 Picture Source: www.clipartpanda.com | A move to a new home involves a lot of work and making arrangements. One item you should add to your moving to-do list is to inform Local 1482 of your new address. We'll quickly update your records at DC37 and mail communications such as the Public Employee Press and election ballots will begin to be mailed to your new home. You might assume that HR shares new address information with the union when a member moves, but that is not the case. You need to inform both BPL and Local 1482 separately. We make it easy for you! Either email President Eileen Muller, share the information with anyone on the Executive Board, or send an email to local1482@gmail.com. We'll take it from there. Best wishes in your new home! |
 Photo Source: Kumar Appaiah, Flickr Every year the New York Library Association (NYLA) invites library advocates from all over the state to converge on Albany and speak face-to-face with state legislators about library funding and other policies that benefit libraries.
This year's NYLA Library Advocacy Day will be held on Wednesday, February 25th. DC 37 is sending a bus to Albany for members of Locals 1482, 374, 1321, and 1930. Each local will be allocated about 15 seats apiece on the bus. It will depart at 6:30 a.m. from DC37 headquarters at 125 Barclay St. in Manhattan. All Local 1482 members who take the DC37 bus to Library Advocacy Day will receive excused time from BPL. Space on the DC37 bus is limited. If you are interested in a seat please email President Eileen Muller. Be sure you have your supervisor's approval to be absent for the day. Participating in Library Advocacy Day is an immensely valuable experience. Besides meeting with your elected state representatives to talk about the worth of libraries and why they deserve optimal funding, you will also have the opportunity to network with library supporters and union members from across New York State.  It's true. Every vote matters. (image source, Wikimedia Commons) By this time, all members of Local 1482 should have received in the mail a ballot for the next three-year term for representatives on the Executive Board. The terms of service will run from December, 2014 to December, 2017. All ballots should be received by 5:00 p.m. on November 26th to be counted. Please follow the instructions on completing and submitting your ballot. Ballots sent in incorrectly will not be counted.
The positions up for election are Special Officer Representative (vote for one), Librarian Representatives (vote for three), and Custodial Representative (vote for one). Nominations for all Executive Board positions were taken at the General Membership meeting on October 7. All other nominations for the Executive Board were unopposed and were automatically installed. These Executive Board representatives are: * Eileen Muller. President. * Pedro Perez. Vice President, Blue Collar. * Ann Joseph. Vice President, Clerical. * Catherine Skrzypek. Vice President, Librarian. * Paul Otto. Treasurer. * Melissa Ortiz. Recording Secretary. * Ceil Toffel. Corresponding Secretary. * Haffiz Ahmed. Maintainer. * Ron Barber. Miscellaneous. The Executive Board page of the Local 1482 website will be updated once the election results are announced. ______________________________________________________________ Tuesday is Election Day, and we encourage every member of Local 1482 to stop by your polling places and vote! All seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are part of the election this year, along with the Governor and Attorney General Offices of the State of New York, as well as many State Assembly and Senate offices, and City Council and judicial positions. Polls are open from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Click here if you need to find out if you are registered to vote in New York State. To find your polling place (5 boroughs only), click here. DC 37 Candidate Endorsements can be found here. It is easy to rationalize that your vote doesn't matter in the larger scheme of things. However, our future depends on mobilization and making our voices heard. No matter how much money political interests spends in advertising or lobbying, it is ultimately the collective voices of the people and our members, via their votes, that determines who represents them in their union, local and national offices. Please vote!  Lillian Roberts (via DC37.net) District Council 37 (the umbrella union of Local 1482) announced this evening that Executive Director Lillian Roberts will retire, effective December 31, 2014. Roberts' letter of resignation was presented to DC37's Executive Board earlier today, who tearfully voted to accept it.
