Bargaining Update 25

On July 18, the PSC bargaining team continued to press CUNY management to make the most of the summer in the second negotiating session of the month. With 35 member observers joining them at CUNY Central, the union focused on two counter proposals, each advancing a set of PSC demands in relation to a priority expressed by management. The PSC proposed to extend Appendix H, a pilot program regarding the disciplinary procedure, in exchange for gains for CLIP and CUNY Start Instructors, Research Associates and Research Professors, and Lecturers at the Educational Opportunity Centers. We also offered to extend the Appendix M pilot, which allows full-time faculty to receive stipend payments for defined projects, in exchange for Lecturer promotion and salary advancement and improved procedures for promotion of CLTs and reclassification of HEOs. For more on these counter proposals, managements’ response to our demand to increase salaries at the top step, and more, read the full bargaining update.

All dues-paying members are welcome to observe a bargaining session, after they have attended the online orientation. There are four bargaining sessions in August and three still have space available for PSC members to attend:

• Wednesday, August 7, 12 PM, CUNY Central (filled to capacity)
• Tuesday, August 13, 2 PM, PSC Union Hall
• Wednesday, August 21, 10 AM, PSC Union Hall
• Tuesday, August 27, 10 AM, CUNY Central

Your next opportunities to attend an orientation will be:

• Thursday, August 8, 6:30-7:30 PM. Register here for the 8/8 Zoom.
• Wednesday, September 4, 6:30-7:30 PM. Register here for the 9/4 Zoom.

The PSC delegation to the biennial American Federation of Teachers convention was depleted by the Crowdstrike software failure that grounded hundreds of flights, but the delegates who made it to Houston, Texas had the opportunity to participate in an important set of events. The most widely reported was an appearance on the final day by Vice President Kamala Harris, whom AFT delegates had just endorsed for President in the November election.

Our delegates helped to repair homes in the historic Freedmen’s Town district, attended important committee meetings and policy forums, and made sure that PSC-supported resolutions got passed, including “Real Solutions for Higher Education” and “Support Decarbonization of our Public Schools, Colleges, Universities, Hospitals, and City Buildings.” PSC delegate Rebecca Smart, an adjunct at BMCC and Baruch, was interviewed by the AFT Communications team to highlight the campaign against contingency in the academic workforce. Delegate Nancy Romer, co-chair of the PSC environmental justice working group, facilitated a well-attended event hosted by the AFT’s Environmental Justice Caucus. Watch your snail mail and the PSC website for more coverage of the convention in the PSC’s August edition of Clarion.

Join the PSC contingent as we march in solidarity with other New York City unions and express our need for a just contract now! Click here to tell us you’ll join the Labor Day Parade on Saturday, September 7. The front of the parade steps off from 44th St. & Fifth Ave. at 10:00AM. The step-off time and staging area for PSC members are still tentative: 12:30PM, East 46th St. between 5th and Madison Aves. Sign up to save the date and we’ll follow up with details.

RSVP: Labor Day Parade, 9/7

The PSC’s Committee on Legislation will hold a special get-out-the-vote meeting open to all dues-paying PSC members Tuesday, August 20 at 6:30PM. Register here. The meeting, to be held on Zoom, will focus on the presidential election, on congressional races that could decide control of the House of Representatives, and on critical State Senate races. Members will be able to volunteer to support Kamala Harris for President and the campaign to win the House and the State Senate.

RSVP: GOTV PLANS, AUG 20

CUNY intends to unilaterally impose Bylaw changes that, among other things, substantially alter the role of bargaining unit Department Chairs, while giving power to non-bargaining unit “academic Deans” to make significant academic and teaching decisions. PSC members have testified against management’s proposed amendments to the CUNY Bylaws and have opposed them at the bargaining table (scroll to Update 21).

Now the PSC has filed an improper practice charge with the state Public Employment Relations Board (PERB) because the changes would shift work responsibilities from PSC members to non-bargaining unit members. We have also filed a grievance because the changes explicitly violate multiple articles in the collective bargaining agreement.

CUNY has been failing to properly withhold pension contributions on behalf of PSC members, leaving them liable for make-up payments and interest that range from small amounts up to tens of thousands of dollars. Hundreds of PSC members have been harmed by this and other problems with CUNY’s pension administration.

Last year, we filed a lawsuit in New York County Supreme Court to stop this and to force CUNY to perform an audit to determine the scope of the problem. Unfortunately, the Court dismissed our lawsuit. We are aggressively exploring other political and legal avenues to push CUNY to fix its pension administration system. We will update the membership when we have further information. In the meantime, members should be scrutinizing their pay stubs to ensure that contributions for all applicable pension systems are being accurately withheld. If you discover a problem with your pension deductions, contact Greg Douros in the PSC Contract Enforcement department at [email protected].