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NY-6 And Wal-Mart Politics (Updated)
Apr 23rd - 12:04 pm
NYC elected officials looking to curry favor with a the anti-Wal-Mart segment of organized labor rushed to release statements comdemning the retail giant following this weekend’s New York Times story that detailed how it had used bribes to win market dominance in Mexico and then shut down an internal probe into the scandal despite its own investigators’ recommendation to widen it.
Two of the four Democrats running in NY-6 – Assemblywoman Grace Meng and Assemblyman Rory Lancman – were endorsed by two related unions that have been leading the charge against Wal-Mart’s effort to build a store in NYC.
Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW is backing Lancman, who has been outspoken in his opposition to Wal-Mart.
(UPDATE: To be clear, RWDSU itself, not just the local, has also endorsed Lancman. And RWDSU President Stuart Appelbaum emailed: “We welcome everyone to the Wal-Mart Free NYC fight. Some people like Rory Lancman have been there for years, others have to be reminded – but all are welcome”).
UFCW Local 1500 is backing Meng.
When he announced the endorsement, the union’s president, Bruce Both, said Meng had “pledged her support for our Union’s effort to hold Walmart accountable for reckless corporate policies that effect the worker families, small business owners, and women that live in the 6th Congressional,” adding: “Our Union believes that Grace will help unify an ethnically diverse community around the most pressing issue facing our Unions membership: keeping New York City Walmart free.”
Yesterday, Lancman took to Twitter to decry Wal-Mart, writing: “Whether it’s through politically motivated ‘philanthropy,’ campaign contributions or outright bribes, NYC is not for sale.”
His full statement, which came within hours of the story’s publication, read:
“This morning’s New York Times story regarding allegations that Walmart orchestrated a $24 million bribery campaign to gain favorable treatment by the Mexican government should be a wake up call for New Yorkers who have witnessed Walmart’s aggressive lobbying effort and recent streak of opportunistic ‘philanthropy’ in our city.”
“Elected officials in New York have an obligation to stand up for workers and small businesses in our city and send Walmart a clear message, that whether it’s through politically-motivated charity donations, campaign contributions or outright illegal bribes, our city is not for sale.”
None of the other NY-6 contenders – including Meng – issued any statements. I asked Meng’s campaign spokesman, Michael Tobman, via email this morning if she had a position on the NYT story, and he replied with the following statement, attributed to the candidate:
“Wal-Mart’s brazen bribery tactics in Mexico, and subsequent efforts to minimize and cover-up these actions, reflect a corporation that consistently considers itself as above the law.”
“This most recent incident – on top of ongoing allegations of discriminatory employment practices against women and a long, shameful record of aggressive hostility to worker’s rights and basic decency – only strengthens the case against Wal-Mart’s attempts to open locations in New York City.”
“Bringing Wal-Mart’s culture of corporate recklessness and lawlessness to Queens communities would be devastating to small business owners and working families, who are already struggling to make ends meet. Our local economy should be driven by a growing middle class and a fair, competitive marketplace – values which Wal-Mart continues to flaunt with its predatory business methods and menacing corporate culture here and abroad.”
“I am proud to stand with the strong progressive organizations fighting Wal-Mart’s efforts to invade New York City’s economy.”
Tobman also noted that Meng had joined NYC Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, an outspoken Wal-Mart opponent, at an endorsement event last week.
He rejected any suggestion that her response to the bribery scandal was delayed, saying Meng’s campaign is working on an event and coordinating with Local 1500 to respond to a story that highlighted “appalling corporate conduct going back years.”
Weingarten To Cuomo: More School Aid, Please
Apr 13th - 8:37 am
ICYMI: AFT President Randi Weingarten joined me for a CapTon interview from Ithaca last night, where she was in town to teach several classes at her alma mater, Cornell University.
Weingarten and I discussed Tuesday night’s advance screening of the documentary “Bully” that was co-sponsored in Washington, D.C. by the AFT and National Education Association.
(The film, which is garnering widespread acclaim and generating some serious conversation about a troubling phenomenon, opens in theaters across the nation today).
Weingarten also expressed concern about the massive education aid cuts pushed through by Gov. Andrew Cuomo last year, which districts say were not completely ameliorated by the 4 percent aid increase this year – in part due to pressure placed on them by the 2 percent property tax cap.
“Last week I was actually in Rockland County all day, or one day last week, which is the county in which I grew up, the county in which I went to school…I’ve heard stories, both in Ithaca as well as in Rockland County, about the effects of these budget cuts,” Weingarten said.
