Bill named for Russo-Elling requires them to respond to emergencies with a partner
BY DUNCAN FREEMAN dfreeman@thechiefleader.com
EMS workers in New York will no longer have to respond to emergency calls alone, according to legislation named after an FDNY EMS officer who was fatally stabbed in the line of duty and passed by state lawmakers last week.
The Alison Russo EMT Supervisor Staffing Act ensures that no EMS provider in a city of more than one million people in New York State travels solo to the scene of an emergency. The bill, named for Lieutenant Alison Russo-Elling, a 24-year FDNY veteran who was killed in September 2022, would close a loophole that allows EMS workers and officers to be dispatched without a partner.
Unions representing EMS workers felt an update to the state’s health code was necessary to protect both EMS workers and the New Yorkers they’re treating. Anthony Almojera, a lieutenant paramedic who was friends with Russo-Elling, said the legislation’s approval was bittersweet because although the bill passed largely because of Russo’s death, she will be “eternally remembered as the person who provided safety for EMS officers.”
“It means everything to finally get aid for the only 9-1-1 responders who ride solo,” he said. “To have someone watching my back on the scene to help with situations, it just brings me extra comfort.”
Almojera, vice president of District Council Local 3621, the EMS officer’s union, predicts that the city will have to more than double the number of EMS lieutenants on staff to comply with the legislation, which awaits Governor Hochul’s signature. He argued that the increase in staffing is needed because burned-out lieutenants have been
State legislation spotlights cops’ mental well-being
Lawmakers OK confidentiality bill
BY RICHARD KHAVKINE richardk@thechiefleader.com
As families and police agencies in New York State contend with an uptick in officer suicides, lawmakers have passed legislation that would establish confidentiality provisions in a formalized mental-health support program run by cops themselves.
Pending Governor Hochul’s signature, which is expected, the
Lieutenant Joseph Banish Mental Health Act would establish a training program for select law enforcement officers to provide them with the know-how to speak with their colleagues contending with trauma, grief or depression.
Named for a 35-year-old New York State Police officer who took his own life in April 2008, the bill is similar to bipartisan federal legislation enacted in 2021 that instituted confidential peer support services for federal law enforcement officers.
See COPS, page 6
leaving the force — including three this week, he said — due to the increasing call volume.
Russo-Elling, a first responder to the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks on the World Trade Center, was ambushed by Queens resident Peter Zisopoulos about a block and half from her station house in Astoria while she was walking to investigate a call for help. Russo-Elling was without a partner that day, and union leaders say that the support of a colleague could have saved her life.
In the wake of Russo-Elling’s death, the City Council passed and Mayor Eric Adams signed two bills mandating that the FDNY provide every EMS worker with body armor and training in both self-defense and de-escalation. There were 187 physical assaults of FDNY EMS members by their patients in 2023 and 258 in 2024, according to the FDNY.
Council probes sharp drop in whistleblower retaliation claims by city workers
Bar for protections ‘too high’: fired worker
BY CRYSTAL LEWIS clewis@thechiefleader.com
Although the city has increased the number of corruption prevention trainings given to municipal employees in recent years, the number of workers alleging retaliation for whistleblowing or who have received whistleblower protection is surprisingly low, according to findings discussed at a recent City Council committee hearing.
The number of complaints alleging corruption and criminal activity received by the Department of Investigation has slightly increased in recent years, from more than 12,300 complaints received in Fiscal Year 2022 to more than 14,600 complaints in FY 2024, DOI Commissioner Jocelyn Strauber testified during Friday’s hearing of the Committee on Oversight and Investigations.
But since FY 2009, the number of city workers who reported to DOI that they had allegedly been retaliated against for reporting corruption has steadily declined, from 52 in FY 2009 to just five in FY 2024.
Council Member Gale Brewer, who chairs the Oversight and Investigations Committee, questioned why the figure has been declining
and why it was so low. “Do you think there’s less retaliation today than there has been since 2009? Because it is surprising to me that the numbers are going down,” she said. Strauber replied that she didn’t know the reasons for the drops. “There’s certainly less reported retaliation to us, and I would hope that that means there’s less retaliation, but that’s just to say I hope the system is working,” she added Part of the decrease could be attributed to a change, instituted in 2020, that switched jurisdiction over complaints made by Department of Education employees from DOI to the Special Commissioner of Investigation for the New York City School District. But even when retaliation complaints made by DOE employees were removed from the data, an overall decrease in complaints remained, going from a peak of 25 alleged cases of retaliation in FY 2017 to five in FY 2024.
Although DOI has administered anti-corruption training sessions to a slightly higher number of city employees — from 24,013 in FY22 to 27,096 in FY24 — that still represented just 8 percent of the city workforce. Brewer asked how DOI could ensure that the training reached more workers, and Strauber noted that there were just six DOI staffers in the training unit, meaning that the agency would need a boost in
funding.
Brewer also questioned whether workers who are contracted with the city, who are also supposed to report corruption, also receive training or if they are aware of whistleblower protections. Strauber acknowledged that it was difficult to track whether workers employed through vendors received such training.
Few get protections
But there was also a question of whether the threshold to be given whistleblower protections was too high given the paltry number of individuals who have received such safeguards. Ricardo Morales, who was terminated as a deputy commissioner in the Department of Citywide Administrative Services in February 2017 for working with prosecutors probing preferential treatment given by the de Blasio administration to the mayor’s campaign donors, pointed out that fewer than a handful of workers have received whistleblower status. Morales made a complaint alleging that his termination was in retaliation for acting as a whistleblower, but a DOI probe that lasted 18 months ultimately upheld his firing.
FDNY
A bill named for 24-year FDNY veteran Emergency Medical Service Lieutenant Alison Russo-Elling passed the state legislature last week.
Emil Cohen/NYC Council Media Unit
Former DCAS deputy commissioner Ricardo Morales (right) testified at a recent City Council committee hearing about his firing in 2017 after he cooperated with prosecutors in a corruption probe and the fact that his request for whistleblower status was rejected. To his left is
Courtesy of Adrian Owen via Flickr
Following a rash of officer suicides, the NYPD in 2019 initiated a number of programs dedicated to cops’ mental well-being, among them a partnership with NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
Central Labor Council’s Alvarez leaving post
Longtime head of nation’s largest regional federation
BY RICHARD KHAVKINE richardk@thechiefleader.com
The longtime president of the New York City Central Labor Council, Vincent Alvarez, is stepping down from the role at the end of the month.
Alvarez, who has led the nation’s largest regional labor federation for the last 14 years, has pushed for better pay and retirement benefits in both the public and private sector during his tenure. He also has been a staunch backer of clean energy projects and the union jobs they create.
Following the dark days of the Covid pandemic, which for a time effectively shut down many city industries and significantly curtailed city services, Alvarez advocated for and lobbied city officials to recognize that public-sector workers were key for a return to prosperity for both the city and its residents.
In a release announcing his departure, Alvarez said advocating on behalf of the more than one million union members under the federation’s umbrella “has been the honor of my life.”
“We are stronger, more united, and better prepared to meet our ongoing challenges as the nation’s largest regional Labor federation. New York City is a Union Town, and our power will always come from our unified voice and collective action,” Alvarez, who turns 57 later this month, said in a statement.
Composed of about 300 private and public local unions, the CLC represents truckers, educators, nurses, construction workers and engineers, among others.
Alvarez’ last day at the CLC will be July 1, halfway through his fourth, four-year term as head of the federation. Its board unanimously tapped Alvarez’ chief of staff, Brendan Griffith, to serve as interim head.
Alvarez, who joined the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 3 in 1990 in the street-lighting and traffic division, was hired by the CLC in 2007 as assistant to the executive director. He then served as chief of staff to his predecessor at the CLC, Jack Ahern,
but resigned in November 2010 in protest of Ahern’s management style amid allegations of overspending by the federation’s president.
Following Ahern’s resignation in March 2011, the CLC’s delegate assembly elected Alvarez that June to succeed Ahern on a full-time basis according to changes by the delegates to the federation’s constitution. The delegates at the time also elected the federation’s first secretary-treasurer, United Federation of Teachers member Janella Hinds. She remains in the post. Alvarez was reelected in 2015, 2019 and 2023. He has served with a number of labor organizations, among them Climate Jobs NY, as principal officer, and the Climate Jobs National Resource Center, as a director. He also has been on the boards of the Consortium for Worker Education; the Association for a Better New York; and the New York Building Congress, among other institutions.
He has been a member of the National AFL-CIO State Federation and Central Labor Council Advisory Board, and of the Advisory Board of the CUNY School of Labor and Urban Studies and Cornell University’s Worker Institute Advisory Council.
Alvarez also served as chair of the New York Fed’s Board of Directors from January 2023 until the end of 2024, having joined the New York
Fed’s board as a Class C director in 2019.
“Vinny Alvarez has spent his life tirelessly fighting for the rights and wellbeing of working people in the city that never sleeps,” AFLCIO President Liz Shuler said in a statement. “Vinny’s an organizer at heart who strengthened one of the most robust and vibrant labor movements in the country. His legacy can be seen in every New York City worker who has a good union job, with a contract that provides for their families and improves their workplace.”
Mario Cilento, the president of the New York State AFL-CIO, whose relationship with Alvarez spans their respective tenures as aides to union heads, highlighted Alvarez’s “passion and dedication to the Union Movement” in paying tribute to his colleague.
“His deep understanding of the issues important to working people is unparalleled, and he always presents Labor’s point of view in such detail that no one can better articulate the challenges workers face. He has been a tireless advocate for workers’ rights, dignity, and respect throughout his tenure as President of the New York City Central Labor Council, and undoubtedly made many sacrifices along the way,” Cilento said in a statement.
Staffing cuts at
BY CRYSTAL LEWIS clewis@thechiefleader.com
Healthcare workers affected by planned layoffs at NewYork-Presbyterian are railing against the coming cuts at a rally held earlier this week.
Members of the New York State Nurses Association, 1199 SEIU and Communications Workers of America Local 1104 rallied near NewYork-Presbyterian’s Columbia campus June 11. The hospital system, which last month announced plans to cut 2 percent of its workforce, has so far moved to lay off 42 nurses, as well as 185 healthcare workers represented by 1199, according to the advocates.
“If NYP administrators have such a hard time finding nurses and caregivers to hire, then why are you laying us off?” asked Aretha Morgan, NYSNA’s director at large. “As nurses, we put Band-Aids on cuts, because we want the cuts to heal. But some cuts, like cutting healthcare workers, don’t heal.”
Michealla Donohue, who has worked as a nurse for nearly seven years in the palliative care unit working with end-of-life patients, said that NewYork-Presbyterian is moving to eliminate the unit.
“I was deeply disappointed to hear about NYP’s plans to lay off my entire unit, ending one of only two palliative care programs in the City of New York that offer this specialized, quality care,” she said, noting that if she loses her job, she will also lose the tuition reimbursement needed so she can complete her doctor of nursing practice degree. “I feel like the rug has been pulled out from under me. But mostly, I worry about my patients, their families, and my hospital colleagues who will no longer be able to rely on our specialized services.”