A Daily News report includes excerpts from Roberts' letter of resignation: “After deep consideration and reflection, I have decided to resign as Executive Director of this great institution effective December 31, 2014. I will continue to serve you as your Vice President on the International Executive Board of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees. “It has been a great pleasure to serve the members of DC 37 and to have had the opportunity to lead this Council through some of our most turbulent times in history. Although I am leaving the office of Executive Director, I will hold all of you and the members in my heart. I will always treasure those moments I spent working directly with members. I will always be passionate about this Council, the Executive Board, our members, and, of course, our International Union, AFSCME. “Finally, I wish all of you success in continuing to take the Council to greater heights. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to serve this great union.” Lillian Roberts is a legend in the labor movement, both here in New York City and nationwide. She has fought tirelessly to protect workers, and in recent years has campaigned to expose government waste through privatization of city services. Local 1482 appreciates her ongoing advocacy of library workers, especially during the budget troubles of recent years. Harry Garido, DC37 Associate Director, will assume the Executive Director position on December 31.  The first General Membership meeting of the year is on Tuesday, October 7th. It will be held in the auditorium of the Brooklyn Heights Branch (scroll down for directions) and is scheduled to begin at 7:00 p.m. Sandwiches and drinks are available beginning at 6:00 p.m.
This meeting has a special order of business. We are taking nominations for election to the Executive Board of Local 1482 Brooklyn Librarian Guild. The term of office is three years, from December, 2014 to December, 2017. If you think you would like to run, or you would like to nominate a colleague, please attend the meeting and submit your nominations! Nominations will be taken for the following positions: *President *Vice President- Blue Collar *Vice President- Clerical *Vice President- Librarian *Treasurer *Recording Secretary *Correspondence Secretary *A total of 11 representatives (4 Clerical, 3 Librarian, 1 Custodial, 1 Maintainer, 1 Special Officer, 1 Miscellaneous) *5 Delegates to DC37 Other items on the meeting agenda are: *Minutes *Treasurer's Report *Committee Reports *Old and New Business *Door Prizes All General Membership Meeting dates for 2014/2015 are located here. Please post in your agencies and share with your colleagues. Hope to see you on October 7th! 
Source: pixabay.com
We have to wait a bit longer (but hopefully not too long). Local 1482 President Eileen Muller was previously told that the library would pay members the $1,000 ratification bonus for the new economic contract at the end of the current pay period.
Unfortunately, the library disclosed to President Muller this afternoon that the bonuses will not be issued this week. The union resolutely wants the payment of these long anticipated and richly deserved increases to be made as quickly as possible. Our members have already waited too long for a fair deal. As soon as we get information about when bonuses and retroactive payments will be disbursed, we will post it here.  Source: openclipart.org The votes have been counted and the membership of DC37 has overwhelmingly voted YES to ratify its new economic contract with the City of New York.
This is breaking news, and we'll share information with you as it is becomes available. In the meantime, here is the official press statement released yesterday evening by DC37. News from DC37 District Council 37 American Federation of State, County & Municipal Employees 125 Barclay Street - New York, NY 10007 Phone (212) 815-1535 Fax: (212) 815-7535 www.dc37.net FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 5, 2014 Contact Zita Allen, Communications Director Molly Charboneau Rudy Orozco (212) 815-1535 DISTRICT COUNCIL 37 MEMBERS OVERWHELMINGLY RATIFY CONTRACT By an overwhelming 96 percent, members of District Council 37 ratified a new economic agreement, Executive Director Lillian Roberts announced today. It gives employees 10.41 percent in compounded wage hikes and maintains basic health and welfare benefits with no additional out-of-pocket costs. The pact covers the period from March 3, 2010 to July 2, 2017. The seven-year, four-month agreement passed with over 96 percent voting yes, according to tallies by the American Arbitration Association. Of the approximate 88,000 eligible members, 45,561 voted yes and only 1,673 voted no. “I want to thank all the members for their overwhelming support for this contract,” said Ms. Roberts. “This just shows what is possible, even in a difficult economic climate, when you have a union that does its research and finds real savings for the city and an administration willing to listen and treat employees with respect. In addition, this contract contains a ground-breaking Joint Recruitment and Promotion Committee, which addresses inequities and increases promotional opportunities for public employees, the majority of whom are women and people of color.” Additionally, it includes a gain-sharing proposal which lets workers benefit from mutually agreed upon cost-saving strategies. The tentative agreement was reached on July 2. The ratification vote was conducted in accordance with the DC 37 Constitution, which mandates that all union-wide contract votes be conducted by an independent third party.  Source: openclipart.org If you haven't received a ballot in the mail for the new Economic Contract, or if you need a replacement ballot, call the American Arbitration Association right away. The number is:
1-800-529-5218 Remember, ballots are due by Tuesday, August 5th. Send yours in today!  This is not junk mail! It is the envelope that contains your ballot for the new economic contract. Around four dozen members of Local 1482 assembled in the Trustees Room at Central on Tuesday night to learn about the proposed economic contract and to have their questions about it answered. The meeting started with President Eileen Muller giving an overview of DC37's negotiations with the City of New York to reach this agreement (Here's an interesting fact: Robert Linn, the city's chief labor negotiator, is married to Carol Linn, who worked in the Executive Director's Office at BPL before she retired). Then she summarized the terms of the proposed contract as they are laid out in this document (please print out and share with your colleagues in your branch, division, or department).
