Local 1549 Bronx Borough Meeting Report (March 2024)

Local 1549 held its Bronx Borough Meeting on Thursday, March 14, 2024 at 6:00 PM in the Lincoln Medical Center’s 1st floor auditorium. The following is a summary of business discussed at the meeting. For a more in-depth report including notes on local finances, RSVP to our upcoming 1549 FAM meeting this Tuesday at 5:30 PM in-person and on Zoom.

1. OPENING

   • The meeting began with the Pledge of Allegiance, a moment of silence for members who have passed away, and a recitation of the AFSCME Code of Conduct.

2. DC37 LOBBY DAY REPORT

   • Odetty Tineo, the Political and Legislative Director at DC37, reported on DC37’s first Lobby Day in Albany in 10 years, which brought 200 members from different locals across DC37 to meet with legislators about the union’s legislative agenda—focusing on reforming Tier 6 pensions by lowering contribution percentages to 3%, extending the overtime exclusion, and making it more comparable to Tier 4.

   • Additional legislative issues included making more affordable housing available for DC37 members in accordance with our salaries, supporting Good Cause eviction, and worker’s compensation.

   • Tineo also pitched members on participating in the AFSCME / DC37 PEOPLE fund, encouraging members to donate and become an MVP contributor.

3. DC37 STAFF & LOCAL 1549 STAFF

   • Deputy administrator Jozette Dowdell recognized DC37 and Local 1549 staff in the room, listing their names, titles, and responsibilities.

4. FINANCIAL REPORT

   • AFSCME auditor John K. delivered a financial report for Local 1549 covering the union’s balance sheet, profit & loss statements, and budget vs. actual comparisons.

   • Financial report summary (members only)

5. LOCAL & ADMINISTRATORSHIP UPDATE

   • Administrator Ryan Welles provided the following updates on the local and administratorship:

     • AFSCME Strong & Membership. Welles discussed the number of new members signed up since October 1, 2022 and emphasized the need to continue signing up new members to account for retirements and attrition. He encouraged attendees to become a Volunteer Member Organizer (VMO) to keep the rate of nonmembers at the lowest among all DC37 locals.

     • Constitution Update. Welles briefly touched on the local’s constitution, saying that the constitution committee has reviewed the draft constitution and that will be moving forward in the near future.

     • HRA Members Testifying for City Council. A panel of HRA members reported back on their testimony for City Council on working conditions and issues they faced on the job.

6. DC37 FIELD REPORT

   • There was no DC37 field report as the director was unable to make the meeting tonight due to traffic / transit delays.

7. WRAP UP

   • Deputy administrator Jim Howell gave a wrap-up speech touching on upcoming chapter & AFSCME convention delegate elections. The local be doing nominations both electronically and in-person. Members will have the option to vote electronically or telephonically.

   • Howell noted that the constitution prohibits holding nominations or elections for delegates until a few months before convention. According to the constitution, this would make April 14th the earliest you can have nominations or elections for convention delegate. Since those positions will be part of this election, we will not begin until April 14th.

   • Responding to a question from HRA member Anthony Lackhan, it was noted that if you haven’t received a ballot by a certain date, you’ll need to email/call a number. The details were not specified but it was mentioned that this would be included in an election packet.

   • Responding to a question from CFB member Honda Wang, the administrators confirmed that member address updates should be handled by directly calling DC37.

   • All members are encouraged to update their home addresses with DC37—call the main phone number at (212) 815-1000.

   • The next local meeting will be in Queens at Elmhurst Hospital on April 18, 2024 at 6:00 PM.