“We are being asked to do more with less at the very same time when kids need more…We need to be more in terms of after-school activities, in terms of making school safe.”
“At one point or another there is these conflicting priorities, and I would go with, frankly, we need to invest more in schooling for children.”
I asked Weingarten if she has expressed her concerns to Cuomo and impressed upon him that these cuts could be problematic if he tries to take his political act national:
“I have spent many hours in conversations not only with Governor Cuomo but with many other governors throughout this country about the need to invest in education,” Weingarten, ever the pragmatist, replied.
Weingarten, who used to head the UFT, has kept her hand in New York politics. She reportedly helped broker a deal between PEF and the governor after the union rejected its first contract last year, reminding Cuomo that it won’t help him to have a reputation of being anti-union if he does decide to run for president in 2016.
1199 For Lancman, Labor Divided in NY-6
Apr 13th - 8:09 am
Assemblyman Rory Lancman is days away from landing a powerful new ally in his quest for a House seat in NY-6.
The executive committee of 1199/SEIU voted unanimously this past Tuesday to endorse Lancman in what is now a four-way Democratic slugfest for the newly-drawn Queens district, according to a labor source familiar with the decision.
The health care workers union’s entire executive council still must meet and vote before a final endorsement is granted. That’s expected to occur within the coming days. The union’s spokeswoman, Leah Gonzalez, declined to comment pending completion of the executive council’s vote.
According to the labor source, this was “not a hard choice,” despite the obvious history-making aspects of Assemblywoman Grace Meng’s candidacy.
Meng’s acceptance of $7,600 worth of campaign cash from developer Sam Chang was definitely a factor in 1199′s decision, even though she has since returned the money.
Her for-it-before-she-was-against-it vote on Tier VI did not play much of a role, even though that’s a hot button issue with labor (particularly the public sector unions).
The die was cast largely due to a less-than-stellar interview Meng gave during the WFP candidate review process.
The labor-backed party eventually went with Lancman (I believe this is official and the Wilson Pakula was issued yesterday), though one of its major affiliates – the Hotel and Motel Trades Council – endorsed Meng just yesterday.
But the source warned not to underplay Lancman’s own record, noting that he has been very good on big 1199 issues – including publicly standing up to Gov. Andrew Cuomo during last year’s debate over the millionaire’s tax.
“We are all in for Rory,” the source said. “This is not a paper endorsement. We’re going to do everything we can yo make sure he wins.”
It’s unusual for 1199 and HTC to be at odds. The two are the cornerstones of the so-called “progressive” labor movement in NYC, and teamed up to successfully challenge a number of Queens Democratic Party-endorsed NYC Council candidates in 2009.
Now the Queens Dems are with Meng and 1199 again finds itself at odds with the party organization, while HTC is aligned with Chairman Joe Crowley.
There has been a lot of talk about the Jewish vote in NY-6 and the apparent attempt by people associated with Meng’s campaign to divert support away from Lancman through the stalking horse candidacy of newcomer Jeff Gottlieb. (Everyone and their mother has denied that).
There’s also speculation that the candidacy of NYC Councilwoman Liz Crowley, cousin of Chairman Crowley, was engineered by supporters of Meng to create a vote-splitting situation with Lancman with white voters, maximizing the Asian vote for Meng. (Also denied by all sides).
However, my source noted a significant presence of Latino voters in NY-6 – many of whom are members of 1199 or 32BJ, which has also endorsed Lancman.
Given the fact that the June 26 primary is early, it could be viewed as a sort of hybrid special election, which means it will have low turnout and could turn on which candidate has the best GOTV operation.
Between 1199, the WFP and 32BJ, Lancman has some serious GOTV juice. But HTC is no slouch at turning out the vote, either. Add to the mix the trades, who are largely backing Liz Crowley, and you’ve got yourself a labor slugfest.
CSEA’s ‘Dark Deal’ Ad Complains About ‘Perk’ It Opposed
Mar 29th - 1:50 pm
The Civil Service Employees Association’s “Dark Deal” commercial blasts a 401k-style “perk” for high paid non-union workers — an option the labor organization vehemently opposed during the Tier Six debate.
“The average pension for a CSEA-represented employee is about $14,000 annually after decades of service, but this boondoggle means the politically favored will minimally receive $6,000 annually every year, after one year of service,” union President Danny Donohue said. “That is totally unacceptable and we can only hope that the public will be as outraged at Governor Cuomo and the State Senators and Assembly members as we are.”
