Public Employee Press

PEP and DC 37 Web site win labor media awards

DC 37’s Public Employee Press received four awards in the annual journalism competition held by the Metro New York Labor Communications Council, including first prize in the Best Reporting category, and the union’s Web site won an award in the Best Website contest.

The awards for work published in 2008 were presented June 5 at Metro’s annual convention. The Best Reporting winner was “Privatized Parks: how a non-profit group exploits a non-union workforce to maintain Central Park,” by Senior Associate Editor Gregory N. Heires. The contest judges described the article as “excellent reporting on a critical issue for NYC public workers,” and said it “focused on a particular instance of privatization as an example of the larger issue.”

PEP, edited by Bill Schleicher, also won 2nd place in the General Excellence contest among the largest circulation publications. The judges called PEP “consistently well written, with a focus on capturing members’ voices.”

PEP Photographer Clarence Elie-Rivera took second place in the Best Photograph category for his shot of Local 420 Patient Care Associate Yvonne Thomas on the job at Queens Hospital, which judges called a “technically excellent photo” that “sensitively captures the relationship” of the patient and the PCA.”

Third place in the Best Writing Category went to a story about the South Bronx, “A Dying Neighborhood and the Birth of Hip Hop,” by Associate Editor Alfredo Alvarado. The judges wrote that the article “pulses with the energy of the city, appeals to younger members and highlights the dynamism and creativity of city workers.”

The DC 37 Web site, www.DC37.net, produced by Communications Dept. Assistant Director Molly Charboneau and former PEP staffer Jaee Pathak, took second place in the Best Website category. SSEU Local 371’s Web site, www.sseu371.org, received a first prize. The site was also honored recently by the Association of Marketing and Communication Professionals with an overall Gold Award (second) and a homepage honorable mention in the Hermes Creative Awards competition.

Metro honored DC 37 Education Fund Librarian Ken Nash and coproducer Mimi Rosenberg with its Matt Doherty/Gwen Wells Excellence in Broadcast Media award for “Your Home, My Work — Domestic Workers Uniting,” a segment of their radio program, “Building Bridges: Your Community and Labor Report,” (Mondays at 7 p.m. on WBAI, 99.5 FM). The judges called the show “absorbing and educational” and said it “helps build the case for legislation” to protect the vulnerable workers.