{"id":14691,"date":"2026-08-18T16:56:00","date_gmt":"2026-08-18T20:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/?p=14691"},"modified":"2026-08-18T17:35:00","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T21:35:00","slug":"pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/","title":{"rendered":"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><em><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-14694 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web-300x280.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"280\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web-300x280.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg 500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>August 18, 2026 &#8212;<\/em> <span data-teams=\"true\">New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) members turned out in force to ratify the union\u2019s 2026-2031 collective bargaining agreement, with 88 percent of voters in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical (PS&amp;T) unit casting yes votes.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p>\u201cLabor unity builds power,\u201d said PEF President Wayne Spence, who has now negotiated five collective bargaining agreements as head of the union. \u201cOverwhelming support of this contract sends a message and will position us for gains in the legislature, in the workplace, and in the community. Our members saw the value of this contract, with well over $4 billion in new money, and they stood behind it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The five-year contract includes:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Annual raises of 4.5%, 4%, 3.5%, 3% and 3% each year of the agreement, which compounds to equal a salary increase of 19.3% over the term;<\/li>\n<li>Provisions for a new Employee Benefit Fund to deliver improved dental and vision benefits;<\/li>\n<li>The continuation of a $600 annual Higher Education Differential that recognizes the unique professional qualifications of PEF members;<\/li>\n<li>Increases in location and inconvenience pay, as well as a hazardous duty bonus for certain members;<\/li>\n<li>No additional health insurance co-pays for the life of the agreement and the elimination of stacked co-pays.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\u201cPEF fought hard throughout these negotiations to secure a fair contract that recognizes our dedication and the essential services we provide New Yorkers,\u201d said Spence. \u201cWe appreciate Governor Hochul and her team for working with us to reach an agreement that addresses the priorities of our members and reflects the value of our hard work. None of this would have been possible without the hard work and dedication of the PEF Contract Team, led by Chief Negotiator Mark Richard and PEF Vice President and Contract Chair Darlene Williams.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The other members of the PEF Contract Team are:<\/p>\n<p>Scarlett Ahmed \u2014 Department of Labor, Queens<br \/>\nVincent Cicatello \u2014 Office of Mental Health, Buffalo<br \/>\nConrad Davis \u2014 Tax &amp; Finance, Brooklyn<br \/>\nChristopher Ford \u2014 Office of Information Technology Services, Albany<br \/>\nGeorge Howard \u2014 Office of Information Technology Services, Queens<br \/>\nChristopher Jordan \u2014 Department of Transportation, Hornell<br \/>\nMaureen Kozakiewicz \u2014 Department of Motor Vehicles, Albany<br \/>\nTanya Oliver \u2013 Department of Corrections and Community Supervision, Albany<br \/>\nBen Traslavi\u00f1a \u2014 PEF Director of Contract Administration<br \/>\nCynthia Walker \u2014 SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>August 18, 2026 &#8212; New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) members turned out in force to ratify the union\u2019s 2026-2031 collective bargaining agreement, with 88 percent of voters in&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":14694,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,6],"tags":[],"division":[],"allowed_regions":[],"allowed_divisions":[],"class_list":["post-14691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-contract","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.6 (Yoast SEO v27.9) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract - PEF<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"August 18, 2026 &#8212; New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) members turned out in force to ratify the union\u2019s 2026-2031 collective bargaining agreement, with 88 percent of voters in...\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"PEF\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-08-18T20:56:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-08-18T21:35:00+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"467\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"ksheehan\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"ksheehan\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"ksheehan\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e\"},\"headline\":\"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-18T20:56:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-18T21:35:00+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":369,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Ratified-Web.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Contract\",\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/\",\"name\":\"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract - PEF\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Ratified-Web.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-08-18T20:56:00+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-08-18T21:35:00+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/contract\\\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Ratified-Web.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/08\\\/Ratified-Web.jpg\",\"width\":500,\"height\":467},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/\",\"name\":\"PEF\",\"description\":\"New York State Public Employees Federation\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e\",\"name\":\"ksheehan\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.pef.org\\\/articles\\\/author\\\/ksheehan\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract - PEF","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract","og_description":"August 18, 2026 &#8212; New York State Public Employees Federation (PEF) members turned out in force to ratify the union\u2019s 2026-2031 collective bargaining agreement, with 88 percent of voters in...","og_url":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/","og_site_name":"PEF","article_published_time":"2026-08-18T20:56:00+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-08-18T21:35:00+00:00","og_image":[{"width":500,"height":467,"url":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"ksheehan","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"ksheehan","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/"},"author":{"name":"ksheehan","@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e"},"headline":"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract","datePublished":"2026-08-18T20:56:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-18T21:35:00+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/"},"wordCount":369,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg","articleSection":["Contract","News"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/","url":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/","name":"PEF members overwhelmingly ratify contract - PEF","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg","datePublished":"2026-08-18T20:56:00+00:00","dateModified":"2026-08-18T21:35:00+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/contract\/pef-members-overwhelmingly-ratify-contract\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Ratified-Web.jpg","width":500,"height":467},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/","name":"PEF","description":"New York State Public Employees Federation","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/#\/schema\/person\/b56382350a9a958e03dcd60443bfbf7e","name":"ksheehan","url":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/articles\/author\/ksheehan\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/users\/13"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=14691"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14691\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":14708,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/posts\/14691\/revisions\/14708"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/media\/14694"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=14691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=14691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=14691"},{"taxonomy":"division","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/division?post=14691"},{"taxonomy":"allowed_regions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/allowed_regions?post=14691"},{"taxonomy":"allowed_divisions","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.pef.org\/noduslink\/wp\/v2\/allowed_divisions?post=14691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}