Public Employee Press

Local leaders speak out:
Stop layoffs and cutbacks now

By ALFREDO ALVARADO

With the Bloomberg administration planning severe cuts in jobs and services in the fiscal year beginning July 1, DC 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts and local leaders stayed on the offensive as they testified June 7 before the City Council Finance Committee. Roberts demanded cuts in payments to outside consultants (page 3), and the locals pressed the Council to restore the mayor's slashes in agency funds. Library locals spoke out against funding cuts that could result in 1,500 layoffs.

Millions of dollars were restored and hundreds of layoffs averted when the City Council voted on the budget nearly three weeks after union leaders and activists testified. See page 3.

Veronica Montgomery-Costa, president of Local 372 and DC 37, blasted the administration's contracting out and defended her local's school support workers, many of whom face potential layoffs.

Parks hit hard

SSEU Local 371 President Faye Moore urged the Finance Committee to restore $3 million to the budget of the Administration for Children's Services to prevent looming layoffs in child welfare programs. "While we do not wear uniforms or carry weapons, our work is no less necessary, no less heroic and no less critical to the city's well-being," she said.

The Bloomberg administration also proposes to cut some $30 million from the Parks Dept., wiping out jobs in maintenance and operation and shrinking opportunities for welfare recipients in the Job Training Participant program.

"The parks are already a bare-bones operation," said Local 983 Vice President Joe Puleo. "They have money to plant trees but not to maintain them, and trees that are not maintained can fall and kill people."

Ralph Palladino, 2nd Vice President of Local 1549, which represents 18,000 clerical workers in nearly every city agency, challenged City Council members to stand up against the cuts in services and jobs and support the return of the stock transfer tax and the commuter tax.

Local 768 President Fitz Reid criticized the city for firing 63 Pest Control Aides who bring in over $6 million in revenue at a cost of only $1.6 million. He said the result would be "chaos, a disaster," with "rats all over the city."

Laundry threatened

Local 154 president Juan Fernandez called for a hiring freeze on consultants. "We support a three-year consultant reduction plan to reduce the bloated costs and mismanagement of public resources."

With services at Child Health Clinics and the Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene on the mayor's chopping block, Local 436 President Judith Arroyo called on the City Council to restore $4 million to the budget "so these bureaus can continue to protect the public's health."

"Instead of contracting out and privatizing services we recommend that management at the Health and Hospitals Corp. work closely with Local 420 and all unions to improve the efficiency and quality of care," Local 420 President Carmen Charles testified. Charles also called for HHC to stop using part-timers to work full-time schedules.

"HHC should realize that they cannot retain quality staff under such conditions." The local is also fighting HHC's plans to close clinics and privatize the Brooklyn Central Laundry.