DC 37 BLOG

• Schumer, Torres Deliver $1 Billion in FEMA COVID Relief to NYC H+H January 24, 2022
  By DIANE S. WILLIAMS After months of negotiations with the Federal Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, U.S. Senator Chuck Schumer and U.S. Congress Member Ritchie Torres delivered $1 billion emergency relief to New York City Health+Hospitals on Jan. 12, to cover the exorbitant costs of caring for patients during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic. “This is great news. […]
• COVID TESTING SITES AVAILABLE EXCLUSIVELY for NYC EMPLOYEES January 21, 2022
  New York City is now offering no cost COVID-19 testing exclusively for municipal employees, by appointment only. WorkWell NYC has nine testing sites (at least one in each borough at this time) available for City employees who have been exposed to COVID-19 but do not have symptoms. Click here for the complete list of testing […]
• MELS TAX WEBINAR: WEDNESDAY, JAN. 26, 2022, 6 PM January 19, 2022
  MELS, the union’s Municipal Employees Legal Services, will host a virtual tax webinar for members and retirees on WEDNESDAY, Jan. 26 at 6 PM. Tax experts will discuss what is income and what’s not; filing status, standard and itemized deductions, tax credits, tips, and more. To register, visit: https://ringcentr.al/3ydq7t1 or www.dc37mels.com. For more information, please call the MELS […]
• DC 37 NEWS, UPCOMING EVENTS and SERVICES YOU CAN USE January 18, 2022
  MELS COVID-19 UPDATE: New York State Homeowners Assistance Fund – Up to $50,000 Available for Distressed Home, Coop and Condo Owners   Homeowners at risk of foreclosure or displacement due to a financial hardship suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic may be eligible for up to $50,000.00 through the New York State Homeowner […]
• UPDATE: THE JANUARY 19 RALLY is NOW VIRTUAL, JOIN VIA ZOOM January 6, 2022
  UPDATE: NOW VIRTUAL: Please join our virtual Communities Not Cages Advocacy Day via Zoom on Wednesday, January 19, by RSVPing here! While the COVID surge is keeping us at home, we’re still bringing our fight for #CommunitiesNotCages to Albany on January 19, just virtually via Zoom. Communities Not Cages is a statewide campaign building the power of […]
• MELS Helps Member Get $145,000 Student Loan Debt Forgiven Thru the Public Interest Loan Forgiveness Program January 5, 2022
  By JOSEPH DAVIDSON, MELS Supervising Attorney DC 37’s Municipal Employees Legal Services, MELS, recently helped a union member navigate the US Dept. of Education’s Public Service Loan Forgiveness program (PSLF) and receive forgiveness of $145,000 in student loan debt. Years earlier, the member had submitted the PSLF Employment Certification Form to his loan servicer, selected […]
• JOIN DC 37 at the COMMUNITIES NOT CAGES RALLY in ALBANY on JANUARY 19 January 5, 2022
  We’re going to Albany on January 19 to fight for Communities Not Cages — and we’d love to have you join us! RSVP here. Communities Not Cages is a statewide campaign building the power of people and families impacted by mass incarceration to overhaul New York’s racist and draconian sentencing laws. In Albany, we will meet […]
• DC 37 NEWS, UPCOMING EVENTS and SERVICES YOU CAN USE January 4, 2022
  MELS COVID-19 UPDATE: New York State Homeowners Assistance Fund – Up to $50,000 Available for Distressed Home, Coop and Condo Owners   Homeowners at risk of foreclosure or displacement due to a financial hardship suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic may be eligible for up to $50,000.00 through the New York State Homeowner […]
• Union Wins an Extension to June ’22 for Parks Seasonal Workers December 28, 2021
  By DIANE S. WILLIAMS DC 37 and the City Parks and Recreation Department worked together to put federal stimulus funds to work extending 2,500 seasonal workers’ jobs through June 2022. “We lobbied the City to apply a portion of the federal surplus to the Parks Department and use that money to save seasonal workers’ jobs […]
• Local 374 Members Share Holiday Cheer at Brooklyn Botanic Garden December 27, 2021
  By DIANE S. WILLIAMS Local 374 members at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden took their annual holiday celebration outdoors. Thinking outside the box, the essential workers at the 53-acre urban garden shook things up to share holiday cheer even as the global COVID-19 pandemic — and the Omicron variant — threatens to dampen seasonal gatherings. “Due […]
