Public Employee Press

Good services in tough times

We are going to control costs throughout the year while maintaining the vast array of services members enjoy.

With the union facing tough economic and political times, we are doing our best to keep spending under control.

Our approved operating budget of $42.1 million for 2010 represents a modest 1.9 percent increase over the $41.3 million budget of 2009. We kept the budget increase below the rate of inflation.

We anticipate a $1.9 million deficit. But the union has $27 million in reserves, so the deficit is manageable and we will be able to sustain losses.

The shortfall means that we will have to control costs carefully and look for ways to trim spending throughout the year. Already, we have held down our administrative operating expenses by more than $200,000 this year compared with what we spent in 2009.

The projected deficit reflects an anticipated decline in our membership as the state and city impose budget cuts and personnel reductions. The deficit also reflects the increased personnel expenses required under our contracts with the unions that represent DC 37 employees.

The deficit is also driven by the fact that we are getting less income because the dues rate adopted by our national union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, is historically low.

Why has this occurred? Usually dues keep up with the cost of living, but that hasn’t happened recently. The per capita (per member) dues rate that ultimately determines our income is based upon the wage rates in contracts of AFSCME unions nationwide, which have been very modest because of the country’s severe economic downturn.

As we developed the budget, we took special care to adopt spending restrictions that don’t jeopardize services to members. I would like to express my appreciation to the union’s division and department heads for working closely with me and the accounting staff to come up with their budget plans. The DC 37 Executive Board, which acts as the union’s Budget Committee, approved the plan after a close evaluation.

Cost control

I would like to let you know about a number of steps the union has taken to control costs:

• The 2010 budget provides for no personnel increases. DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts has called for a hiring freeze, and we haven’t budgeted for any new positions this year. As union employees retire or move on to other jobs outside the union, we will evaluate whether we can avoid filling their positions.
• The Treasurer’s Office must approve all major expenditures following a comprehensive needs assessment.
• We have eliminated expenditures on staff training and conferences, except where required under our staff contracts. The budget projects expenditures for this summer’s AFSCME convention at $250,000, which is $200,000 less than we spent on the last convention.

The executive director must approve all staff attendance at conferences. We will, of course, continue to cover training that is contractually required or necessary for maintaining skills.

We have also held down the cost of our capital budget, which typically covers such items as computer software and equipment, workstations, fax and photocopying machines and print shop equipment. Our capital budget for this year is $648,400, which is $59,945 less than last year, a cut of more than 8 percent.

In short, we have come up with a tight budget that copes responsibly with difficult times for public employees. But we are confident we will be able to continue to deliver the vast array of services that all of you enjoy and deserve as members of DC 37.