Although NYSNA is trying to get assurances from NY-P that displaced nurses will be placed into open positions, “There’s no guarantee,” she noted.
NewYork-Presbyterian officials have said the cuts are necessary because of financial difficulties faced by the nonprofit medicare center, particularly amid looming plans to slash Medicaid funding by the Trump administration. The Joint Economic Committee has estimated that 13.7 million Americans would lose healthcare coverage if the Medicaid cuts are enacted.
Karen Eck, a nurse practitioner at the NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital who has worked at NYP for more than 35 years, said the cuts will heavily affect the facility where she works.
“The pediatric epilepsy monitoring unit will not operate the same way after these layoffs. The hospital is planning to use new pediatric interns that are still in training and lack the needed knowledge and skill base to work in this unit. In addition, they rotate weekly, creating a tremendous break in the continuity of care that’s vital for these patients,” she said at the press conference. “I am calling on NewYork-Presbyterian to stop the cuts to our jobs and to these vital services in our community.” Eck said that it was “heartbreaking” to be forced away from patients she’s worked with for years.
“Over the years, we’ve seen NYP move services from Northern Manhattan and the Bronx to invest in services in Westchester. Our patients will not be able to travel to Westchester,” she added. “I fear these cuts are just the beginning of NYP pulling away from this community and ignoring what’s safe for patient-care.”
Michael Ippoliti, the president of CWA Local 1104, and City Council Member Pierina Ana Sanchez also voiced their solidarity with the healthcare workers facing layoffs.
“With extreme cuts to Medicare looming, this is a time where New York’s nonprofit healthcare providers should be protecting quality care for patients,” Donohue said. “We demand financial transparency, a reversal of cuts that impact patient-care and a guaranteed placement of nurses in open positions.”
She noted that more than 30 executives at NewYork-Presbyterian earned annual salary and benefits packages worth more than $1 million. “If they actually needed to cut costs, they would look to cut these executives’ salaries instead of the nurses who care for patients,” Donohue said.
NYSNA President Nancy Hagans added, “Instead of cutting the fat, they’re cutting the frontline to the bone.”
“We are navigating a complex and evolving healthcare landscape — changes to Medicaid, reductions in research grants to our medical school partners, fewer inpatients, and rising expenses. In light of these macroeconomic realities and challenges ahead, we are taking prudent and proactive steps to improve efficiency and manage costs, while delivering the highest levels of patient care, safety and quality.”
WHISTLEBLOWER: Claims dip
Continued from Page 1
“When I was last at City Hall [for a Council hearing in 2020] …there were 185 applications for whistleblower status, and one was given, and obviously it was not mine. If it is true that in the last 10 years there have been two people who have gotten the protection, I’ve got to tell you, that is disconcerting,” Morales said during Friday’s hearing. City Council Member Nantasha Williams questioned why all workers reporting corruption allegations did not qualify for whistleblower status. “I guess I just thought that if someone reports something they’d automatically be considered a whistleblower,” she said. “I wish that was true,” Morales replied. If he’d been given whistleblower status, Morales said he would have been reinstated to his position. Instead, he has been unable to find another job in city government.
“The other cost of retaliation is, once you have that label of ‘rat,’ you’re blacklisted. You won’t find work,” he said.
During his tenure, Morales had served in several roles in city government, including as general counsel at both the city Comptroller’s office and at the Housing Authority, and earned a city Ethics in Government Award in 2009 for his work at HA.
The veteran civil servant feared his termination being upheld could deter other city workers from reporting criminal activity and misbehavior, although he hoped that it wouldn’t.
“The chilling effect for people is, ‘This guy, a career professional, had all of these things working for him, these awards and he didn’t get it? I’mma keep my mouth shut,’” Morales said.
Courtesy Sean Mackell/NYC CLC
Vincent Alvarez, the president of the New York City Central Labor Council, at an April 2023 City Hall Park rally in support of a raise in the state’s minimum wage. Alvarez, the CLC’s president since 2011, is leaving the organization July 1.
Legislation that would allow state
State troopers union lauds passage of paid leave bill
After use-of-deadly-force incidents
BY CRYSTAL LEWIS clewis@thechiefleader.com
State legislators have passed a bill that would establish a critical leave policy for State Police officers involved in dangerous use of force incidents.
The legislation, which awaits Governor Hochul’s signature to become law, would provide troopers and other members of the State Police division with 30 days paid leave after the use of deadly force in any incident that led to the death or serious injury of another person.
It would also provide officers who were involved in a critical incident but weren’t the direct cause of the death or serious injury with 15 days paid leave.
The New York State Troopers Police Benevolent Association applauded the legislation, stating that having paid leave would allow troopers to have the time to process deadly and critical incidents and return to work more safely.
“Troopers by nature put others first, sometimes risking their own physical and mental well-being to ensure they fulfill their mission to keep all New Yorkers safe,” New York State Troopers PBA President Charles Murphy said in a statement. “This legislation would ensure that in acting selflessly and bravely to protect others, Troopers are not forced to deal with the added stress of returning to work before they have had time to fully process the aftereffects of critical incidents.”
The union highlighted that state troopers currently face significant burnout, with the rate of retirement up 520 percent since 2006.
Studies have shown that police officers have higher rates of post-traumatic stress disorder and a higher risk of suicide than the general
population. A study by The Journal of Psychiatric Research found that officers killing or seriously injuring someone was “significantly associated” with PTSD symptoms.
The critical leave bill, sponsored by Senator Jeremy Cooney and Assembly Member Patrick Burke, would be the most comprehensive in the nation, according to the union — although there are some critical leave standards in Kentucky and Texas, these vary by department.
“Our New York State Troopers are dedicated public servants who work diligently to protect our communities,” Cooney said. “With this bill, we will be giving them the mental health support they deserve after experiencing horrific events, giving them the time to properly heal. I hope that this bill will become a national model for how we address mental health issues and support our law enforcement agencies.”
Patrick called the legislation “groundbreaking.”
“We need to provide better, more holistic care for police, firefighters, other first responders and veterans.
It’s the hard work and collaborative efforts of the Troopers PBA that led to this historic legislation,” he said.
Organizations advocating mental health awareness, including the Mental Health Association in New York State and the National Health Alliance for New York State, also backed the bill.
“Members of the State Police, like everyone, deserve the ability to care for their mental health. Unfortunately, those in public safety often face traumatic events,” said James Norton, the government and community affairs manager at NAMI’s New York chapter. “The critical incident leave gives State Police Officers time to seek support, build resilience, and destress, before returning to work. NAMI NYS will continue to advocate for frontline wellness, eliminate stigma, and remove common barriers to those seeking support.”
EMS: Added protections
Zisopoulos, 37, was convicted on charges of second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon last month. He could receive a sentence of 25 years to life later this month, prosecutors said. Oren Barzilay, the president of Local 2507, which represents paramedics, EMTs and fire protection inspectors, said the bill was “long overdue” and another “monumental achievement” for both EMS unions.
“Our number one priority is the health and safety of our men and women,” he said. “Hopefully they do the right thing, and it gets signed into law.” Both union leaders claimed the bill faced opposition from Mayor Eric Adams. Representatives for City Hall, they said, pushed for a two-year delay in the implementation of the increased staffing provisions to give the city time to increase staffing and to lessen any blow on taxpayers. The legislation, though, notes that there are no state or local fiscal implications tied to the bill. A City Hall spokesperson didn’t answer a question on whether the administration was lobbying to delay the bill’s provisions, saying in a statement that Adams “is dedicated to protecting our city’s EMS professionals, who save New Yorkers’ lives every single day.”
Lander’s campaign staff secures union contract
First to have representation
BY DUNCAN FREEMAN dfreeman@thechiefleader.com
Workers on Comptroller Brad Lander’s campaign for mayor have unionized with the Campaign Workers Guild and agreed to a contract with the mayoral candidate securing a salary floor, a healthcare stipend, limits on hours that staffers can work and other provisions. The contract covers 18 workers in the campaign’s organizing, political, communications, finance, administrative and digital divisions.
The workers are the only unionized staffers and the only ones with a contract in this year’s mayor’s race, which has less than a week to go until the primary. The contract is a successor to the agreement that nine workers on Lander’s 2021 campaign for comptroller secured with the CWG and includes many of the same provisions. Lander’s campaign four years ago was also the first to unionize and secure a contract during that cycle.
Jaime Manuel Pérez, an organizing lead for Lander’s mayoral campaign and union member said that workers were proud to be a part of a unionized campaign and work for a “pro-labor candidate like Brad.”
“From spending countless hours speaking to voters on the streets to long nights strategizing and planning out my team’s field operation, my work as an organizer has created unique personal challenges that I would not be able to overcome if it wasn’t for our staff being unionized with the Campaign Workers Guild,” he said. “It’s reassuring to know that I and my fellow organizers have the support of CWG as we seek to preserve and maintain our well-being in this space.”
The Campaign Workers Guild has represented workers on mostly Democratic campaigns including staff who work for Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and the Democratic parties of Oregon and Wisconsin, according to the union’s website.
“We want to uplift the bargaining team members who worked tirelessly to make their workplace safer and better for everyone,” the
CWG’s secretary Annabel Xu said in a statement. The contract for Lander’s staff includes a $5,000 wage floor for all union members working on the campaign, a guarantee of covering healthcare costs up to $1,200, limits on how much employees can work per week, a stipend for technology costs and bonus pay for holidays.
In the lead-up to the 2021 Democratic primary, progressive candidate Diane Morales’ campaign for mayor imploded when she fired four campaign staffers who were elected to lead a nascent union. Those terminations came days after three senior staffers and an advisor left Morales’ campaign, with allegations of a toxic environment plaguing the campaign.
By contrast, Lander voluntarily recognized the union. His campaign press secretary, Kat Capossela, a member of the union, said that even before Lander announced his run for mayor he was “committed to having this campaign unionized as well.”
Lander’s chief of staff, Alison Hirsh, said that campaign leadership is “incredibly proud that this campaign is the first and only mayoral campaign to unionize its staff.”
“It’s a direct reflection of Brad’s unwavering commitment to organized labor and the rights of every
worker,” said Hirsh who — like other top campaign directors — is not a member of the union. “We don’t just talk about valuing working people; we demonstrate it by ensuring our own team has a seat at the table, fair wages, and a voice in their workplace. This is exactly the kind of leadership Brad will bring to City Hall — setting a new standard for how New York treats its workforce.” As comptroller, Lander created a first of its kind Worker’s Rights Team which has helped workers who qualify for prevailing wages pursue their claims of being underpaid and won back more than $10 million in unpaid wages for workers across the city. He pledged under his “workers’ rights platform” that, if elected mayor, he would create a Mayor’s Office of Workers’ Rights, raise the minimum wage, expand just-cause protections, guarantee more time off and strengthen workplace harassment laws. Lander has been endorsed by several unions including the Professional Staff Congress at CUNY, United Auto Workers Region 9A and Teamsters Local 804. He has consistently polled third in the mayor’s race behind former Governor Andrew Cuomo and Queens Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani, both of whom have secured prominent labor endorsements.