The ad, which has been running in the Albany area over the last several days, claims the new, less generous retirement level for future public employees gives an 8 percent annual increase in salary to non-union workers who make $75,000 and more.
Gov. Andrew Cuomo had proposed an optional defined contribution plan in the Tier Six proposal, but it was altered to only narrowly included non-unionized workers after unions like CSEA and the Public Employees Federation decried the provision.
The change was presumably done to satisfy unions and lawmakers who were squeamish about the proposal, which would have been the same model offered to some state university employees.
“It’s a really big cash bonus they didn’t earn,” the ad says with the customary Scary Music and Frightening Voice Over.
The ad urges voters to call Cuomo and lawmkaers to “fix this political boondoggle now.”
Rivera To Labor: Let’s Kiss And Make Up (Updated)
Mar 23rd - 8:10 am
ICYMI: Assemblyman Peter Rivera, speaker pro tempore and past chair of Somos, played down the rift between top labor unions and the Latino legislative organization, saying the two sides need each other too much to continue this fight for long.
Rivera, who was on CapTon with Assemblyman Karim Camara to push for changes to the Medicaid prescription drug cuts made in the MRT, took issue with my characterization of top certain unions’ decision not to participate in this weekend’s 25th anniversary Somos event as “pulling out,” saying:
“Some individuals who are very annoyed with the Assembly and the vote that took place want to demonstrate their disappointment by not being here. That’s not a pulling out, that’s a turning their back on our conference.”
“As I was speaking to the governor recently: We need to have a relationship. There are certain issues. If you read today’s newspaper, you realize that 1199 needs over $80 million from the Assembly, from the Legislature, from the government to be able to pay their medical benefits.”
“So, we’re in a marriage. And in those marriages, we fight and we make up. And hopefully, the make-up will be sooner rather than later. “
For the record: 1199 is not among the unions that has taken their toys out of the Somos sandbox and gone home. The main boycotters are NYSUT, the UFT and CSEA.
UPDATE: I stand corrected. According to an 1199 spokeswoman, the union is indeed NOT participating in Somos this year. The amount of money the health care workers powerhouse usually contributes to the event was not immediately available. Also, it has been suggested that the $24,700 figure cited as the amount given by the teachers unions is for NYSUT along, but I’m trying to get more information on that.
But Rivera’s point is well taken nonetheless.
Labor is going to have to pick a side at some point in the upcoming elections. Even though the Senate Democrats are their the unions best friends at the moment following their redistricting-inspired walkout, which conveniently enabled them to miss the Tier VI vote, if they aren’t successful in taking back the majority, they’re not going to be able to accomplish much in the way of legislation/policy.
As for the Assembly Democrats, they’re really the only option on that side of the Capitol for the unions. It’s not as if the Republican minority is going to start voting pro-labor anytime soon, and with or without the unions’ support it’s a fairly safe bet that the Democrats are going to retain their comfortable majority quite easily.
Somos Labors To Maintain Union Participation
Mar 22nd - 8:08 am
Dwindling union participation in retaliation for the Legislature’s passage of Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s Tier VI plan continues to threaten this weekend’s 25th anniversary Somos El Futuro spring conference in Albany.
Cancellations have forced Somos organizers to scrap the traditional labor breakfast, which usually takes place on Saturday, according to a source briefed on the plan.
Assemblyman Felix Ortiz, chairman of Somos, has gone dark since news broke two days ago that NYSUT and its NYC affiliate, the UFT, decided to withdraw their financial support of, and participation in, the conference to punish lawmakers for going along with Cuomo on pension reform.
I’ve left three messages for Ortiz since then, and he hasn’t returned a single one, which is odd for the normally talkative Brooklyn Democrat.
A labor source said unions have been fielding calls from elected officials and political operatives not affiliated with the Legislature who usually attend Somos. Anxious not to anger their labor allies, they are asking for advice on whether to show up this year.
Not every union is following the NYSUT/UFT lead and abandoning Somos. I received the following statement from DC37 political director Wanda Williams last night:
“As one of the co-founders of Somos el Futuro 25 years ago, District Council 37 has participated in Somos every year since its inception.”
“As a committed partner we will be continuing our partnership this year.”
“Our contribution and support for Somos el Futuro is given to help with the scholarships for the Angelo Del Toro mock session which provides an opportunity for Hispanic students to attend college.”
It remains unclear if Cuomo himself is going to attend Somos. I’m not sure what kind of reception he’ll receive if he does, given the consternation over Tier VI.
