Brynien updates E Board on state’s shift from consultants to employees

BY MEGHAN ALLEN AND SHERRY HALBROOK

PEF President Ken Brynien updated the

PEF Executive Board at its December 2009 meeting in Albany on efforts to get the state to shift from its reliance on private consultants to greater use of state employees to do that work. Brynien reported the state Department

of Law gave two-week notices to 20 consultants November 16. He also announced PEF and the state

had negotiated a formal memorandum of understanding granting up to 1 million dollars for information technology (IT) training that PEF members soon would be able to access and he said legislation had been passed to allow the state to replace up to 500 IT consultants with state employees. Brynien also reported Bernard M

Fineson Developmental Disabilities Services Office had tried to lay off 35 employees and did not offer them the severance package. After PEF brought it to the attention of the governor, the severance was offered at that facility. Brynien reported the state Education

Department had tried to abrogate its joint labor-management agreement with PEF, with managers saying they were going to cancel the agreement and start over. The president said that decision was reversed after PEF contacted the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations. Brynien reminded the board members

how critically important it is that they contact PEF and write letters to state legislators and the governor whenever they see waste at their state agencies. The president said they must keep bringing the issues to the governor’s and the Legislature’s attention over and over again, until they respond. In her financial report, PEF Secretary-

Treasurer Arlea Igoe stated PEF membership was down by 936 members, which would cost the union approximately $540,000. Vice President Joe Fox reported the PEF

Political Action Committee (PAC) had met and achieved clarification on three main issues: political action liaisons (PALS), local elections, and plans for next year. PEF Retirees Representative Bob Harms

announced the PEF Retirees Executive Board had gathered the signatures of 40 percent of the delegates to the 2009 PEF convention on a petition requesting an amendment be placed before the next PEF convention. Harms presented the petitions

www.pef.org

to the secretary-treasurer, who told the PEF Executive Board the retirees were asking for two more representatives on that board, and that would require an amendment to the PEF constitution. Igoe said if the signatures were found to

be valid, the petition would be referred to the PEF Constitution and Bylaws Committee to present to the next PEF convention. PEF Region 1 Coordinator Kevin Hintz announced PEF Division 312 at the state

Health Department requested the board’s permission to change the division’s constitution to allow the term of office to be three years, instead of two. The board voted unanimously to grant the request. The board members also received sexual

harassment awareness training at this meeting. Five new board members were given the

oath of office at the meeting. They were: Angel Cook, Bruce Jagroop, David Porter, Christina Ryan and Yvonne Singletary.

Convention delegates to consider

amending PEF’s constitution, dues

Two proposed amendments to the PEF Constitution will be presented

to PEF delegates for action at their September annual convention. These amendments relate to representation of retired PEF members on the union’s Executive Board. In addition, PEF Secretary-Treasurer Arlea Igoe will propose altering PEF’s PS&T dues

 32nd Annual 

PEF Convention

September 12-15, 2010 Washington, DC

to address an inequity in the current dues structure by removing the $900 cap on dues for those in the top salary grade of 38. No other changes are proposed. The current dues structure was adopted at the PEF convention September 11, 2000. The first of the proposed amendments to the constitution results from a petition that

received the required number of signatures of delegates to the 2009 PEF convention. It calls for adding two additional Executive Board seats to the one now authorized for retiree representation. The second amendment was proposed by the PEF Constitution and Bylaws Committee

on advice of PEF counsel and would limit the matters on which the retiree representatives could vote. The chair of the PEF Constitution and Bylaws Committee will present those proposed

amendments at the convention. It will require a 60 percent vote to adopt the change in the dues, and a two-thirds vote

to adopt each of the constitutional amendments. (Underlined language would be added

and language in brackets would be deleted.)

Proposed amendment 1 to PEF Constitution

Article VII Executive Board

C. Composition – The Executive Board shall be composed of the Officers, Board

Representatives, [and] a Retiree Representative appointed by the President[.], and two additional Retiree Representatives appointed by the PEF Retiree Executive Board.

Proposed amendment 2 to PEF Constitution

Article VII Executive Board

C. Composition – The Executive Board shall be composed of the Officers, Board

Representatives, and a Retiree Representative appointed by the President[.]; provided, however, that no Retiree Representative shall be entitled to vote on the PEF budget or on matters affecting the terms and conditions of employment of Regular members, including but not limited to contract negotiations, contract ratification and contract enforcement.

Proposed change to PEF dues

The union will modify its dues structure effective April 1, 2001, to .9 percent of

salary with no cap on earnings. [Grade 38 employees will be capped at $900 annually in consideration of their lack of job rate and longevity payments.] All funds raised by this dues structure will be incorporated in PEF budgets approved by the Executive Board and will be accounted for annually in a written report to the membership. The funds apportioned to the Members’ War Chest may not be spent outside of contract fight-back activities unless approved by a three-quarter vote of the Executive Board.

The Communicator June 2010—Page 19 Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28