• Article 15 Leadership Development Programs now available 

    Article 15 Leadership Development Programs now available 

      May 3, 2023 — The Office of Employee Relations (OER), in accordance with Article 15 in the PEF Collective Bargaining Agreement, is offering a Leadership Development Program (LDP) for employees in the Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (PS&T) Unit at Grade 23 and above. The program provides employees with the skills to lead in...

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  • A win for transparency: PEF prevails in FOIL case 

    A win for transparency: PEF prevails in FOIL case 

    May 3, 2023 — PEF’s Civil Service Enforcement/Research Department is on a mission to identify and address barriers to the promotion of minority members across the state workforce. To do that, PEF needs access to hard facts.  A recent court victory brings the union closer to that goal.  In February 2022, PEF submitted a Freedom...

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  • Charles Roland Honored

    Charles Roland Honored

    May 3, 2023 — Region 11’s annual Spring Fling on April 13 was a little more special this year thanks to an appearance by New York City Mayor Eric Adams. Adams showed up at the request of PEF President Wayne Spence to honor Charles Roland, who retired from state service in 2021 but remains extremely...

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  • Judith Scanlon Scholarship available for Region 1 members 

    Judith Scanlon Scholarship available for Region 1 members 

    May 3, 2023 — PEF Region 1 is offering four (4) $500 scholarships for dependents of active PEF members in Region 1 who will be attending college in the fall of 2023. The scholarship is named after Judith Scanlon, a PEF member and nurse from the Buffalo area who was killed by a patient while...

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  • Nursing: A (very) brief history in New York 

    Nursing: A (very) brief history in New York 

    May 5, 2023 — The history of nursing is often traced back to Florence Nightingale. She is credited with starting the world’s first nursing school in 1860 in London, and the techniques she originated there would go on to influence several generations of nurses.   However, before Nightingale got all the headlines, here in New...

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  • We must support Social Security, Medicare programs and stand in unity with our seniors 

    We must support Social Security, Medicare programs and stand in unity with our seniors 

    May 3, 2023 — Happy spring to all my readers! I hope this season finds you healthy, happy, and energized!  This month’s article focuses on the constant messaging from the far right that Social Security is going broke. Below, I have provided you information from the Alliance for Retired Americans with some information about how...

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  • FPS member recognized by state agency for helping rescue driver from submerged vehicle

    FPS member recognized by state agency for helping rescue driver from submerged vehicle

    April 18, 2023 — Body camera footage of New York State Trooper Frank Rush pulling a driver from a pond in Fishkill on Aug. 17 last year circulated widely online. PEF member and fire protection specialist James Galu was recently honored by the Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Services’ Office of Fire Prevention and...

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  • Empire and Ellis Medicine come to agreement

    Empire and Ellis Medicine come to agreement

    May 3, 2023 — Empire BlueCross Blue Shield and Ellis Medicine have reached an agreement ahead of the May 1, 2023 deadline, and Ellis facilities and services will remain in network for PEF members in the Empire Plan. Those facilities include: Ellis Hospital in Schenectady Ellis Hospital Skilled Nursing Facility Unit Bellevue Woman’s Center in...

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  • Division 243 announces 2023 Public Service Scholarship 

    Division 243 announces 2023 Public Service Scholarship 

    April 18, 2023 — Division 243 is soliciting applications for its 2023 Public Service Scholarship, awarded for dedication to public service, education, worker’s rights, justice and equality, and progressive causes.  The selected applicant will receive $500.  The recipient must be a child, stepchild, or grandchild of an active member of PEF Division 243; must be...

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  • Unions in the News

    Unions in the News

    April 18, 2023 — Rutgers University faculty halt historic strike, vote to accept framework for contract  Three unions representing an estimated 9,000 faculty members at Rutgers University went on strike April 10 for the first time in the school’s 257-year history, bringing classes and research at New Jersey’s flagship public university to a halt.  They...

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