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By Colin Campbell 2/13 6:16pm

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(Photo: Facebook)

1199 Backs Marc Landis in Upper West Side Council Race

In one of its first endorsements this year, the influential 1199 SEIU United Healthcare Workers union has backed District Leader Marc Landis to replace outgoing Upper West Side Councilwoman Gale Brewer. The race to replace Ms. Brewer is one of the most hotly contested in the city, so the backing from one of the state’s labor powerhouses is undoubtedly a nice boost for Mr. Landis’ campaign.

“Marc Landis has a proven record as a progressive activist dedicated to improving our public schools, creating good jobs, advocating for affordable health care and protecting affordable housing for the working families of New York City,” George Gresham, the union’s president, said in a statement. Read More

By Colin Campbell 8/21/12 5:19pm

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Michael Grimm being endorsed by the painter's union.

Grimm’s Trade Union Support Blunts AFL-CIO Endorsement of Murphy

Earlier today, the influential AFL-CIO rolled out its endorsements of Democratic congressional candidates across the state, only skipping three districts out of twenty seven. Two of those districts feature safe Democratic and Republican incumbents, Gregory Meeks and Peter King respectively, but one of them stands out: Staten Island Rep. Michael Grimm, a top target of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

“I think there’s support for both candidates,” Ryan Delgado, AFL-CIO’s public policy director, told us, explaining that they have “to be respectful of both candidates” when their membership is split. Read More

By Colin Campbell 8/01/12 5:10pm

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32BJ Weighs In for Democrats, Although Some Are Left Out

Earlier today, SEIU 32BJ, one of the city’s more notable unions, announced its endorsement in dozens of State Senate and Assembly races throughout the city. And while the full list, which you can view below, is mostly just a catologue of New York’s Democratic incumbents in the State Legislature, there are a number of endorsements, or lack there of, which stand out.

Only one incumbent Democrat, Senator Shirley Huntley, appears to have been passed over. While normally this wouldn’t be a big deal, Ms. Huntley is facing one of the most serious primary challenges in the city as she faces off against Councilman James Sanders, and she would surely like every bit of help she can get. Read More

By David Freedlander 6/28/12 4:18pm

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CWA and Cablevision Spar As Union Organizing Effort Goes Down

An effort by the powerful Communication Workers of America to organize Cablevision workers went down to defeat earlier today when technicians there voted by a nearly 3-1 margin against joining the union.

News of the vote quickly set off a round of crowing by Cablevision, which had been working to defeat the organizing effort.

“Cablevision employees have spoken loudly and clearly that they value their direct relationship with the company, especially in this period of change, growth and dynamic opportunity,” the company said in a statement. “Our Bronx employees gave this matter careful consideration and independently and overwhelmingly rejected the CWA’s campaign of misinformation and false promises.” Read More

By Colin Campbell 4/12/12 12:34pm

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Rory Lancman (photo: rorylancman.com)

Lancman on His Tier VI Vote: ‘My Light Doesn’t Flicker’

Assemblyman Rory Lancman, a candidate for Congress in Queens, declared his consistency on labor issues in response to The Politicker‘s story yesterday noting one of his rivals for the nomination, Assemblywoman Grace Meng, initially indicated she supported Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Tier VI pension proposal before ultimately voting against it.

“I can’t speak for anyone else but when it comes to the issues that matter to working people, you’ll always know where I stand — my light doesn’t flicker,” Mr. Lancman said in a statement after we discussed the issue with his campaign.

Read More

By Hunter Walker 3/08/12 2:09pm

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Governor Andrew Cuomo (Photo: Getty)

Governor Cuomo Says He Can’t Negotiate Pension Reform With Public Employee Unions

In a Q&A session with reporters after the cabinet meeting today Governor Andrew Cuomo discussed the state of his push to reform the pension system for public workers. Governor Cuomo was asked about legislators who are demanding he negotiate the reforms with the unions and get them to agree to a plan, but he was adamant that there’s nothing to negotiate and the unions are inherently opposed to reform.

“We just finished negotiating quote-un-quote with our public employee unions; salaries, benefits, et cetera when we did contracts. The contracts were ratified. Pensions are not subject to collective bargaining negotiations, so you can’t negotiate a pension in the collective bargaining. If you just finished negotiating a contract and someone says, ‘Well, go negotiate the pension with the unions and I’ll only pass pension reform if the union agrees,’ there’s nothing left to negotiate with the union,” Governor Cuomo said. “By definition, the unions don’t want a reform that would diminish pension benefits, so the answer’s always going to be, ‘No.’” Read More

By David Freedlander 8/16/11 6:48pm

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Boathouse Battle Royale: Union, City-Backed Restauranteur Face-Off In Central Park

The best way to find the Boathouse restaurant in the middle of Central Park is to follow the sounds of the beating drums. On a recent Monday afternoon, they drowned out even the whistles and catcalls of the protesters gathered in front of the restaurant. Out of earshot, at the park entrances, striking workers and organizers with the Hotel Trades Council passed out maps showing alternative eating spots in the park’s 843 acres. The back of the map contained a long list of alleged affronts by the management of the Boathouse, including turning a blind eye toward sexual harassment, firing workers who tried to unionize and withholding money owed to the city. The front of the map showed a cartoon bandit, with a six shooter in one hand and a bag of money in the other, and the words: “Dump Dean.” Read More

By David Freedlander 8/09/11 2:02pm

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De Blasio Joins Verizon Strikers [Video]

Public Advocate Bill de Blasio joined striking Verizon workers this morning and had some harsh words for the telecommunications giant.

“I can’t believe, when you look at the numbers here, when you look at how profitable Verizon is, when you look at what these executives make  I can’t even count that high,” he said. “The top five executives making over a quarter of a billion dollars in the last four years. I can’t imagine what kind of company does that and then says to its workers you can’t have basic benefits.” Read More

By David Freedlander 6/06/11 1:47pm

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Stringer Calls On City to Drop Boathouse Contract–UPDATE

Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer sent a letter this morning to Parks Commissioner Adrian Benepe calling on the city to drop the operator of the famed Central Park boathouse for what he says are “a host of continued labor violations, allegations, and complaints.”

“The Department of Parks and Recreation should terminate the contract with Dean Read More