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2006 brings new contracts to some, but other trouble spots remain
Feb. 16, 2006 Tami Gold, Hunter College chapter chairwoman for PSC, greets a student on a picket line. Consider in an academic context just how long faculty and professional staff at the City University of New York have been working without a new contract: Students who graduate this spring from CUNY's four-year colleges were incoming freshmen when the Professional Staff Association's contract expired in the fall of 2002. PSC, which represents some 20,000 CUNY faculty and professional staff, and the 2,200-member Yonkers Federation of Teachers are the two largest bargaining units in New York State United Teachers that are working without successor agreements in place. Three months after hashing out the framework for a settlement with CUNY and waiting for CUNY to obtain the necessary backing of the city and state, PSC President Barbara Bowen said the union welcomes an opportunity to meet with CUNY, state and city officials at a long overdue negotiating session scheduled for Feb. 16. "If what they come across the table with is unacceptable to us, the bargaining team is prepared to respond," Bowen said. "If the terms can't be made acceptable, we are prepared to pursue political, legal and organizing strategies to win what the members need." In Yonkers , members of YFT's bargaining team have taken a first-ever step for the local as they approach their third anniversary without a new contract. "We've gone to fact-finding," said YFT President Pat Puleo. She's hoping appointment of an arbitrator from the state Public Employment Relations Board "produces some movement after an honest evaluation of three years of negotiating." As this issue of New York Teacher went to press, 58,608 NYSUT members represented by 234 bargaining units were working under expired agreements. NYSUT President Dick Iannuzzi praised them for their "steadfast dedication. "Whether they are on campus, in the classroom, treating the sick, driving a school bus or providing counseling services, they remain focused on the job at hand," Iannuzzi said. Bitterness behind The final months of 2005 also brought settlements at some of NYSUT's biggest locals. In New York City , the union's largest affiliate, the United Federation of Teachers, ended a 2 1/2-year struggle in November when members overwhelmingly ratified a 52-month agreement that provides a 15 percent pay increase in exchange for a slightly longer school day and other tradeoffs. "It is my hope that with this agreement we can put the bitterness of the last few years behind us and work together to provide the highest quality education for our students," UFT President Randi Weingarten said in a statement to the UFT's more than 110,000 members. Also in New York City in November, members of the Union of Clerical, Administrative and Technical Staff at New York University ratified an agreement that will increase wages by more than 20 percent over six years. "For the first time in our 26-year history we achieved a general duty health and safety clause, paid union release days to attend conferences and conventions, and union notification of suspensions and terminations," said Stephen Rechner, president of the 1,371-member local. Adam Urbanski, president of the Rochester Teachers Association, described a three-year agreement ratified in December by a majority of his 3,400 members as "an extraordinary win-win pact on behalf of our students." In addition to raising salaries and lowering class sizes, Urbanski said the "most exciting provision" is establishment of a joint task force — co-chaired by Urbanski and the superintendent of schools — exploring ways to benchmark teacher salaries to salaries of other professions with comparable educational backgrounds. "It's about time teachers saw salaries comparable to salaries of other comparable professions," Urbanski said." Rochester is best positioned to lead the way in that important effort." Health care issues While the higher cost of health care continues to dominate negotiations statewide, some locals have favorably resolved the issue of who should shoulder the cost of higher premiums. Among them, Nassau Community College Federation of Teachers on Long Island settled a three-year agreement that continues fully paid health insurance for in-service and retired members. In Schenectady County , the Mohonasen Support Staff Association negotiated an agreement that actually increases the employer contribution to retiree health insurance. Members of the Albany County Nursing Home's Professional Staff Association saw no increase in health insurance contributions in negotiating their first contract as a NYSUT affiliate. Also ratifying their first contracts as NYSUT affiliates were the Monticello Teaching Assistants and Monticello Central School District Secretarial Association in Sullivan County. In a random look at other recent agreements around the state, Elmira TA has settled for the period 2005-07 with increases of 3.75 percent and 4 percent ... In the southwestern corner of the state, Fredonia and Randolph Academy Support Staffs have both negotiated agreements that expire in 2009. After working for three years under an expired contract, the Association of Occupa- tional and Physical Therapists at Orleans-Niagara BOCES settled an agreement that runs to 2007 ... In the North Country, settlements have been reached at Chazy, St. Regis Falls, Willsboro and Jefferson-Lewis BOCES TAs. — John Strachan |
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