The American Arbitration Association (AAA) mailed out ratification ballots early this week. Many attending Tuesday's meeting reported already having received theirs. If you believe you are covered by the economic contract, but do not receive a ballot by July 28th, you should phone the AAA at 1-800-529-5218 or email UlerioS@adr.org. The ballots must be delivered to the AAA by 9:00 a.m. on August 5th. It is very important that you accurately follow the instructions for filling out and sealing your ballots. A ballot that hasn't been prepared correctly will be invalid and not counted. A great deal of information and clarification was provided at the meeting. A summary follows below. However, if you have further questions about the contract or your ballot, you are encouraged to contact President Eileen Muller, any member of the Executive Board, or send an email to local1482@gmail.com. * Two Payments. The $1,000 Ratification Bonus and the Retroactive Wage Increases will be issued as two separate payments. The ratification bonus will come first, probably within a couple of weeks of the ballots being counted and the contract ratified. There is no information at this time on when Retroactive Wage Increases will be paid. * The $1,000 Ratification Bonus. This will be payable on the date all valid ballots are counted and the contract is declared ratified. Taxes will be taken from the $1,000 total. All Local 1482 members who are on the payroll on the date of ratification will receive the bonus (in other words, don't resign or retire until after the contract is ratified!). New hires who are on the payroll on the date of ratification will receive the bonus. * Why a $1,000 Ratification Bonus. You'll notice that the contract starts on March 3, 2010. Yet the first compounded wage increase of 1% doesn't kick in until September 3, 2011. This Ratification Bonus is the agreement DC37 and the City came to to compensate members for not receiving a wage increase during the first 18 months of the contract. * Retroactive Wage Increases. Members will receive retroactive pay only on the first three wage increases covered in the contract. These are the compounded 1% wage increases for 2011, 2012, and 2013. Additions to gross pay (for example, overtime pay) will not be calculated into the retroactive payments or in the pay increases we receive for 2014 and 2015. Additions to gross pay will increase 3% effective September 3, 2016. * No Change to Health and Welfare Benefits. It is understandable that members are looking forward to seeing their pay increase and receiving their bonuses and retroactive payments. However, this provision of the contract is an important victory because it means we still do not have to pay premiums for our basic health benefits. Unless you elect to purchase riders on your policy, your health care, and the health care of the 120,000 members of DC37, is still free! We'll keep you posted as more information becomes available. Remember, send in your ratification ballots before August 5th!  The terms of the contract distributed at the DC37 Delegates Assembly on 7/8/14. Click on image to see full-sized document. There has been movement on enacting DC37's economic agreement with the city:
* The Delegates Assembly at DC 37 overwhelmingly voted to approve the proposed contract on July 8th. Click here or on the image above to review the terms of the contract as they were presented to members of the Delegates Assembly (Local 1482 The Brooklyn Library Guild has five delegates in the Delegates Assembly). * You can read Public Employee Press coverage on the contract agreement here before it is delivered to your homes. DC37 President Lilian Roberts writes of the proposed contract that it is, "...a fair deal in a tough economy." The followup article states that the independent American Arbitration Association (AAA) will mail ratification ballots to all DC37 members covered under the contract on July 21. They are due to be returned by 9:00 a.m. on August 5. Anyone who believes they are covered by the contract but does not receive a ballot by July 28, should phone the AAA at 1-800-529-5218 or email UlerioS@adr.org. * Finally, Local 1482 will hold an informational meeting on the contract for its members on Tuesday, July 22, at 6:00 p.m. It will take place at the Central Library in the Trustees Room. Please attend to hear about the contract, the ratification process, and to have your questions answered! | 
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