Page 3 - Work Force October 2019

CSEA fighting for improvements in OPWDD
ALBANY — Imagine your job is to care for people living with disabilities — people who can’t care for themselves; people who might not understand you want to help them; people with very specialized needs requiring a lot of individual attention and people who might get combative or even abusive when you try to help them.
Now, imagine that your workplace is constantly understaffed. You
don’t have enough time to provide the loving care you want, not to mention keep up with the required paperwork. You and your co-workers are constantly mandated to work overtime, overtime that stresses
and wears you out, takes you away from your own family, and makes it difficult to maintain focus on your critical responsibilities.
Combine all this with that ever-present anvil hanging over your head which keeps you up at night, knowing any moment as a direct care worker, you could be falsely accused with allegations of mistreatment or worse with little or no evidence, put out of work and investigated by the state’s Justice Center, with potentially career-destroying results.
In short, as a direct care worker, you can’t afford to make a mistake or even have a bad day.
Finally, think about almost never getting any praise, let alone the recognition you rightfully deserve for overcoming all of these obstacles and doing a good job providing daily living skills and tender care for the individuals under your watch.
Add that all together and it’s no wonder that it takes an extremely special kind of person to work for the state Office of People With Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) as a direct care worker. It’s also no wonder that it’s harder than ever
to recruit and retain these special people.
Yet CSEA is not giving up on making things better for our direct care workers, and our union is
October 2019
actively working with OPWDD to do even more.
Recently, CSEA participated in a statewide series of events designed to recognize agency workers who regularly go above and beyond the scope of their jobs as part of national Direct Support Professionals (DSP) Recognition Week. Union leaders
and staff were on hand to support those workers and help amplify their stories, highlighting the great work that they do on a regular basis, and why they do it. We will tell some of those stories in this and upcoming editions of The Work Force (see
page 9).
CSEA President Danny Donohue also sent out a special message
to our union-represented OPWDD workers during DSP Week, thanking them for their dedication and service.
“You truly are the HEART of
New York — working tirelessly
each day to provide skilled and compassionate care, often under
very challenging circumstances; ensuring improvements in the
quality of life for the individuals you support, making a difference for them and their families,” Donohue said. “Not just this week, but EVERY week, you do this selflessly, often facing persistent understaffing and onerous overtime rules. Thank you for all you do; the values you display and the professionalism you embody. We will never stop fighting for you to make sure you receive the respect and appreciation you deserve,
every day.”
Our union continues to work through labor-management channels to try and improve recruitment and retention. We’ve participated in hiring events throughout the state
to try and encourage new workers to apply, highlighting the protections, higher wages and great benefit package that go along with union membership.
We’ve also fought to create
care pilots throughout the state of New York, including community habilitation, in-home waiver respite,
Pauline Smith, a direct support assistant at Finger Lakes DDSO, is one of thousands of CSEA members dedicated to providing high quality care to individuals across the state.
pathway to employment and supported employment. We also fought for millions of dollars in state investments to run these important care pilots. (see sidebar)
Some of our union’s most active members work in OPWDD. When we’ve been out talking with our members working in that field, we’ve listened to their stories and heard about their frustrations and
struggles. Our union is fighting every day to make improvements, small and large, including negotiating in the state contract double time for extreme, mandated overtime shifts.
We salute all our direct care workers for the incredible work they continue to do.
— Mark M. Kotzin
See page 9 for related content.
What are Care Pilots?
In 2015, the state Office for People with Developmental Disabilities (OPWDD) and CSEA entered into
a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to work together to create several types of pilot programs at a number of OPWDD locations across the state.
The object of the Care Pilots was to see whether state-operated home and community-based waiver services could be successfully provided in non-certified, community-based settings.
Before the Care Pilots were established, only nonprofits had provided the services that are
now also being provided by state employees, as part of the Care Pilot programs, including:
• Community Habilitation: This program provides support to individuals in the community or in their own home,
including skill development to address multiple habilitation needs. Details of the program are planned based on the individual’s needs, but the program is intended to support independent living.
• In-Home Waiver Respite: This program supports individuals living at home and offers relief for the family from primary care responsibilities.
• Pathway to Employment:
This service helps individuals develop the skills they need for successful employment.
• Supported Employment:
This program helps individuals obtain or maintain employment in the community.
Watch upcoming editions for more about the success of these programs.
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