“While this bill as it stands would reduce the ambulances in service and be nearly impossible to implement, our administration continues to work with our city and state partners to find new ways to hire more EMS professionals and keep them safe on the job,” the spokesperson added.
The bill named after Russo-Elling, who was posthumously promoted to captain, was sponsored by State Senator Robert Jackson, chair of the committee of Civil Service and Pensions, and Assemblywoman Stacey Pheffer Amato.
Jackson said in a statement that Russo’s death was a tragedy and a “failure of policy.” With the bill’s passage, he said, lawmakers were “closing a dangerous and indefensible gap in our public health infrastructure — and honoring the life of a public servant who should still be with us today.”
“This is about far more than adjusting staffing standards — it is about affirming the value of life, honoring labor, and acknowledging unequivocally that our emergency medical responders are indispensable, never disposable,” Jackson said. “This bill affirms that their work is not a line item, but a lifeline—and that the law must reflect the lived reality of their service: the urgency, the intensity, and the risk.”
A spokesperson for Hochul said the governor would review the legislation.
TThe Port Authority PBA congratulates and welcomes the members of the Port Authority Police Academy 123rd Recruit Class. As Port Authority police officers, you join the ranks of the Port Authority Police Department protecting the people of New York, New Jersey and the millions using Port Authority facilities daily.
You chose a difficult and dangerous profession, one requiring commitment to your oath, dedication to the people’s safety, and courage. Learn from senior officers and watch over your brothers and sisters. The PBA will always support you and be at your side. The PBA’s hope for you is a safe, long and rewarding career. Be Safe.
FRANK CONTI President, Port Authority PBA
www.papba.org
New York State Police
police officers involved in critical incidents where someone died or was seriously injured to take up to 30 days paid leave was passed by state legislators last Friday.
Lander for Mayor
City Comptroller and candidate for mayor Brad Lander’s campaign staff has unionized and secured a contract, becoming the first unionized mayoral campaign this cycle.
COMMENTARY COMMENTARY COMMENTARY
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Blinded by the light
To The ediTor:
The retirement of Vincent Alvarez, the New York City Central Labor Council’s president, comes on the heels of Municipal Labor Committee Chair Harry Nespoli stepping down.
While Vinnie deserves plaudits for “fighting for the rights and wellbeing of working people,” as AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler said, unfortunately he had a moral blind spot when it came to preserving the health benefits of retirees (as did Nespoli).
On Aug. 24, 2023, he and the Central Labor Council signed on to a letter sent by MLC leadership to City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams opposing legislation that would have codified retiree health benefit protections. The letter amplified falsehoods, e.g., the bill was illegal and jeopardized collective bargaining.
Marianne Pizzitola, the president of the NYC Organization of Public Service Retirees, rebutted: “In response to the MLC Letter, former NYC Labor Leaders who knew that the arguments put forth by the MLC were false, contacted us to lend their support. Not only did THEY run their unions, and collective bargaining, they were also on the MLC and many served in the Central Labor Council for years and some for decades.”
And what about the current version of the bill, Intro. 1096? Vinnie and the Central Labor Council have not changed their position! Hopefully the new leader will take off the blinders, come to reason and be on the right side of labor history.
Harry Weiner
Boot the carriages
To The ediTor:
As a management retiree from the NYC government, without union representation, I support those who continue the fight to keep Medicare over a Medicare Advantage plan, which most retirees don’t want.
Many unions have lost their way, grabbing power, forgetting who they represent, using endorsements
to control politicians, since many grovel to get them. They forget they represent people, not “management.” Unions have done much for workers, but this is something else entirely.
It’s not surprising that District Council 37 ranked City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams first since she has not advocated for retirees on this issue.
Adams’s position on animal bills in the City Council also is no secret. Polls indicate that 71 percent of New Yorkers want the carriage horse trade gone. It’s outdated, cruel and a safety hazard for both people and horses. Still, it continues. Unions began to “represent” the carriage owners in 2007, beginning with the Teamsters, transitioning in 2019 to the Transit Workers Union. Its officials have pressured many Council members to withhold support for any bill that would end the carriage trade.
Activist groups have generated tens of thousands of calls and emails to Adams but she has refused to meet with supporters of Intro 573, Council legislation that would wind down the horse-drawn carriage industry in favor of a horseless electric carriage program.
She’s not alone. There are several Council members who originally promised to support a carriage horse ban, but then got union endorsement, and turned their backs on the legislation.
Hopefully, people who care about their retirement health benefits and also care about animals will not rank Adams at all.
Elizabeth Forel Forel is president of the Coalition for NYC Animals, Inc.
Pecuniary interests
To The ediTor:
“The flaw of creativity” is another excellent letter from Harry Weiner (The Chief, Letters, June 6). Municipal Labor Council Chair Harry Nespoli says, “We had to be creative and at the same time not hurt the city’s finances…. We had a management that’s willing to bargain with us fairly.” There’s something wrong with a union leader
who thinks that funding raises for his workers should not come from the city. So he thinks funding it from his workers’ health fund is a fair solution?
Unfortunately, this thinking is not unique. For decades, many union leaders have found it acceptable to be required to fund their workers’ raises with givebacks. Often, these raises have not kept up with inflation, making them real-money pay cuts.
Workers are supposed to do more with less, but not landlords. The thought of the rent stabilization board voting for a rent freeze is often treated as radical. But when your rent is rising more than your salary, that creates a problem.
Richard Warren
adding complaints by two female victims.
Andrew Cuomo’s response has been to say that he “never touched anyone inappropriately or made inappropriate sexual advances.” He called the report “politically motivated.” The actual “victim,” Cuomo said, was none other than himself.
Howard Elterman
Teflon Andrew?
To The ediTor:
Two damning examples why Andrew Cuomo is unfit to hold public office are the sexual harassment and nursing home scandals. These should have been career-ending for the former governor, who in 2021 resigned rather than face impeachment by the State Legislature and a trial in the State Senate.
Four years later this toxic politician is running for mayor. He claims to be the only candidate who can save the city from chaos and poor management. It will be up to the small percentage of eligible voters in the Democratic primary to save the rest of us from Andrew Cuomo.
Eleven women, nine of whom were current or former state employees, accused the former governor of inappropriate sexual behavior. There were not only suggestive comments, but also for seven of the women, the touching of their bodies without consent.
Attorney General Letitia James carried out a five-month investigation. In a subsequent 165-page report, 179 witnesses were interviewed and tens of thousands of documents reviewed. It corroborated the claims of all 11 women, finding that Cuomo “engaged in conduct constituting sexual harassment under federal and New York State law.”
He engaged “in unwelcome and non-consensual touching … [and made] numerous offensive comments of a suggestive and sexual nature that created a hostile work environment for women.” The executive chamber was a “culture of fear and intimidation.” In 2024, President Biden’s Justice Department corroborated the AG’s report,
Olé!
To The ediTor:
In case you missed it, June 12 was officially TACO Thursday (not really). I’m not referring to the tasty Mexican treat, but rather the acronym describing Donald Trump’s weak-kneed policy approach — Trump Always Chickens Out.
This time, TACO made it to the top of the menu. It finally dawned on Trump that critics of mass deportations might be right — we need immigrants, regardless of how they arrived.
As ICE agents raided California workplaces, I imagined the phone in the Oval Office began ringing off the hook as reality hit MAGA constituencies in their pockets. Whatever was said, it led Trump to post on June 12, “Our great farmers and people in the Hotel and Leisure business have been stating that our very aggressive policy on immigration is taking very good, long time workers away from them, with those jobs being almost impossible to replace. That is not good…. Changes are coming!”
In April, I urged Trump to begin mass deportations in Texas and Florida, writing, “test this proposition because the economic devastation caused by the loss of a million-plus laborers might change public opinion.” It turns out Trump could begin in California with a few thousand workers and learn what should have been obvious: the undocumented are an asset, not a burden.
Joseph Cannisi
Enough talk
To The ediTor: Online comments to my last letter point out Republicans used celebrities in 2024 (“Independence Day,” Letters, The Chief, June 6). Republican or Democrat I equally disdain this practice. I voted third party; no celebrity endorsed my candidate.
Any celebrity aggrieved by Mr. Trump’s policies should, to quote Animal Mother in the movie “Full Metal Jacket” — walk the walk. Donate an unused mansion to house
the homeless. Anonymously volunteer once a week at a soup kitchen. Donate the millions they will never need or miss to groups providing pro bono legal services. Establish a trust fund to assist those allegedly harmed by Trump’s policies. My 92-year-old mother bleeds Democrat Donkeys when you cut her. Until well into her 80s, she attended monthly meetings at her local Democratic club, was a Democratic poll worker and in 2024 donated to the DNC. We debate endlessly Republican vs Democrat. I couldn’t disagree more with her politics. I couldn’t admire her more for “walking the walk” and trying to make the world a better place. Any TDS celebrity is entitled to freedom of speech and to spend his/her money and time as he/she chooses. But denouncing Trump on foreign soil to an audience that can do little to nothing about it is not walking the walk. The opinion of a celebrity totally unaffected by presidential policies means nothing to me.
Nat Weiner
Uncultivated
To The ediTor:
President Donald Trump recently said the following: “Our farmers are being hurt badly, you know they have very good workers who have worked for them for 20 years. They’re not citizens but they turned out to be great, and we’re going to have to do something about that. But we’re going to have an order on that pretty soon.”
While President Trump dodged the military draft, his about-face on deportation of farm and leisure workers is astonishing, and shows he learned something (this maneuver) in the military school, sent there by his parents who couldn’t control his misbehavior.
However, with the mega radicals clearly disturbed by Trump’s hinting toward “chickening out” on deportation (TACO!), it is doubtful that Trump will follow through on a reversal of his cruel and irrational deportation strategies.
As an U.S. Army veteran, I resent draft-dodging Trump turning Flag Day into his narcissistic, multimillion-dollar birthday party. I find it is almost impossible for him to show any consideration or mercy toward immigrants, even for the benefit of farmers and hotels. A true aboutface on deportation by Trump
New traffic patterns overwhelm Astoria
BY MARC BULLARO
Astoria, Queens, is now a tortuous asphalt maze of unforgiving closed streets, bright green paint, white lines, warning signs and merciless traffic arrows pointing and entrapping motorists into a gridlocked abyss.
Drivers are stressed to the limit, many times moving slower than pedestrians. Recent traffic pattern changes have resulted in major disruptions and delayed emergency responses to tens of thousands of residents. They are stuck in a traffic snare that defiantly refuses to set them free.
