PEF Election Debates

Candidate debates for PEF statewide offices and trustees were held May 24, 2012, at PEF headquarters.

The unedited video of those debates is presented here for the use of PEF members in preparing to vote for these offices.

Statewide officer directory is also available for viewing here.

Nurses Lobby Day

Nearly 400 nurses from around the state gathered at the Convention Center in Albany May 22 to support the passage of legislation that would increase staffing levels at acute-care facilities and require safe-patient handling procedures.

The event was one of union solidarity featuring health care workers represented by PEF, the New York State United Teachers and Communications Workers of America.

Among the legislators who attended the rally to support safe staffing levels and safe patient handling were state Assembly Members Rory Lanceman and Hakeem Jeffries.

State Workforce Down, Consultants on the Rise and Costing State More

ALBANY, NY - The New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) today released its second in a series of reports on how much money the state wastes by relying on costly consultants to do the work state employees can do for less.

The most recent report, "New York's Consultants: The Invisible Workforce," reveals that from fiscal year 2008-09 to 2011-12, the state hired at least 1,300 additional consultants, for an increase of 24 percent while decreasing the state workforce by more than 14,000 employees. And it cost the state much more money than having state employees do the same work even with the costs of benefits included.

"The state continues to waste the most money hiring consultants to do work on engineering and information technology, work that will always be there and work our members can do for far less," said PEF President Ken Brynien.

The state paid between $133.31 and $239.67 per hour for some information technology consultants. State employees are paid an average of $55.72 per hour, including benefits to do the same work. It gets worse when you factor in consultant costs for accountants and auditors. Some consultants are paid $204.72 per hour, while state employees are paid $52.82 per hour for the same work.

"There are millions in savings to be had," Brynien added. "We will continue to push the Legislature to pass the cost-benefit analysis bill (S3093/A5128-A) sponsored by Senator Joe Robach and Assemblyman Harry Bronson. The bill requires state agencies to do a cost comparison to determine whether state employees could do the same work at a lower cost. Our research continues to prove we can do the work for less."

The report: "New York's Consultants: The Invisible Workforce," details how many consultants the state employed over the past several years, which agencies rely on consultants the most, what services the consultants provide, the agencies and consulting services with the greatest growth and the type of consultant companies with the largest contracts with the state.

PEF Members and Leaders testify on dangers of new "close to home" initiative

The new Close to Home initiative focuses on reducing the placement of troubled youths in facilities operated by the state Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) and, instead, concentrates on moving troubled youths to privately run facilties in the very same neighborhoods where they got into trouble in the first place.

PEF leaders and members who work for OCFS joined parents of troubled youths and concerned residents to point out several deficiencies in the plan, including: the high percentage of youths who escape from private facilities, the lack of safety measures at the private facilties and the fact that 38 percent of the youths being moved into these neighborhood communities committed violent crimes.

The hearings were held Monday, May 7, between 5 pm and 8 pm at Brooklyn Borough Hall, 209 Joralemon Street, Brooklyn and again Tuesday, May 8, between 10 am and 1 pm at the Health Building, 2nd Floor Auditorium, 125 Worth Street, New York.

PEF members who have spent years nurturing, teaching and monitoring troubled youths went on-the-record about the many success stories of youths who have turned their lives around in state-operated facilities. For many of the youths and their families, the last thing they needed to be was "close to home."