As the summer heats up (and up and up!), PEF is also keeping the heat on several of our priorities, including holding DOCCS and OMH’s feet to the fire on workplace safety in correctional facilities, helping push major investments in SUNY Downstate across the finish line, and keeping an eye on the promised compensation study.
With the conclusion of the Legislative session in mid-June, I am happy to report that three bills backed by PEF became law in 2025, including amending Worker’s Compensation Law to include “mental injury” and work-related stress in its coverage; a bill expanding mandatory disclosure of video footage related to the death of incarcerated individuals and installation of more cameras in facilities; and further expansion of the LoADING Act, extending artificial intelligence regulations to SUNY, CUNY, local schools and municipal governments.
I was honored to speak at the Governor’s press conference at SUNY Downstate Medical Center last month announcing the $1.1 billion investment in the hospital after nearly 18 months of advocacy by unions, the clergy, and community stakeholders. We said it loud and clear: Brooklyn Needs Downstate! Our healthcare heroes and the communities they serve deserve this much-needed modernization.
In lieu of the yearly DOCCS/PEF labor-management conference in Lake Placid, PEF recently brought together members and leaders from DOCCS and OMH’s corrections-based operations for a deep dive into how to tackle the issues plaguing facilities across the state, which stole center stage during the wildcat corrections’ officer strike earlier this year. We hope to make headway in the coming months and build on the dialogue from that meeting.
With recent announcements of reallocations piquing the interest of our members, we checked in with PEF’s Civil Service Enforcement/Research Department for an update on the state’s long-awaited compensation study. There are some indications that recommendations from the study could be ready as early as October, and while the state is not obligated to implement any of them, we will be keeping a close eye on the process as it unfolds.
This summer double issue also brings you a feature story on Dr. Nicholas Mantis, a PEF research scientist who secured a $9 million contract to study Lyme disease, with an eye toward creating both vaccines and potential treatments for the tickborne illness. Dr. Mantis and the Wadsworth Center welcomed us into the lab for a closer look at the work, and you can both read about it and catch a glimpse of the lab yourself in our featured video.
I hope you all have a great rest of your summer. We’ll be back with a PEF Pulse in August and then return with a full issue after Labor Day, which is September 1 this year. Check with your Regional Coordinator about parade plans!