PEF Secretary-Treasurer Joe Donahue presented the 2022-23 budget for approval, with proposed $28,657,861 in revenue and the same in expenditures \u2013 a zero net change budget.<\/p>\n
He outlined amendments to the Dec. 13, 2021 financial statements to account for higher than expected expenditures, including printing costs for the 2019-22 contract book; increased office supply, communications and minor equipment costs for the new PEF Headquarters; and an increase in janitorial and security expenses.<\/p>\n
The advertising budget increased to cover the Fund Our Future campaign and to purchase PPE for members. Scholarship funding, affiliation fees and professional fees also increased.<\/p>\n
Donahue pointed out the new vendor for election balloting, Educational Vistas, is more expensive than the previous vendor and the need for running Executive Board seat balloting every quarter costs the union $20,000 each time, regardless of whether there are candidates.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have to run the opportunity for an election, even if people don\u2019t run, we are still charged each time we do it,\u201d he said, urging all members of the board to seek out members who may be interested in filling those vacancies.<\/p>\n
Membership dues saw a bump in the fall due to retroactive raises in the new contract, but membership numbers continue to decline. Donahue said PEF will continue to look at ways to increase those numbers, including hiring two new organizers.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor the 2021-22 budget year, membership was estimated at 50,000,\u201d he said. \u201cThese rates have continued to decline throughout the fiscal year, leading to a conservative estimate of 47,000 members for the 2022-23 fiscal year.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the coming year, proposed expenditures are up largely due to the anticipated return to in-person meetings, activities and the 2022 PEF Convention in Niagara Falls.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe cannot increase budget items to pre-pandemic levels, but we want to be able to hold more in-person and that will mean additional costs,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re here to serve the members.\u201d<\/p>\n
The board approved the budget.\u00a0Board approves PAC endorsements<\/strong><\/p>\n The Statewide Political Action Committee recommended candidate endorsements to the executive board for the following candidates for attorney general, Senate districts (SD) and Assembly districts (AD):<\/p>\n Leticia James, Attorney General; Kevin Parker (SD 21); Brian Kavanaugh (SD 26); Luis Sepulveda (SD 32); Cordell Cleare (SD30); Robert Jackson (SD 31); Erik Dilan (AD 54); Peter Abbate (AD 49); Vivian Cook (AD 32); Kevin Cahill (AD 103); Tom Abinanti (AD 92); Michael Benedetto (AD 82); and Eddie Gibbs (AD 68).<\/p>\n \u201cThis is a major part of what political action committees across the regions do,\u201d said Vice President Randi DiAntonio, who chairs PEF\u2019s Statewide Political Action Committee. \u201cRegions have the responsibility to send out questionnaires, interview and determine which candidates in their regions they want to recommend for endorsement. The process is open to all members in the region.<\/p>\n \u201cPEF does not generally get involved in early endorsements in primary races,\u201d she continued. \u201cHowever, sometimes it behooves us to get involved. Good allies may need our support to remain in office.\u201d<\/p>\n The endorsements were approved by the board.<\/p>\n Gubernatorial candidates address board<\/strong><\/p>\n Suozzi took the stage first on March 24, followed by Zeldin, and Hochul addressed the board on March 26. New York City Public Advocate Jumaane Williams, who is also running in the Democratic gubernatorial primary, was unable to attend.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is it, right now, this is the time we all need to pull together,\u201d Suozzi said. \u201cWe need to start doing things that serve the people. We have got to fight for the middle class and unions are the way to do it. We have to fight for our unions.\u201d<\/p>\n Zeldin said New York is very different right now than in previous years.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople don\u2019t feel safe on the streets, in the subways,\u201d he said. \u201cNew Yorkers across the state are deciding, \u2018That\u2019s it\u2019 and they\u2019re leaving.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul said it\u2019s an honor to be surrounded by the dedicated and compassionate members of PEF.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve been defending public sector workers since those days,\u201d she said, recounting her family\u2019s history of social justice. \u201cYou\u2019re doing the work because you believe in public safety, health care, front line workers in every sense of the word.\u201d<\/p>\n On the nursing shortage and exodus of nurses from the state, Suozzi said the key is figuring out how to pay nurses salaries that are competitive with the private sector and that the disparity is demoralizing and unfair.<\/p>\n \u201cI love nurses,\u201d he said. \u201cMy mother was a nurse. I have great respect for nurses. We have got to figure out how to pay our nurses to be competitive with the private sector.\u201d<\/p>\n Zeldin said nobody should be fired for not getting the COVID vaccine and nurse pay needs to be competitive.<\/p>\n \u201cIf they are not paid enough for what they do, they end up being hired away to someplace paying more,\u201d he said. \u201cSome people just love the work. A lot of people are early in their careers and the benefits aren\u2019t as generous.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul pointed to her first budget as reflection of her dedication to nursing.<\/p>\n \u201cA budget for the first time ever leaned hard into shoring up the nursing profession,\u201d she said. \u201cThe disinvestment has gone on for too long. Yes, this is bold and ambitious and expensive, but if we don\u2019t make these investments now, shame on us.\u201d<\/p>\n PEF members stepped up and successfully telecommuted since the start of the pandemic. The membership wants to know if the next governor will continue or improve remote work options.<\/p>\n Suozzi said telecommuting made life easier for a lot of people, but it must be balanced and fair.<\/p>\n \u201cSome jobs you can do remotely, but not everybody can telecommute. We need to set up an accountability system,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Zeldin said telecommuting makes sense for many occupations, but some people are more productive than others when working from home.<\/p>\n \u201cYou need to keep a short leash,\u201d he said. \u201cYou can\u2019t paint all people with the same brush.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul said she would be willing to come to the table and negotiate telecommuting with PEF.