Official Publication of
The Civil Service Employees Association
A SPECIAL ROAD — The car in this photo is approaching a special,
1,000-foot long section of highway on the State Campus in Albany. A
slight "bump" in the foreground marks the start of the special strip
of road. To find out what m a k e s it so special, turn to page 5.
25(p
Vol. 1, N o . 9
W e d n e s d a y , N o v e m b e r 29, 1978
Appellate Court hears dispute
ALBANY — The Appellate Division
of State Supreme Court may render a
decision as soon as mid-December in
the disputed representation election
affecting 45,500 State employees in
the PS&T bargaining unit. The 5-judge
panel of the Third Department of the
Appellate Division heard oral
arguments in the case November 22
and is expected to issue a relatively
speedy decision.
Meanwhile, a stay barring decer-
Contract
t i f i c a t i o n of t h e Civil S e r v i c e
E m p l o y e e s Assn. a s b a r g a i n i n g
representative, issued by a State
Supreme Court judge on September 27
and later upheld by the Appellate
Division, continues in effect. As a
result , CSEA continues to represent
the PS&T employees pending the outcome of legal action.
CSEA took the issue to S t a t e
Supreme Court following a decision
talks resume under
ALBANY — The apparent leak of confidential information concerning the union's contract demands
to the State of New York has visibly angered Civil
Service Employees Assn. President William L.
McGowan, but he has refused to escalate the controversy, instead reiterating CSEA's intention to
honor a news blackout policy s u r r o u n d i n g
negotiations.
Almost immediately after CSEA and the State exchanged initial demands for new contracts covering
100,000 state workers in three major bargaining units, an Albany-area newspaper printed a front page
Union set to launch
image building plan
ALBANY - The Civil Service
Employees Assn. will launch the most
extensive advertising campaign in its
history shortly after the first of the
year following approval of campaign
funding by the union's Board of Directors this month.
Centering around the theme,
"Public employees, where would you
be without them," the union will
begin the campaign using radio and
newspaper advertising and may expand to additional media. It is expected to continue over a period of
several months.
Not only will the campaign be the
most extensive in the union's history,
it also represents a bold departure
from past advertising campaigns.
This program will have an imagebuilding objective, designed to show
public e m p l o y e e s in a positive
manner to improve the public's image
of public workers, as well as the ima g e t h a t e m p l o y e e s h a v e of
themselves.
The image-building c a m p a i g n ,
known as "institutional advertising,"
will utilize a new CSEA "jingle", or
song, written especially for the campaign and first unveiled at the October annual meeting of the union's
delegates.
on September 27 by the State Public
Employment Relations Board to
d e c e r t i f y CSEA and g r a n t cert i f i c a t i o n to t h e r i v a l P u b l i c
Employees Federation ( P E F ) on the
basis of an election last April which
saw P E F gain a majority of ballots
cast. CSEA has charged the April
election was fraught with illegalities
and irregularities and should be overturned. CSEA detailed its charges in
written briefs filed in late October
article which purportedly detailed virtually all the
union's demands. Prior to the exchange of
demands, both sides had agreed to abide by a policy
of negotiating under a news blackout.
The union responded to the apparent leak of information by refusing to confirm or deny the accuracy
of the news article, stating such information cannot
be discussed due to the blackout restrictions. A
spokesperson for President McGowan said discussion of initial demands, subject to substantial
changes as talks progress, would be meaningless
and could be detrimental to the bargaining process.
with the Appellate Division and during oral arguments on November 22.
CSEA was represented by its chief
counsel, Atty. James Roemer. P E F
was represented by James Sandner,
an attorney from the New York State
United Teachers, one of two unions
comprising P E F . P E R B was
represented by Atty. Martin Barr,
while Atty. Joseph Bress appeared for
the Governor's Office of Employee
Relations.
blackout
Under the mutually adopted policy, news releases
regarding negotiations cannot be issued prior to an
impasse in bargaining, and even then a 48-hour
notice must be given in advance before one side or
the other contacts the news media.
CSEA-State contract talks resumed under the
blackout policy this week, and will continue,
probably, next week. Bargaining is expected to continue for several weeks in an effort to reach
agreement prior to expiration of the existing contract on March 31, 1979.
West Babylon
pact approved
WEST BABYLON. - The 300-member
West Babylon School District Unit, part
of Suffolk county Educational Local 870
of the Civil Service Employees Assn.,
has a new 2-year contract but it came
within a whisker of going on strike instead.
The school district employees had
been without a contract since last June
30. Talks disintegrated into an impasse,
and when subsequent efforts to resolve
the differences faltered the membership
authorized its negotiating team to call a
strike if necessary.
A strike was ultimately called for
November 13, but a last ditch bargaining
session on Sunday, November 12 resulted
in a tentative 2-year agreement, which
was ratified unanimously later the same
day by the membership, less than 12
hours before the strike was set to begin.
The agreement calls for a 4V2% pay
hike retroactive to July 1, and a 5%
salary increase effective next July 1.
Improvements in longevity steps and
other contractual language changes also
are included.
The adjacent photos show members of
the unit demonstrating during a meeting
of the West Babylon Board of Education.
WEST BABYLON CSEA UNIT m e m b e r s Thomas Weigel, Liz Cunningham and
Margaret Kuprian discuss the issues that held up negotiations and nearly led to a
strike by the workers.
WEST BABYLON SCHOOL DISTRICT drivers Jackie Cittlar and Jean Fiorentino
w e r e among a large number of unit m e m b e r s picketing.
-LETTERS
the Editor
We encourage letters from readers pertaining to items which
have appeared in THE PUBLIC SECTOR or which are of interest to public employees. Letters must contain the name,
address and telephone number of the writer for verification
purposes. Telephone numbers will not be printed, and names
may be withheld upon request. Send all letters to THE
PUBLIC SECTOR, Clarity Publishing Inc., 75 Champlain
.Street, Albany, N.Y. 12204.
Kditor, The Public Sector:
I think something ought to be done with
reference to the method of payment we have to
endure by GHI for dental claims. I feel the
benefits offered by the State was one reason for
many people taking a Civil Service job.
However, when you have to wait several months
for a claim to be processed and then only a f t e r
repeated letters and duplicate copies of claims,
may you finally, if you're lucky, reap satisfaction. I'm sure many of us have had to wait and
wait an unusually long period of time for a reimbursement on a dental bill. My dentist, as I am
sure many others, refuses to keep on filling out
duplicate copies. It is time consuming and their
time is money. When you do finally make a
phone inquiry to GHI with reference to a claim
or claims and this is only after repeated written
requests have been ignored, they then ask you to
send another copy of insurance form. After four
years of being involved with this dental plan and
their practice of payment, I feel an injustice is
being done to State workers. Doctor and dental
fees are high and when you have a large family,
the bills are that much more. A doctor or dentist
does not wait for his money. Payment is due at
the time of service. It is not fair to make us wait
for a benefit that is due us. After all, don't you
think four duplicate copies of insurance forms,
four letters and nine months is long enough to
wait for a benefit due a CSEA employee?
Linda Lessman
Melville, N.Y.
Editor, The Public Sector:
I am a new employee within the State system,
and please allow me to express my opinion
through your publication.
The two specific topics I mention hereafter
have concerned me since I began employment
with the State. I honestly feel the CSEA has done
very little or nothing about it, and I hope I can
catch their attention through your publication.
First, I am of the opinion that fixed (stable)
pass days (other than weekends) contribute to
sub-human standards in life. Imagine a worker
CSEA sets tentative
timetable for elections
The following tentative timetable has been announced for the 1979 election
of statewide officers and members of the State p:]xecutive Committee of the
Civil Service Employees Assn.
January 2 Appointment of Nominaring Committee.
.January « Mailing of Bid Specifications to Outside Agencies.
.January 18 Meeting of Nominating Committee to Outline Duties & Elect
Chairperson.
January 29 Receipt Deadline for Bids PYom Outside Agencies.
January :iO Opening of Bids and Review by Election Procedures Committee.
January 31 Meeting with Board of Directors Committee to approve
Outside Agency.
January 31 Notification to Outside Agency of Acceptance of Bid.
March 1
March 21
April 16
April 16
April 20
April 20
April 27
May 11
May 14
May 26
June 21
June 22
Publication of Names of All Candidates in the Official
Newspaper.
Ballots in Mail.
Replacement ballots may be requested as of this date if
original ballot has not been delivered.
June 29
Return of Ballots — 6 p.m. Deadline.
Ballots to be removed from envelopes to prepare tor
counting. Ballots which cannot be machine counted will be
counted manually during this period.
Return of Replacement Ballots — 6 p.m. Deadline.
Ballots to be counted. Candidates to be notified by telegram
by June 29th.
Official Results to be Announced.
July 9
End of Protest (10 days after official results a r e announced.)
June 27
June 28
Page 10
Public employees' wages and salaries have barely kept up with the
cost of living from 1974 through 1977. Also during the same period, public
employees' wages and salaries increased at a lower rate than private
sector employees.
From 1974 through 1977, consumer prices increased 22.9 percent while
public employee wages and salaries nationally increased 22.1 percent and
private sector wages and salaries increased 23.5 percent.
A comparison of 1977 earnings in the chart below shows where public
employees are on the economic pecking order.
Profession
Earnings
• State and Local Government
$12.230
• State and Local Government
(non education)
$11,721
• Manufacturing
$13,892
• Construction
$14,664
• Durable Goods Manufacturing
$14,766
• Transportation
$15,999
• Electric and Gas Utilities
$16,743
• Communications
$16,684
• Mining
$17,352
• Automobile Manufacturing
T
$19,811
Calendar-^
of EVENTS
Report of Nominating Committee.
Deadline for Declination of Nomination.
Final Day for Nominations to Fill Declinations (If Less Than
2 Candidates Remain)
Final Day for Petitions To Be Filed.
Request to Each Candidate For spelling of name as it will
appear on ballot sent by certified mail/return receipt.
Deadline for changes — May 5, 1979.
Drawing for Position on Ballot - 10:30 A.M., Conference
Room, Headquarters — Candidates (or Proxies) may attend
as observers.
Mailing of Printed Copies of Rules and Regulations for the
Election to All Candidates and Local Presidents.
THE PUeilC SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y , N o v e m b e r
22,
1978
— a human being — having permanent pass days
of Wednesday and Thursday. This is bull! What
has the CSEA done, except to talk about
seniority?
Every other worker, other than the nurses and
attendants, have weekends off. The nurses and
attendants have been carrying the greater
portion of the work load in terms of health care.
