October 4, 2021 — PEF persevered in 2021 despite a continuing worldwide pandemic, funding cuts across many agencies, and staggering understaffing. The union negotiated a successor contract with across-the-board retroactive raises and fought for a temporary emergency telecommuting agreement to protect members from COVID-19 in the workplace, among myriad other wins. A Year in Review...
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November 5, 2021 — PEF’s 43rd Annual Convention, held October 24-27 in Niagara Falls, was remarkable on several levels. The delegates were largely unified on the issues they debated and voted on. They were glad to be together, to be able to see each other and interact in person, after enduring the 2020 virtual convention...
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September 23, 2021 — Leisa Abraham, a psychologist 2 at Finger Lakes Developmental Disabilities Services Office in the Newark area, is PEF’s new Region 3 coordinator. Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans and Wayne Counties make up Region 3, which extends along Lake Ontario’s southwestern shore, from the Rochester area most of the way toward Buffalo. Prior...
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October 13, 2021 — Gina Corona is the new PEF Region 4 coordinator. It’s a new challenge for her, but it’s a logical progression after years of activism in the union. A licensed master social worker 2 with the state Office of Mental Health in Syracuse, she has two decades of state service and has...
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October 18, 2021 — The October issue of The Communicator arrives less than a week before about 500 delegates gather in Niagara Falls for PEF’s 43rd Annual Convention. We will publish again in November to update all members about the decisions that are made at Convention 2021. In this issue, I’d just like to point...
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PEF held a telephone town hall on October 14 to update members on the many issues resulting from New York State’s vaccine-or-test mandate. Several of the union’s top staff members answered questions they have received from members. A recording of the event is available here. The most important thing for everyone to remember, PEF...
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Hey PEF, back your parole officers To the Editor: As many in the state may, or may not know, our job (of parole officer) is currently under siege by politicians and knee-jerk legislation. As NYS parole officers, we are tasked with the supervision of violent felons upon their release from state prison facilities. We work...
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October 18, 2021 — New York State parole officers rallied outside Rikers Island on Oct. 7, 2021, to denounce the recently signed “Less is More” parole reform law and call out its serious repercussions for community safety, parole supervision and crime victims. “Bottom line – the ‘Less’ in this law is public safety; the ‘More’...
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Teens today face an avalanche of stressors that put them at risk for suicide – from exposure to suicidal behaviors of others, to being a sexual minority, to lack of stable housing and food security, to access to lethal means. Suicide is the 10th leading cause of death in the United States, and the second...
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LABOR HISTORY With a spotlight on health as the Delta variant of COVID-19 continues to impact Americans, what role do unions play in the health of their members? A 2017 study revealed a “10 percent increase in union density was associated with a 17 percent relative decrease in overdose/suicide mortality” and higher wages and access...
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