He’s a pretty commanding presence, though, so participants will likely be respectful (unless, of course, NYC Councilman Charles Barron and his wife, Assemblywoman Inez Barron, happen to be on hand).
The fact that Cuomo made no public appearance at this year’s caucus weekend in Albany, choosing instead to hold a private reception at the mansion in honor of Assemblyman Denny Farrell’s 80th birthday, may have set a precedent for this weekend.
Cuomo not only showed up at the Somos spring conference last year, but hosted a reception, too – and subsequently posted photos on his Flickr page as proof.
Cuomo, then the governor-elect, almost didn’t show up at the post-2010 election Somos get-together in Puerto Rico, but then relented at the last minute with a quick fly-in/breakfast/fly-out trip after Ortiz publicly complained.
NYSUT And AFL-CIO Have No Plans To Copy CSEA
Mar 20th - 2:26 pm
The leaders of two influential unions said today they have no plans to follow the Civil Service Employees Association’s strategy of withholding political support from lawmakers who voted in favor of the Tier Six pension overhaul.
CSEA announced yesterday it would yank its political endorsements (and with it campaign cash) for lawmakers and assess its next steps after the retirement system for future public workers. But the state United Teachers and the state AFL-CIO, two powerful labor organizations with thousands of members, aren’t taking the same route.
NYSUT President Dick Ianuzzi, who led a 500-person rally today at the said his union will continue to go through the normal endorsement process. But the Tier Six vote will be taken in account, he said. It’s worth noting that NYSUT still endorsed lawmakers who backed the cap on local property taxes, even though the union strongly opposed the measure.
“Our position will always remain what it has been in good times and in bad times, which is our local leaders, local residents, our board come and they look at a total record and they make a decision. Clearly what happened this week is going to be very overwhelming in terms of decision making. But there are three days left — plenty of time — maybe more than three days who knows unless they all just need to go home on Thursday — there’s time for people to do the right thing and there’s some very important issues out there that we’d like to see them addressed. My leaders will look at total records and we’ll be guided by what they tell us to do.”
Mario Cilento, the newly installed president at the AFL-CIO, hedged somewhat, however.
Cilento told me that the there were no plans “in the immediate future” to change its process.
“That’s a discussion we’ll have to have amongst our executive board and the labor leaders that are affiliated with the state AFL-CIO. We’re going to re-evaluate our plans and we’ll see where we’ll go in the future,” he said.
Silver Unconcerned About Union Support
Mar 19th - 3:02 pm
Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver isn’t too worried about today’s news that the Civil Service Employees Association is yanking all endorsements and contributions, even though his conference benefits greatly from labor’s political clout.
“I have no reaction to that,” Silver told reporters in a scrum following Gov. Andrew Cuomo’s DNA databank expansion news conference. “I think the public and CSEA and anybody else is free to always to assess who is worthy of their support and support should not come as result of a vote yes or a vote no any particular bill.”
CSEA, the state’s largest public-workers union, announced it would suspend its backing of state lawmakers in order to “re-evaluate our political relationships and make judgments about the criteria.”
The Democratic-led Assembly and Republican-controlled Senate passed a new, less generous pension tier for yet-to-be-hired public workers. Though provisions like the defined-contribution plan and raising the retirement age to 65 were stripped away, labor is deeply unhappy with the new tier.
The eventual bill did include the defined-contribution plan for non-union higher-paid workers and raised the age of retirement to 63.
Silver — surprisingly! — didn’t go into much detail on what sort of feedback he’s heard from unions.
“Depends. I’ve gotten various feedback from various segments of labor,” he said.
Silver added that he did not expect his proposal to increase the minimum wage would eventually become a major sticking point in the $132.5 billion budget, which could be ironed out as early as this week.
“I don’t see it as part of the budget discussion,” he said. “I see it as part of a substantive discussion before this legislative session is over.”
The proposal would increase the minimum wage to $8.50 and tie to the rate of inflation. Cuomo has not said if he would support the measure, only saying that he’s studying its broader economic impacts. Senate Republicans, meanwhile, have called the measure a “job killer.”
The minimum wage bill is one that’s supported not just by unions, but also the labor-backed Working Families Party. Having that issue as a card to play for Silver could help pump up his conference’s street cred with the progressives come November.
Quick programming note: CSEA President Danny Donohue will be interviewed by Liz tonight on the show. Tune in at 8 and 11:30 p.m.