Why can't we have, at least, every other
weekend off?
Secondly, the L.P.N, has a license. The L.P.N,
often takes charge of psychiatric wards, gives
out medication including injections and functions
with similar responsibilities as the R.N., except
for a few things. The question is, why should the
L.P.N, be in the same grade category as the
MHTA or CMA? The L.P.N, should be, at least,
one grade lower than the R.N. or two grades
higher than the MHTA or CMA. The CMA should
be one grade above the MHTA.
What has the CSEA been doing except talking
about future benefits? Most of us may never live
to see t h o s e b e n e f i t s a n y w a y . We w a n t
satisfaction now.
I personally have been a past member of both
Local 144 and Local 1199 and, believe me, the
CSEA is 10 years behind. I sincerely hope
something is done.
R. Rampersad, P.N.
Kingsboro Psychiatric Center
NOVEMBER
29 — Long Island Region 1 Special elections seminar; 5-11 p.m., site to be announced.
30 — Anti-J. P. Stevens rally, 1 p.m.. M e e t i n g Room 6, Nelson A. Rockefeller P l a i a ,
A l b a n y . Everyone welcome.
30 — Anti-J.P. Stevens rally, 4 p.m., J. P. Stevens Tower, 47th Street a n d 6th
Avenue, N e w York City.
DECEMBER
2 —
Stateside Non-Teaching School Employees' Committee M e e t i n g f o r Jefferson,
St. Lawrence, O s w e g o county school unit representatives; 9 a . m . - l p.m.. Holid a y Inn, W a t e r t o w n .
2
O G S Local 6 6 0 — Executive committee meeting, 11 a.m.. G e n e r a l
membership meeting, 1 p.m. Miller Hose Fire C o m p a n y , Clinton Heights.
2 _
A n n u a l Christmas p a r t y , SUNY Morrisville Local 609, 6:30 p.m., Nelson Inn,
Nelson, N.Y.
6 _
A n n u a l Christmas luncheon. C a p i t a l District Retirees Local 9 9 9 , noon,
T h r u w a y House, W a s h i n g t o n Avenue, A l b a n y .
8 — Christmas p a r t y , M a r c y CSEA Local 414, Roseland, N e w York Mills.
Cocktails, 7-8 p.m.
8 _
C o r t l a n d County Unit of Local 8 1 2 Christmas Party, 6 : 3 0 p.m.. Son Rocco
Lodge, Pomeroy Street, C o r t l a n d .
15 _
Central Barge C a n a l Local 503 Fall M e e t i n g a n d Dinner, 3 p.m., Polish
Falcons, 75 Pulaski Street, A u b u r n .
16 — Local 6 3 5 S U C O O n e o n t a Christmas Party, 6 : 3 0 p.m., Hunt Union Ballroom,
S U C O Campus.
As an attempt to provide a broad range of services to its membership, The Civil Service Employees Association will run a bi-weekly column to be known as the "Insurance
Advisor." The purpose of this column will be to make all our members aware of the
benefits available to them and to anwer as many questions as possible concerning the
provision of these benefits. We encourage you to submit your inquiries directly to The
Civil Service Employees Association, c / o Michael Carroll, 33 Elk Street, Albany, New
York 12224. We pledge to answer these questions as quickly as possible.
One of the m o s t i m p o r t a n t
provisions contained in the CSEA
sponsored life insurance plans and
the disability income plan is the
waiver of p r e m i u m guarantee.
This guarantee is an integral part
of any insurance offering since it
protects you most when you need
the protection most — when you
a r e d i s a b l e d and c a n ' t work.
Y e a r l y , h u n d r e d s of i n s u r e d
m e m b e r s , unfortunately, must
take advantage of this benefit.
V e r y s i m p l y , a w a i v e r of
p r e m i u m provision waives the
payment of premiums after an insured has b ^ n totally disabled for
a specific period of time. Premium
p a y m e n t s a r e waived for t h e
duration of the disability. Waiver
of premium provisions vary from
plan to plan but are summarized
below for the CSEA sponsored insurance programs.
BASIC GROUP LIFE
If t h e i n s u r e d m e m b e r has
become totally disabled by injury
or disease prior to attaining age 60
so as to be prevented from engagi n g in a n y o c c u p a t i o n o r
employment for a period of at least
nine (9) months, the member is
eligible to apply for waiver of
premium. The Travelers Insurance
C o m p a n y m u s t be f u r n i s h e d
appropriate proof of the totally disabling injury or disease within a
one (1) year period following the
disability. Upon determining that
the insured is totally and permanently disabled, the Company
will c o n t i n u e t h e i n s u r a n c e
coverage during the continuance of
such disability, without payment of
premium for a period of one (1)
year. Moreover, any p r e m i u m
p a y m e n t s m a d e subsequent to
three (3) months from the date of
disability, are refundable. Each
succeeding year, thereafter, the
Company will request proof of the
continuance of the disability and
upon receipt of the proof shall continue the coverage without
payment of premium.
Further information regarding
waiver of premium for the Basic
Group Life Plan can be obtained
f r o m CSEA H e a d q u a r t e r s , Insurance Department, 33 Elk Street,
Albany, New York 12224.
SUPPLEMENTAL LIFE PLAN
The waiver of premium provision
contained in the Supplemental Life
Plan underwritten by Mutual of
New York is substantially the same
as the Basic Group Plan. There
are, however, three m a j o r distinctions. (1) The insured must pay the
necessary premiums for the first
nine (9) months of the total disability; (2) If the insured has
spouse and child coverage, in add i t i o n to h i s / h e r c o v e r a g e .
insurance
advisor
p r e m i u m s a r e waived for all
coverages, and (3) The waiver of
premium terminates at age 70.
Further information regarding
w a i v e r of p r e m i u m on t h e
Supplemental Life Plan can be obtained from Ter Bush and Powell,
Inc., P.O. Box 956, Schenectady,
New York 12301, attention Willis H.
Griffith.
DISABILITY INCOME
The waiver of premium provision
in the Disability Income Plan is
d i s t i n c t l y d i f f e r e n t f r o m the
waiver provision in the life plans.
After an insured has collected
benefits under this plan for a
period of six (6) months, premium
p a y m e n t s a r e waived for the
remainder of the period of the disability, up to the benefit period
limit. In cases of on the job disabilities, the benefit period is one.
(1) year. In cases of off the job disabilities, the benefit period is
lifetime. The waiver of premium
will c o n t i n u e t h e i n s u r a n c e
coverage in force in the same
manner as if premiums had been
paid when due.
Further information regarding
w a i v e r of p r e m i u m on t h e
Disability Income Plan can be obtained from Ter Bush and Powell,
Inc., P.O. Box 956, Schenectady,
New York 12301, attention Willis H.
Griffith.
CSEA asks recount in state police vote
ALBANY — The Civil Service
Employees Assn. has asked for a formal recount of ballots in one of two
State Police personnel representation
e l e c t i o n s d e c i d e d N o v e m b e r 17.
Although CSEA had not officially
protested the results as of press time,
a spokesman for the union said one
election was very close and should be
recounted.
CSEA had challenged the Police
Benevolent Association (PBA) for
representation rights to State Police
p e r s o n n e l m two of t h r e e new
bargaining units recently created by
the Public Employment Relations
Board. In Unit B, which contains BCI
i n v e s t i g a t o r s and s e n i o r investigators, CSEA received 246 votes
to 273 for PBA. CSEA has asked
P E R B for a formal recount due to the
relative closeness of the results. In
Unit C, which includes sergeants and
officers, PBA outpolled CSEA 330-145.
CSEA was not involved in the
e l e c t i o n in U n i t A, u n i f o r m e d
troopers, where PBA received 1,024
votes to 740 for AFSCME Local
1908.
Four seek
board seat
ALBANY — The name of John
Casey has been added to those of
three other CSEA members seeking
the union's vacant Board of Directors
seat r e p r e s e n t i n g the Judicial
Department.
The other candidates are Nancy
Roark of E l m i r a , N.Y.; F r a n c i s
Griffin of Hicksville, N.Y.; and Julia
M. Filippone of Glenmont. N.Y. Mr.
Casey is from New York City.
Ballots were mailed out to CSEA
Judicial Department members on
Nov. 20 and will be counted on Dec.
12. 1978, by the union's Statewide
Special Election Procedures Comm i t t e e at CSEA h e a d q u a r t e r s in
Albany.
The election is to fill the vacancy
left by the resignation of Ethel Ross.
The term of office will run through
June 30, 1979.
New contract
in Smithtown
SMITHTOWN - The Smithtown
Town unit, first of the town units in
Suffolk County CSEA Local 852 to
reach a contract settlement,
overwhelmingly ratified a two-year
contract recently that gives
employees a graded pay schedule
which will standardize salaries for
the town's 500 workers.
As part of the settlement, the town
employees became the first workers
outside the county government to join
the Suffolk County-CSEA Welfare
Fund.
The new contract includes pay increases of 7 per cent in the first year
and 5.5 per cent in the second year
with increments. The full package of
salary increases and benefits is estimated to cost the town government
approximately $350,000.
The settlement of the contract was
announced by Al Stein, president of
the Smithtown CSEA unit and first
vice president of Suffolk Local 852.
The wage-salary stabilization plan
was a long sought goal of the CSEA.
Under the terms of the contract, the
town will pay c o n t r i b u t i o n s for
m e m b e r s h i p for Smithtown
employees in the welfare fund. The
contract also provides for a personal
leave day for all employees. Other
highlights include: guidelines for
promotion through the ranks, with
priority given to current employees
over hiring from outside; and on-thejob training to give employees the opp o r t u n i t y to q u a l i f y for higher
positions.
The settlement was negotiated by
F i e l d m a n J o h n C u n e o and t h e
Negotiating Committee that included
Bob Lyons, J i m McCarthy, Tom
Spufera, Jr., George Ludder, Joan
DiBernardo, John Stein, Herb Carlton
and J a m e s Murray.
INTENSITY OF BALLOT COUNTING is
reflected in these representatives from
CSEA, PBA, PERB and the State as votes
for representatives for State Police personnel are being tallied. Second from
right, standing, is CSF^A Collective
Bargaining Specialist John Naughter, who
played an active role in the election.
THE P U B I I G «SECTOR, V^ednesday, November 29, 1978
Page' 5
Join a rally against J. P. Stevens
There are those who say that
unionism is dechning in this country,
t h a t t h e s o c i a l and e c o n o m i c
deprivations of the working lower
and middle class population today
a r e somehow different than in past
decades when the labor movement
was more closely identified as a
solution.