Gotham has always been swamped with cars, trucks and congestion due to millions of people and vehicles in a densely populated urban area. But now these issues have been made much worse by the new traffic patterns in Astoria, specifically on 35th Street and 31st Avenue where three streets merge into one just blocks away from major shopping districts on Steinway, Broadway and Grand Avenue. All traffic going east and west on 31st Avenue must now turn northbound onto 35th Street along with the numerous vehicles already on 35th Street traveling from the south that are forced to stay on the street because they can no longer turn left or right onto 31st avenue.
City Hall has failed again. Astoria has become a labyrinth of thoroughfares where imperious traffic signs involuntarily direct motorists to unsought roads, like sheepdogs corralling sheep. And the vehicles remain snagged until the fickle trap that cares nothing
about your family, job, school or appointments decides to let you out of its grip.
The traffic pattern changes, bicycle lanes, Citi Bikes and e-bikes have taken over Gotham like an occupying army. In Astoria, they usurp much needed lanes from motorists, covet consistently diminishing parking spaces from a community that was already suffering from insufficient parking for decades, cause congestion on streets resulting in delays, increase road rage incidents, create unbearable noise pollution and significantly slow down emergency responses, sometimes even preventing access by police, fire and EMS vehicles. Speaking to Eyewitness News Channel 7, one Astoria resident decried, “horns are blasting all day. we can’t
rest, we can’t think. Ambulances can’t even get through.” Another lamented, “it’s just become a nightmare.”
City politicians, like motorists and bicyclists that change lanes without first looking, appear to have blindly changed traffic lane patterns, detrimentally affecting the quality of life in Astoria for both residents and businesses.
NY state politicians have implemented tolls to reduce congestion in Manhattan while city politicians are creating congestion in every borough.
New Yorkers can’t win.
The new traffic patterns are dangerous for everyone, but particularly for pedestrians. NYC has 1,500 miles of dedicated bike lanes and 623 protected bike lanes. There were
more than 53 injuries on Bedford Avenue in Williamsburg alone since 2024 where a 1.5 mile bike-lane has been plagued with problems. On May 28, a cyclist that was riding in the bike lane struck a child who was running to the curb after exiting from a double parked car.
It appears the bicyclist in this case was obeying the traffic laws but many don’t, with some cyclists riding like they were competing in the Tour de France and some e-bikers traveling on sidewalks as if pedestrians shouldn’t be there.
The lane changes in Astoria are also dangerous for bicyclists and e-bikers themselves because some motorists, who are frustrated due to the agonizing delays and blocked streets, struggle like fish trying to get free from the hook and once they dislodge from the traffic hook they drive in the bike lane to escape the detention of being wedged in a street that can take more than 30 minutes to reach the next block. On those blocks it is a challenging task for residents to even exit their driveways.
As New Yorkers have already seen, the 30,000 city bikes and 2,000 bike stations in NYC have seized sidewalks and parking spaces like squatters taking over a home. The fastest and best mode of transportation in the Big Apple is by far the subway system, except for the smell, the danger and the rats. But if state and city politicians did what they were elected to do and made the subway safe, clean, rat free and less expensive, more people would use trains. I assert many people would prefer to use the subway but don’t for safety reasons.
There are many cyclists in the five boroughs and I support them. They deserve a safe opportunity to use their bicycles for transportation and pleasure riding. But bike lanes should be designated on streets where it’s feasible and safe for cyclists, residents, motorists and businesses to co-exist and only traffic changes that can safely accommodate cyclists while not unduly burdening and disrupting the entire community should be implemented.
As a solution to the new traffic pattern quagmire in Astoria, I recommend that city officials consider simply revamping 31st Avenue from a two-way street to a one-way. This would provide a safer and potentially much longer bike lane near the curb for cyclists to enjoy, would not funnel or corral vehicles or close streets as is now the case on 35th Street and 31st Avenue, would eliminate choked streets and horn honking caused by recent pattern changes, would not reduce the number of parking spaces, would be safer for pedestrians and provide clear access for emergency service vehicles which is now delayed. And there are ample streets that run parallel to 31st Avenue that motorists can use as alternate routes. Renovating two-way streets to one-way should also be considered for future traffic pattern changes in all the boroughs to improve traveling within the city. Designated bike lanes can live in harmony with pedestrians and motor vehicles. Let’s share the road safely and respectfully without destroying the quality of life in NYC.
Courtesy of Dhsifhdbfidhxuf, via Wikimedia Northern Boulevard just east of Astoria, Queens.
Balanced bias and doubt
BY RON ISAAC
In the struggle to establish credi-
bility as social justice warriors, half the battle is showing up, barking and flashing righteous indignation, while hiding tell-tale signs of the unowned hypocrisy of fiercely defended personal privilege, and joining in collective tunes and chants of liberation and solidarity under blazing strobe lights as hot mics memorialize one’s activism for future recollection at upscale exclusive parties.
Afterwards, one can return home, feel good about oneself, and take in a show or steakhouse, where a baked potato costs more than the weekly wages of single parents, some of whom are forced into seasonal hiatus and don’t get an extra penny from the Department of Labor, because of budgetary banditry that favors the new breed of entrepreneurs called scammers.
The brouhaha about Native American logos has settled down, as its bounty to politicians has played out. The bandwagon passengers have retreated to their free speech parapets and unshared university safe spaces.
By focusing on the alleged misuse of words like “braves,” “chiefs” and “redskins,” we are missing the “elephant in the room,” which is that rich, varied and complex cultures of Native Americans are being allowed to vanish from memory. The mortal threat to their preservation is not misappropriation of imagery, but willful government neglect.
Even the ancient languages of these sovereign people are expiring, and nothing is being done to revive them, as has been done for Gaelic, Welsh and Basque.
Reagan, Bush Picks
Most people can identify a few tribes, but other than their names, know nothing about them, and assume there were no differences among them. In old movies and television shows, they have been depicted as one-dimensional stock figures of savages and sidekicks. Tonto and, more recently, casinos.
Hypocrisy On Supreme-Court Choice
years
its treaty obligations. Ignoring them amounts to reneging on them. Their unarticulated default reason is that the government can get away with anything it wants these days. Unchecked and imbalanced.
The multi-generational, low-grade fever of cultural genocide persists apace. And out bemoaning the use of mascots in feathered headdress is not deterring the extinction.
There’s been no public outcry or demonstrations and practically no media coverage.
Native American communities are in desperate need of social services to address educational, health and opportunities deficits that have impacted them most critically among minorities. Their assets are being depleted and their rights denied. Their colleges are not merely strapped, they’re starving.
Perhaps some of that Harvard largesse can be diverted to the tribal colleges, for research, scholarships, Pell and other grants, job-training and professional pathways.
Instead of freaking out when Native Americans are called Indians, and pantomiming empathy and luxuriating in make-believe civil rights activism, let’s do something practical and real to help heal this singularly American botched legacy.
And let’s admit that our most entrenched and egregious national sins have, at one time or other, enjoyed bipartisan support. That includes deportations.
And let’s concede that there are times when deportations are not only technically legal, but morally imperative. What constitutes due process varies upon the legal status of the subject, and some convicted violent felons who have already exhausted all recourses should be expeditiously removed pursuant to immigration law.
A friend of my parents was an expert on “restitution law.” His clients were all Holocaust survivors. One of them survived World War II without any apparent long-term damage, and became a prosperous industrialist, having recovered his health as he lived happily on Park Avenue with his family.
Forty years later, he suddenly jumped from a window to his death in an attempt to escape the Nazi secret state police (Gestapo). There were no prior hints of instability. The hallucination had embedded his subconscious.
The trauma of being arrested at school may eventually seem to fade in the memories of these students, but it may in the future explode in their minds with a vengeance. Maybe in the year 2065.
The spectacle of presidential power evokes a maddening quandary. It is either fettered when it should be unleashed, or turned loose when it should be reined in. Any single federal district judge, among more than 600 nationwide, many of whose rulings can be predicted along ideological lines, can stop an executive order that may inarguably be in the purview of presidential authority.
Yet that same authority permits any president to supersede and make a mockery of the foundations of our constitutional protections. Or at least pause them.
The recently inflicted travel ban is lawfully vindicable but morally execrable. Deployment of the National Guard to quell disturbances such as occurred in Los Angeles during the recent ICE raids, may have been properly within presidential prerogative, but that doesn’t make it proper, despite provocation.
New York’s EMTs deserve more than empty promises
BY ANTHONY ALMOJERA
Anthony Almojera is a lieutenant with FDNY
FDNY Uniformed EMS Officers and the author of “Riding the Lightning: A Year in the Life of a New York City Paramedic.”
fits as our counterparts in the other uniformed services.
According to ProPublica, Congress has been “underfunding tribal colleges by a quarter billion dollars per year,” and President Trump “wants to cut college funding by nearly 90 percent, putting them at risk of closing.”
The Bureau of Indian Education has reportedly failed to secure, or even seek from legislators, the full funding needed to operate vital institutions. By eviscerating funding, the federal government is betraying
George Herbert Walker Bush had to replace the first African American, Thurgood Marshall. He looked all over the country and the “most-qualified” was Clarence Thomas, also an African-American? Of course not. Clarence Thomas is an African-American conservative and he got the gig.
sense in this country. We have never had an African-American woman on the court. Biden will not be selecting a cashier from Stop-and-Shop or a pilates instructor from the local sports club. He will select a highly educated, highly credentialed woman who attended a top college, top law school, clerked for a Justice, served on the Federal appellate court and all the other “credentials” deemed necessary in this day and age for a Justice. should be seen for what they are. They are idiotic political theater from a cohort that sees even a tiny effort at progress as threatening the white male position in society.
Vincent Scala is a former Bronx Assistant District Attorney. He is currently a criminal-defense attorney in New York City and its suburbs.
Letters to the Editor
But terrifying abuses are taking place, and the liberties the government is taking should haunt the conscience of the nation.
Audacity to Criticize Molina
To the Editor: On Feb 19, the NY Daily News published an article entitled, “As NYC Correction Commissioner Molina cleans house, critics worry he’s coddling jail unions.”
Schools are no place for Immigration and Customs Enforcement dragnets, no matter the case or circumstance. Students in New York City and Detroit have been arrested. One of them had just appeared voluntarily with his mother at an immigration court on Broadway, where a judge had dismissed his deportation case. Before they got to the elevator, ICE agents in plainclothes ambushed them in the name of the law.
It’s been argued that in many cases involving controversial issues and political polarization, the “fix is in,” no less with the Supreme Court than with presidents. Regardless of the core legal tenets at stake, and who is presenting them, one needn’t be a clairvoyant to know how Justices Clarence Thomas and Ketanji Brown Jackson will vote and that they will be on opposite sides.
But not always.
