President Bowen presented this letter calling on CUNY to become a “sanctuary university,” as defined by the AAUP, to Chancellor Milliken last Friday morning and sent it to Chairperson Thompson that afternoon. The PSC officers strongly urged the Chancellor to make a public declaration of sanctuary and to do so as soon as possible. The CUNY administration has already indicated that it is committed to several of the positions urged in the letter. The PSC is hopeful that the CUNY central administration will make a declaration. CUNY should be at the forefront of the sanctuary university movement.
Pay Update #2 from PSC Treasurer Sharon Persinger
Emailed to PSC/CUNY Bargaining Unit, Friday December 2
We have confirmed dates! In our meetings and phone calls with CUNY’s Office of Human Resources Management, we continued to stress PSC members’ anger at the length of time it has taken for the hard-won pay increases to actually show up in their paychecks. We insisted that the timetable announced in the first update must be made firm, and now it has been. We are assured by CUNY, New York State, and New York City that our retroactive pay back to 4/20/2012 will be paid in the second paycheck of January 2017, on January 19, 2017 at the senior colleges and on January 27, 2017 at the community colleges. In addition, faculty and professional staff who are on biweekly payroll on those dates will receive the biweekly pay reflecting salary increases through 4/20/2016.
For more details on the salary increases, back pay, tax-deferred retirement savings plans and reappointment letters, read the rest of this message. For even more information, you can follow this link to CUNY’s “Frequently Asked Questions” on salary increases and retroactive pay, posted at the website of CUNY’s Office of Human Resources Management.
Welfare Fund Announces Benefit Improvements
Starting on January 1, 2017, the PSC-CUNY Welfare Fund’s dental, vision, and hearing benefits will be significantly improved. (See the Summary of Enhancements posted on the Welfare Fund’s website.)
CUNY Rising to Call on Mayor and Governor to Fully Fund CUNY
The CUNY Rising Alliance and supporters will release a white paper tomorrow calling for $2 billion in City and State funding to support free and quality education in a safe and modern learning environment for every CUNY student. The release will happen tomorrow, Wednesday, December 7 on the steps of City Hall at a press conference scheduled for 12 noon. Tells us you’ll be there.
CUNY serves most of the city’s immigrant students and a half-million mostly low-income mostly black and Latino New Yorkers. 40% immigrant and 77% people of color, CUNY students are directly threatened by the racist, anti-immigrant rhetoric and policy plans of President-elect Trump. Yet the university they depend on for a chance at the American Dream is expensive and vastly underfunded after years of public disinvestment. Speakers at the news conference will urge the Mayor and Governor to uphold their promises to protect at-risk New Yorkers by ending public disinvestment in CUNY and to put the university firmly on a path to full funding.
Labor Goes to the Movies Presents: Smoke Signals—Fri., Dec. 9
PSC’s film series will explore the theme “The Politics of Genre” with a screening of Smoke Signals (Eyre, 1998) on Fri., Dec. 9 in the PSC Union Hall (61 Broadway, 16th floor).The first full-length movie written, directed, and starring Native Americans, Smoke Signals is based on Sherman Alexie’s short story “This is What it Means to Say Phoenix, Arizona.” It is a coming-of-age tale that starts out in the Coeur D’Alene reservation in Plummer, Idaho, where Victor and Thomas grew up. Arnold, Victor’s alcoholic, abusive father, rescued the infant Thomas when his parents died in an accidental fire and was a hero to him, but abandoned the family when Victor was 12. When Victor is summoned to Phoenix, Arizona, to pick up Arnold’s ashes, Thomas accompanies him on an iconic bus trip. Doors open at 6 PM. Refreshments provided. There is a $2 suggested donation.
Visit the online calendar for locations and more information
CUNY Rising News Conference, Dec 7, 12:00pm
Legislation Committee Meeting, Dec 7, 6:00pm
Chapter Chairs Meeting, Dec 8, 6:30pm
International Committee, Dec 9, 4:00pm
Labor Goes to the Movies: Smoke Signals, Dec 9, 6:00pm
Environmental Justice Committee Meeting, Dec 12, 6:00pm
CLT General Membership Meeting, Dec 13, 6:00pm
Bronx CC HEO Meeting, Dec 14, 12:00pm
Hunter College Chapter Meeting, Dec 14, 1:00pm
Brooklyn College HEO Meeting, Dec 14, 1:00pm
Lehman College Chapter Meeting, Dec 14, 3:30pm
BMCC HEO Meeting, Dec 15, 12:30pm
Watchdog Health and Safety Clinic, Dec 15, 4:30pm
Delegate Assembly, Dec 15, 6:30pm