It may well be that conditions today a r e more complex, that unions
cannot provide solutions to many,
e v e n p e r h a p s m o s t , of t h e
problems confronting the working
class. Membership in labor unions,
particularly private
industry
unions, is declining. But the death
knell of unionism most likely will
never toll, for so long as there a r e
people who work for others, people
will be exploited and must depend
on the collective protection found
in unionism.
A classic example exists in the
d r i v e by t h e A m a l g a m a t e d
C l o t h i n g and T e x t i l e W o r k e r s
Union (ACTWU) to unionize the
J . P . Stevens Company workers. J.P.
Stevens is a throw-back to the type
of company which spawned the
need for the growth of labor unions
to bring dignity and self-respect to
the working class.
If unions a r e weaker today, it is
partially because many have gone
their own ways for special int e r e s t s a n d r e a s o n s . But t h e
Stevens situation is one in which
e v e r y union can r a l l y around,
regardless of their specialization.
And when unions today do find
common ground to defend, the
power can be awesome and effective. A series of nationwide rallies
on November 30 on behalf of J. P .
Stevens workers should prove that
unionism is still alive and well, and
flourishing in America. P a r t i c i p a t e
in a rally near you on November 30.
(R.A.C.)
Frozen time bomb set to explode
If you think C a l i f o r n i a h a s
w e a t h e r e d t h e P r o p o s i t i o n 13
storm, you've been reading the
wrong tea leaves.
While the cutbacks in personnel
and services have not been massive
due to a state $5 billion bail out of
m u n i c i p a l i t i e s , which d e p l e t e d
the huge state surplus, there is no
guarantee the State of California
will continue to have a surplus to
maintain the bail out.
However, that is not the only
p r o b l e m which lies a h e a d for
California municipalities. Proposition 13 has a built-in t i m e
bomb, which is set to go off
s o m e t i m e during the next few
years.
The infamous proposition allows
property taxes to increase no more
than two percent a year.
If for the next five years inflation
averages 8 percent a year, what
costs $100 today would cost $140.
During that s a m e five year period,
property taxes could only increase
10 percent, or the municipality
would only have $110 to pay for the
$140 service.
The ability of the municipalities
to r e m e d y this situation is unavailable because another part of
P r o p o s i t i o n 13 r e q u i r e s a twothirds vote of the state legislature
to remove the two-percent limit or
any other part of the proposition.
The lesson is clear f r o m the
California experience. Property
taxes cannot be frozen at any level
and still be able to m e e t inflationary increases. (G.A.)
Negotiation blackout leak opposed
Two weeks ago, this publication
editorially supported continuation
of the traditional news blackout
during negotiations. Our stance
applies to bargaining between any
p a r t i e s , but that p a r t i c u l a r
in our
Opinion
editorial r e f e r r e d specifically to
the just-begun contract talks
between CSEA and the State of
New York on behalf of more than
100,000 state workers.
Now the worst has happened. A
political writer for an Albany-area
newspaper recently released what
he reported to be virtually the entire package of demands by CSEA.
If it w a s , in f a c t , t h e union
package, that m e a n s that someone
in a responsible position ignored
the mutually agreed upon blackout
and slipped the package to the
reporter. Such a violation of trust
and of the a g r e e m e n t is inexcusable.
But we note that CSEA President
Bill McGowan has refused to discuss the newspaper article, or to
acknowledge whether the information was or was not accurate.
I n s t e a d he h a s r e i t e r a t e d the
union's support of the blackout policy
and has directed union personnel to
abide by its restriction on releasing
p r e m a t u r e bargaining information.
We c o m m e n d t h a t a c t i o n by
President McGowan.
At the s a m e time, we hope steps
are being taken to f e r r e t out the
" l e a k " so that future detrimental
articles can be avoided. (R.A.C.)
Directory of Regional Offices
REGION
1
— Long I s l a n d
Region
(516) 6 9 1 - 1 1 7 0
Irving F l a u m e n b a u m , President
Ed Cleary, Regional Director
REGION 4 — Capital Region
(518) 4 8 9 - 5 4 2 4
Joseph McDermott, PresideHt
John Corcoran, Regional Director
REGION 2 — Metro Region
(212) 9 6 2 - 3 0 9 0
Solomon Bendet, President
George Bispham, Regional Director
REGION 5 — Central Region
(315) 4 2 2 - 2 3 1 9
J a m e s Moore, President
REGION 3 — Southern Region
(914) 8 9 6 - 8 1 8 0
J a m e s Lennon, President
Thomas Luposello, Regional Director
REGION 6 — Western Region
(716) 6 3 4 - 3 5 4 0
Robert L a t t i m e r , President
Lee F r a n k , Regional Director
^ ^ ^ ^ ^ Martello, Regional Director
"WMO
SPublic—
^SECTOR
O f f i c i a l p u b l i c a t i o n of
The Civil S e r v i c e
Employees Association
33 E l k S t r e e t ,
A l b a n y , N e w Y o r k 12224
..MT^k.. 4
Page 10
GOES
FIRST."
'lA/HAJr
"HO.VJWl
M
Published every Wednesday by Clarity Publishing, Inc.
Publication Office, 75 Champlain Street. Albany, N Y. 12204 (518) 465-4591
Thomas A. demente—Publisher
Roger A. Cole—Executive Editor
Dr. Gerald Alperstein — Associate Editor
Oscar D. Barker—Associate Editor
Deborah Cassidy—Staff Writer
Suäön A. Kemp-Staff Writer
Arden D. Lawand—Graphic Design
Dennis C. Mullahy—Production Coordinator
THE PUeilC SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y , N o v e m b e r 22, 1978
The Public Sector is published every
Wednesday except December 27, Jan. 3
July 4 and August 8 for $5.00 by the Civil
Service Employees Association, 33 Elk
Street, Albany, New York, 12224.
Second Class Postage paid at Post Office, Albany, New York.
Send address changes to The Public Sector. 33 Elk Street, Albany, New York
12224.
Publication office, 75 Champlain Street,
Albany, New York, 12204, Single copy
Price 25'.
Impasse at
waterfront
DOT technician
has a 'hot' idea
By Tim Spofford
Special t^ "The Public Sector"
A new i c e - d e f r o s t i n g road
pavement invented for some of
E u r o p e ' s s l i p p e r i e s t r o a d s and
bridges is now being tested for New
York's highways, thanks to J e r r y
Smith, a technician in the State
D e p a r t m e n t of T r a n s p o r t a t i o n
(DOT).
Smith's idea that the European
discovery could save lives and tax
dollars in this state has led to a
three-lane, 1,000-foot stretch of
iceless pavement recently constructed on the State Campus in
Albany. And as the snow falls this
winter, transportation officials
f r o m New J e r s e y , Connecticut,
New Hampshire and the F e d e r a l
H i g h w a y A d m i n i s t r a t i o n will
monitor the test site to see if
iceless pavement can do over here
what it has done for about 40 of
Europe's iciest roadways.
An a v i d r e a d e r of P o p u l a r
M e c h a n i c s and o t h e r t e c h n i c a l
magazines. Smith first read about
verglimit, an iceless defrosting
asphalt additive, about four y e a r s
ago in a magazine for engineers. " I
let it ride back then, but I did note
where the article c a m e f r o m , "
Smith said. "I. considered it a
potential p r o j e c t . "
But a year later. Smith read
another small article on verglimit
— this one in P a r a d e magazine —
a n d t h e n he d e c i d e d to do
something about it. " I figured this
was twice I saw something on it, so
I said to myself, 'Hey, there might
really be something to this stuff.' "
Smith called the publisher of the
engineering magazine to get the
n a m e and address of Plastiroute,
the G e n e v a , S w i t z e r l a n d - b a s e d
firm holding the verglimit patent.
And before long, he received a
stack of verglimit brochures in the
mail.
"Well, a f t e r that I d r u m m e d up
as much support for it in our
bureau as I could," Smith said,
"And when we presented our ideas
to Bill Burnett, the Director of
Engineering R e s e a r c h and
Development, he said that with the
financial curtailments back then in
'75 it was impossible to take on a
new project.
" I still talked it up to other people in o t h e r b u r e a u s t h r o u g h
general conversations during
coffee b r e a k s , " he said. "In other
words, I tried to keep the idea
alive, and eventually some people
got interested in i t . "
In late 1976 when the s t a t e ' s
b u d g e t p r o b l e m s w e r e not so
severe, word c a m e down f r o m the
t o p to f i n d o u t m o r e a b o u t
verglimit. Smith said. And soon
a f t e r w a r d , representatives f r o m
two European f i r m s working with
verglimit traveled to Albany to see
Smith and his boss. Bob Nittinger,
an assistant civil engineer now
heading DOT's iceless pavement
project.
Nittinger later went to Europe
for a first-hand look at verglimitpaved highways on the continent,
and by last spring, the state had
bought enough verglimit to pave
the Albany test site.
"We have just one section now,
and if it works out we m a y get two
more in appropriate a r e a s if we
can get the funding," Smith said.
" B u t it m a y take five or m o r e
years to use it throughout the state.
The state won't just put it in, it'll
probably wait until a road really
needs paving, and then do i t . "
Verglimit consists primarily of
tiny calcium chloride flakes, and
according to a DOT report, as c a r s
pass over the road surface, the
flakes break down, forming an
anti-freeze solution that prevents
icing. Smith says it won't melt all
the snow that falls on a road — only
the first two or three inches during
a storm — but since it prevents ice
f r o m forming underneath heavy
snow, snowplowing is much easier.
Smith said verglimit saves lives.
STATE DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION Technician Jerry Smith
stands off to the side of a 1,000-foot
iceless road test area on the State Campus in Albany, near Building 8.
Observers from around the country are
watching this small stretch of highway
also to see if a product Smith pushed
for will work to help keep highways
relatively ice-free.
but because it's expensive, the
state would only use it on icetrapped roadways — roads and
bridges that tend to ice over more
quickly than other highways. " I t
won't give you bare p a v e m e n t , " he
said. "You don't want that because
you want to keep uniform conditions on the road, to keep the
s a m e sort of driving."
What's in it for the taxpayer?
In New York, snowplow and
sanding crews a r e paid to m a k e
special runs to service hazardous
ice-trapped roadways. Smith said.
But with verglimit on these roads,
special crews would no longer be
needed.
