THE
CityREVIEW NewRochelle June 1, 2018 | Vol. 6, Number 13 | www.cityreviewnr.com
County workers rally for paid sick time By JAMES PERO Staff Writer
TUNNEL VISION
With the development of a soundlink tunnel on the potential horizon, the ciyt of Rye is ramping up its defense by appointing residents to a ad hoc tunnel committee. For story, see page 9. File photo
Westchester Children’s Association promotes new director The board of directors of the Westchester Children’s Association is proud to announce the selection of Allison Lake as the organization’s new executive director. Lake’s appointment, which is effective July 1, comes as the result of a four-month long retained executive search process. She replaces long-time executive Cora Greenberg, who is retiring. Lake joined the 104-year-old advocacy organization in 1998 as program director and was promoted to deputy director, her current position, in 2008. As deputy director, Lake oversaw all of the program initiatives at the Westchester Children Association, WCA, and also managed a number of core, administrative functions. One of her most important contributions to the field of youth develop-
ment was the leadership role she played in the successful effort to raise the age of criminal responsibility in New York, known as the RTA campaign. The statewide RTA coalition worked for years to convince New York lawmakers to pass legislation that would end New York’s status as one of the last two states in the union to automatically prosecute 16- and 17-year-old adolescents in the adult court system. Finally, late last year, state policymakers agreed that the fiscal year 2018 budget would include legislation that raised the age of criminal responsibility to 18. Now, under Lake’s experienced hand, WCA is well positioned to influence the complex process of implementing the new law. Lake has deep experience working in the youth development
field. Prior to joining WCA, she held positions with YWCA of White Plains and Central Westchester, Associated Black Charities and National Civic League. Her volunteer work speaks volumes of her commitment to giving back, starting with her Peace Corps service in West Africa and extending to a wide range of groups, including REACH Prep in Stamford, Greenburgh Public Library, Lois Bronz Children’s Center in White Plains and Greenwich Academy. Lake holds a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Amherst College and an MBA with focus on finance and international business from New York University. In her junior year at Amherst, she studied at The Institute for American Universities in Aix-en-Provence, France.
“I feel empowered by the unanimous decision of the board to offer me this significant position and am grateful for the chance to lead WCA into its second century,” Lake said. “I am also grateful to current [executive director], Cora Greenberg, for her leadership. She has been an outstanding mentor through the years. I am awed by her vote of confidence and support in my transition.” Since 1914, WCA has remained steadfast in its mission to improve the lives of Westchester’s young people by shaping policies and programs to meet their needs, and by keeping their well-being at the top of the public agenda. For more information about the WCA’s mission, initiatives and events, please visit wca4kids.org. (Submitted)
[Date?, workers rallied to promote a bill designed to provide paid sick time for thousands of workers across Westchester County. Outside of the county government building on Martine Avenue in White Plains, workers holding signs chanted in support of the bill—sponsored by Legislator Catherine Borgia, a Peekskill Democrat—which has been floating around the county Legislature for about a year. Currently, workers—many of which are employed by the county—say they have no choice but to show up to work sick because of lack of paid time off. The bill would affect both public and private workers. Additionally, advocates say, by forcing workers to attend work while sick, it may decrease productivity through increasing the likelihood that illnesses are spread. According to a report from 2016 from the Institute of Women’s Policy Research, about 36 percent of county workers lack paid sick time, and many of them earning low wages. Among those workers, 54 percent are of total service workers and 52 percent of total construction workers respectively. But a bill reintroduced to the county Board of Legislators in February would provide eligible workers with one hour of paid sick time for every 30 hours of work with a maximum of 40 hours paid sick time in total. The regulations would only apply to companies with five or more employees and would include days needed for mental health and those needed to take care of
Workers from across Westchester rallied outside of the county Michaelian Building to demand action on a bill to provide them paid sick time. Photo courtesy Transport Workers Union
a sick family member. Detractors of paid sick time laws claim that requiring businesses to pay employees for time off would incur significant costs on their part, plus workers may take sick days off when they’re not actually sick. The bill is currently making its way through committee and is being vetted by the county attorney to ensure of its compliance with state law. According to a statement from The Transport Workers Union—a group involved in the recent petitioning—the bill, if passed, would affect more than 120,000 workers across Westchester. New York City and New Jersey have already passed their own paid sick time laws in the last several years. While 10 states, including Connecticut and New Jersey, currently have statewide paid sick times laws, New York has yet to pass its own law. A paid sick time bill would easily pass through the county Board of Legislators due to a Democratic supermajority of 13-4. CONTACT: james@hometwn.com