Public Employee Press

Members lobby for CUNY in Albany

By ALFREDO ALVARADO

Executive Director Henry Garrido led a contingent of more than 100 union leaders and activists to the state capitol in Albany for a weekend of panel discussions and lobbying.

DC 37's group included activists who talked up the union's campaign for a fair contract at the City University of New York, where members have gone seven years without a raise. They gathered 600 signatures for a petition to Gov. Andrew Cuomo, calling upon him to help settle the contract and restore funding to CUNY.

The state of public housing, reducing gun violence and lowering the cost of prescription drugs were some of the topics discussed at the 45th annual Legislative Conference during the weekend of Feb. 12-14 in Albany sponsored by the New York State Association of Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislators.

DC 37 leaders honored

Mayor Bill de Blasio also attended the conference and urged the activists to continue fighting for progressive issues like the $15-an-hour minimum wage and paid family leave.

The mayor also voiced his support for a state Assembly plan to raise taxes on the wealthy. "The wealthy are not paying their fair share in taxes as a general rule," he said.

Garrido appeared on a panel in which he discussed the skyrocketing costs of prescription drugs. He advocated for more government oversight to keep prices down.

"Because of the lack of government control over prices, the pharmaceutical industry can basically charge whatever it wants," he said during the Saturday afternoon discussion. "This is a nationwide problem; drug plans are struggling with this everywhere."

Several DC 37 leaders were recipients of awards during the traditional Saturday morning labor breakfast.

Carmen Charles, president of Local 420, Maf Misbah Uddin, president of Local 1407 and treasurer of DC 37 and Garrido were honored at the breakfast for their contributions to the labor movement. DC 37 Legislative Director Wanda Williams was honored for her contributions to the labor movement during the Sunday morning breakfast sponsored by the Westchester Black Women's Political Caucus.