When asked if he submitted the
verglimit idea to win a monetary
award, Smith said no, that he never
even submitted a formal
suggestion, but that he would like
to see his idea used to save lives
and tax dollars. "We all like to
have some sort of reward ~ and
it's hard to feel that working in a
bureau sometimes — maybe t h a t ' s
why I'd like to see my idea become
a reality s o m e d a y , " he said.
"You know, one night when I was
watching the '76 Olympics on T.V.,
ABC did a short, 30^second segment
on the B r e n n e r Highway n e a r
Innsbruck. And when they talked
about verglimit on that highway, I
said to myself: 'Oh hell, yeah — I
know all about that.' "
A BIRD'S EYE VIEW of the l,000-fcot, 3-lane road test site in front of Building S
Photos by Gary Richards
on the State Campus in Albany.
NEW YORK CITY - Negotiations
to obtain the lirst-ever contract for
employees of the Waterfront Commission of New York Harbor have hit
a snag, and the president of Civil Service E i n p l o y e e s Assn. Local 066.
J a m e s Harrison, has angrily declared
an impasse.
Mr. Harrison says the Commission
is refusing to bargain on a number of
key issues, and he has asked the
chairman of the waterfront commission employment relations panel
to appoint a mediator.
Both Mr. Harrison and CSEA Field
Representative Bart Brier charge the
Commission has refused to discuss
w a g e s and g r i e v a n c e and or disciplinary procedures. Both said a
review of the Waterfront Commission
budget shows substantial surpluses,
including money set aside for
employee cost-of-living increases, but
that the Commission has thus far
r e f u s e d to discuss w a g e s at the
bargaining table.
New law for
civil service
WASHINGTON - President Carter
recently signed a federal Civil Service
reform bill which establishes more
stringent job p e r f o r m a n c e standards
in federal service.
Mr. C a r t e r said the legislation
m a r k s the first m a j o r change in the
Civil Service system in nearly 100
years and it changes Civil Service
rules and regulations in a constructive and carefully considered fashion.
The President feels that the reform
puts incentive and rewards back into
the f e d e r a l systein.
Federal
employees can now be encouraged,
discharged or t r a n s f e r r e d for the
right reasons, if they cannot or will
not perform. It prevents discouraging
them or punishing them for the wrong
reasons.
Under the new law, stringent new
job performance standards will be established. It will be easier for officials to dismiss workers who a r e inc o m p e t e n t or non-productive. It
removes automatic longevity pay
raises for about 72,000 m a n a g e r s and
supervisors in grades 13, 14 and 15.
Within-grade pay raises for these
workers will depend on their performance rather than on their longevitv.
Long a w a i t e d goal of f e d e r a l
employee unions is also incorporated
in that l a b o r / m a n a g e m e n t relations
a r e now based on law, rather than on
a [^residential executive order.
Federal workers were first granted
collective bargaining rights under an
executive order signed by Presiu.
Kennedy in 1962.
Under the reform, the number of
executive branch employees at the
end of fiscal 1981 is limited to the
number employed as of September 30,
1977. Other provisions also (1) limits
the pay of military retirees who enter
Civil Service, (2) establishes a set of
merit, promotion and appointment
p r i n c i p l e s , a n d (3) e l i m i n a t e s
v e t e r a n s p r e f e r e n c e for m i l i t a r y
retirees of field rank or above, as weil
as for m e m b e r s of the Senior Executive Service.
THE PUBIIG «SECTOR, V^ednesday, November 29, 1978
Page' 5
In Time for Christmas and Chanukah
ASPECIA
FOR THE
SPECIAL OCYMPICS
Kodak Film for your Camera - plus prints or slides
AT LOW SPECIAL OLYMPICS PRICES.
p
i
i
m
^
P
I
I
I'
I
I
I
II
I
I
I
Now you can have photographs of
your holiday season, save money, and
help support the 1979 International
Special Olympic Games all at the same
time.
CSEA has endorsed Special Olympics,
on international program of physical
fitness, sports training and athletic competition for mentally retarded children
and adults. In August, 3,500 special
athletes from 50 states and 35 nations
v>/ill meet for the Fifth Annual Summer
Special Olympics at the State University
of New York at Brockport. We're asking
you to help CSEA support this great project. Every roil of film you buy through
the Film for Special Olympics Program
will help finance this w o r t h w h i l e
event.
By sending in your order with the
appropriate amount from the ordering
chart, you'll be helping yourself save
your precious holiday memories, and
you'll be helping sponsor the Special
Olympics. All film is fresh dated Kodak
color film. Prints will be mailed directly to
you on a large, borderless professional
silk textured print paper. Processing is
performed by a quality photo-finisher.
Film and processing are guaranteed — If
film is lost or damaged, the processor will
replace it with an equivalent amount of
unexposed film and a pre-paid processing mailer.
Send in your order today to: Film for
Special Olympics, P.O. Box 8 7 1 1 ,
Rochester, N.Y. 14624.
a
Kodak film with pre-paid Special Olympics processing
Color Prints
1
$7.11
$4.49
Fits all pocket Instamatic
cameras. 20 prints with
processing.
$10.16
$6.15
Fits all Instamatic
cameras. 12 prints with
processing
$7.11
$4.49
Fits all Instamatic
cameras 20 prints with
processing.
$10.16 $ 6 . 1 5
Color Prints
135-24
Kodacolor II
Fits all 35mm cameras.
24 prints with
processing.
$12.27
$6.95
Color Slides
135-20
Kodachromo 64
Fits all 3Smm cameras.
20 slides, mounted.
$5.90
$4.69
Movies (color)
Super Smm
Kodachrome 40
Fits all Super 8
movie cameras.
50 feet.
$7.85
$5.79
Kodacolor II
Color Prints
110-20
Kodacolor II
Color Prints
126-12
Kodacolor II
Color Prints
126-20
Kodacolor II
ORDER F O R M (please
Kind of
THE P U e i l C
SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y ,
print)
.Total
N o . o f Rolls
Film
Price*$.
Name
Address
City
ZIP.
—
*no soles tax required.
CIVIL SERVICE EMPLOYEES ASSOCIATION
P a g e 10
Pric«
•PCCIAL
OLYMMCS
PNICE
Fits all pocket Instamatic
cameras. 12 prints with
processing.
110-12
6
Suggatted
List
November
22,
1978
M a k e Checkt payable to:
Film for Special Olympics
P.O. Box 8 7 1 1
Rochester, N e w York 1 4 6 2 4
C5EA
^^ o p p o s e s
Stevens
T h e Civil S e r v i c e E m p l o y e e s
Assn., the largest
public
e m p l o y e e labor union in N e w
York S t a t e , has a c t i v e l y lent its
support to a w o r l d w i d e b o y c o t t
of J . P . S t e v e n s C o m p a n y
p r o d u c t s and will help drawa t t e n t i o n to the boycott a s a
l e a d i n g participant in a s e r i e s
of r a l l i e s s c h e d u l e d for Thursday, N o v e m b e r 30.
N o v e m b e r 30 h a s
been
d e s i g n a t e d a s " J u s t i c e for J. P.
Stevens
Workers
Day '
throughout North A m e r i c a and
will be m a r k e d by hundreds of
rallies. C S E A has helped plan
and will p a r t i c i p a t e in at l e a s t a
half dozen m a j o r r a l l i e s a c r o s s
N e w York S t a t e that dav.
T h e A F L - C I O c a l l s J. P .
S t e v e n s C o m p a n y the n u m b e r
o n e labor l a w violator b e c a u s e
of t h e t e x t i l e g i a n t ' s l o n g
s t a n d i n g policy of a n t i - w o r k e r ,
anti-union a c t i v i t i e s .
CSEA u r g e s its 260,000
m e m b e r s throughout N e w York
S t a t e to boycott J. P. S t e v e n s
products, listed e l s e w h e r e on
this p a g e , and to a c t i v e l y part i c i p a t e in r a l l i e s s c h e d u l e d in
their a r e a N o v e m b e r 30. In all
c a s e s , the r a l l i e s a r e being cos p o n s o r e d by AP'L-CIO labor
unions and in m a n y c a s e s a l s o
by
non-labor
union
o r g a n i z a t i o n s i n t e r e s t e d in
p r o m o t i n g s o c i a l j u s t i c e and
b a s i c h u m a n rights for o p p r e s s ed Stevens" e m p l o y e e s .
From Seattle to Miami...
from Hawaii to
Montreal...
People are standing up
FOR human rights.. .as
J.P. Stevens workers stand up
TO the No. 1 labor law violator
CSEA gives its support
to J.P. Stevens employees
•
in
- I
•
^m
I
_
^
GSEA in six anti-Stevens rallies
The Civil Service Employees Assn. is co-sponsoring or will actively
participate in anti-J.P. Stevens. Company rallies on November 30 in
Albany, Syracuse, Buffalo, New York City. Rochester and Tarrytown.
Additional rallies or other activities to demonstrate union support on
"Justice for J.P. Stevens Workers Day" may be scheduled on November
30 throughout the state. CSEA members are encouraged to contact their
CSEA regional headquarters for information.
I•
• _
BOYCOn THESE J.P. STEVENS PRODUCTS
SHEETS & PILLOWCASES
TOWELS
Utica
Tastemaker
Fine Arts
Meadowbrook
Tastemaker
Utica/Fine Arts
Snoopy (comic strip character)
Designer labels:
Union fights J.P. Stevens
on many New York fronts
Albany — The Civil Service Employees Assn. is stepping up its efforts in the anti-J.P. Stevens campaign by co-sponsoring and participating in a series of rallies November 30, but that effort was preceded by a couple of very notable demonstrations by CSEA before that.
Several months ago CSEA delegates adopted a resolution demanding
that the state comptroller sell any shares in J.P. Stevens held by the state
employees retirement system. Shortly after that, the state comptroller
did liquidate all holdings in the company.
Just last month, at CSEA's 68th Annual Meeting at the Concord Hotel
at Kiamesha Lake, delegates noticed that table linen in the convention
meeting area was manufactured by J.P. Stevens. They proceeded to strip
all tables of the offending linen and conducted subsequent business
meetings on wooden tables without linen.
BLANKETS. CARPETS
Yves St. Laurent
Suzanne Pleshette
Dinah Shore
Angelo Donghia
Cacharel
Ava Bergmann
H a r d y Amiles
Utica
Gulistan
Forstmann
The Civil Service Employees Assn. urges its 260.000 members to participate. if possible, in a November 30 rally in their area, and to join the
worldwide boycott of J.F^. Stevens products as a means to bring
economic pressure to end
•
•
•
•
J.P.
