ALBANY, N.Y., June 27, 2018 — On the heels of the U.S. Supreme Court’s attack on working families, teachers, police officers, firefighters and other public employees, labor leaders around the state are rallying in solidarity. Together, they are sending a resounding message that the wealthy anti-union forces behind today’s decision cannot break our commitment to economic justice and opportunity for all workers.
Today, NYSUT local union leaders will discuss the Janus ruling, and its impact locally, with reporters at the following press events statewide.
- CAPITAL REGION: Juliet Benaquisto, president, Schenectady Federation of Teachers Seth Cohen, president, Troy Teachers Association
- LONG ISLAND: Ron Verderber, president Jericho Teachers Association Perry Fuchs, president Plainedge Federation of Teachers Christine Corbett, president Westbury Teachers Association Kathy Dein, president North Babylon Teachers Organization Barbara Hafner,president, West Hempstead EA
- SYRACUSE: John Kuryla, president, North Syracuse Education Association Phil Cleary, vice president, North Syracuse Education Association Rob Wood, president, Rome Teachers Association
- ROCHESTER: Jim Buck, president, Wayne-Finger Lakes BOCES Educators Association Chris Potter, president, Gananda Teachers Association, Michelle Shenton, president, Phelps-Clifton Springs Faculty Association
- ELMIRA: Kathy Pilling-Whitney, president, Elmira Teachers Association Joseph Herringshaw, president, Vestal Teachers Association
- WESTERN NEW YORK Joe Cantafio, president, West Seneca Teachers Association Cheryl Hughes, secretary, Kenmore Teachers Association
- TARRYTOWN: Kara McCormick, president, White Plains Teachers Association Kathleen Fox, president, Edgemont Teachers Association
- WATERTOWN: Union representatives from the Watertown Education Association, Copenhagen Teachers Association,
Indian River EA and South Jefferson TA
“Wealthy special interests have been fighting for years to undercut unions and roll back the benefits earned by working families. Today’s Supreme Court decision in Janus vs. AFSCME shows how far they are willing to go to attack working families,” said NYSUT President Andy Pallotta. “We are ready for this fight. We have fought long and hard to protect our brothers and sisters in the labor movement, and we are not going to back down now. Our movement is stronger than ever. We are committed to working like never before to encourage every member to stick with our union.”
The Janus case — challenging the payment of mandatory dues and threatening public-sector unions — culminates decades of assault on working people by right-wing ideologues and wealthy special interests. The case overturns a 1977 U.S. Supreme Court decision establishing that it is fair and reasonable that those who benefit from union representation, even if they don’t join the union, should pay for it through dues and fair- share revenues. Dues and fair-share revenues fund a wide range of union services, including collective bargaining and legal representation.
For more information on today's events, please contact NYSUT Media Relations.
New York State United Teachers is a statewide union with more than 600,000 members in education, human services and health care. NYSUT is affiliated with the American Federation of Teachers, the National Education Association and the AFL-CIO.