March 13, 2026 — Members of PEF’s Contract Team, led by Vice President and Contract Chair Darlene Williams, traveled throughout Regions 10, 11, and 12 from February 23 to March 5.
Following the first two bargaining sessions in February, the stops at New York City-area agencies where PEF members work gave members a chance to hear directly from the negotiating team and give feedback as negotiations continue this month.
PEF began asking for dates to begin negotiations in September 2025, but Gov. Kathy Hochul’s Office of Employee Relations (OER) stated they were not ready to come to the table. Despite PEF’s eagerness to begin, two requests for dates went without confirmation until President Spence sought to use the law to force the state to begin negotiations.
“After they said no to us, President Spence was very adamant that OER should be coming to the table as soon as possible, regardless of what they said about not being ready,” said VP Williams. “We believed that they should have been ready for us and for all the other unions that they will be negotiating with.”
During the contract tour, hundreds of PEF members spoke earnestly about their insecurities. As costs increase across New York State, members are focused on their ability to afford to live where they work. Members cited wages, healthcare costs, safety and staffing among their major concerns.
Unlike in past years, the PEF contract team presented 24 proposals to the governor’s team during the February 2 and 18 meetings. VP Williams said the team was ready to put the proposals forward immediately, thanks largely to the decision to keep the same contract team from the 2023-2026 negotiations.
“While we cannot go into specifics on each proposal, the surveys we got back from members were very clear,” she said. “One of the biggest things we’re pushing for is an increase in across-the-board raises higher than 3%. The reality of our lives demands that we try for a larger increase.”
Among PEF’s proposals are changes to address bullying, increase the Higher Education Differential and make it permanent, expand time off for bereavement, modify the dental plan, expand hazardous duty pay for titles that work in or around dangerous areas, and more.
Members expressed curiosity, excitement, and gratitude about the next round of contract negotiations.
“Thank you for coming out guns blazing for the very first time in my state history with all of the articles, not piecemealing them,” said Albert Jacobs III, who is the Director of the Systemic Investigations Unit at the Division of Human Rights in the Bronx. “The last contract and the way you’re handling this, I am proud to be a PEF member, and I am very pleased with each and every one of you.”
Jacobs manages a team of six investigators. He said that his team of Grade 19 state employees cannot afford to live where they work, and the threat of them potentially leaving state service is real and daunting.
“All of them are struggling and come to me as a fellow PEF member telling me that they can’t afford to be in this unit,” said Jacobs. “I need them to help me with this fight because I can’t fight discrimination in all 62 counties.”
VP Williams assured Jacobs, and members like him, that as the contract team continues to advocate on their behalf, stories like his should—and will be—heard as the fight for a fair contract continues.
At several psychiatric center stops in Manhattan, the Bronx, Long Island, and Staten Island, hundreds of members expressed their hopes for much-needed wage increases and safety at work and asked questions about what monetary benefits will still pay out even after the expiration of the current contract on April 2, 2026. (Read answers to our FAQ here.)
“A fair contract means to me that I have a safe job, and I can safely perform my duties as a nurse throughout my day,” said Inessa Shteynman, a nurse at South Beach Psychiatric Center, where nearly 100 members stopped by over the course of a five-hour visit on March 3. “That I’m able to live in affordable areas and be able to provide for my family and my kids.”
At the New York City PEF Office, Kimberly Willis from the Office of Addiction Services and Supports (OASAS) was excited to hear that PEF put forth so many proposals and had hit the ground running. Her hopes for a fair contract echo others in the Region.
“A fair contract means living wages,” she said. “Security for civil servants. Equality in salary. Location pay that is fair. A fair contract means protection against workplace bullies.”
The contract tour continues in Region 9 (Westchester & the Hudson Valley) this month, then will expand to Region 1 (Western New York) and other Regions this Spring. Bookmark this page for the latest dates or find them in the PEF app.