J.P.
J.P.
J.P.
Stevens'
Stevens'
Stevens'
Stevens'
lawlessness
exploitation
discrimination
runaway shops
THE PUBLIC SECTOR, Wednesday, November 29, 1978
Page 11
••rwfta' FXn» fir-raw^"»
i»miwg»w-
Coalition asks better clerical advancement
ALBANY — A recently-formed
coalition has called upon the State
of N e w Y o r k to e x p a n d and
s t r e n g t h e n a d v a n c e m e n t opport u n i t i e s for the s t a t e ' s 33,000
clerical employees through
negotiations and other actions.
The new Coalition for Career
Mobility includes the State Civil
S e r v i c e E m p l o y e e s Association
( C S E A ) , W o m e n in S t a t e
G o v e r n m e n t (WISG), agency
Women's Advisors, the New York
S t a t e Coalition of P e o p l e with
Disabilities,
Wheels
to
Independence and the Center for
Women in Government.
" T h i s coalition of diverse groups
was formed because we believe
that the serious problem of deadend clerical jobs in the state must
be a d d r e s s e d , " stressed coalition
spokeswoman Linda Tarr-Whelan,
a d m i n i s t r a t i v e d i r e c t o r of the
State Labor D e p a r t m e n t and board
ri:™^^
96.0
94.0
5.
"6.
7.
8.
91.0
89.0
89.0
88.0
9. Hemmings,
w.
J., Nassau
12. Greenstein, S. C., Glenmont
13. Zaiin, Stephen J., Brooklyn
\t: Se";.
education or experience," TarrWhelan said. "Women in state
government
perform
adm i n i s t r a t i v e work without the
appropriate pay or recognition,"
she continued.
"CSEA ha's presented its initial contract demands to the
State of New York to officially begin the long process of
negotiation for new contracts
covering
most
state
employees, including clerical
employees. CSEA has long
been concerned with career
advancement for women in
our bargaining units as well
as in state government in
general. It is our position that
the most effective method for
i m p r o v i n g c a r e e r adv a n c e m e n t l i e s with the
p r o c e s s of
collective
negotiations.
"While a mutual agreement
between CSEA and the State
precludes both from discussing details of our demands,
you can be assured that we
have set a high priority on improvements in career advancements for women. We
appreciate the support of the
coalition."
Irene
Carr,
CSEA
statewide secretary and
c h a i r p e r s o n of CSEA's
Women's Committee.
t
:..88.o
87.0
86.0
:::::::::::::::::::::::: To
» t n.T o
#
m t.
WHITE
PLAINS
The
W e s t c h e s t e r C o u n t y B o a r d of
Legislators is expected to decide by
today
On
the
fate
Wcstchestcr
Of
mOrC
County
.
.
than
200
employees,
.
j
u
„
^ ^
whose jobs a r e m jcopardy because of
r e d u c t i o n s in C o u n t y E x e c u t i v e
A l f r e d D e l B e l l o ' s p r o p o s e d 1979
budget.
CSEA iS OppOSing the CUtS With
demonstrations and thoughtful budget
analysis. There also is the possibility
16. Hynnan, Lorraine, Glenmont
17. Gunnells Chery^, Clifton Park
18. Coates, James B., Broadolbin
85.0
85.0
84.0
19. Tinney, Robert E., Berne
83.0
20. Brodsky, Barry C., Brooklyn
83.0
elimination O f 581 jobS, including 192
presently filled positions by layoff on
23. Burke, Thorn .s P., Troy
24. Herman, Michael, Brooklyn
25. Hatela, Michael, Albany
82.0
82.0
81.0
Jan.
26. Smith, Suzanne w., Guiideriand
81.0
later
27. Luccese, Ligia, Yonkers
79.0
oo P'f!'^'; Joseph F., Deionson
29. Reilly, Paul J., Rensselaer
79.0
79.0
d e p a r t m e n t would be required to cut
personnel and/or services to compen-
30. coiweii, Raymond, Horseheads
78.0
s a t e t o r O n l y o n c h a l f o f a $4.7 m i l l i o n
31. Dicaprio, Ralph, Niverviiie
32. Lamboy, E. L , Brockport
33. Bradley, Edward, Albany
3 4 . Gimbiet, John J., N.Y.c
78.0
78.0
73.0
72.0
pay
T
actiOHS.
. .
1,
1979.
Additional
,
^
.
,
j
i
ii
r
prOpOSed b u d g e t CallS f o r
The
m
the
laVOffS WOUld folloW
the
year
,
.
m
,r
r
fUof
that
m.. n
«o^V,
each
-ii-
raise being funded in the proposed
,
,
,
^
x
tt
r
The Westchester County Unit of
T h e p r o p o s e d b u d g e t is b e i n g
CSEA Local 860 had accepted an
approximate 10.5 percent increase analyzed at CSEA headquarters in
over three years earlier this year. Albany and at AFSCME headquarters
Unit President Raymond J . O'Connor in Washington, D.C.; to find the real
said the small raise was accepted budget fat.
The hearings were held in New
because of a verbal understanding
there would be no large-scale layoffs. Rochelle, Nov. 20; North Tarrytown,
He said DelBello later said the un- Nov. 21; Y o n k e r s , Nov. 27; and
Yorktown, Nov. 22.
derstanding was just for 1978.
Depending on the success of the unit
The Budget Subcommittee of the
Board of Legislators has been holding in the hearings, it is possible that job
hearings on the proposed budget and actions could occur.
The proposed $420 million budget inhas until the end of the month to m a k e
additions to it.
cludes a three percent decrease in
The unit has been engaged in a com- t a x e s , which would s a v e approxpaign to have the positions restored. imately $1.8 million.
O'Connor and other CSEA represenThe unit represents approximately
tatives have been speaking at the 6,000 county workers.
hearings and other CSEA m e m b e r s
h a v e been picketing outside the
hearings.
It was expected the unit would
propose other cuts f r o m the budget.
The 192 layoffs would save the budget
$1.5 million.
Tompkins Co.
PERB hearing
set for Dec. 12
AFSCME reports on economic issues
WASHINGTON - The AFSCME
D e p a r t m e n t of P u b l i c P o l i c y
Analysis recently compiled reports
on c u r r e n t e c o n o m i c i s s u e s .
Highlights of those reports follow.
• The actions of the Carter administration to stop the decline of
the dollar on foreign money exchanges and the new anti-inflation
p r o g r a m probably will cause a
r e c e s s i o n in 1979. H i g h e r unemployment and slower economic
growth in 1979 a r e expected.
• President C a r t e r ' s voluntary
wage and price control p r o g r a m is
opposed by the AFL-CIO. The
p r o g r a m lacks safeguards on price
controls and seeks to control earned income but avoids dividend and
interest income. The proposal for
tax rebates needs congressional
approval, and there is no indication
Page 10
The situation also impairs the
overall productivity of the State
work force, since many employees
a r e not able to realize and serve
with their full potential, TarrWhelan said.
In addition, " m o r e professional
transition opportunities will c r e a t e
more mobility for women now
locked into the lowest paying
clerical positions. More than 18,000
of the s t a t e ' s clerical workers now
m a k e between $6,000 and $9,000 a
y e a r , " she said.
The problem is not limited to
state government, but New York
State can provide national
l e a d e r s h i p in solving it, T a r r Whelan said. She cited a recent
Congressional task force report
stating that at the federal level,
women occupy 76 percent of the
four lowest paying job categories
and less than three percent of the
highest paying jobs.
Westchester layoff decision due
(Open Comp. Exam No. 24655)
Test H e l d June 2 4 , 1 9 7 8
l . S c h o p p m a n , H. J., Speonk
2. Stacy, G e r a l d T., Troy
Kaufman, Lenore, Schenectady
Flanders F Albany
Hayes, Frederick, Waterville
Babuka, Daniel w., Vestal
president of the Center for Women
in Government.
"Only a fraction of the s t a t e ' s
clerical employees have an opportunity to advance to professional
positions — no m a t t e r their talent.
w h e t h e r such a p p r o v a l will be
forthcoming.
• The budget cuts proposed by
President Carter would cripple
most domestic p r o g r a m s and
probably would have a disastrous
e f f e c t on federal f u n d s going to
state and local governments.
• Congress failed to pass the
Kemp-Roth tax cut bill but it also
failed to pass a hospital cost control bill.
• The failure of Congress to pass
a counter cyclical aid bill m e a n s
s o m e a r e a s with high unemployment r a t e s will be forced to
m a k e unexpected budget cuts.
• The proposed reduction in the
federal budget deficit for next year
would lead to an economic slowdown.
• T h e tax cut law signed by
P r e s i d e n t Carter constitutes a ma-
THE PUeilC SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y , N o v e m b e r 22, 1978
jor shift in emphasis away f r o m eff o r t s to u s e t h e t a x c o d e to
redistribute income and promote
equality. However, Carter had no
real choice but to sign the bill
because without the tax reduction,
the downturn in 1979 would be m o r e
severe. Most of the tax cut benefits
will go to those earning m o r e than
$50,000 a year.
• Unemployment statistics a r e
m i s l e a d i n g . While the n a t i o n a l
a v e r a g e is around six percent,
many m a j o r cities have r a t e s much
h i g h e r , i n c l u d i n g B u f f a l o , 11
percent; and New York City, 8.9
percent.
• Municipalities
heavily
dependent on CETA funds face
problems in that CETA slots can no
longer be p e r m a n e n t long-term
jobs.
ITHACA — The Tompkins County
Unit of CSEA Local 855 has been officially notified by Harvey Milowe,
Director of Public Employment P r a c tices and Representation for P E R B ,
that a hearing date has been set for
the Improper P r a c t i c e Charge
against the County of Tompkins. Mr.
Milowe has scheduled the pre-hearing
conference for 12:30 p.m., November
30, 1978, and the formal hearing for
9:30 a.m., December 12, 1978, in
Syracuse.
The I P charge alleges that on four
s e p a r a t e occasions during September
and October of 1978, spokespersons
for the County of Tompkins violated
mutually agreed upon ground rules
governing the release of information
to news media during the time period
collective bargaining was underway.
Thomas Rieley, Regional Attorney,
and G e o r g e Sinko, CSEA F i e l d
Representative, processed the I P
charge at the request of the unit and
John Wyrough, C h a i r m a n of the
Tompkins County Unit Negotiating
Committee.
