The PEF Contract Team is asking members across the state to voice their opinions on 13 questions and will use their answers to shape the direction of negotiations going forward. At a telephone town hall held Tuesday, May 18, PEF’s chief negotiator, Mark Richard, said that PEF is at a crossroads and needs to have...
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With continuing concern among PEF members about COVID vaccines, telecommuting and workplace safety protocols, PEF Health and Safety and Field Services staff offered a webinar May 12 to share information and advice on those topics and more. Health and Safety Director Geraldine Stella briefed members on the status of the virus in New York, noting...
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Handmade signs thanking them for their hard work and dedication welcomed nurses coming to work at Rochester Psychiatric Center (RPC) recently. PEF member Katie Walker, a licensed clinical social worker at RPC, is the coleader of her daughter’s Girl Scout Troop and said the girls brainstormed content for posters to place around the facility and...
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The Public Employees Federation applauds the passage of the “safe staffing” bills by the New York State Legislature. We thank the Democratic majorities in both houses and particularly the bill sponsors, Senator Gustavo Rivera and Assemblymember Aileen Gunther. COVID-19 showed the world how critical New York’s nurses are when it comes to caring for the state’s most...
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Wayne Spence will remain PEF president for his third three-year term beginning this August. The Members’ Voice slate was certified for all statewide offices (president, secretary-treasurer, three vice-presidents and three trustees). No opposition candidates were certified by the PEF Elections Committee following its review of nominating petitions, so no balloting is necessary for those offices....
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The PEF contract team, joined by President Wayne Spence, met virtually with state negotiators April 27 to resume bargaining on a successor agreement after the state postponed talks for more than a year due to COVID-19. “We want to get this going as expeditiously as possible,” Spence said. “PEF members have been without a contract...
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Under clear skies, PEF leaders gathered at the memorial outside PEF Headquarters to honor the 33 members who passed away since April 2020, reading aloud their names and observing a moment of silence. “In 1970, the Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) went into effect, promising every worker the right to a safe job,” said...
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The following commentary by PEF President Wayne Spence ran in the Albany Times Union on April 27 and is republished here for our members who don’t subscribe to the newspaper. President Joe Biden’s American Jobs Plan would be a much-needed shot in the arm for this country’s ailing roads, bridges, and other public infrastructure. Here in...
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We wanted to let PEF members know that New York State recently made available $26.6 million funded through private donations for the Empire Pandemic Grant Program. The money is intended for essential workers and first responders for “unreimbursed expenses they incurred while responding to the coronavirus pandemic between March 1 and July 31, 2020.” More information can be...
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