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Public
Employee Press RESIDENCY
VICTORY Relief for 45,000 members becomes law as City Council overrides mayors
veto 47-0
By DIANE S. WILLIAMS
The
City Council voted unanimously Feb. 11 to override Mayor Michael R. Bloombergs
veto of the bill that lifts residency restrictions for 45,000 members of District
Council 37.
With the 470 override vote, Intro. 837 became city law,
capping the unions two-and-a-half-year campaign for justice with victory.
Lifting
the residency requirement for our members has always been an equity issue and,
after such a long struggle, this is definitely good news, said DC 37 Executive
Director Lillian Roberts.
The major legislative triumph achieved
through years of demonstrating and lobbying at City Hall immediately gives
DC 37 members whose locals have entered collective bargaining agreements or consent
determinations and who have completed two years of city service the right to live
within the six counties surrounding New York CityNassau, Suffolk, Westchester,
Orange, Putnam and Rockland.
Employees who were on the payroll when the
bill was introduced are covered immediately; newly hired city workers will have
to live in the citys five boroughs for their first two years on the job.
A
fight for fairness The magnitude of the city's housing shortage
meant that more needed to be done, Roberts said. The residency restriction
had posed a hardship for workers searching for affordable housing in one of the
countrys most expensive housing markets. In 2006, the mayor agreed in the
unions citywide contract to support expanding residency rules.
The
City Council has taken a major step in addressing a very important problem faced
by the hardworking men and women who devote their lives to making sure this city
runs smoothly, Roberts said.
Since the residency restrictions were
put in place in 1986, DC 37 has fought for members to enjoy the same rights and
choices as other city employees, such as Police, Teachers, Firefighters and Sanitation
workers.
This is a significant victory in DC 37s battle for
fairness and justice, said DC 37 Associate Director Oliver Gray. More than
85 percent of DC 37 members currently live in the city. While the new law gives
them the option of moving to the surrounding counties, that number is not likely
to change much.
The City Council passed the legislation 501 on Dec.
18, and the mayor vetoed the bill just before the Jan. 18 deadline. By then DC
37 had gained enough support in the City Council to override the veto, which required
a minimum of 34 votes, said Political Action Director Wanda Williams.
Council
member Robert Jackson and 44 others sponsored Intro. 837, which differs slightly
from the original Intro. 452-A that former Council member Joseph P. Addabbo Jr.
sponsored. Williams said the union thanks Speaker Christine Quinn and the members
of City Council for their votes to override the veto.
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