75 attend
workshop
in Oswego
By Robert Ward
Special to "The Public Sector"
OSWEGO - Affiliation, Civil
S e r v i c e law and t h e f e d e r a l
g o v e r n m e n t s s CETA p r o g r a m
were the topics of the Civil Service
Employees Assn. Central Region
county division workshop held here
on Nov. 17-18
About 75 representatives from
the Central Region's 20 counties
were on hand to hear featured
speakers Irving F l a u m e n b a u m ,
CSEA Region I P r e s i d e n t and
AFSCME I n t e r n a t i o n a l Vice
President; Robert Lattimer,
Region 6 President; CSEA Attorney Michael Smith; and CSEA
consultant Joseph Watkins.
F l a u m e n b a u m opened up the
two-day conference with a talk on
the recent CSEA affiliation with
the American Federation of State,
County and Municipal Employees
union' (AFSCME).
Noting CSEA is the largest local
within' AFSCME, Flaumenbaum
promised the county represent a t i v e s CSEA would r e m a i n
autonomous. He pointed out the
present CSEA-AFSCME pact is
only for three years and a f t e r that
period CSEA can, if it wishes, end
the affiliation.
The Region I president, however,
remained optimistic. He explained
the affiliation gives CSEA more extensive, legal, research, lobbying
and communication services. He
said the affiliation will also cut
down on " r a i d s " on CSEA locals.
Region 6 president Robert Lattimer, locked horns with Oswego
Coun);y , CETA director. Carolyn
Rush, in a debate entitled "CETA
— Putting it in Perspective."
C l a i m i n g he w a s t a k i n g a
"realistic" instead of cynical view
of CETA. Lattimer called on CSEA
members to monitor the program.
He said CSEA is not opposed to
CETA as-a concept but rather to
abuses in the program. Lattimer.
explained CSEA employees are
often phased out of jobs only to be
r e p l a c e d by CETA e m p l o y e e s
several months later. He also
claimed CETA money is often used
to bust unions or for local political
patronage jobs.
()swi:(;() ( I NTV ("KT.\
DIUKCrOH arolyn Rush,
workshop cI man I'rancis
Miller, iind
KA Region (i
I'rcsidont I tri Lattimer
are shown jii before a panel
discussion on i lT.A as part of
the workshoi rogram.
ONKIDA COINTY LOCAL
8;{3 representatives Dorothy
Penner and Shirley Jones were
among the Tf) county reps
attending the l w o - d a \
workshop.
J E F F E R S O N COUNTY LOCAL 823
d e l e g a t e s to the workshop included
Stephen Dick, Beth d e m o n s and Pat
Wilder.
WORKSHOP CHAIRMAN FRANCIS
MILLER, center, discusses the program
with two of the people conducting
s e s s i o n s , CSEA c o n s u l t a n t J o s e p h
Watkins, left, and CSEA Region 1
President Irving Flaumenbaum, who is
also an AFSCME International Vice
President.
Report on California's Proposition 13
The effects of Proposition 13 in
California are being felt by public
employees and are reducing local
government services.
However, the worst is yet to come.
When California voters in June 1978
cut property taxes by 60 percent, the
State government was able to partially bail out municipalities with a $5
billion a l l o c a t i o n f r o m s u r p l u s .
However:
• Local governments have had to
reduce their budgets by 10 per cent.
• By the end of August, 22,000 local
government employees had lost their
jobs. The unemployment r a t e in
California rose sharply.
• Contractual cost-of-living increases were voided. (Legal
challenges a r e pending.).
• Major education, hospital and
construction projects and programs,
totaling hundreds of millions of
dollars, were halted or cut back.
Next year has the potential to make
this year's reductions look small.
There is no guarantee the State surplus will be large enough to provide a
major bail out for the municipalities.
Also the courts may reinstate the contractual cost-of-living raises.
An o f t e n o v e r l o o k e d p a r t of
Proposition 13 may be the biggest
problem. Property taxes are only
allowed to increase two percent a
year, while the inflation r a t e is
approximately nine percent.
Unless the State comes up with additional funding (and the taxes to
finance the funding), the level of existing local s e r v i c e s will be in
perpetual deterioration.
Another area of lost financing is in
the area of matching federal funds,
where reduced local funds means
reduced federal money.
Stutterers panel
set for Dec. 8-10
ALBANY - T h e C a p i t a l
District council of Stutterers, in
c o n j u n c t i o n with t h e communication
disorders
Department of The College of
St. Rose, will hold its 5th annual
weekend workshop December 810 at The College of St. Rose,
Albany. Interested persons may
contact Sister Charlee Bloom at
the college, (518) 471-5176 or 4715111.
THE PUBLIC SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y , November 29, 1978
Page 11
Sick leave questions
S e c t i o n s 41 ( j ) and 341 ( j ) of t h e
R e t i r e m e n t a n d Social S e c u r i t y L a w
a u t h o r i z e s a c e r t a i n a m o u n t of unused
sick l e a v e to be a p p l i e d a s a d d i t i p n a l
s e r v i c e c r e d i t upon r e t i r e m e n t . T h i s
p r i v i l e g e is a v a i l a b l e if you a r e a
S t a t e e m p l o y e e or a public e m p l o y e e
w h o s e e m p l o y e r h a s e l e c t e d to
provide the benefit. Please note that
t h i s b e n e f i t is not a p p l i c a b l e u n d e r
certain Special Plans.
T h e u n u s e d sick l e a v e d a y s c a n n o t
be used to m e e t a g e or s e r v i c e req u i r e m e n t s n o r c a n t h e y be used a s
p a r t of t h e F i n a l A v e r a g e S a l a r y
c a l c u l a t i o n . T h e m a x i m u m a m o u n t of
sick l e a v e w h i c h c a n be c o n v e r t e d is
165 d a y s .
These questions and answers m a y
be h e l p f u l .
Q. Can a T i e r 1 or T i e r 2 m e m b e r
r e t i r e u n d e r t h e N e w C a r e e r P l a n form u l a w i t h 19 y e a r s a n d 8 m o n t h s plus
165 d a y s of u n u s e d sick l e a v e ?
A. No. Such a m e m b e r will r e t i r e und e r t h e l / 6 0 t h f o r m u l a . Sick l e a v e
c a n n o t be u s e d to m e e t s e r v i c e requirements.
Q, Can I r e t i r e b e f o r e m y 55th b i r t h d a y if I h a v e enough sick d a y s to
c a r r y m e beyond a g e 55?
A. No. You m a y not u s ? t h i s c r e d i t to
meet age requirements.
Q. I r e c e n t l y r e c e i v e d a r a i s e . Will
t h e t h r e e y e a r p e r i o d u s e d in
c a l c u l a t i n g f i n a l a v e r a g e s a l a r y include the days for which service
c r e d i t is a w a r d e d on a c c o u n t of unused sick l e a v e ?
Local 337
A. No. Sick l e a v e c r e d i t s c a n n o t be
used in t h e c o m p u t a t i o n of y o u r final
average salary.
Q. What good is this to m e upon
retirement?
A. L e t ' s t a k e an e x a m p l e . If you
retire under the New Career Plan
with a t l e a s t 20 y e a r s of s e r v i c e a n d
h a v e t h e m a x i m u m n u m b e r of sick
days (165), your Single Life
A l l o w a n c e (Option 0) will be i n c r e a s ed by a p p r o x i m a t e l y \ % of y o u r final
average salary.
Q. What if I h a v e 21 y e a r s , a s a b o v e ,
a n d I u s e up m y sick t i m e b e f o r e
retiring?
A. You will t h e n r e t i r e w i t h 21 y e a r s
a n d not 21 y e a r s a n d 5V2 m o n t h s .
Q. W h a t if I h a v e less t h a n t h e m a x i m u m of 165 d a y s of sick l e a v e c r e d i t ?
A. All, o r a n y p a r t , of u n u s e d sick
l e a v e up to 165 d a y s m a y be used f o r
retirement.
Q. Will I h a v e to s e t a s i d e p a r t of m y
sick l e a v e a c c u m u l a t i o n to pay f o r m y
health insurance?
A. T h e R e t i r e m e n t S y s t e m will u s e
all a l l o w a b l e u n u s e d sick l e a v e
t o w a r d s s e r v i c e c r e d i t . See y o u r p e r sonnel o f f i c e o r t h e H e a l t h I n s u r a n c e
Section of Civil S e r v i c e a b o u t using
sick l e a v e f o r h e a l t h i n s u r a n c e .
Q. How do I a p p l y m y sick d a y s
toward retirement?
A. Y o u r e m p l o y e r w i l l l e t t h e
R e t i r e m e n t S y s t e m know how m a n y
u n u s e d sick d a y s you h a v e a t t h e t i m e
of r e t i r e m e n t .
voting on new
G O S H E N - T h e 110 e m p l o y e e s of
New York State's Ninth Judicial
D i s t r i c t a r e v o t i n g on a n e w c o n t r a c t
r e c e n t l y n e g o t i a t e d w i t h t h e O f f i c e of
Court Administration. The contract
has strong support f r o m the president
of C o u r t E m p l o y e e s L o c a l 337, who
urges ratification.
C a r o l D u b o v i c , a c t i n g p r e s i d e n t of
L o c a l 332 c a l l s t h e
tentative
a g r e e m e n t " a v e r y good o n e " a n d is
u r g i n g t h e w o r k e r s to a p p r o v e it. T h e
b a l l o t s w e n t out l a s t w e e k a n d will be
c o u n t e d on D e c e m b e r 12.
T h e d i s t r i c t i n c l u d e s e m p l o y e e s of
e i g h t c o u r t s ; t h o s e of t h e c i t i e s of
Poughkeepsie, Newburgh, Port Jervis, M i d d l e t o w n a n d N e w R o c h e l l e ;
a n d t h e c o u n t i e s of O r a n g e , D u t c h e s s
and P u t n a m .
contract
T h e t e n t a t i v e 2 - y e a r p a c t is r e t r o a c t i v e to April 1, 1978, e x c e p t f o r t i m e
and leave provisions which a r e
r e t r o a c t i v e to April 1, 1977. It c a l l s
f o r , a m o n g o t h e r things, a g u a r a n t e e d
t h i r d i n c r e m e n t f o r April 1, 1980, a n d
a 67o l o c a t i o n - p a y d i f f e r e n t i a l f o r t h e
New Rochelle employees, with a
1,200 m a x i m u m .
