By MIKE LEE

Hundreds of union activists and leaders flooded the halls of the State Capitol on March 4 for DC 37’s annual Lobby Day. Members packed the Lewis Swyer Theatre inside the “Egg” at the Empire State Plaza, where DC 37 Executive Director Henry Garrido and Political Action & Legislative Director Odetty Tineo briefed the group on their assignments and lobbying priorities.

“We come to Albany to ensure the legislators do their jobs,” Garrido said. “If they don’t, we will remind them at the ballot box who we are. Why? Because we are not only the workers who make New York run but also their constituents.”

Members spoke out on several critical items, including:

• Protecting New Yorkers from the burden of excessive charges for routine health procedures and medications through the Fair Pricing Act. DC 37 is at the forefront of tackling excessive pricing by private hospital systems in New York City.
• Supporting a .5% tax increase for New Yorkers earning more than $1 million and a 2% corporate tax increase. This promises to generate around $3 billion annually for the state and decrease the financial burden on working New Yorkers while investing in new and improved services.
• Backing the passage of the BOT Act, legislation restricting employers’ use of algorithms and artificial intelligence to screen job candidates and make employment decisions.
• Significantly reforming the Tier 6 pension plan for state and city public workers by adjusting the contribution from the current 3%-6% range to 3% across the board for all public workers in Tier 6.
• Raising the cost-of-living adjustment for direct support professionals, with a percentage dedicated to wage increases.

In addition to union-wide priorities, many locals attended Lobby Day to advocate for specific issues affecting their members. Local 768 and SSEU Local 371 lobbied for the Social Work Workforce Act to eliminate racially biased licensing exams. Members of the union’s three library locals advocated for legislation to prevent on-the-job violence and prohibit book banning. Local 3005 turned out to oppose a bill establishing an independent Office of Chief Medical Examiner within the Department of Correction.

Members of Local 3005 also lobbied for improvements to Tier 6. Like many workers, they often face economic uncertainty as rising costs cut into their paychecks.

Clare Biging, an Evaluation Specialist at DOHMH’s Bureau of Hepatitis, HIV, and STIs, spoke of how responding as frontline workers during the pandemic affected the members’ pensions.

“We worked overtime — multiple 12-hour shifts at the pods dispensing vaccines,” Biging said. “We earned more than we expected, placing us in the six-figure range that year. This meant we had to pay 6% into our pension the following year, even if we didn’t make the minimum to pay that rate.”