame that Rob Astorino left behind a financial crisis that created added challenges for the new administration. We have the chance now to move forward and continue
building on the collaborative relationship we’ve established with George Latimer and his team.”
The American Arbitration Association (AAA) oversaw the ratification, which took place via mail ballot and was then counted and certified at AAA headquarters in New York City.
— Jessica Ladlee
Cottrell is PEOPLE recruiter of the month
SYRACUSE — Ali Cottrell, 5th vice president of our SUNY Upstate Local in the Central Region, is
the PEOPLE Recruiter of the Month for October. He recruited nine members.
Cottrell
union and our livelihoods,” said Cottrell, a health care technician at SUNY Upstate Medical University’s downtown campus, who also serves on our Central Region PEOPLE Committee.
CSEA’s PEOPLE program protects and improves our
jobs, benefits and pensions
in Washington, Albany and in your community. Your support and participation in PEOPLE strengthens our clout in the workplace, in the legislature, in your community and in the labor movement.
— Mark M. Kotzin
“The PEOPLE Program allows us to become fearless as we continue to fight on the national and the local levels to protect our