News From OSA - August, 2019

NEGOTIATIONS.. Negotiations did not go forward at all during June, July or August. We had done well at a series of technical “costing” meetings in April and May. So, full of hope, we pressed the City for a conclusion to bargaining by the end of June. We even specified that we could work out any remaining details after the fact.

The City did not say “no” but also did not schedule any meetings. We are aware that there was some complexity for them related to the CWA Local 1180 negotiations, but why that would hold us up was a mystery (if indeed that was the reason).

By the time you read this in early September, fall will almost be upon us and negotiations will either have resumed or be resuming. The result of this past summer's delay will be that both DC37 members and Managerial Pay Plan members will be receiving their 3% raise before we do, but there is some compensation here. Our raise, when it does arrive (retroactively), will include a 3% raise from September 2019, whereas the other folks don't get that raise until October. So, we will get an extra month's worth of money, when it arrives.

We look forward to concluding bargaining of that contract and, at this point, we can review what we won in our last contract.

Some members in 2015 were impatient that our union had held out for extra items above and beyond the pattern. As matters turned out, we did well.

Since the contract, our Administrative Staff Analysts Level II and III have been getting new longevity payments after ten years, fifteen and twenty years of service.

This new money did NOT come out of the citywide pattern, but was extra money obtained by OSA through the impasse settlement.

Also, hundreds of our members are now happily on Alternate Work Schedules with longer days of work, but an extra day off either weekly or biweekly. At our September membership meeting, Alice Moise will be reporting on the agencies cooperating.

We have not had a single case of a member denied a lengthy furlough for health or family reasons over the past four years. Moreover, the Paid Family Leave Program added to the Family Medical Leave Act rules began to move our City closer to the more “worker considerate” style of employment in Western Europe.

Finally, we were able to get a number of non-competitive titles represented by OSA designated eligible to take the promotional Associate or Administrative Staff Analyst Exam, including Senior Health Care Program Planner/Analyst (HMH), Senior Management Consultant (HMH), Confidential Strategy Planner (all agencies), Supervising Systems Analyst (HMH), Director of Tenant & Community Affairs (NYCHA), and Assistant Director of Intergroup Relations (NYCHA).

We hoped to get a similar right for our brothers and sisters in non-competitive titles at NY City Health + Hospitals (H+H), and met repeatedly with H+H leadership to this end. Unfortunately, H+H dragged their feet and no agreement was reached in time for the upcoming exams. We will, of course, keep trying, since a competitive title has advantages over a non-competitive title in terms of both promotional opportunity and greater job security.

All in all, our efforts on the last contract paid off for a great many of our members and will affect favorably even more as years pass.

Negotiating a contract should always be a lot more than showing up, seeing what is offered and saying yes. Getting a bit more can take longer, but our last contract results proved, once again, the value of careful negotiations.

ANALYST SERIES EXAMS... The next Associate Staff Analyst Exam is set to start on Saturday, September 14th and the next Administrative Staff Analyst Exam will take place starting on Wednesday, October 2nd. Approximately two weeks prior to the exams, you should receive an admission “card” in the mail telling you where to report for the exam. While we believe DCAS will be giving the exam at its computerized testing centers, the NOE indicated they might be given in pencil and paper format. The admission card will tell you. Don’t forget to bring it with you to the exam, along with a simple calculator.

Quite a few of you have taken the training course offered by OSA this summer. The last sessions will take place in early September. You can still purchase DVDs of prior training if you wish. The nine DVD (36 hour) set is $40 and it documents past training sessions in our title series. If you are interested, call George at the union office or bring a money order or cash during business hours.

This summer, the Staff Analyst and Staff Analyst Trainee Lists for the two exams given in 2018 were published. The lists can be found on the union’s website on the Exams, Lists and Training tab. If you are called to a pool for either of these exams, please contact OSA Executive Director Sheila Gorsky and let her know. Sometimes, candidates know about pools before we do.