For nearly three years, New York City’s EMTs and paramedics have worked without a contract. That might sound like an administrative delay, but in practice, it means no raises, no cost-of-living adjustments, and no say in how our work is structured. While other first responders have secured contracts and pay increases, we’ve been asked to accept less — despite doing the same lifesaving work.
The effects of this inequity are clear: EMS has the highest turnover rate of any city agency. We lose experienced medics year after year, often to other departments or private-sector jobs that pay more and demand less. Those who stay do so out of deep commitment to the communities we serve — but commitment doesn’t pay the rent.
And some have paid the ultimate price. Captain Allison Russo, a 25year EMS veteran, was murdered in the line of duty in 2022. She was posthumously promoted. But symbolic recognition without real investment sends a painful message — that honoring the dead is easier than supporting the living.
Mayor Eric Adams campaigned on a promise to fix this. While he’s found time to make smoothies on Instagram, he hasn’t found time to keep his promise. And while the political capital of that broken promise may be spent, the urgency of our situation remains.
Whether it’s a newly elected Mayor, Governor or President, every new administration replaces personnel, notwithstanding their work performance. No reason is needed to remove someone in an appointed position within NYC government with the
This was enabled by an executive diktat from the Oval Office but invalidated by common decency.
is questioning Molina’s personnel decisions.
How is it that Schiraldi, a so-called juvenile-justice reformer and expert, failed so miserably in managing DOC?
BY BARRY LISAK
BARRY LISAK
($12,550, the
are over 65 or blind).
Example 2 In 2021, Nicole and her spouse are joint filers. Both qualify for an additional standard deduction because they are both over 65. Their Form 1040 standard deduction is $27,800 ($25,100, the 2021 standard deduction for joint filers, plus 2 x $1,350, the 2021 additional standard deduction for married persons who are over 65 or blind). The above examples reflect the benefit of the new standard deduction. Millions of taxpayers won’t be itemizing this year to reduce their Federal income-tax bill. They’ll claim the standard
How is it that Oren Varnai, the head of DOC’s Intelligence Bureau and a “former covert officer in the CIA,” could not stop the scourge of gang violence from dominating and ravaging Rikers? Varnai, at least, must be commended for wishing Molina success, and I must say he has impressive credentials.
How does Sarena Townsend, the Deputy Commissioner for Investigations and a former prosecutor who preferred departmental charges on thousands of uniformed staff—resulting in scores if not hundreds of correction officers being fired or forced to resign—now cries foul when she gets fired ?
requirements
To be eligible, you must be at least 18 years of age, you cannot have been a full-time student during the calendar year and cannot be claimed as a dependent on another person’s return. Additionally, if you have taken any distributions or withdrawals from a retirement account in the past two years (i.e., 2023 or 2024) your Saver’s Credit will be reduced or eliminated.
Credit amount
THE CHIEF-LEADER welcomes letters from its readers for publication. Correspondents must include their names, addresses and phone numbers. Letters should be submitted with the understanding that all correspondence is subject to the editorial judgment of this newspaper. To submit a letter to the editor online, visit thechiefleader.com and click on Letters to the Editor.
By a 9-0 unanimous vote, the Supreme Court recently ruled that members of majority groups in “reverse discrimination” suits are not required to show “background circumstances” beyond what minority groups must provide as evidence of discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin, under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.
True believers in fairness applaud this. Fairness is notoriously in the eyes of the beholder, and when they are sporting blinders, anything goes.
An entry-level EMT in New York City earns about $39,000 a year. A paramedic, even after years on the job, tops out around $65,000. That’s far below what police officers and firefighters earn, many of whom start closer to $50,000 and can earn well over six figures with overtime and benefits. The city has offered us the “civilian pattern” — a 16.25 percent raise spread over five years. We’ve declined that offer, not out of stubbornness, but because it fails to reflect the nature of our job. We’re not civilians — we’re uniformed emergency responders, and we’re asking for the same pay and bene-
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
The next mayor will have a choice: to continue treating EMS as a lesser service or to finally recognize us as the essential uniformed responders we are. That recognition must come with pay equity, benefits, and a seat at the uniformed bargaining table. Our work saves lives. It’s time our city valued ours, too.
New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie has nixed a bipartisan bill that would have commemorated the October 7 attacks in Israel that killed the equivalent, adjusting for proportion of population, of 40,000 Americans. According to the New York Post, he “went to extraordinary lengths to ensure the measure would not make it to the Assembly floor for a vote.”
criminals and probably require arrests, prosecutions and imprisonment? If the homeless who are removed from the subways refuse to cooperate with programs designed to help them turn their lives around, what are the penalties? Will they be arrested or placed in secure mental facilities where they will be less likely to do harm to others?
Continued from Page 4
would be a true miracle, and shock all Americans who value democracy and human rights.
Michael J. Gorman
Immigration patterns
solution to the immigration crisis that meets the nation’s needs. While there is room for leniency for some undocumented immigrants, it is not feasible to apply it universally.
To The ediTor:
Hopefully he had his reasons, and the best-case scenario is that they were strictly political in nature.
Perhaps he feared opening the proverbial “can of worms” of a fruitless, divisive and hot-blooded debate about the Middle East. He deserves the benefit of the doubt.
Doubt must be deserved but first found.
Those homeless people who are mentally or emotionally incapable of living safely with others have to be “imprisoned,” either in prisons (if convicted of crimes) or in secure mental institutions. Those who refuse to cooperate with reasonable and necessary treatment from qualified and competent authorities have to be treated the same way—prison or secure mental facilities.
The Saver’s Credit explained
Only those homeless who cooperate with those who provide necessary treatment, and can live peacefully with others, should be placed in housing in the neighborhoods in all five boroughs of the city.
MICHAEL J. GORMAN
tax bill dollar for dollar. The credit is a percentage of the contribution amount, with the highest rate for taxpayers with the least income.
Double tax benefits
There are heartbreaking stories regarding innocent immigrants being deported after living in the U.S. for 20 years or more. But let’s not forget that these immigrants would not have been picked up by ICE’s radar, if it were not for the immigration policies of the Biden administration. The blame for the illegal immigrant crisis lies with the Biden administration.
This fact presents a clear opportunity for the Trump administration to implement a humanitarian
History has demonstrated that before a flawed political system can be reformed, it must deteriorate to the point of complete reorganization. Democrat members of Congress have repeatedly used words suggesting strong resistance against policies they find objectionable. Amid the escalating tensions surrounding illegal immigration, the Trump administration has an opportunity to devise a humanitarian and practical solution to the ongoing immigration crisis in America, adopting this mindset: Problem talk breeds problems; solution talk breeds solutions. If not, the consequences could be dire.
Robert Sica
The Saver’s Credit is in addition to other tax benefits which may result from the retirement contributions. For example, most workers at these income levels may deduct all or part of their contributions to a traditional IRA. For example: Forms to use
Schiraldi praises his managers who created a “war room” to redeploy staff on an emergency basis. That “war room” should have also been utilized to generate and implement new policy to stop the devastating inmate violence that inflicted pain and suffering on officers and inmates alike. Further, the now-garrulous Schiraldi was speechless when the unions continuously sounded the alarm regarding chaos, bedlam, lawlessness and gross mismanagement by top bosses. Commissioner Molina is addressing all those issues. Neither Schiraldi, nor any of his senior managers, have the credibility or standing to criticize Molina.
If you make eligible contributions to a qualified IRA, 401(k) and certain other retirement plans, you may be able to take a credit of up to $1,000 or up to $2, 000 if filing jointly. Because the tax break is a credit instead of a deduction, it’s a better deal. Tax deductions reduce taxable income, but credits reduce your
To claim the credit use Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions. You can only claim the Saver’s Credit if you use Form 1040 or 1040NR to file your Federal tax return. For more information, see IRS Publication 590, “Individual Retirement Arrangements.” Barry Lisak is an IRS enrolled agent specializing in personal and small business taxes for 30 years. Any questions can be directed to him at 516829-7283,
To the Editor: The proposed New York Health Act would provide on a statewide level what Medicare-for-All would provide nationwide. Yet in recent issues, it has been claimed that the reason some unions oppose this is because the medical plans they already have provide benefits that this proposal would not include. Now as a retired transit worker, I have always had good health coverage since I started working for the system in 1979. But one friend who was an excellent Transport Workers Union Local 100 rep had serious health issues before he recently passed away. He had a stroke while he was still working, and had to fight numerous large bills for medical care that was supposed to be covered. I remember him saying, “I have great coverage as long as I don’t get sick.” Under the New York Health Act, patients would not have to worry about fighting bills. They would not even have to worry if they
Skeptical of Union ‘Health’
VINCENT SCALA
Michael Nigro/Sipa USA via AP Images
Protesters attempted to stop the transport of immigrants from the Federal Plaza Immigration Court in lower Manhattan earlier this month.
Michael Nigro/Sipa USA via AP Images
NYC EMS personnel at a December 2023 fire in Brooklyn. They have been without a contract for nearly three years.
High court greenlights Medicare switch
Court of Appeals finds retirees were not given unambiguous promise of benefits
BY RICHARD KHAVKINE richardk@thechiefleader.com
In a significant setback for city retirees, the state’s highest court has given the green light to the Adams administration’s plan to shift 250,000 former municipal workers to a cost-saving Medicare Advantage plan.
In a unanimous decision, the Court of Appeals concluded that the retirees and their advocates did not sufficiently demonstrate that city officials had assured city employees and would-be employees that as retirees they would have a choice of health plans.
In a 12-page opinion released Wednesday, the seven judges found that the retirees “have failed to establish the existence of a clear and unambiguous promise.”
The retirees have long maintained that city officials made the promises as part of their recruitment and retention efforts. The retirees and their advocates submitted hundreds of affidavits to the courts as proof. Among those, one by Lilliam Barrios-Paoli, a retired longtime city official who headed several departments, asserted that for decades the city’s human resources administrators had made the assurances, including through summary program descriptions given each year to employees.
The judges, though, agreed with city officials and their attorneys that the program descriptions “contain nothing that could be construed as a clear and unambiguous
promise of Medicare supplemental insurance coverage for life.”
“To the contrary, we agree with the City that the language in the SPDs is descriptive and for informational purposes only. The language on which petitioners rely — “becomes eligible,” “is provided,” “provides,” and “supplements” — is in the present tense,” the opinion, written by Associate Judge Shirley Troutman, reads. “Because there is no clear and unambiguous promise in the SPDs, the affidavits of Barrios-Paoli and the hundreds of retirees likewise fail to establish the existence of such a promise.”
The decision essentially brings to
a close the retirees’ and their advocates’ attempts to block the administration’s plan in the courts, which to this point had all been successful. But the proposed switch could yet be turned aside.
