We are CARU:

                           CUNY Alliance for Responsible Unionism

                                                 We believe that

                             Honesty in Communication is Important

             The PSC has a responsibility to be honest and forthright with

                       Dues-paying members and agency fee payers

 

All members of the CUNY instructional staff are feeling the painful reality of
diminishing benefits. The PSC officers have attempted to "explain" what they have done
and why - but how true are these explanations?

The March 2004 issue of Clarion tried to wiggle through this issue, which the PSC now
realizes is "problematic".  On page 11, Steve London wrote, "the adjunct account [is] in
balance  . . .  [it has] enough income to cover expenses".

Let's see whether this is true.

Cost of Adjunct Coverage

1. How many adjuncts have their medical coverage premiums paid by the Welfare Fund?

          A.   About 1100
      2. What is the out-of-pocket cost to the Welfare Fund for each of those adjuncts?

          A.   Over $311 per month (it keeps going up - never goes down)

           This is over $3732 per year per adjunct.
3. Therefore, what is the outlay by the Welfare Fund for adjunct coverage?
    A.   Over $342,100 per month.

           This is over $4,105,200 per year.

Negotiated Money for Adjunct Coverage

1. How much has the PSC negotiated from the City for adjunct coverage?

    A.   About $235,000 per month
 2. Does that amount cover the cost of adjunct coverage?

    A.   No
3.  By how much is the fund in arrears for this coverage?
    A.    About $107,100 per month  -  over  $1,285,000 per year.

Conclusion

Q. When the PSC officers tell the members - in writing - that "the adjunct account is in
balance", is that statement true?

A. NO

Q. If they lie about this issue, are they truthful regarding other issues?

A. What do you think?

Q. Where does the Fund get the money to pay for this coverage?

A.  From the money designated for full-time instructional staff and retirees.

Q.  How did this happen?

A.  The PSC did not negotiate sufficient money. They are not competent negotiators.

But they will blame others:  At the January 29, 2004 meeting of the Delegate
Assembly, Steve London said,  " . . . .  Members have seen the union as the cause

of the problem. Members are angry and it is a divisive issue. The anger must be
turned toward CUNY"

The truth:

The PSC messed up by failing to do a good negotiating job.

They then decided that the solution was to manipulate their colleagues into getting
angry at CUNY instead of placing blame where it belongs.

(Point of information: the Chancellor, Vice-chancellors, and college presidents receive
the same CUNY health coverage and Welfare Fund benefits as do full-time faculty and
instructional staff in CUNY. As such, they, like the faculty, are aware of the terrible -
indeed, unconscionable - diminution of benefits.

The university agreed to allow its management employees to be covered by the Welfare
Fund during a period of time when the Welfare Fund was governed by people who were
focused on protecting its members'  benefits, rather than on global politics)

                                                      We are CARU:

                                CUNY Alliance for Responsible Unionism

                                                We are concerned that

                            The PSC is not playing straight with its members