There was a joke within the film “Sleeper” about how UFT President Albert Shanker began World Battle III. Our present union president, Michael Mulgrew, gained’t be beginning any wars. The truth is, Mulgrew is now battling to have town pay much less towards our well being care. What’s subsequent? A strike for extra work and fewer pay?
Union could be a highly effective factor. It empowers working individuals. It raises pay for union employees, which tends to lift pay for non-union employees as properly. Union allows weekends, baby labor legal guidelines and office security rules. There are the reason why rich firms struggle us tooth and nail. With out union, they’ll rent Individuals at minimum-wage with no advantages.
Mulgrew desires to maneuver all metropolis retirees backward from Medicare to a distinctly inferior Benefit plan. Far fewer medical doctors take Benefit plans. If Mulgrew will get his approach, retirees can have a NY-based plan like we working lecturers have. Retirees, in contrast to working lecturers, typically stay elsewhere. In the event that they do, they’d higher not get sick.
As a working instructor, I’m good in New York, however exterior this space I’ll discover few to no medical doctors that take my plan. The truth is, whereas making an attempt to steer me that Benefit wouldn’t be so dangerous, a union official instructed me he lived in Jersey and had a tough time discovering medical doctors who accepted our plan.
Then there are the pre-approvals. Whenever you’re over 65 and having a well being disaster, you in all probability don’t need CVS/Aetna deciding between your well being and their revenue. Mulgrew says there will likely be a fast attraction course of. However what when you lose? Is dying rapidly now a profit?
It’s powerful being union when your leaders actively marketing campaign for administration. You’d suppose they’d marketing campaign for improved well being care at a decrease value to us. As a substitute, they’ve gotten the Metropolis Council to carry hearings on altering the legislation so town might contribute much less.
This all stems from a 2018 Municipal Labor Committee deal. Somewhat than insist town pay us value of dwelling raises, the MLC geniuses agreed to fund them ourselves, through well being care cuts. On Oct. 12, 2018, Mulgrew told the UFT Delegate Assembly his deal would lead to no further copays. Time has confirmed that unfaithful. He additionally promised no vital prices to union membership. But any couple wanting to maintain conventional Medicare, beneath Mulgrew’s plan, can pay virtually $5,000 a 12 months.
How can we belief our leaders once they clearly don’t know what they’re doing? Are they merely incompetent, or outright mendacity?
Rank and file had no voice within the MLC deal that was carried out behind closed doorways. It appears the backroom dealing continues. Weeks in the past, the Council was “lukewarm” about revising 12-126, which units a minimal town should meet for our well being care. Now, they’ve carried out a fairly sudden and spectacular turnaround.
What has modified? I can’t assist however suspect my union management, together with others, quietly reached out. Possibly these union contributions would gradual for Council members who voted to uphold well being care contributions. In any case, it isn’t us, however fairly management holding union purse strings. And can Council members get funding from Mayor Adams for his or her pet group tasks in the event that they don’t vote his approach?
Mulgrew wrote us an e mail saying we must pay $1,200 a 12 months if we didn’t change the legislation and screw our retired brothers and sisters. It is a basic zero-sum recreation. America has by no means achieved common well being care as a result of that’s the way it’s offered. If we give these individuals well being care, it is going to injury yours. Continuously based mostly on racism, Individuals settle for these concepts and thus reject proposals that will enhance issues for all of us.
A elementary notion of union is {that a} rising tide raises all boats. Somewhat than embrace that notion, Mulgrew threatened us. If we didn’t help diminished well being look after retirees, our personal well being care can be diminished. By pitting one union faction towards one other, Mulgrew and different union leaders took a basically anti-union place.
Union ought to not be within the enterprise of abbreviating well being look after its members. Union must be within the enterprise of not solely increasing our care, but in addition making certain the remainder of our group enjoys the identical advantages we have now. That’s why it’s sorely disappointing that Mulgrew opposes the New York Health Act, which would supply well being look after all New Yorkers. Somewhat than work out variations with its sponsors, UFT takes shortcuts. In doing so, we damage probably the most susceptible of my union brothers and sisters.
First they got here for the retirees. And when you don’t suppose they’re coming for present workers subsequent, I’ve a beautiful bridge in Brooklyn to promote you.
Goldstein is an ENL instructor at Francis Lewis Excessive College and a NYSUT/ AFT delegate.
