Regular editions of This Week in the PSC will resume in the fall. In July and August, the email newsletter is published as necessary. Contract bargaining updates will come, as they have been, as emails from President Barbara Bowen.
Calling On the Governor to Sign the Bill to Strengthen CUNY
Student and faculty leaders from CUNY and SUNY gathered at sites throughout the state on Wed., July 22 to urge Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo to sign “Maintenance of Effort” (M.O.E.) legislation to improve the quality of public higher education in New York. The bill would stabilize State funding for New York’s two public university systems by supporting annual basic cost increases for utilities, rent, supplies and equipment, collective bargaining, and other normal operating expenses. When the bill is delivered to Governor Cuomo, he will have 10 business days to sign or veto it. At Baruch College, CUNY students were joined by PSC members, labor leaders, and Assemblymember Deborah J. Glick, the Assembly sponsor of the bill, which passed with bipartisan, near-unanimous support. Read more.
Celebrate and Take Action for the 50th Anniversary of Medicare & Medicaid
Labor and healthcare advocacy groups are gathering at the PSC Union Hall (61 Broadway, 16th floor) this Wed., July 30 at 10:00 AM to mark the 50th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid, programs that have been a lifeline for millions of older and disabled New Yorkers and their families. RSVP to come hear speakers, share a special anniversary cake, and help strategize ways to protect these two bedrock programs of our social safety net. After the celebration, join members of the PSC Social Safety Net committee on a ferry ride to Staten Island for a coalition press conference urging NYC’s members of congress to protect, improve and expand Medicare and Medicaid. Get a flier.
RF Field Unit Contract Extension Approved and Ratified
The CUNY Research Foundation (RF) Board has approved a three-year contract extension for RF employees represented by the PSC at the CUNY Graduate Center, City Tech and LaGuardia Community College. Prior to the Board’s vote, the agreement was ratified by RF Field Unit members by a vote of 102 in favor, 3 opposed and approved by the PSC’s Delegate Assembly. The contract includes guaranteed raises of at least 2% each year (starting June 1, 2015), no increase in the percentage employees pay toward health insurance premiums and no concessions. Read more.
Remember Marikana Solidarity Demonstration—Aug. 16
PSC’s International Committee will hold a demonstration to remember 34 striking miners killed by police at the Lomin Platinum mine in Marikana, South Africa on August 16, 2012. The demonstration will be at the South African Consulate (333 E. 38th St.) on Sun., Aug. 16 at 3:30 PM. It will be held in solidarity with events organized by students and workers in South Africa to mark the anniversary of the Marikana massacre. Be there and stand together with workers in South Africa who are fighting against severe police repression, austerity and inequality, a struggle with which New Yorkers can identify. Download a flier.