LABOR DAY PARADE.... Members and activists are invited and encouraged to join the OSA contingent in the Labor Day Parade on Saturday, September 7, 2019 and march behind the OSA banner. We have marched in every parade since 2000 and usually have had a good turnout. It can be a lot of fun and we gather together for lunch right afterwards. It is also a day to remind our political leaders, the city and the nation of the strength of New York City’s unions. Demonstrating union solidarity and power is important!

A flyer can be downloaded below providing information on where we will gather for the parade: West 47th Street (between Fifth and Sixth Avenues) near the corner of Sixth at 11:30AM. Look for the union banner. Join us for your OSA T-shirts, hats, water and snacks. Your colleagues, family and friends are also welcome. Give John LaGuardia, Rob Spencer or Ken Kearns a call at the union office at 212-686-1229 and let us know you are coming and who you are bringing. It helps to have a projected count of planned attendees.

HONEY, WHO SHRUNK THE SUMMER MAILING?... No rmally, you would receive a substantial 9x12 envelope from the union in late August containing all of the materials included in this year's mailing and quite a few other items, including our2018 OSA Welfare Fund Analysis,2018 Annual Union/Welfare Fund Financial Report,Member Information Update Form, Website Overview, Quality of Work Life Committee Sign-Up,OSA PAC Deduction Form, Email Sign-Up Form,Activist Classroom Training Sign-up Form, E-Chief Subscription Sign-Up Form, HIPAA Notice, Voter Registration Form, Agency Shop Fee Payer Notice and Articles of Interest.

This year, we only included in the hard copy of this Newsletter mailing a notice for the September general membership meeting, an invitation to participate in OSA’s contingent in the Labor Day Parade and the master sign up coupon for our fall seminars. All of the other items listed above and normally mailed are posted below. We encourage you to view or download them.

Why? We’ve had an especially busy summer. There’s the competitive union representation election against DC37 for the right to represent Administrative Nurses at New York City Health+Hospitals’ MetroPlus Health Plan. In addition, there is the logistical challenge to the usual assembly of our summer mailing in the union office, since the office has been occupied seven days a week with candidates taking the training course for the fall Analyst Series exams.

GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING... Mark your calendar for the September general membership meeting which will take place on Thursday, September 26, 2019 at 6pm at the union office on 23rd Street. The meeting will be followed by food and then the latest session of Activist Classroom Training. A flyer can be dowloaded below to remind you of the date, time and location.

BITS AND PIECES ...

  • 2018 OSA Welfare Fund Analysis
  • 2018 Annual Financial Report
  • 2018 Agency Shop Fee Payer Procedure
  • HIPAA Notice
  • Voter Registration Form

    COUPONS...

  • Member Information Update Form
  • Website and Hotline Info
  • Website Overview
  • Quality of Work Life Committee Sign-Up
  • OSA PAC Deduction Form
  • One Big Seminar Coupon (various seminars)
  • Email Sign-Up Form
  • September 26th Membership Meeting Notice
  • Labor Day Parade Flyer - September 7th
  • Activist Classroom Training Sign-up Form
  • E-Chief Subscription Sign-Up Form

    ARTICLES OF INTEREST ...

  • Labor's Endorsement Dilemma - In These Times
  • Here's the Straight Skinny On Medicare For All - Hightower Lowdown
  • China & America's Trade "War": On Your Bike - The Economist
  • I Was Skeptical Of Unions. Then I Joined One - Vox
  • Fairness & Accuracy In Reporting Comments On NY Times Coverage of Social Security
  • City of Workers, City of Struggle - Museum of the City of New York

    From now until January 5, 2020, the Museum of the City of New York hosts a new exhibition entitled, City of Workers, City of Struggle: How Labor Movements Changed New York. This is your chance to learn more about the history of labor in our City. The Museum is open daily from 10am to 6pm and is located at 1220 Fifth Avenue at 103 Street. Their phone number is 212-534-1672.

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