City Council legislation, introduced last year by downtown Manhattan Council Member Christopher Marte, would prevent city officials from instituting wholesale changes to the retirees’ health plans. But the bill, Intro 1096, has so far failed to be calendared or to gather significant momentum among Council members — just 15, along with Marte, have so far signed on as co-sponsors, short of
MTA’s OT champ earned over $500k in total pay last year
23 collected more than $200,000 in overtime
BY RICHARD KHAVKINE richardk@thechiefleader.com
Nearly two dozen MTA workers collected over $200,000 in overtime alone last year, with one worker at the authority topping $308,000 in just OT, bringing his total salary to more than $500,000, according to an analysis of the authority payroll data by the Empire Center for Public Policy.
Total pay at the authority surpassed $8 billion in 2024, a yearover-year increase of 2.6 percent, according to the Albany-based open-government group.
About $1.36 billion of that total — 17 percent — paid for OT, which dropped 1.1 percent last year compared with 2023. Among the authority’s different agencies, OT at the MTA Bridges and Tunnels spiked 17 percent, to $32.1 million.
A worker with that agency, Lieutenant Edwin Lee, collected a whopping $308,821 in OT, which on top of his $151,790 regular salary brought his total pay to $505,147.
Together with his total 2023 salary of $531,659, Lee collected more than $1 million working for the authority in just two years.
A Bridges and Tunnel colleague, Sergeant Orlando Caholo, was not far behind Lee in the OT department, earning $304,884 for working extra hours. That brought his total pay in 2024 to $474,255. He earned
$521,289 in 2023, according to posted data, falling about $5,000 shy of earning $1 million over those two years. Lee and Caholo were among 629 MTA employees who collected OT pay in the six figures. The 23 authority employees who made more than $200,000 in overtime were 10 more than did so in 2023, the Empire Center found. The nonprofit’s crunching of MTA salary data revealed that 760 workers at the authority more than doubled their pay by earning more in overtime than they did through their regular pay.
According to the MTA, just over 12 percent of overtime eligible workers at the authority earned OT pay at a level greater than 50 per-
cent of their base salary, the lowest percentage on record.
“The MTA successfully delivered on its goal of cutting $400 million through operating efficiencies last year, including cutting total overtime costs and keeping payroll growth below both inflation and general wage increases required under collective bargaining contracts,” the MTA’s co-chief financial officer, Jai Patel, said in a statement. “The MTA continues to be vigilant when it comes to controlling costs and operating efficiently and is on track to increase savings to $500 million annually, while continuing to enhance service.”
The Empire Center’s data is posted on SeeThroughNY.
the 26 needed to pass the bill or the 34 members who would be required to override a near-certain veto from Mayor Eric Adams. Marte called the court decision “disappointing” but vowed to carry on with efforts to preserve the retirees’ current benefits, saying that “the responsibility for protecting retiree healthcare lies with the City Council.”
“Now, more than ever, we must pass Intro 1096. This is our clearest and most urgent mechanism to stop the administration from forcing retirees onto Medicare Advantage — a privatized plan that has been repeatedly exposed as dangerous, restrictive, and profit-driven. For retirees receiving lifesaving care, a forced switch to Medicare Advantage—where their providers may no longer be in-network—can be a literal death sentence,” Marte added.
The results of the primary elections next week could see others join in support of Marte’s legislation. The proposed switch to Medicare Advantage plan has long been supported by some public-sector unions, among them District Council 37, the city’s largest, which brings a significant get-out-the-vote effort to sparsely attended primaries. Several mayoral candidates, among them front-runner Andrew Cuomo, have said they are opposed to the switch.
“While we are disappointed in the ruling by the Court of Appeals, the solution to protecting seniors’ healthcare has always been with the City Council and the Mayor. The next Council and Mayor need to do the right thing and codify protections for seniors in City law,” the Organization of Public Service Retirees, which has led opposition to the proposed switch, said in a statement.
City Hall did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the court’s ruling.
COPS: Spotlight on well-being
Continued from Page 1
Thomas E. Coghlan, an adjunct professor of psychology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said the bill’s provisions are as welcome as they are overdue.
Coghlan, a 21-year NYPD cop who retired as a detective in 2018, said the lack of confidentiality provisions in peer-centered support systems have had a deterrent effect on cops seeking needed help because their peer supporters could be compelled to testify about what they were told by the officers who confided in them.
“That lack of confidentiality, that lack of privilege, puts a very chilling effect not only on the peer supporter but also on the member who is considering reaching out for support,” he said.
The legislation’s provisions does outline circumstances where confidentiality would not apply, including involvement in criminal activity or potential harm to oneself or others, such as thoughts of suicide or of child abuse or neglect.
Aside from the criminal-activity provision, those specifications are similar to those guiding licensed therapists, said Coghlan, who holds a doctorate in clinical psychology and has worked in the peer-support field for more than 20 years.
“The bill has been much needed” and its stipulations should be enacted throughout the country, not least because of the increasing pressures put on officers, following the unrest that unfolded during and after the George Floyd protests and riots and the defund movement, he said.
But paradoxically, the biggest source of stress for cops is not the day to day of the street cop or of the occupation on its own, but it’s the policing institution itself, Coghlan said. “It’s not what you do out in the street. It’s not working shift work. It’s the stress that the agency itself is responsible for creating,” he said. “Law enforcement agencies have one paradigm — punitive. They punish everything…. They are authoritarian by nature. They are hierarchically rigid in nature, they are punitive, they are nepotistic. They are all the things that create a hostile and unwelcome work environment.”
The bill, sponsored in the state Senate by Orange County Democrat James Skoufis and in the Assembly by Nassau County Democrat Judy Griffin, passed both chambers unanimously. It has been on state lawmakers’ dockets since at least the 2019-2020 legislation session.
The act is named for a 35-yearold New York State Police officer who took his own life April 1, 2008. Lieutenant Joseph Banish, who worked out of Albany headquarters, was a 15-year police officer. Burnout a factor
Nine police officers working in the state have taken their lives so far this year, according to the Massachusetts nonprofit Blue H.E.L.P., which advocates for officers’ mental health and also tracks officer suicides. Should that trend continue through the rest of the year, the number of cops dying by suicide would be the most in several years. Nationwide, 43 officers have died
State lawmakers have passed legislation named for State Police Lieutenant Joseph Banish that institutes confidentiality provisions in a formalized peer-administered mental-health support program for cops. Banish, 35, was a 15-year police officer when he took his own life in April 2008.
by suicide so far this year, according to the organization.
Thomas Hovagim, the director of the city-based Police Organization Providing Peer Assistance program, or POPPA, and also a retired NYPD detective, called the bill a potential life-saver.
“It’s just great that it’s peer based and it’s another outlet for officers to get to in New York State, especially the smaller departments,” he said.
Hovagim, a 24-year NYPD cop who retired in 2011, also suggested that job-based pressures were taking an additional mental toll on officers. He said burnout attributable to a shortage of officers was a significant factor in plunging job satisfaction among cops.
“Days off, that’s pretty much the main reason,” Hovagim said. He added that policing reforms and the higher thresholds required to keep criminals locked up were also having an effect on cops’ mental health.
“The public scrutiny, everyone being a jailhouse lawyer, the catch and release” added up to sometimes insurmountable obstacles to their mission.
POPPA, an independent, volunteer peer-support group, comprises about 200 active or retired NYPD officers, all of them trained, who take calls from their fellow officers in strict confidence. In collaboration with the NYPD, they also engage in outreach at police commands citywide.
Following the suicides of 10 NYPD officers in 2019 alone, including six just in June of that year, the department initiated a number of programs dedicated to officers’ mental well-being, among them a partnership with NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital. That program, Finest Care, which is wholly independent of the department, gives officers access to a 24-hour telephone-based referral line, comprehensive evaluation and mental-health assessments and other services, including appointments to see and speak with psychologists and psychiatrists. Hovagim said that program, as well as the department’s own Employee Assistance Unit, were needed and timely additions as the pressures on officers ramp up.
“We all support each other,” he said. “We all just want the cop to get help. That’s the bottom line.”
Marc A. Hermann/MTA New York City Transit
A MTA New York City Transit crew inspecting track on the elevated Broadway 1 line near 125 Street.
Richard Khavkine/The Chief
Hundreds of retired municipal workers converged on City Hall Park in September in opposition to city officials’ plan to switch the retirees to a Medicare Advantage plan from their current government-administered Medicare. The state’s high court on Wednesday sanctioned the city’s plan.
Board game cafe workers get first contract
BY DUNCAN FREEMAN dfreeman@thechiefleader.com
Workers at five tabletop board game cafés in Manhattan and Brooklyn reached a tentative agreement with management for a first union contract late last month after a year and a half of bargaining. The agreement covers nearly 100 workers at Hex & Company — which has three locations in Manhattan — the Brooklyn Strategist in Cobble Hill and the Uncommons in Greenwich Village.
The workers are represented by Workers United – an affiliate of the Service Employees International Union that has organized more than 400 Starbucks locations nationwide – and are currently voting on whether to ratify the agreement. It includes between 11.8 percent and 19.3 percent raises for the lowest-paid employees, gives workers more control over scheduling, strengthens health and safety protocols, and establishes bereavement leave, according to a summary provided by the union.
Casey Knepley, a shift lead at The Uncommons and a member of Tabletop Workers United’s bargaining committee, said June 12 that she was “incredibly thrilled and proud” of the agreement.
“We won almost all of what we set out to,” Knepley said. “We really stood our ground with a lot of the demands made from management and stood firm on what we believed we needed.”
The agreement also gives workers just-cause protections, creates a training process and establishes a procedure through which union members can file grievances. Knepley said that an important aspect of the agreement for her was that it
creates specific work expectations for each position, so that employees cannot be forced to do work outside of their job descriptions. But notably absent from the agreement are health insurance protections of any kind. War Games coordinator Sam Sinclair explained
that union members prioritized wage increases over healthcare protections, and from the outset workers didn’t feel it would be possible to get healthcare protections included in the deal.
Sinclair said that despite the lack of health insurance, he feels the
Hundreds of laid-off CDC employees getting reinstated
2,400 agency staff lost their jobs in early April
BY MIKE STOBBE Associated Press
More than 460 laid-off employees at the nation’s top public health agency received notices that they are being reinstated, according to a union representing the workers.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last week confirmed reinstatement notices went out to the former Centers for Disease Control and Prevention employees, but provided few details.
About 2,400 CDC employees lost their jobs in a wave of cuts across federal health agencies in early April, according to a tally at the time. Whole CDC programs were essentially shut down, including some focused on smoking, lead poisoning, gun violence, asthma and air quality, and workplace safety and health. The entire office that handles Freedom of Information Act requests was shuttered. Infectious disease programs took a hit, too, including programs that fight outbreaks in other countries, labs focused on HIV and hepatitis in the U.S., and staff trying to eliminate tuberculosis. An estimated 200 of the reinstated workers are based in the CDC’s National Center for HIV, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and Tuberculosis Prevention, HHS officials confirmed.
Staffers at a CDC lab that does testing for sexually transmitted diseases are being brought back, said one CDC employee who wasn’t authorized to discuss what happened and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.
