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PSC objects to anti-labor CUNY bylaw changes, demands university-wide discussion
In a letter to Chancellor Goldstein, PSC President Barbara Bowen registered the union’s opposition to many of the proposed changes to the CUNY bylaws. She also urged CUNY to delay voting on a set of sweeping changes to the university’s bylaws. The proposed bylaw changes, scheduled for a vote by the Board of Trustees at their June 27 meeting, have the potential to strip PSC members of important rights and undermine shared governance. President Bowen objected to the administration’s misleading assertion that the changes are simply updates or ministerial corrections and took issue with the timing of the vote.
“To announce a revision of this scope late in the spring semester and then hold the vote in June is to give the appearance, at least, of attempting to limit participation in discussion and opportunity for dissent by CUNY’s faculty, staff and students,” she said.
CUNY faculty and staff are petitioning the administration to delay any vote on the proposed bylaws until mid-fall to allow for the widespread discussion within the University community such profound changes deserve. Please sign here and share the link with your colleagues. Visit our website for regular updates on the bylaws and read an analysis of the proposed changes in the next Clarion.
RF workers ratify contract
Congratulations and welcome to our newest PSC members—the CUNY Research Foundation workers at New York City Tech, LaGuardia Community College, and the Graduate Center. By a vote of 177 to 0, the RF workers voted to ratify their new contracts. The votes were counted and certified by the American Arbitration Association on Monday, May 23. The Board of Directors of the CUNY Research Foundation will vote to approve the contract later this week. The agreement with the Research Foundation/CUNY covers wages, health insurance, and other terms and conditions of employment for RF workers. If approved, the contract takes effect June 1 when the first 2% wage increase will take effect.
Help stop the Mayor’s cuts to CUNY–Send an Act Now letter today
The Mayor’s Executive Budget proposes $52.6 million in cuts and unfunded mandatory expense increases for community colleges. His latest budget plan also calls for the elimination of funding for Vallone Scholarships, Black Male Initiative, Murphy Institute for Worker Education, Center for Puerto Rican Studies, the Dominican Studies Institutes and Creative Arts Team.
Please take a moment right now to send a message to key council members like Speaker Christine Quinn and Finance Committee Chair Domenic Recchia, Jr. You can send the Act Now letter as written, or change it to describe how the proposed cuts would affect you. A fact sheet is also available for download.
Remembering Dr. Manning Marable
A memorial service celebrating the life of Dr. Manning Marable will take place on Thursday, May 26 at 5:30 p.m. on the Morningside Campus of Columbia University in the Roone Alredge Auditorium, Lerner Hall (115th and Broadway). A well-known political scientist and scholar of black history, whose biography of Malcolm X was published just days after his death, Dr. Marable is survived by his wife, Leith Mullings, Distinguished Professor of Anthropology at the CUNY Graduate Center. The PSC mourns the loss of friend and the absence of a prolific and influential scholar-activist.
Forum: CUNY, Race and the PSC
PSC members who are not planning to attend the tribute to Manning Marable are warmly encouraged to attend the CUNY, Race and the PSC forum, also scheduled for Thursday, May 26. The event will take place before the May Delegate Assembly in the Union Hall (61 Broadway, 16th floor) from 5:30 – 6:30 p.m.
Dr. Carol Wright, head researcher for the PSC CUNY & Race Project, and Co-Chairs of the union’s Anti-Racism Committee John Pittman and Jonathan Buchsbaum will outline the research study and share some preliminary data at the forum. The brief presentation will be followed by a moderated discussion with members of the Anti-Racism Committee and the CUNY and Race Advisory Council.
Come out for marriage equality—May 25 at City Hall
The push for long-overdue same-sex marriage legislation is intensifying once again in Albany. The growing coalition of marriage equality advocates now includes Mayor Bloomberg and Governor Cuomo. Our statewide affiliate, NYSUT, passed a resolution in support of marriage equality in 2006. Unfortunately, the Conservative Party is holding up the works and key Republicans and Democrats in the State Senate are still on the fence. PSC and other and affiliates of the New York City Central Labor Council will gather at the steps of City Hall this Wednesday, May 25 at 10:00 a.m. to urge our state legislators to finally pass the Marriage Equality Bill. Join us and show your support.