• Met Museum Restores Vacation to Local 1503 Guards December 23, 2021
  By DIANE S. WILLIAMS Local 1503 settled a grievance on behalf of 80 Security Officers and Senior Security Officers at the Metropolitan Museum of Art after management denied them an opportunity to schedule their vacations. Additionally, the Met had robbed 40 guards of their vacation time when management forfeited their accrued leave time In October, […]
• NYS Paid Family Leave Gives Dad Bonding Time With New Son December 22, 2021
    By DIANE S. WILLIAMS DC 37 members attended three virtual Paid Family Leave (PFL) workshops sponsored by the Center for Parental Leadership to learn more about the program that pays city workers a partial salary as they put family first. The workshop also discussed steps for planning for leave. New York State’s Paid Family […]
• Local 1501 Grievance Victory Creates 11 Full-Time Jobs at Wildlife Conservation Society December 21, 2021
  By DIANE S. WILLIAMS Local 1501 cleared a career path for the Wildlife Conservation Society’s lowest paid workers when it settled a grievance that creates 11 Unit Manager jobs and curtails the WCS’s extended use of nonunion seasonal staff. “For too long the WCS has scheduled seasonal employees to work four, eight and even 12 months […]
• MELS COVID-19 UPDATE: New York State Homeowners Assistance Fund – Up to $50,000 Available for Distressed Home, Coop and Condo Owners   December 20, 2021
  Homeowners at risk of foreclosure or displacement due to a financial hardship suffered as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic may be eligible for up to $50,000.00 through the New York State Homeowner Assistance Fund. Applications open as of January 3, 2022. To qualify you must be: Residing in the home, coop or condo; and […]
• A Time of Challenge and Hope December 17, 2021
  We arrived at this year with great hope, and at the year’s end, we move forward to the next with high expectations. Members of this union remained on the frontlines, risking their lives doing their jobs throughout the pandemic while quickly adapting to a changed New York City. At the same time, our communities were […]
• MELS Wins $107K Social Security Disability Appeal December 16, 2021
  By WILLIAM WHALEN, Chief Counsel and MELS Director The spouse of a DC 37 member contacted MELS in summer 2020 asking for help with her Social Security Disability (SSD) denial. She had applied for disability in 2018 based on right-eye blindness and other medical conditions and was denied. Then she had a hearing before a […]
• Watch the MELS Real Estate Webinar Online December 15, 2021
  DC 37 members and retirees joined the virtual Municipal Employees Legal Services (MELS) Real Estate Webinar on Dec. 13. A recording and slideshow are now available: Slides: https://bit.ly/32b21mY  Video Replay: https://bit.ly/3q6kdXc For more information on the free legal services the union provides, call the MELS Screening Unit at 212 815-1111 or email: MELSscreeningunit@dc37.net.
• JOIN the MELS REAL ESTATE WEBINAR TODAY, DEC. 13, at 6 PM December 13, 2021
  MELS, the union’s Municipal Employees Legal Services, will host a virtual webinar TODAY, Dec. 13, at 6 PM for members and retirees who are interested in buying a home, co-op or condominium apartment. MELS real estate experts will discuss retaining and working with a realtor, seller’s concerns, purchaser’s concerns, financing and mortgages, home inspections, closings […]
• PLANNING for PARENTAL LEAVE WORKSHOP TODAY DEC. 13, 2 PM: ONLINE FREE for DC 37 MEMBERS December 13, 2021
  Taking a parental leave soon? Attend this free virtual Planning Workshop from the Center for Parental Leave Leadership TODAY DEC. 13 at 2 PM. We’ve made special arrangements with the Center for Parental Leave Leadership and authors of the recently released book The Parental Leave Playbook to attend this free parental leave planning webinar. In […]
• DC 37 NEWS, UPCOMING EVENTS and SERVICES YOU CAN USE December 1, 2021
  COVID-19 VACCINE MANDATE HOTLINE To answer any outstanding questions regarding the COVID-19 vaccine mandate agreement between DC 37 and the City, DC 37 has established a COVID-19 vaccine mandate hotline. Members can call this dedicated phone line to speak to a representative for assistance. The DC 37 hotline at 212-815-1100 is available Monday through Friday from 8 […]