No Wage Offer Yet
PSC Prods CUNY To Settle Contract

By MEREDITH KOLODNER

The Professional Staff Congress marked its recent contract expiration with protest but little progress at the bargaining table.

MATTHEW GOLDSTEIN: Awaiting word from above.

Talks are continuing between the PSC and the City University of New York and there have been steps forward on non-economic issues. But after six months of talks, CUNY has not made an offer regarding salaries and benefits. CUNY Chancellor Matthew Goldstein said it cannot do so without "guidance" from the state, which has yet to settle any of its outstanding contracts.

'Maybe They Don't Care'

"When you see that our salaries are already $15,000 below a place like Clemson University, and then you hear CUNY hasn't even made an offer, your response is bound to be they don't really care," said PSC President Barbara Bowen. "I'm not denying CUNY officials have not done some advocacy with the state, but I'm speaking as the members speak to me."

Ms. Bowen said that members are particularly frustrated by watching almost every other city union reach pay deals. The PSC's last contract was approved 3-1/2 years after it expired.

Photo by Dave Sanders NAMING NAMES: Professional Staff Congress members demonstrated outside City University of New York Chancellor Matthew Goldstein's office Sept. 18, the day before their contract expired. They carried placards listing more than 5,500 names of faculty and staff supporting the union's bargaining demands.

Any deal struck with CUNY must be approved by both the city and the state, and the latter provides the bulk of CUNY's funding for faculty and staff. CUNY's clerical staff, represented by Local 384 of District Council 37, has been working under an expired contract for more than a year.

Ms. Bowen said there had been "fruitful discussions" on issues such as parental leave, health and safety, streamlining grievance and disciplinary procedures, and job security for part-timers. But without an economic offer, the real meat and potatoes of negotiations cannot begin.

CUNY: Prodding State

Chancellor Goldstein last week wrote a letter addressed to the members of the university community explaining the hold-up at the state level. "We are actively engaged with [the state] regarding our negotiations and are urging their appropriate attention," the letter stated.

Mounting Pressure

PSC officials say they are continuing with a campaign to pressure the state and CUNY to put an offer on the table. The day before the contract expired Sept. 19, Ms. Bowen met with Mr. Goldstein and delivered more than 5,500 signatures backing the union's bargaining demands. Members demonstrated outside with placards featuring blow-ups of the petitions.

Later that evening, staff and faculty gathered at the union hall for a cultural celebration focused on what CUNY could look like if the union's demands were granted and what it might look like if management's proposals were enacted. The union's next step is a mass meeting on Oct. 30 at Cooper Union in downtown Manhattan.

Carol Lang, a secretary who has worked at City College since 1976, said that her co-workers are also frustrated by the delay. She hopes that her union, Local 384, and the PSC can work together to move negotiations forward.

"I think we should organize a demonstration in front of [Governor] Spitzer's office," said Ms. Lang. "We're all in the dark, and as long as the state doesn't feel pressured, I don't think we'll see a contract."