Also reinstated are an estimated 150 employees at the CDC’s National Center for Environmental Health, including people staffing a lab that works on lead poisoning, according
to the union and employees. Layoffs at federal agencies were challenged in lawsuits, with judges in some cases ordering federal agencies to halt terminations of employees.
Officials at HHS have never detailed how they made the layoff decisions in the first place. And they did not answer questions about why the notices went out, or how decisions were made about who to bring back.
HHS spokesperson Andrew Nixon said the agency was streamlining operations and that “the nation’s critical public health functions remain intact and effective.”
“The Trump Administration is committed to protecting essential services — whether it’s supporting coal miners and firefighters through NIOSH, safeguarding public health through lead prevention, or researching and tracking the most prevalent communicable diseases,” he said.
The reinstatements don’t undo the damage being done by Kennedy and the Trump administration to federal public health, said members of Fired But Fighting, a group of affected CDC workers who have helped organize rallies in Atlanta.
The most recent was in the rain on June 10, at which some attendees called for Kennedy to resign.
“Bringing a few hundred people back to work out of thousands fired is a start, but there are still countless programs at CDC that have been cut, which will lead to increased disease and death,” one of the group’s founding members, Abby Tighe, said in a statement.
This is not the first time that employees at the Atlanta-based agency were told they were being terminated only to then be told to come back.
After an earlier round of termination notices went out in February, about 180 CDC employees in March were told to come back.
man is the sole owner of Brooklyn Strategist and May is the sole owner of Uncommons.
Neither Freeman nor May responded to a request for comment.
To put pressure on management, workers staged several walkouts, practice pickets and marched on the boss throughout their contract campaign. In one instance, Hex & Co. workers organized a march in which community members entered the cafe’s en-masse.
on 1/28/2022. Office loc.: Richmond County. SSNY designated as agent of LLC upon whom process against it may be served. The address SSNY shall mail process to Joseph S. LaRosa, 238 Wiman Ave., Staten Island, NY 10308. Purpose: Any lawful activity. 031422-1 3/18/22-4/22/22
The actions were done in response to proposals that the union felt were unsavory and because of what union members viewed as a slow pace of bargaining, Knepley said. Freeman and May frequently cancelled bargaining sessions or simply didn’t show up to talks, the union alleged, and declined to bargain at all last summer.
A CERTAIN VALOR LLC. Arts. of Org. filed with the SSNY on 02/28/22. Office: New York County. SSNY designated as agent of the LLC upon whom process against it may be served. SSNY shall mail copy of process to the LLC, 52 E. 4th Street, Apartment 11, New York, NY 10003. Purpose: Any lawful purpose.
030722-3 3/18/22-4/22/22
workers won a lot and feels confident in the agreement.
“We got an agreement that I think we like,” said Sinclair, who works at Hex & Co. “Now I feel a lot more comfortable with my future.” Hex & Co. is jointly owned by Jon Freeman and Greg May while Free-
“They didn’t want to stop their vacation time to come to the table and deal with the work that needed to be done and that really delayed our negotiations that frustrated everyone and made people angry and upset,” Knepley said. Union members continued to escalate their actions, and both Knepley and Sinclair agreed that what helped pressure management to finally complete the agreement was a strike authorization vote held in April when 89 percent of voting members authorized a strike. That strike never occurred, but the threat of it was enough to move management, they said.
“This sets a really awesome precedent,” Sinclair insisted. “It proves to small business workplaces that just because you work for a tiny company — relatively speaking — that doesn’t mean you don’t deserve the protections that a union contract can get you.”
NOTICE OF FORMATION OF RAMFAM LOGISTICS LLC. Articles of Organization filed with the Secretary of State of NY (SSNY) on February 25, 2022. Office location: Bronx County. SSNY has been designated as agent upon whom process against it may be served. The Post Office address to which the SSNY shall mail a copy of any process against the LLC served upon him/her is 530 E. 159th Street, Apt # 6, Bronx, NY 10451. The principal business address of the LLC is 530 E. 159th Street, Apt # 6, Bronx, NY 10451. Purpose: Any lawful act or activity. 031122-1 3/18/22-4/22/22
Courtesy of Daniel Mayer, via Wikimedia
The headquarters of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta.
Tabletop Workers United
Workers at The Uncommons, a board game cafe in Greenwich Village, rally last year. The workers, members of Workers United, reached a tentative agreement for a first contract late last month.
UPCOMING EXAMS LEADING TO JOBS
Below is a roundup of New York City and State exams leading to public-service positions. Most of the jobs listed are located in the New York Metropolitan area and upstate.
There are residency requirements for many New York City jobs and for state law-enforcement positions.
Prospective applicants are advised to write or call the appropriate office to make sure they meet the qualifications needed to apply for an exam. For jobs for which no written tests are given, candidates will be rated on education and experience, or by oral tests or performance exams.
DCAS Computer-based Testing and Application Centers (CTACs) have re-opened to the public. However, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, walk-ins are no longer accepted and appointments must be scheduled online through OASys for eligible list or examination related inquiries.
All examination and eligible list related notifications will be sent by email only, you will no longer receive notifications via the US mail.
All new hires must be vaccinated against the COVID-19 virus, unless they have been granted a reasonable accommodation for religion or disability. If you are offered city employment, this requirement must be met by your date of hire, unless a reasonable accommodation for exemption is received and approved by the hiring agency.
For further information about where to apply to civil service exams and jobs, visit the thechief.org/exams.
The Federal Government has decentralized its personnel operations and holds few exams on a national or regional basis. Most Federal vacancies are filled by individual agencies based on education-and-experience evaluations. For information, contact the U.S. Office of Personnel Management or individual agencies, or see www.usajobs.gov.
60037060 Respiratory Therapist I
$74,114-$99,744
60037070 Clinical Psychologist I $58,480$121,560; NHCC: $79,317-$99,744
➤ OPEN CONTINUOUSLY
7078 CR(D) Cytotechnologist I $74,114$99,744
7094 CR(D) Cytotechnologist II $83,915$118,479
7095 CR(D) Cytotechnologist III
$106,880-$144,480 61-639 CR Librarian I 60-180 CR Librarian I, Bilingual (Spanish Speaking)
5263 CR(D) Medical Technologist I $79,212-$91,619
5002 CR Nurse Practitioner I (Acute Care) $96,274-$118,479
5003 CR Nurse Practitioner I (Adult Health) $96,274-$118,479 SUFFOLK COUNTY EXAMS ➤
JOB HIGHLIGHT
The MTA is accepting applications for track equipment maintainers through July 15 ahead of practical skills exams expected to start Sept. 29.
The current minimum salary is $37.16 per hour for a 40-hour workweek, increasing to $43.72 in the sixth year of service. Benefits include, but are not limited to, night and weekend salary differentials, paid holidays, vacation and sick leave, a comprehensive medical plan and a pension plan.
MTA hiring track equipment maintainers at $37/hr, increasing to $43 in 6th year
THE JOB Track equipment maintainers, under supervision, inspect, test, maintain, alter, repair and operate electromechanical, electronic, hydraulic, and pneumatic equipment used in the construction, maintenance and repair of railroad track in MTA New York City Transit’s subway system. They maintain, repair and operate cranes, tampers, compressors, front-end loaders, engines and motors, rail saws, chain saws, payloaders, forklifts, conveyors, track lubricators, ballast regulators, snow blowers, grease pumps and machine shop equipment; drive trucks;
keep records; make computations; prepare reports; and perform related work. Some of the physical activities performed by track equipment maintainers and the environmental conditions they experience are crawling under trucks and heavy equipment; working in confined spaces; working on subway and elevated tracks; lifting and carrying heavy tools and components; taking precise measurements; distinguishing colors; manually removing and installing parts and bolts in confined areas; moving out of the way of moving vehicles and heavy equipment, including trains while working on or near tracks that are in service; hearing warnings; and working outdoors in all weather conditions.
QUALIFICATIONS
(Nos. 42 and 44) on
4058 for any of 3 jobs in Department of Environmental Protection.
MANAGEMENT AUDITOR–7 eligibles between Nos. 140 and 398 on List 1022 for 1 job in Department of Citywide Administrative Services.
PLUMBER’S HELPER–55 eligibles between Nos. 21 and 688 on List 2088 for 21 jobs at HA.
PUBLIC RECORDS AIDE–157 eligibles between Nos. 4 and 215 on List 2019 for 1 job in Department of Design and Construction.
PROMOTION
ADMINISTRATIVE CITY PLANNER–7 eligibles between Nos. 1 and 23 on List 1520 for 1 job in Department of City Planning.
ASSISTANT HOUSING MANAGER–60 eligibles between Nos. 4 and 294 on List 2512 for 12 jobs at HA.
COMPUTER SYSTEMS MANAGER–9 eligibles (Nos. 1-9) on List 4524 for 5 jobs in Department of Design and Construction.
DEPUTY CHIEF (FIRE)–62 eligibles between Nos. 24 and 85 on List 3590 for 50 jobs in Fire Department.
SUPERVISOR OF HOUSING CARETAKERS–265 eligibles between Nos. 7 and 516 on List 2554 for 16 jobs at HA.
SUPERVISOR OF MECHANICS (MECHANICAL EQUIPMENT)–5 eligibles (Nos. 1, 3, 5, 6 and 7) on List 2545 for 2 jobs in Department of Parks and Recreation.
Applicants must have either 1) completed a four-year full-time apprenticeship in an electro-mechanical trade recognized by the NYS Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Labor or any state apprenticeship council which is recognized by the DOL; or 2) have two years of full-time satisfactory journey-level experience in the testing, operation, maintenance, alteration and repair of the mechanical, electrical, hydraulic, and pneumatic components and systems of A)
heavy equipment of the type used in construction or the maintenance and repair of track, such as pneumatic and hydraulic compressors, drills, pile drivers, payloaders, tractors and conveyors, including gasoline and diesel engines; or B) transportation vehicles such as passenger automobiles, trucks, buses, marine vessels or aircraft.
For the journey-level mechanic experience in “2” above to be credited, it must be preceded by one of the following: a) two years of full-time satisfactory experience as a mechanic’s helper, apprentice or trainee performing or assisting in the work described in “2; or b) graduation from a recognized trade school or technical school with a major course of study in a mechanical or electrical trade or a closely related field, totaling 600 hours; or c) graduation from a vocational high school with a major course of study in a mechanical or electrical trade or a closely related field; or d) An A.A.S. degree or higher in electromechanical, electrical or electronic technology or a closely related field, from an accredited college or university.
THE TEST
The competitive practical skills test will measure knowledge, skills and abilities pertaining to the troubleshooting and repairing of elec-
trical, mechanical, hydraulic and pneumatic components, devices, systems and circuits found in heavy equipment or track equipment. A passing score is 65 percent. Test scores determine places on the eligible list.