T h e v o t i n g is on a c o a l i t i o n b a s i s , so
if a m a j o r i t y of t h e D i s t r i c t N i n e
e m p l o y e e s a p p r o v e t h e c o n t a c t , all
e i g h t of t h e individual c o u r t e m p l o y e e
g r o u p s in t h e d i s t r i c t will h a v e t h e i r
own c o n t r a c t s .
The employees' negotiating t e a m
and the union's collective bargaining
specialist, P a t Monachino, a r e also
r e c o m m e n d i n g r a t i f i c a t i o n of t h e
agreement.
STATE OPEN COMPETITIVE
JOB CALENDAR
The following jobs are open. Requirements vary. Apply with the state Civil Service Department, 2
W o r l d Trade Center, M a n h a t t a n ; State Office Building Campus, Albany, or 1 West Genesee St., Buffalo.
FILING ENDS DECEMBER 11
Boiler Inspector
Senior Social Services Program Specialist
Assistant Tax Valuation Engineer
Senior Tax Valuation Engineer
Electronic Computer Operator
Upholstery and Bedding Inspector 11
Upholstery and Bedding Inspector 111
Assistant Signal Engineer
Investment Officer
Teachers' Retirement System Information Rep
Srnior Chemical Engineer
Senior Electronics Laboratory Engineer
Principal Economist (Regulatory F^conomics)
Industrial Superintendent
"
Assistant Industrial Superintendent
Vi
$11,250
$18,301
$14,850
$18,301
$8,950
$12,783
$16,669
$14,850
$20,366
$14,075
$18,:{01
$18,;i01
$22,623
$19,288
$16,469
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
No.
24-814
24-859
24-867
24-868
24-871
24-873
24-874
27-826
27-828
27-831
27-8:12
27-833
27-846
80-025
80-026
You con also contact your local M a n p o w e r Services Office for examination information.
Page 10
THE PUeilC SECTOR, Wednesday, November 22, 1978
OPEN CONTINUOUS
STATE JOB CALENDAR
Title
Pharmacist (salary varies with location)
Assistant Sanitary Engineer
Senior Sanitary Engineer
Clinical Physician I
Clinical Physician II
Assistant Clinical Physician
Attorney
Assistant Attorney
Attorney Trainee
Junior Engineer
(Bachelor's Degree)
Junior Engineer
(Master's Degree)
Dental Hygienist
Licensed Practical Nurse
Nutrition Services Consultant
Stationary Engineer
Senior Stationary Engineer
Occupational Therapy Assistant I
Occupational Therapy Assistant I
(Spanish Speaking)
Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor
Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor Trainee
Medical Record Technician
Histology Technician
Professional Positions in Auditing and Accounting
Computer Programmer
Computer Programmer (Scientific)
Senior Programmer
Senior Computer Programmer (Scientific)
Mobility Instructor
Instructor of the Blind
Health Services Nurse
(salary varies with location)
Senior Heating and Ventilating Engineer
Senior Sanitary Engineer (Design)
Senior Building Electrical Engineer
Senior Building Structural Engineer
Senior Mechanical Construction Engineer
Senior Plumbing Engineer
Assistant Stationary Engineer
Electroencephalograph Technician
Radiologic Technologist
(salary varies with location)
Medical Record Administrator
Food Service Worker
Mental Hygiene Therapy Aide Trainee
Mental Hygiene Therapy Aide Trainee
(Spanish Speaking)
Associate Actuary (Casualty)
Principal Actuary (Casualty)
Supervising Actuary (Casualty)
Assistant Actuary
Nurse I
Nurse II
Nurse II (Psychiatric)
Nurse II (Rehabilitation)
Medical Specialist II
Medical Specialist I
Psychiatrist I
Psychiatrist II
Social Services Management Trainee
Social Services Management Specialist
Social Services Management Trainee
(Spanish Speaking)
Social Services Management Specialist
(Spanish Speaking)
Industrial Training Supervisor
(salary varies depending on specialty)
Physical Therapist
Physical Therapist (Spanish Speaking)
Senior Physical Therapist
Senior Physical Therapist (Spanish Speaking)
Speech Pathologist
Audiologist
Assistant Speech Pathologist
Assistant Audiologist
Dietician Trainee
' Dietician
Supervising Dietician
Stenographer
Typist
Senior Occupational Therapist
Senior Occupational Therapist
(Spanish Speaking)
Occupational Therapist
Occupational Therapist (Spanish Speaking)
Salary Exam No.
$14,388-$15,562 20-129
$14,142 20-122
$17,429 20-123
$27,942 20-118
$31,055 20-119
$25,161 20-117
$14,850 20-113
$12,397 20-113
$11,723 20-113
$11,904 20-109
$12,890 20-109
$8,950
$8,051
$13,404
$10,042
$11,250'
$9,029
$9,029
20-107
20-106
20-139
20-100
20-101
20-174
20-174
$14,142
$11,983
$9,481
$8,051
$11,250
$11,250
$11,250
$14,075
$14,075
$11,904
$11,250
$11,250-$12,025
20-140
20-140
20-143
20-170
20-200
20-220
20-222
20-221
20-223
20-224
20-225
20-226
$18,301
$18,301
$18,301
$18,301
$18,301
$18,301
$7,616
$7,616
$8,454-$10,369
20-227
20-228
20-229
20-230
20-231
20-232
20-303
20-308
20-334
$11,904
$6,148
$7,204
$7,204
20-348
20-352
20-394
20-394
$18,369
$22,364
$26,516
$10,714
$10,624
$11,904
$11,904
$11,904
$33,705
$27,942
$27,942
$33,705
$10,824
$11,450
$10,824
20-416
20-417
20-418
20-556
20-584
20-585
20-586
20-587
20-840
20-841
20-842
20-843
20-875
20-875
20-876
$11,450 20-876
$10,624-$12,583 20-877
$11,337
$11,337
$12,670
$12,670
$12,670
$12,670
$11,337
$11,337
$10,118
$10,714
$12,670
$6,650
$6,071
$12,670
$12,670
20-880
20-880
20-881
20-881
20-883
20-882
20-884
20-885
20-888
20-887
20-886
20-890
20-891
20-894
20-894
$11,337 20-895
$11,337 20-895
You may contact the following offices of the New York State Department of Civil Service for announcements, applications, and other details concerning examinations for the positions listed above.
State Office Building Campus, First Floor, Building I, Albany, New York 12239 (518) 457-6216.
2 W o r l d Trade Center, 55th Floor, New York City 10047 (212) 488-4248.
Suite 750, Genesee Building, West Genesee Street, Buffalo, New York 14202 (716) 842-4260.
Q
"Legal Briefs" is a periodic column about
Civil Service Law and legal matters of interest to public employees. Material is compiled and edited by the Albany law firm of
Roemer and Featherstonhaugh, counsel to
the Civil Service Employees Association.
Statute of Limitations — Article 78
Petitioners,
provisional
employees of Nassau County who
had received low or failing grades
on a Civil Service exam, challenged the e x a m s as being illegal and
invalid. The legal issue was
whether the proceeding had been
commenced within the four month
statute of limitations. The list of
eligibles was certified on J a n u a r y
7, 1975, and this normally would be
the date upon which the statute of
limitations would commence running. However, due to an unrelated
court action, certification of the
list was subsequently withdrawn
pending the outcome of this other
suit. The Court of Appeals held that
the statute of limitations began to
run when the eligible list was
recertified in July of 1975, stating
that the ambiguity in finality was
created by the public body and
therefore the issue should be construed most strongly against it.
Matter of Mundy v. Nassau County Civil
Service Commission (44 N.Y. 2d 352; see
also Matter of Martin v. Ronan, 44 N.Y. 2d
374, holding that the statute of limitations in
an Article 78 challenging the legality of an
exam commences when the eligible list
becomes final).
Disciplinary Procedure
Petitioner, a village police officer with permanent civil service
s t a t u s , w a s i n j u r e d during t h e
course of his employment. After
being away f r o m his job for over a
y e a r d u e to his i n j u r i e s , t h e
respondent. Village of Scarsdale,
ordered him to report for limited
duty. On the advice of his doctor,
petitioner refused to return to
work, and the village s u m m a r i l y
removed him f r o m his position.
The court held that by virtue of
section 891 of the Unconsolidated
Laws, petitioner was entitled to the
protections of section 75 of the Civil
Service Law. It was incumbent
u p o n t h e V i l l a g e to p r o v i d e
petitioner with a hearing to determine whether his refusal to work
c o n s t i t u t e d insubordination and
misconduct, since petitioner's civil
service status was a property interest of substantial value and
protected by the due process clause
of the Constitution.
Matter of Fiorella (Village of Scarsdale)
(S. Ct., Westchester Co., NYLJ, Oct. 2, 1978,
p. 16).
Arbitration — P a s t P r a c t i c e
In a grievance filed by about
2,000 non-judicial employees in the
various branches of the Supreme
Court in New York City, a hearing
officer has held that the Office of
Court Administration properly discontinued a twenty-five-year practice of allowing court employees to
take four days of non-chargeable
vacation time during the Christm a s and New Y e a r ' s season. This
privilege was unilaterally revoked
by the employer, effective in 1973.
The a r b i t r a t o r rejected the
employees' contention that such a
long-standing practice and custom,
although not authorized by the contract, could not be changed without
written consent of both parties. He
stated that such a unilateral
revocation was permissible, upon
notice, once the collective bargaining a g r e e m e n t then in effect expired in July of 1972. This reasoning
at least implies that such a change
would be prohibited during the
t e r m of a contract.
Matter of Owen Flynn, et al. v. Office of
Court Administration (NYLJ, Sept. 26,
1978).
Retirement Benefits
After receiving retirement
benefits for several months f r o m
the New York City Employees'
R e t i r e m e n t System, petitioner was
informed by the System that she
did not qualify for the plan due to
their determination she had not
accrued sufficient time and service
to be eligible. Petitioner's defense
was that System employees had
told her prior to r e t i r e m e n t thai
she had the requisite time and service for benefits and that it was unn e c e s s a r y for her to p u r c h a s e
c r e d i t t o r t h e t i m e of h e r
employment prior to becoming a
m e m b e r of the system. The court
held that the respondents were estopped from now denying her the
right to purchase this needed credit
since p e t i t i o n e r had a lack of
knowledge as to the facts of the
m a t t e r , relied on the representation of the System's employees,
and this reliance resulted in action
by her to change her position prejudicially.
Matter of Bearman (Nov York City
Department of Social Services) (Sup. Ct.,
N.Y. CO., N Y U , Sept. 18, 1978).