<\/p>\n \u201cThis COVID experience has given us an opportunity to examine new ideas,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is something we will consider in all our collective bargaining agreements. The five-day work week is probably over. But there also needs to be a sense of fairness involved.\u201d<\/p>\n Investing in the future of New York, both the workforce and the services it provides, is crucial for a thriving New York.<\/p>\n Zeldin said investing in state services can actually save money by reducing the number of clients who slip through the cracks.<\/p>\n \u201cInvesting saves money in the long run,\u201d he said. \u201cA lot of people will rely more on the government if you don\u2019t help them.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul credited a conversation with President Spence for inspiring investments in her budget.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re going to continue investing,\u201d she said. \u201cIt means hiring more people. There should not be vacant positions. If a position was created, obviously there was a need for it. I want New York to be a model employer.\u201d<\/p>\n The Tier 6 pension plan falls short and PEF is working in the legislature to amend the plan.<\/p>\n Suozzi said good pay, good benefits and a robust pension draw people into public service and that needs to be studied and discussed.<\/p>\n Zeldin said the pension is a huge recruitment and retention tool. \u201cWe have to look at the entire package,\u201d he said. \u201cThink creatively. Pensions are one piece.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul was willing to discuss pension reform.<\/p>\n The fight against privatization calls for keeping state work in the hands of state employees. PEF advocates for looking inward, not out to contractors, for projects and services. A cost-benefit analysis is vital to a fair and transparent process.<\/p>\n Suozzi supports cost-benefit analyses and using the state workforce, pointing out that the previous administration brought in outside contracts frequently.<\/p>\n Zeldin also recognized the importance of cost-benefit analysis and said hiring consultants to tell you what you already know is a waste of money.<\/p>\n \u201cThe best source of ideas comes from inside the agency,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n PEF members across the state face a toxic workplace. Candidates were asked what they would do to hold management accountable and lift up employees.<\/p>\n Suozzi said there needs to be accountability and there must be rules and regulations and a process to follow. \u201cI believe New York can be the model employer,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Zeldin said the culture trickles from the top down and some people think they are more important than others. \u201cWe don\u2019t want an emperor government,\u201d he said. \u201cYou need to respect your peers.\u201d<\/p>\n Hochul pledged to change the culture and how abuses are handled.<\/p>\n \u201cNo longer should someone have to report an abuse to the same people who are protecting the people who are doing it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n The PEF regional PACs will meet and make a recommendation to the Statewide Political Action Committee who will ultimately make an endorsement recommendation for governor that the Executive Board will consider at their June 2022 meeting.<\/p>\n Organizing \u2018Blitz\u2019 in Albany<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cA blitz is a mobilization effort to reengage members of the union and to do it in a very personal, one-on-one, way,\u201d said PEF Director of Organizing Dan Carpenter. \u201cThe last time we did this, in 2017, there was an 18-person team broken into six teams that went and visited 27 different worksites in a week. They knocked on 1,300 doors and had one-on-one conversations with members across Region 8.\u201d<\/p>\n PEF organizers participated in other union blitzes in Alaska, Montana and Colorado, Carpenter said. Now is the time to bring the blitz back to PEF, since new hires have to opt in to union membership after the Janus decision and reaching them has been difficult.<\/p>\n \u201cDuring COVID we lost the ability to hold in-person traditional onboarding,\u201d Carpenter said. \u201cA number of people fell through the cracks. We are taking the opportunity to work with AFT. They bring 18 members from across the nation and we\u2019re going to bring 18 staff and members and we are going to do this all over again. The goal is to knock on 1,000 doors and hold 50 to 55 worksite meetings in a week.\u201d<\/p>\n Carpenter said the team hopes to reach at least the 500 full-time hires who are not currently in the union. \u00a0The blitz will take place April 24-29, 2022.<\/p>\n This is just the first blitz. PEF plans to use it as a model to hold mini-blitzes around the state.<\/p>\n Legislative engagement and updates<\/strong><\/p>\n Texting is a successful way to get members involved in legislative letter-writing campaigns, said Vice President DiAntonio. She reported members submitted 1,713 letters on telecommuting; 459 on the ITS budget; 1,041 on the social safety net; 996 on health care bonuses; 484 on reinvestment to DOCCS programs; 545 on design-build; and 8,538 on pension reform.<\/p>\n \u201cThere are lots of opportunities to engage members over this,\u201d DiAntonio said. \u201cThis is how we communicate our issues with our legislators. They do take note of the numbers of letters. Getting thousands of emails, letters, pushes on Facebook, wherever we can let them know where our concerns are.\u201d<\/p>\n Members are encouraged to make sure PEF has an accurate cell phone number and personal email address so they can participate in member actions.<\/p>\n PEF Legislative Director Patrick Lyons said this is a very different year in Albany.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is really the first year that we\u2019re not on a major defensive in terms of the state budget,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/Eb-Gov.jpg\")
Three candidates vying for New York State Governor \u2013 Gov. Kathy Hochul, Congressman Tom Suozzi and Congressman Lee Zeldin \u2013 addressed the PEF Executive Board seeking the union\u2019s endorsement, answering questions submitted by the membership on the nursing shortage, telecommuting, the Fund Our Future campaign, privatization and toxic workplace culture.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/EB-Blitz.jpg\")
Late next month, in partnership with AFT, and with help from an SEIU grant, PEF will hold a membership \u201cblitz\u201d in Albany, knocking on doors and engaging with potential members face-to-face.<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/communicator.pef.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/03\/EB-Wayne.jpg\")