OTHER REQUIREMENTS
Appointees must possess either: 1) A valid NYS Class A or B commercial driver’s license with no disqualifying restrictions and with an endorsement for hazardous materials; or 2) a valid NYS motor vehicle driver’s license and valid NYS learner’s permit for a Class A or B commercial driver license with no disqualifying restrictions.
For applicants who qualify under “2” above, appointments will be subject to the receipt of the Class B CDL valid in the State of New York, with an endorsement for hazardous materials and no disqualifying restrictions within six months of appointment.
Candidates must pass a drug screening in order to be appointed, and if appointed, they will be subject to random drug and alcohol tests for the duration of their employment. City residency is not required for this position.
For completed information on the position and to apply, go to https:// www.mta.info/document/174591.
LABOR AROUND THE WORLD LABOR AROUND THE WORLD LABOR AROUND THE WORLD
Union raises concerns about Trump admin’s plans for U.S. Steel
Details on what White House calls ‘investment’ are few
BY JOSH BOAK and MARC LEVY Associated Press
President Donald Trump would have unique influence over the operations of U.S. Steel under the terms of what the White House calls an “investment” being made by Japan-based Nippon Steel in the iconic American steelmaker.
Administration officials over the past few days provided additional insight into the “golden share” arrangement that the federal government made as a condition for supporting the deal.
The Pittsburgh-based steel maker and Nippon Steel plan $11 billion in new investments by 2028 after indicating that they plan to move forward with the deal under the terms of a national security agreement that has the White House’s approval.
The White House has described the deal as a “partnership” and an “investment” by Nippon Steel in U.S. Steel, although Nippon Steel has never backed off its stated intention of buying and controlling
U.S. Steel as a wholly owned subsidiary in a nearly $15 billion offer it originally made in late 2023.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick posted on social media on Saturday how the “golden share” to be held by the president would operate, revealing that the White House is willing to insert itself aggressively into a private company’s affairs even as it has simultaneously pledged to strip away government regulations so businesses can expand.
Under the government’s terms, it would be impossible without Trump’s consent to relocate U.S. Steel’s headquarters from Pittsburgh, change the name of the company, “transfer production or
jobs outside the United States,” shutter factories, or reincorporate the business overseas, among other powers held by the president.
Lutnick also said it would require presidential approval to reduce or delay $14 billion in planned investments.
“The Golden Share held by the United States in U.S. Steel has powerful terms that directly benefit and protect America, Pennsylvania, the great steelworkers of U.S. Steel, and U.S. manufacturers that will have massively expanded access to domestically produced steel,” Lutnick posted on X.
That $14 billion figure is higher than what the companies disclosed late last week when Trump created a pathway for the investment with an executive order based on the terms of the national security agreement being accepted.
Lawmakers from Pennsylvania say the higher figure includes the cost of an electric arc furnace — a more modern steel mill that melts down scrap — that Nippon Steel wants to build in the U.S., bringing the value of the deal to at least $28 billion.
The president has the authority to name one of the corporate board’s independent three directors and veto power over the other two choices, according to a person familiar with the terms of the agreement who insisted on anonymity to discuss them. The details of the board structure were first reported by The New York Times.
Contract expires next year
Still, the full terms remain somewhat unclear. The companies have not made public the full terms of Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel or the national security agreement with the federal government.
On Sunday, the United Steelworkers, the labor union representing U.S. Steel employees, posted a letter raising questions about the deal
forged by Trump, who during his run for the presidency had pledged to block Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel.
The union said it was “disappointed” that Trump “has reversed course” and raised basic questions about the ownership structure of U.S. Steel.
“Neither the government nor the companies have publicly identified what all the terms of the proposed transaction are,” the letter said.
“Our labor agreement expires next year, on September 1, 2026, and the USW and its members are prepared to engage the new owners” of U.S. Steel “to obtain a fair contract.”
If Trump has as much control of U.S. Steel as he has claimed, that could put him in the delicate position of negotiating the salary and benefits of unionized steelworkers going into midterm elections.
As president, Joe Biden used his authority to block Nippon Steel’s acquisition of U.S. Steel on his way out of the White House after a review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States.
After he was elected, Trump expressed openness to working out an arrangement and ordered another review by the committee. That’s when the idea of the “golden share” emerged as a way to resolve national security concerns and protect American interests in domestic steel production.
As it sought to win over American officials, Nippon Steel made a series of commitments.
It gradually increased the amount of money it was pledging to invest in U.S. Steel, promised to maintain U.S. Steel’s headquarters in Pittsburgh, put U.S. Steel under a board with a majority of American citizens and keep plants operating.
It also said it would protect the interests of U.S. Steel in trade matters and it wouldn’t import steel slabs that would compete with U.S. Steel’s blast furnaces in Pennsylvania and Indiana.
Guatemalan men who said they were exploited on Michigan farms awarded $500,000
BY ED WHITE Associated Press
A jury has awarded more than $500,000 to five men from Guatemala who said they were exploited and underpaid by a labor contractor that brought them to Michigan to plant and harvest fruit and vegetables.
Much of the verdict — $450,000 — was in the form of punitive damages against Purpose Point Harvesting for violating an anti-trafficking law.
Interpreters translated Spanish to English as the five men testified in U.S. District Court in Grand Rapids. They recalled three seasons as laborers, handling asparagus, apples, cherries and other crops in Oceana and Newaygo counties, from 2017 to 2019.
They sometimes worked 100 hours a week but never got paid for
more than 60, wore headlights to pick asparagus after midnight and slept on couches, attorney Teresa Hendricks said.
“They were told if they didn’t like it, it was better than what they could earn in Guatemala,” she said.
“They’re some of the bravest men I know,” Hendricks added.
“They had to come to this country to stand up for their values and speak the truth in a strange courtroom, in a town they’re not familiar with, in front of a jury and lay it out bare.”
An attorney for Purpose Point said other workers contradicted the claims.
“Ultimately the jury makes a decision based on the facts they’re allowed to see. We still deny the allegations and look forward to the appeals,” Robert Alvarez said.
The men entered the U.S. under a federal program, known as H-2A,
that allows farms to use foreign labor if they can’t find domestic workers. Purpose Point serves as a middleman, recruiting people to fill jobs at Michigan farms and handling payroll.
The head of the company is a native of the Malacatán area in Guatemala, the workers’ same home region, Hendricks said.
“It is rare for any labor trafficking case, H-2A or otherwise, to go to trial because victims suffer from a level of coercive control that keeps them in constant fear of retaliation if they disclose the abuse,” said co-counsel Kenya Davis of the Boies Schiller Flexner law firm. Hendricks recalled meeting one of the men in a cornfield late at night.
“The retaliation of being deported early, losing their jobs and visas — those were all real fears,” she said.
Colombia lawmakers approve labor bill
More pay and protections for workers
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Colombia’s Senate approved a labor bill that is expected to grant workers more overtime pay while making it harder for companies to hire employees on short-term contracts.
The bill’s approval Tuesday night comes as tensions have been increasing between the Senate and President Gustavo Petro over reforms to the economy and health system that have polarized the nation’s politics and tested the separation of powers in Colombia’s fragile democracy.
Petro has repeatedly accused Congress of blocking his reforms and last week issued a decree that called on Colombia’s elections agency, the National Registrar, to organize a referendum on labor laws.
The agency said Tuesday it would wait for Colombian courts to decide if it was legal for it to organize the referendum, because the Senate had voted against the referendum last month.
Petro has threatened to change Colombia’s constitution, by calling for a constituent assembly, if his request for a referendum on labor laws is not granted, and in a post on X Tuesday, said that those who did not approve the referendum were committing “treason.”
Opposition leaders have accused the president of developing an authoritarian streak, as he tries to
override decisions made by Congress.
The labor bill approved by Colombia’s Senate on Tuesday includes many of the changes to Colombia’s labor laws proposed by Petro’s party, the Historical Pact. It increases surcharges paid to employees who work Sundays and also makes companies pay more for late evening shifts, which is likely to apply to many retailers, restaurants and hotels.
The bill also says delivery apps must formally hire delivery workers as freelancers or as full-time employees and help to pay for their health insurance.
Business associations in Colombia oppose the changes, arguing they will raise the cost of employing people and could ultimately increase unemployment.
Currently, 56% of Colombian workers labor with no contracts, in what is known as the informal economy. Economists expect the reforms to push more people into informality, while supporters of the bill argue they are just pushing for the restoration of rights workers had in the early 1990s, before Colombia began to make labor laws more flexible.
The Senate and House of Representatives must now reconcile the differences in the bills each chamber drafted and then agree on a final version of the bill.
Petro wrote in a message on X that he will continue to push for the referendum until legislators from both chambers have voted on a final bill.
BY PAUL WISEMAN Associated Press
The number of Americans applying for unemployment benefits dipped to 245,000 last week, hovering at historically low levels, the Labor Department said Wednesday.
U.S. jobless claims ticked down from 250,000 the week before. Economists had expected last week’s claims to match that at 250,000.
The four-week average of claims, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, rose to 245,500, the highest since August 2023.
The number of Americans collecting unemployment benefits the week of June 7 slid to 1.95 million.
Weekly unemployment claims are a proxy for layoffs and mostly have stayed within a healthy band of 200,000 to 250,000 since the economy recovered from a brief but painful Covid-related recession in 2020, which temporarily wiped out millions of jobs.
In recent weeks, however, claims have stayed at the high end of range, adding to evidence that the U.S. job market is decelerating after years of strong hiring. So far this year, employers are adding a decent but far from spectacular 124,000 jobs a month, down from an average 168,000 last year and an average of nearly
400,000 from 2021 through 2023. The hiring slowdown is partly the drawn-out result of 11 interest rate hikes by the Federal Reserve in 2022 and 2023. But Trump’s aggressive and often-erratic trade policies — including 10 percent taxes on imports from almost every country on earth — are also weighing on the economy, paralyzing businesses and worrying consumers who fear they’ll mean higher prices.
Carl Weinberg of High Frequency Economics is worried that claims remain elevated compared with recent years, when employment has remained very low by historical standards.
“We believe firms have been ‘hoarding’ workers to ensure that they don’t lay off skilled and trained workers by mistake, especially with the labor market still very close to full employment,” Weinberg wrote. “With uncertainty still high ... companies have remained hesitant about layoffs. That may be changing.’’ The Fed, satisfied that inflation was coming down, cut rates three times last year. But the central bank has turned cautious in 2025, worried that Trump’s tariffs will rekindle inflationary pressures. The Fed is expected to leave rates unchanged as it wraps up a two-day meeting Wednesday.
Takanori Yamamoto/The Yomiuri Shimbun via AP Images
U.S. Steel’s Mon Valley Works Edgar Thomson plant in Braddock, Pennsylvania. The factory has been in operation since 1901.
Santiago Saldarriaga/AP Photo People took to the streets of Cali, Colombia, earlier this month in support of Colombian President Gustavo Petro’s intention to call a referendum on labor reform.