SCHENECTADY COUNTY Board Member Eugene Nicolella and CSEA's Anthony Campione, Legal Program Administrator, listen intently.
.( e
BOARD M E M B E R S John Wyrough of
Tompkins County and Stephen Ragan of St.
Lawrence County.
Bd. of Directors
meets on policy
ALBANY — The responsibility
for carrying out the policies established for the Civil S e r v i c e
Employees Assn. lies primarily
with the 130-member Board of
Directors. According to the union's
Constitution and By-Laws, "The.
power and authority to transact all
business of the Association shall,
subject to the power and authority
of the Delegates at meetings of the
Association, be vested in a Board
of Directors . . . " No funds of the
Association m a y be disbursed unless authorized by the Board of
Directors.
The Board generally m e e t s
m o n t h l y , which c o n c e n t r a t e s a
great deal of business into a small
time f r a m e . These photos w e r e
t a k e n a t t h e N o v e m b e r Board
meeting and reflect the intensity of
conducting the official business of
so large an organization.
THIS TRIO of board members are, from left, Nicholas J. Cimino of Utica, John Riley of
Syracuse, both Department of Transportation representatives and E. Jack Dougherty,
representing Tax and Finance Department.
Discipline A r b i t r a t i o n Confidential Records
A recent a r b i t r a t o r ' s decision
has granted disclosure of confidential mental health records in a
patient abuse case. The employer
resisted a t t e m p t s to cross-examine
its doctor, who had testified on
direct as to the patient's mental
status, and also refused, upon req u e s t , to p r o d u c e the clinical
records of the patient. The arbitrator held that the patient would
not be permitted to testify nor
would any evidence regarding the
competency and credibility of the
p a t i e n t be allowed, unless the
e m p l o y e r g r a n t e d the g r i e v a n t
access to relevant records and an
opportunity to question employees
on a r e a s of observation and communication with the patient.
Matter of State of New York, Office of
Mental Health (Bronx Psychiatric Center)
and CSEA (Case No. 13670244 78, decided
August 29, 1978).
STUDYING THE AGENDA are Mary Battista of Broome County and Kathryn
Saddlemire of Schoharie County.
DISCUSSING AN ISSUE are Stan Boguski
of Westchester County and Suffolk County's
Sid Grossman.
Disciplinary Proceedings
Petitioner, a probationary police
officer, was acquitted in a criminal
trial of the s a m e charges which
w e r e the b a s i s for an administrative disciplinary hearing.
The Fourth Department held that
this prior acquittal, resting as it
does on a higher standard of proof,
was not a conclusive finding of inn o c e n c e on t h e d i s c i p l i n a r y
charges.
Matter of Perry v. Blair (402 N.Y.S. 2d
371).
THE PUBLIC SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y , N o v e m b e r 29, 1978
Page
11
Many new
changes in
retirement
ALBANY — Several m a j o r changes
in retirement m a t t e r s occurred during the recent session of the State
Legislature. The following list discusses come of the m a j o r retirement
changes by subject and by Chapter
number for easier reference.
Unclaimed Benefits
Chapter 35 establishes a policy for
, the treatment of unclaimed benefits.
It requires that notice be given to the
b e n e f i c i a r y or
executor/administrator of the estate at least 18
months before a claim may be considered abandoned and lists of such
benefits must be published in the
State Bulletin at least one year before
abandonment is decided. When deemed abandoned, the funds will be
removed from the liabilities of the
Systems. Even a f t e r this, the benefit
may be claimed and paid, although
without interest.
Filing Day Extension
Chapter 207 extends the filing
period for a retirement application to
no more than 90 but not fewer than 30
days before the effective retirement
date. Heretofore, the early filing limit
was 60 days.
Death Benefit Tax Treatment
C h a p t e r 339 p r o v i d e s f o r t h e
payment of CO-ESC death benefits as
group l i f e i n s u r a n c e and, t h u s ,
qualifies them for the s a m e tax
treatment as Tier 1 and Tier 2 death
benefits.
Supplemental Retirement Allowance
C h a p t e r 342 c o n t i n u e s t h e
supplemental pension program. It
also removes the requirement that an
otherwise eligible pensioner have attained age 62 by May 31, 1972 in order
to qualify for the benefit. Pensioners
who retired before April 1, 1969 may
now receive supplemental pensions
when they attain age 62.
Retiree Newswatch
By Tom Gilmartin
CSEA Retiree Coordinator
After a little b r e a t h e r , this
retirees column, known for three
years as "Retiree Grapevine,"
r e s u m e s as a r e g u l a r monthly
f e a t u r e of C S E A ' s w e e k l y
publication. It is written for all
retirees of New York State's public
sector, but particularly for CSEA
r e t i r e e m e m b e r s , present and
future.
The column's purpose continues
to be to keep retirees informed on
retirement issues and to offer, for
what it is worth, some commentary.
A subscription to The Public Sector featuring a monthly section of
retiree news is available for only $2
a year, sent to CSEA, INC., 33 Elk
Street, Albany, N. Y. 12207. The
Public Sector's coverage of retiree
news will a p p e a r on the last
Wednesday of each month. End of
commercial.
State Commerce Commissioner
Dyson has made the headlines
again with his recent recommendation t h a t all r e t i r e d s e n i o r
citizens have their pensions exempted from state income taxes.
The newsstory emphasized that
s t a t e and local government
retirees a r e already exempt.
What repercussions could this
proposal, even if never enacted,
have upon r e t i r e d
public
employees? It reminds all New
York t a x p a y e r s that public
employment retirees do not have to
pay state income tax while federal
and private sector retirees do.
F o r m e r s t a t e senator Edwin
when 5 consecutive years have elapsed since a m e m b e r performed paid
government service.
Voluntary Contributions
Chapter 601 allows members (other
than those required to contribute) to
make voluntary contributions to the
Systems in order to purchase additional annuity. This law becomes
effective January 1, 1979 and you
will be advispd before then of your
choices undei the law.
Termination of Membership
Chapter 344 simplified the rule for
termination of membership because
of inactivity. It provides that, except
for vested members, certain persons
in federal employment, and others on
a p p r o v e d l e a v e s of a b s e n c e ,
m e m b e r s h i p shall be t e r m i n a t e d
Interest on Death Benefits
C h a p t e r 602 p r o v i d e s f o r t h e
payment of interest cn death benefits
from the date of death of the member
until the date payment is made. This
i n t e r e s t is c r e d i t a b l e on d e a t h
benefits payable on account Oi" deaths
occurring on or a f t e r July 24, 1978.
Retired employees and those planning to retire in the near fulypre sometimes
are confused as to which "tier" of the New York State Employees' Retirement
System applies to them.
If you last joined the Retirement System before July 1, 1973, you are a Tier 1
member; between July 1, 1973 and July 1, 1976, you are a Tier 2 member; and if
you joined on or after July 1, 1976, you are a Tier 3 member.
THE PUeilC SECTOR, W e d n e s d a y , N o v e m b e r 22, 1978
on about $45,000, Stanley Steingut,
if he retires, would get around
$29,000, and a few other big ones
were publicized.
If Mr. Dyson's proposal catches
fire, let's hope that the ceiling
would be high enough to tax the bigpension r e t i r e e s and leave the
many little retirees unaffected. It
seems doubtful, actually, that state
legislators a r e going to go for
Dyson's idea in any way, because
most of them retire at very substantial pensions and they also are
presently exempt from state income tax.
Regardless of what comes of the
commissioner's recommendation,
the damage may have already been
done to our struggles to get a costof-living adjustment. In any event,
this s i t u a t i o n will b e a r close
watching.
Ready To Retire?
Special Accidental Death Benefit
Chapter 472 provides a special accidental death benefit pension to the
widow or widower of a deceased
m e m b e r of the P o l i c e m e n ' s and
Firemen's Retirement System if the
widow or widower is receiving an accidental death benefit under section
361 of the Retirement and Social
Security Law.
Supplementation for Spouses
Chapter 343 authorizes the payment
of a reduced supplemental pension to
the spouse of a deceased pensioner if
the pensioner had been or becomes
eligible posthumously for a
supplemental pension and had named
the spouse as beneficiary under an
option which provides for benefits to
be continued for the life of the spouse.
This s t a t u t e puts into e f f e c t the
p r o v i s i o n s of t h e C o n s t i t u t i o n a l
A m e n d m e n t s p o n s o r e d by t h e
Comptroller and approved by the
voters last year.
Page 10
Mason and Assemblyman Clark
Wemple both unsuccessfully introduced bills to implement this
same idea.
The state's retired employees
have opposed such efforts because
all such proposed legislation set a
relatively low ceiling for the exemption, so that all pensioners
would be t a x e d over c e r t a i n
amounts of pension, say five or six
thousand dollars. This would mean
thousands of retirees of the State's
public retirement systems would
lose their total exempt status.
Commissioner Dyson states that
his idea would cause the state to
lose $50,000,000 in personal income
tax revenue, but would be a good
break for senior citizens. All senior
citizens need every break they can
get, but some at the expense of
others?
In this day of taxpayers' revolt,
the wide publicity Dyson's proposal
is sure to get is certain to be
damaging to our efforts to get a
badly needed cost-of-living adjustment this year. State retirees
don't pay state income tax? Forget
giving them a cost-of-living increase!
Whether or not anything comes
from the Lone Ranger's latest
proposal, he has hurt us retired
public e m p l o y e e s . The public
already believes the falsehood that
retired government employees are
all fat cats enjoying the cream of
lush pensions.
This fat cat misconception was
reenforced last week by the announcement that Arthur Levitt,
retiring Comptroller, will get about
$36,000, Louis Lefkowitz will retire
Protect your future with Retiree membership in CSEA.
• Take an active role in CSEA Retirees' legislative campaigns for
pension cost-of-living increases
• Share in activities of the CSEA retiree chapter nearest you
• Continue present CSEA's life insurance policies at the low group
rate
• Become eligible for CSEA's "Senior Security 55" life insurance
policy for m e m b e r s only
• Acquire low hospital cash-to-you protection for CSEA retirees and
spouses
• Send coupon below for additional information on benefits of retiree
membership in CSEA
Send the coupon below for membership information.
Retiree Division
Civil Service Employees Assn.
33 Elk St., A l b a n y , N.Y. 12207
Please send me a membership f o r m f o r membership in Retired Civil Service
Employees of CSEA.
Name
Street
City, State
Apt.
Zip
Date of Retirement-
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