We celebrated Labor Day by marching up Fifth Avenue in midtown Manhattan with our union siblings from all sectors, trades, and disciplines. It was a collective expression of our power to remind the greater community that our members, past and present, are the force that makes this city run.

When we march together in the parade, we are reminded of those who are no longer with us — the everyday heroes who have passed on while fulfilling their duties in serving our communities.

During the pandemic, thousands of our DC 37 members fell ill and dozens died. The workers directly impacted by the pandemic were not only health care workers and EMTs; the pandemic struck workers in social services and other agencies that interact with the public. Many became sick after commuting to and from work during the lockdown. An untold number still suffer from “long COVID,” requiring continued medical care, and have lost time or been forced to go on disability.

The social impact of the pandemic continues. Assaults on public workers, particularly on NYC Department of Transportation and Emergency Medical Service workers, have grown in the last several years. This tragic trend has even affected the Department of Education, with several School Crossing Guards injured or killed due to negligent drivers and physical assaults. Our elected leaders must do everything necessary to protect our workers and provide more robust compensation when they are injured on duty.

In their honor and on their behalf, we support the Workers’ Compensation Amendment, which improves access to treatment when injured or sick due to work. The bill allows treatment of less than $1,500 without prior approval, defines the list of pre-authorized procedures, and authorizes non-network provider compensation for MRIs and other radiological exams and tests at the carrier’s network rate.

This amendment to the Workers’ Compensation bill passed the State Legislature in June and has been sitting on Gov. Kathy Hochul’s desk ever since. For the sake of all workers, including the 150,000 active members of our union, I urge you to join me in calling on the governor to sign this vital reform to lower health care costs for injured workers and those who have fallen ill after performing their duties.

This time of year, we also pay tribute to and remember those killed on Sept. 11, 2001, and those heroes involved in the enormous cleanup efforts, including many DC 37 members.

Among those lost were Local 299 Chaplin Rev. Mychal Judge, who died while providing comfort to his colleagues and strangers; Paramedic Carlos Lillo, Local 2507; EMS Lieutenant Ricardo Quinn, Local 3621; and OTB Betting Clerk Chet Louie of Local 2021, who was at work at his second job in the North Tower when the first plane struck.

New York City’s public workers, including many members of this union, heroically put their lives on the line that Tuesday.

The same goes for the thousands of public workers and volunteers involved in the massive recovery and cleanup of Ground Zero. While the World Trade Center site was still smoking in ruins, they worked tirelessly to clear out debris, search for victims, and prevent further catastrophic damage.

Many labored at the site for weeks with inadequate protection from the resulting deadly toxins, later discovering they had paid a terrible price for their sacrifice, falling ill and dying due to the critical work they performed more than 20 years ago.

This is why we fought hard to pass the James Zadroga 9/11 Health and Compensation Act in 2010 and lobbied Congress to reauthorize the law five years later. Unfortunately, the World Trade Center Health Program now faces a funding shortfall due to increasing medical costs. Please contact your Congress member and ask them to support the bipartisan 9/11 Responder and Survivor Health Funding and Correction Act of 2024 introduced by Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Rep. Andrew Garbarino (R-NY), which will ensure the program gets the full funding it needs.

Why do we march? To fight for the living and honor the legacy of those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.