Ferina Backing Teitler
Local 372 Dissident Picking Up Support

By MEREDITH KOLODNER

The campaign to lead Local 372 of District Council 37 took a new twist last week as challenger and former union rep Jesse Teitler snagged two new well-known supporters.

The Chief-Leader/Pat Arnow GOING ALL OUT: Sandra Davis, a 36-year veteran employee of District Council 37 who was pushed out last year by Local 372 President Veronica Montgomery-Costa, said she will do whatever it takes to get challenger Jesse Teitler elected. 'I'm going to be everywhere,' said Ms. Davis.

Tony Ferina, who ran on a slate that lost to Ms. Montgomery-Costa in 2005, announced at a March 12 membership meeting that he was no longer running with Larry Luther Davis. He then took off his shirt and revealed a t-shirt underneath with the words "It's Time to Believe" emblazoned across it.

'He Can Bring Change'

Campaigning outside the meeting alongside about a dozen rank-and-filers was 36-year veteran DC 37 employee Sandra Davis (no relation to Larry Davis). The former director of the schools division, which services Local 372, resigned in March 2007 after being asked to leave by Ms. Montgomery-Costa.

"I'm supporting Jesse because he's a good guy. I think he can bring about change," said Ms. Davis. "I'm going to be everywhere. I know a lot of people. I will go wherever Jesse wants me to go."

Ms. Montgomery-Costa defeated Mr. Davis in 2005 by a vote of 417 to 122, with nearly 98 percent of Local 372's 24,000 members not taking part in a walk-in election confined to DC 37's lower Manhattan headquarters. She will likely face Mr. Davis and Mr. Teitler in the upcoming June 11 election. Mr. Teitler is a Loader and Handler who was a union rep from 2004 until July 2007, when he left after repeated clashes with the union president.

The Chief-Leader/Pat Arnow TIME TO BELIEVE?: Loader and Handler Jesse Teitler (center), who was a union rep for three years, has launched a campaign to unseat Local 372 President Veronica Montgomery-Costa. 'The only reason I'm running is that so many members have come to me and said we need change,' he said.

Mr. Ferina said that he planned to campaign aggressively for his new choice, and that he switched his support because he believed Mr. Teitler had a better chance of winning. "I believe he's got the same campaign issues that Larry and I have," the School Aide said. "He's got a better chance at this time because he's got more organization. He's more able to get his message out to more of the city."

He added that many of his supporters would also be switching over.

Mr. Teitler said he welcomed all the votes he could get. "Anyone supporting me would be great," he said, standing outside the union's headquarters, "and if Tony's supporting me, that's great; that's one extra person. If he can speak to others about supporting me, that's great too."

Call Costa Inflexible

Several of the Local 372 members standing outside the wind-whipped entrance to DC 37's main offices in lower Manhattan said they were supporting Mr. Teitler because they wanted to see change and did not feel that Ms. Montgomery-Costa had been responsive to their problems.

"She's taken away what we are supposed to have," said Michael Manigo, a Senior School Lunch Helper. "She doesn't let people speak and she doesn't answer questions. He deserves a shot to make a change."

VERONICA MONTGOMERY-COSTA: Two challengers loom.

Calls Union Weak

He asserted that out-of-title work was rampant in school kitchens and that employees, including older women, were being made to do heavy lifting to re-stock supplies and carry cases of food.

Ms. Montgomery-Costa did not return phone calls requesting comment.

"Management is running over everybody because they know the union is weak," said John Olsson, a Loader and Handler.

Mr. Olsson contended that the Department of Education was contracting out more of its work and that the union president would not address the issue.

Members Disillusioned

When asked why, if there was such wide dissatisfaction, more people didn't vote in union elections, he said that members were frustrated. "They're fed up; they ask, why bother fighting?" Mr. Olsson said. "I used to be like that too. For about three years I gave up. I stopped coming to meetings. I thought nothing was going to change, until Jesse decided to run."

Ms. Davis said that membership meetings 10 years ago used to be standing-room only but that they had dwindled in recent years as members became "turned off."

Several other members complained about the lack of raises, poor medical benefits and difficulty getting to speak in meetings. "I am glad she doesn't have a gun in her hand," said Loader and Handler Jose Herrera, "because that finger of hers is too quick on the microphone switch."

Mr. Davis said he was not surprised by his former running mate's decision, especially after Mr. Ferina lost a School Aide chapter chair election in February.

'We're Not Respected'

"He was really furious about the turnout and he wasn't giving himself enough credit," Mr. Davis said. "He often spoke about how organized Mr. Teitler was and how he was moving forward, and how impressed he was with his literature."

But Mr. Davis said he would continue with his campaign and his focus on demanding a mail ballot for local elections. "For me, it's about the voices of the 23, 24, 25,000 members who have yet to be heard," he said "We're not respected as a local, and until we are, the members won't be treated fairly."

Mr. Teitler also said that his campaign was about making improvements in members' lives.

"The only reason I'm running is that so many members have come to me and said we need change," he said. "The cost of living is terrible and we can't get a cost-of-living raise. We probably would be considered middle class but we're becoming lower class because we can't keep up."