Municipal Labor Committee 55 Water Street, 23rd Floor / New York, NY 10041 / (212) 815-1474

CHAIRPERSON HARRY NESPOLI August 27, 2021 Local 831, I.B.T. Uniformed Sanitationmen’s Association, AFL-CIO

CO-CHAIRPERSON HENRY A. GARRIDO District Council 37, AFSCME, AFL-CIO TO: MUNICIPAL LABOR COMMITTEE EXECUTIVE VICE-CHAIR MICHAEL MULGREW United Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO FROM: HARRY NESPOLI, CHAIR SECRETARY GREGORY FLOYD Local 237 RE: VACCINE/TEST MANDATES City Employees Union, I.B.T., AFL-CIO

TREASURER MARK CANNIZZARO Council of School Supervisors & Administrators Our pressure on City Hall to meet regarding the vaccine and VICE CHAIRPERSONS vaccine/test mandates finally produced a session at City Hall. The ANDREW ANSBRO Uniformed Firefighters Association City clearly had heard—and was concerned -- that the MLC had voted

BENNY BOSCIO, JR. to take legal action to protest their failure to bargain. The MLC Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association Officers met with First Deputy Mayor Fuleihan, Commissioner BARBARA BOWEN Professional Staff Congress Campion and other parts of City leadership to press our collective City University of New York concerns regarding the mandates, a concern that has been amplified JOSPEH COLANGELO S.E.I.U. New York City Local 246 by the City’s delay in engaging with the Unions despite our

ROBERT CROGHAN requests. We made clear at the outset that the MLC and its Unions Organization of Staff Analysts were reserving their right to challenge the City’s vaccine only JUDITH A. CUTCHIN New York State Nurses Association mandate currently in place for DOE unions. (Fuleihan confirmed

PAUL DIGIACOMO that the mandate did not apply to the non-DOE workforces but did Detectives’ Endowment Association indicate that the Mayor was considering extending it to others). JAMES LEMONDA Local 854, Uniformed Fire Officers Association, AFL-CIO With that understanding, we questioned why the City would MARTIN A. LYDON District Council of Carpenters, AFL-CIO abandon the vaccine/test program when it had yet even to start. For,

WILLIAM M. LYNN that plan avoids the controversial issue of denying members the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 30, AFL-CIO choice whether or not to vaccinate. We made clear that we have been

JOSEPH MANNION encouraging our members to become vaccinated and that we very Sanitation Officers Association much want our members to be working in a safe environment. But, GLORIA MIDDLETON Local 1180, NYC Administrative that the City had to know that there would be tens upon tens of Employees, CWA, AFL-CIO thousands of workers who will not get vaccinated and what effect FRANK PROSCIA, M.D. Doctors Council that would have on the City’s ability to manage the needs of the

PETER STEIN public—a problem that would be greatly lessened by allowing the Local 508, NYC Lifeguard Supervisors, AFSCME, AFL-CIO testing option to remain.

LOUIS TURCO Lieutenants Benevolent Association We then turned to the failure to bargain implementation of

MAF MISBAH UDDIN the mandates. Fuleihan categorically said the City would bargain Local 1407, NYC Accountants, Statisticians & Actuaries, AFSCME, AFL-CIO implementation. We said the Unions were prepared to do so,

ANTHONY WELLS without waiving their right to challenge the underlying mandate. We Local 371, Social Service Employees, AFSCME, AFL-CIO have asked the City for dates and if they are not forthcoming we will

Executive Secretary bring a failure to bargain charge and seek an injunction against the ELLEN MEDWID policy (a draft set of papers has been prepared). We stressed the difficulty in the short timeframe available to come to terms on issues ranging from how accommodation requests were to be addressed and Page 2…Vaccine/Test Mandates - August 27, 2021

what appeal rights would result to what accommodations would be offered to those who qualify to how those who decide not to get vaccinated but are not entitled to an accommodation would be treated. We questioned the lack of a coherent policy on testing. We pressed the Unions’ entitlement to be heard on these matters. Fuleihan ended the meeting saying he would brief the Mayor on our concerns.

As to the issue of the mandate’s legality, the lawyers are working on papers to assess the arguments and a meeting of MLC Union leaders will be scheduled to discuss whether and how we should go forward.

Finally, Fuleihan offered to make available to the MLC the City’s leading physicians to share their views on vaccination and answer our questions. Should you believe this useful, we would schedule two sessions to allow for greater participation. Please let Ellen Medwid know if you would be interested in participating in such a session.