POUGHKEEPSIE — Poughkeepsie City School District officials haven’t done the right thing when it comes to paying our CSEA-represented security guards on time, but our members recently showed that they never quit on the district’s students despite blatant disrespect from district officials.
Knowing that both the boys’ and girls’ varsity basketball teams were headed to Section 1 playoffs, our members had a difficult decision to make.
District officials made an arbitrary decision several months ago to pay security guards for their work at the end of the basketball season, rather than in each paycheck, as they’ve always been paid. The workers, along with our CSEA representatives, were in the midst of negotiating a resolution to the standoff when the time came for playoff games.
Our members chose to set the positive example district officials hadn’t. Even knowing there were no guarantees about when they’d finally be paid their back wages, they showed up to work.
“This has been an incredible year for Poughkeepsie’s basketball teams and our members don’t want the ineptitude of certain district officials to hurt the teams’ chances of state championships,” Southern Region President Billy Riccaldo said in a news release announcing the workers’ decision.
Each year, CSEA members employed as district security guards supervise home basketball games. Wages for working those games have been paid to employees in their regular paychecks, not at the end of the basketball season.
Despite a district official’s comment to local media stating that CSEA had agreed for security guards to receive payment in full at the end of the season, there was no such agreement.
While the security guards agreed to work the remaining games of this basketball season, CSEA will file a complaint on our members’ behalf to the U.S. Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division.
“What has happened here is clear wage theft,” Riccaldo said. “Many of our security guards have not been paid for their work at basketball games since the end of November. These are people who, just like the rest of us, have bills to pay and families to support.”
As this edition went to press, CSEA was negotiating an agreement with the district for future work at athletic events and demanding that members be paid all wages owed to them.
“This injustice is a reminder of why belonging to the union is so important,” said CSEA Dutchess Educational Employees Local President Scott Rajczi. “Being part of a union gives workers the freedom to speak up on the job, which is what our members have done so courageously. They should be proud of themselves for doing the right thing for the students even when the district has failed to do the same. Our CSEA members aren’t just the backbone of the Poughkeepsie schools, they’re also the heart.”
— Jessica Ladlee
