Our unity is our strength; Don’t let them divide us


By KENNETH BRYNIEN This past month has been


extraordinarily stressful for all of us. The elimination of our raises, the reopening of our contract, unpaid furloughs, layoffs and the shutdown of state government were all issues that threatened us. We fought back against each threat,


meeting every challenge. We kept our contract intact, started receiving our raises, prevented furloughs and layoffs, and the state remained open for business. We kept our cool and remained united in purpose. All through our rallies, our lobbying and letter-writing campaigns, and in your responses to our survey, you have fully supported and participated in our efforts. We know the truth in the adage, “In


unity there is strength.” Unfortunately, the challenges we face


are not over and the governor and the right-wing media outlets understand the adage as well as we do. They understand the only way to break our strength is to break our unity. So, they are now attempting to divide us. Furloughs, layoffs and a government shutdown would only affect some of our members, but not others. The Early Retirement Incentive will be offered to some of our


members, not others. Meanwhile, the governor speaks in


contradictions; stating the replacement of consultants with state employees would not save much money, but only serve to increase PEF’s power. This, of course, is false. Study after study proves our case. In another statement, the governor said PEF’s leaders don’t care about layoffs, because laid-off members don’t vote. This, too, is false. Not only do we fight for every job, a loss of members would decrease our power. In yet other contradictory statements,


the governor has said PEF’s officers aren’t state employees, implying we wouldn’t feel the sting of furloughs or the demands of sacrifice, you would. Absurd! He says we have manipulated him into


asking for layoffs because this is what we want. Ridiculous! The most right-wing newspaper in the


state claims I received a 22 percent raise last year. An outright lie!


NOT SO FAST – PEF President Ken Brynien tells reporters in Albany June 1 the governor should at least wait until he sees how many employees take the Early Retirement Incentive before he threatens to lay them off. — Photo by Mario Bruni


I and all of the PEF officers received


the same 3 percent raise last year and 4 percent raise this year as did all of our PS&T members, and we did not receive them until every member did. In fact, none of the officers will receive raises until all of our members receive their retroactive pay. The purpose behind all of these things,


the differential treatment of our members, the false statements made to the press and the outright lies, is very clear. They are meant to divide and conquer us. To divide members from the union leadership and from each other is the only way to defeat us. There is another adage that applies here: “United we stand, divided we fall.” We cannot, we must not, and we will


not let anyone divide us. Every member must remain active and informed. We will remain united. We will remain strong. We will persevere.


Want to retire? Now’s your chance


By SHERRY HALBROOK State legislators passed an Early


Retirement Incentive (ERI) in May and the governor signed it June 2 as a way to reduce state payroll costs without layoffs. The ERI has two parts. Part A is a


traditional ERI the state will offer to employees it’s willing to eliminate. Part B is a limited 25/55 provision available to all eligible employees except those in “essential” positions. The ERI window for executive branch


employees is open July 1 to September 28.


Eligible employees who are offered


and accept the ERI will receive one month of additional pension credit for each year of service, up to a maximum of 36 months added credit.


www.pef.org Part A applies to members of pension


Tiers 1-4 and will apply only in agencies and positions designated by the director of state operations or, at the state University of New York, by the SUNY trustees. You must be at least 50 and have at


least 10 years of service to retire under Part A. Members of Tiers 2, 3, and 4 between ages 55 and 62 and with less than 30 years of service will be subject to normal penalties. Under Part A, members of Tiers 1-4


between the ages of 50 and 55 will have an additional penalty of 5 percent for each year below age 55. Part B provides a temporary


opportunity for members of Tiers 2, 3, and 4, including executive branch


employees, to retire without penalties if they are 55 or older and have at least 25 years of service. If the SUNY trustees vote to opt-in, it’s 90-day window will be later. If your position is excluded for Part B,


you can challenge it. You must apply for the ERI at least 14


days before the window closes. If you apply, but are denied the ERI,


your retirement will be processed with full penalties, unless you withdraw your application on or before the retirement date. More information on the ERI is available on the PEF website.


The Communicator July-August 2010—Page 7


PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE


LEGISLATIVE ACTION


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