Letters to the Editor
Strategy Needed for DC 37

 To the Editor:

In the past weeks I have been talking to a large number of union members about what is the best course of action to secure a better contract between District Council 37 and the City of New York. Many believe that we should stand firm and weather the economic downturn, allowing our existing agreement to stand until times improve. Others believe that it is wiser to settle on a wage agreement quickly, before the situation worsens.

The economic downturn is not the fault of the workers. It was the financial services industry which created what amounts to a scheme to defraud investors by aggressively promoting subprime mortgages, and the government which failed to regulate the industry. By supporting the financial services industry with generous tax breaks, the city helped to enable this fraud. The city determines tax and budget priorities - not the workers - but it wants the workers to pay for its miscalculations.

The workers I speak with believe that District Council 37 cannot afford to continue the pattern of givebacks and concessions which have marked too many previous contracts. In the past, a temporary economic downturn has set the stage for continuing wage and benefit cuts for workers, especially those just entering the service.

Union members and union delegates have expressed some excellent ideas about how to proceed, which should be seriously considered by DC 37's leadership. Here are some of them:

- This economic crisis might be an opportunity for unions if our negotiators can be innovative and "think outside the box." This means finding other ways to address worker needs, including negotiating to obtain unused property from the city which the unions can use to develop affordable housing for union workers. The construction of such housing would benefit the workers and the city's economy.

- All wage and benefit concessions should have sunset clauses, and subsequent negotiations should begin at the pre-concession levels. There should be no more concessions that divide the workforce, creating tiers of unequal wage, leave, pension and other benefits even though everyone in the title does the same work.

- Better training programs to make our members more competitive in the job market, so that we can resist privatization, and even become more productive workers. In 2006, according to the LM-2, DC 37 took in over $85 million in member dues. Some can be spared for a better training program and worker housing development in cooperation with the city, such as what has been created by TWU Local 100 and the MTA.

- Orderly step increases for all members to contractual maximums over a set period of time.

The union must be transparent in negotiations, and release to the membership the dollar amount of any concessions which are contemplated, as well as the dollar amount of tax breaks Wall Street firms and other large corporations won from the city since the last contract.

The union must force the city to finally define productivity as what happens when workers learn new skills, come up with new ideas, and cope with the same work that was formerly done by a larger number of employees, as has happened in the Department of Health, where I work.

Most of all, our union must mobilize its members into a fighting political force. Only then will we get respect from the politicians and their appointees with whom we have to negotiate, and hope to obtain the wages and benefits close to what we deserve. I have been heartened by the calls I have received from members, and I again invite your calls to continue the dialogue at 917-674-2824.

FITZ REID, Delegate to DC 37, Executive Vice President Local 768