CSEA’s Revenge (Updated)
Mar 19th - 11:18 am
Furious over the passage of Tier VI, CSEA, the state’s largest public employees union, has made an unprecedented decision to halt all political contributions and endorsements for the foreseeable future.
The union plans to use this pause to “re-evaluate our political relationships and make judgments about the criteria we use in determining who has earned and deservesour support,” according to a statement issused by CSEA President Danny Donohue, who added: “It is also important to consider how our support is valued.”
Donohue made it clear this decision is a “direct result” of the deal struck last week by Gov. Andrew Cuomo and legislative leaders, in which organized labor believes the governor “traded” his approval on the LATFOR redistricting plans for lawmakers’ support of pension reform.
“CSEA will also use this time to consult with our brother and sister unions and other allied community organizations about how we can collectively address the disrespect and disenfranchisemen tof working people by our state’s elected officials,” Donohue continued.
“New Yorkers should understand that lawmakers’ actions did not result from meaningful debateand good judgment – it resulted from political expediency – and it will have harmful consequences to people and communities now and for a long time to come.CSEA will seek better ways to hold elected officials accountable and ensure that the voices of working people will be heard and addressed in New York state.”
It has been clear for some time that labor and Cuomo has been at odds. Even during the 2010 campaign, some unions – including CSEA – withheld support from Cuomo, thanks all his talk of public employee pay freezes, union givebacks and government spending reductions.
Donohue even went so far as to say back in August 2011 (right after a difficult contract negotiation process) that CSEA would be willing to consider a challenger to Cuomo in the future, noting that the union had bucked the traditional Democrat-labor alliance and backed Republican Gov. George Pataki in the past.
The conventional wisdom is that Cuomo will have to tack left in the coming years if he indeed wants to run for president in 2016 – although not everyone agrees with that theory, reasoning that Cuomo’s approach with the state worker unions signals a new reality for Democratic presidential candidates, particularly those currently serving as governors and tackling big financial problems in their respective states.
In the short term, CSEA’s decision has a greater impact on the Legislature, since this is an election year for lawmakers and not the governor. (He doesn’t have to run again until 2014).
It’s particularly problematic for the Senate Republicans, who have enjoyed some labor support in the past and will need all the help they can get as they battle in a presidential year to retain control of the Senate. The Democrats, as you’ll recall, didn’t cast any votes for Tier VI – with the exception of the four-member IDC, which voted no in a bloc – because they walked out of the chamber to protest the redistricting bill.
Keep in mind, however, this isn’t the first time a union has undertaken some saber-rattling. If I remember correctly, the AFL-CIO threatened to withhold legislative endorsements back in 2008 due to anger over the property tax cap, but later relented.
UPDATE: A reader takes issue with my suggestion that this might impact legislative races, sending a link to CSEA’s contribution history and writing:
“CSEA is not a major player in the statewide game. They contribute mainly on the local level, (although) in 10/2010 and 11/2011 they did give DACC’s 2 big checks: $93,000 and $50,000. I’ve never seen them put troops in a race. Donohue is a lot of hot air and sold out all the other unions when he gave in to 4 “0″s and set the awful precedent. The politicians won’t miss their participation.”
CSEA’s Donohue Warns: ‘No Good Will Come’ From Tier VI
Mar 15th - 8:13 am
CSEA President Danny Donohue reacted, predictable, with a pox-on-all-your-houses statement following the Assembly’s early-morning passage of the Tier VI pension reform bill, but directed his harshest criticism at Gov. Andrew Cuomo
“Tier 6 shoved down the throat of state legislators fixated on their own self-preservation, will be devastating to 99 percent of New Yorkers,” Donohue said.
“This deal is about politicians standing with the 1 percent – the wealthiest New Yorkers – to give them a better break while telling nurses, bus drivers, teachers, secretaries, and laborers to put up and shut up.”
The release noted that there will be no immediate savings from the creation of this new tier, which the Cuomo administration estimates will result in $80 billion saved over the next three decades.
Donohue criticized Cuomo’s “scorched earth pursuit” of his political ambition, and said he has given new meaning to the term “bully pulpit.”
“No good will come from this.”
The real question: How much revenge will the unions exact on the Legislature in this key election year – particularly in the Senate, where Democrats and Republicans are gearing up for a re-match in the battle for control of the majority.
Within hours, PEF members are expected to descend on the Capitol for a noon rally against Tier VI.
Given the dead-of-night/early-morning developments – Happy Sunshine Week, everyone! – it’s a safe bet this is going to be a pretty rowdy get-together.
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