PSC Members, Students to Bill Thompson: ‘Contract Now!’

Seventy-five PSC members and CUNY students rallied Friday morning outside the Wall Street investment bank where CUNY Board of Trustees Chair Bill Thompson serves as chief administrative officer.

Our boisterous chants and sustained picket told Thompson, his colleagues, and Wall Street workers that we hold him accountable for CUNY management’s failure to settle a fair contract for PSC members. Hundreds of passersby took leaflets urging them to call Thompson at work and tweet at Chancellor Matos Rodríguez to demand that CUNY offer real raises, improve job security, and withdraw the proposed bylaw changes. Click here for more photos, video and social media from the demonstration and the impromptu march through the financial district that followed it. Stay apprised of PSC’s progress in contract negotiations here.

The PSC has secured an agreement with CUNY to extend the current remote work agreement through June 30, 2025 while negotiations continue about the future of remote work for PSC members. The extended agreement provides a framework for arrangements between workers and their supervisors about the schedule and duration of remote work and guarantees contractual protections when we are working remotely. The agreement form to be signed by the employee and supervisor is posted here on the CUNY website. CUNY’s Flexible Work Guidelines are posted here.

Mayor Eric Adams and the City Council announced a budget agreement Friday afternoon and voted on it Sunday. The enacted budget restores $15 million in operating support for CUNY community colleges and includes critical funding for CUNY Reconnect, campus childcare centers, Vallone Scholarships, and other council-funded initiatives. Many Council members fought hard for CUNY funding, but the restorations don’t offset the Mayor’s $95 million in cumulative cuts. Given the improved city revenue projections and the increasing enrollments at CUNY colleges forecast for 2024-25, it’s clear that CUNY students, faculty and staff are shortchanged in the budget deal. Nevertheless, this year’s gains would not have been possible without the vigorous effort of PSC members. The three council members who voted “no” on the budget cited the cuts to CUNY in their statement (included in this NY Daily News piece). Read the PSC’s statement.

Make fighting for a Fair Contract for A People’s CUNY part of your summer plans:

Observe Contract Bargaining

The next PSC-CUNY bargaining session is Wednesday, July 3rd. PSC members who have attended the online orientation were invited to attend. The Bargaining Team will announce further opportunities to observe contract negotiations as sessions are scheduled. All dues-paying members are welcome to observe, after they have attended the online orientation. Your next opportunity to attend an orientation will be:

• Tuesday, July 9, 6:30-7:30 PM, Register here for the 7/9 Zoom.

Sign up for the Wednesday, July 10th Phone & Social Media Zap

There is no phone zap this week, the week of the July 4th holiday. But phone and social media zaps targeting the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees will continue throughout the summer Wednesdays at 12:00 PM. We’ll log on to a Zoom meeting, review our script and social media messages, and then make calls and social media posts demanding real raises and gains for all PSC titles. You can sign up for Wednesday, July 10 or any subsequent summer Wednesday zap here.

RSVP: PHONE/SOCIAL MEDIA ZAPS

Visit the Summer Campaigns web page to get involved in the PSC’s Summer Membership Drive, the One-on-One Conversations Committee, and more.

The PSC identified six priority races in the Democratic primaries held last Tuesday for candidates to the state legislature, five incumbents and one candidate for an open seat. All six won their races! The candidates were all endorsed by NYSUT, and PSC advanced the campaigns through member-to-member door knocking, phone and text banking and targeted emails.

• Senator Kristen Gonzalez won reelection with 85% in State Senate District 59 (Queens, Brooklyn and Manhattan).
• Assembly Member Jessica Gonzalez-Rojas won reelection with 83% of the vote in Assembly District 34 (Queens).
• Assembly Member Ron Kim won reelection with 54% of the vote in Assembly District 40 (Queens).
• Assembly Member Emily Gallagher won reelection with 75% of the vote in Assembly District 50 (Brooklyn).
• Assembly Member Jo Anne Simon won reelection with 79% of the vote in Assembly District 52 (Brooklyn).
• Larinda Hooks won with 59% of the vote in the open Assembly District 35 (Queens).

PSC cannot spend dues money on political campaigns like the ones we helped win last Tuesday. Instead, we rely on voluntary COPE (Committee on Political Education) funds donated by members via small payroll deductions. If you aren’t already a COPE contributor, please join COPE today. If you are, consider increasing your contribution. The next round of electoral advocacy promises to be very intense.