District Council 37 wants to know where the city has hidden tens of thousands of its employees.

Thanks to new legislation drafted by the union, passed by the City Council and signed into law Dec. 27, the truth will soon be out.

The head count of the city's seasonal, part time, per diem, temporary and provisional employees will finally be revealed under the new law, which requires agencies to include all employees in quarterly reports on the size of their staffs.

Previously, agencies hid employees by counting only full-time permanent civil service workers.

Under an administration bent on giving the perception of substantially cutting the size of government, this smoke-and-mirrors technique underreported the actual number of employees needed to keep New York City running.

"DC 37 wanted to shed light on city employment figures," said Evelyn Seinfeld of DC 37's Research and Negotiations Dept. "By crafting a law that brings to light the vast number of people who work in the shadows, DC 37 will finally be able to collect more accurate data and better track changes in the work force."

The new law will ultimately allow the union to "make the argument for more civil service jobs," she said.