April 27, 2005

Dear TCC Employee,

As you know the Commissioner of Labor has unilaterally determined that it is necessary to close the New York City Telephone Claims Center (TCC) located at 345 Hudson Street. I assure you that PEF will do everything in its power to stop this closure. The Department of Labor has not provided adequate documentation for its financial and programmatic justifications for closing this office. Our strategy to fight this closure will involve member mobilization, a public relations campaign and a lobbying effort to ask the Governor, State Legislature and New York Congressional delegation to take all necessary steps to stop this closure.

This closure adversely impacts not only you and other TCC employees but all New York City residents, particularly those who do not speak English. The City will not have an adequate number of State employees familiar with the New York City labor market or able to speak and understand Spanish and Chinese in order to make fair and informed decisions about unemployment insurance claims in New York City.

Your local PEF leaders will keep you informed of PEF’s fightback strategy and how you can help us stop this closure. For now, we are asking you, your family members, friends, and neighbors to send the enclosed letter or a variation of it to the Governor and your State Assemblyman and State Senator. Every person who wants to send this letter can also go to PEF’s website at www.pef.org and send it electronically and/or determine who is your State Assemblyman or State Senator and their legislative address. It is important that we generate as many letters as possible opposing this closure.

While we are fighting this closure it is important for you to understand the Department of Labor and Department of Civil Service will be providing you with information about relocating to Glendale or Troy and assisting you in finding other State employment. While PEF will be making our best effort to prevent the TCC closure, we cannot guarantee that we can stop this closure, so you should work with these agencies in order to maximize your options in maintaining State employment.

With your help and help of your fellow PEF members we can work together to mobilize New York State residents to successfully oppose this ill-advised closure.

Sincerely,


Roger E. Benson
President