PEF REGION 5
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REGION 5 NEWS
memo: TO
: Region
5 Executive Board Members Region
5 Council Leaders FROM:
Mary L. Twitchell, Regional Coordinator DATE:
November 3, 2006 RE:
SOUTHERN
TIER FLOOD DISASTER - JUNE 28, 29 & 30, 2006 On
July 12, 2006 former PEF President Roger Benson notified you that he
had requested that the Governor's Office apply to Civil Service for a waiver of
the Time and Attendance Rules for absences related to the above-described disaster. Additionally, President Benson asked: "....that
Council Leaders from affected Divisions provide the approximate percentage and
number of employees who were at work on the above dates." ostensibly
to ascertain the numbers of people who were: "..(a) sent home by
supervisors without the authority of GOER/Civil Service using the 'Early
Directed Departure' mechanism and/or (b) unable to get to work because of local
flood conditions." At
this time, I am asking EACH of you to submit a request to your
appropriate respective Agency management heads inquiring as to the status of
requests for "waiver of the Time and Attendance Rules". Put
the request IN WRITING. Indicate that you are requesting
this as a PEF Executive Board Member and/or Council Leader. If
your Agency HAS made a request for the waiver already, ask WHEN they did
so, and if there is any documentation, written or otherwise, regarding the
request. If
they HAVE NOT requested a waiver, ask them to do so IMMEDIATELY and
request a copy. Send
copies of any correspondence to me and I will forward everything to PEF
Central. President Brynien and his staff are monitoring the progress of
this matter and seeking action from GOER and Civil Service to ensure that no PEF
Member affected by this disaster be penalized for time away from the worksite
due to circumstances beyond their control. Thank
you for your cooperation. I know that your respective members
appreciate your coordinating our efforts to restore their time.
06/20/06 Memo regarding Reimbursement for Certification and Licensing Exams TO: Executive Board
07/05/06 Memo regarding Early Retirement Incentive [ERI] A Memo was received today regarding an update on the Early Retirement Incentive. 06/20/06 Memo regarding Early Retirement Incentive [ERI] TO: Executive Board
04/03/06 Memo regarding Early Retirement Incentive [ERI] Please click below for a memo from President Roger Benson re: ERI Memo
regarding [ERI] Please click here
for a memo from President Roger Benson regarding the Early Retirement Incentive
by the Governor in the Summary of Executive Budget SFY 2006-07 Please click below for the Preliminary Summary of Executive Budget SFY 2006-07produced by PEF's Civil Service Enforcement/Research Department staff Memo
regarding Budget
Below is the
letter to Civil Service Commissioner Daniel Wall requesting that he reconsider
these changes and agree to a meeting to discuss PEF's concerns.
What can WE DO
?????
10/21/05
Join Us for this Dedication. Click on the picture for all of the details:
Broome
County Veterans who gave
their life during military service will now have a centrally located tribute in
downtown Binghamton. All-Wars
Memorial Breaks Ground Construction began this Memorial
Day weekend on an All-Wars Memorial in front of Broome County Veteran's Memorial
Arena. The 250 thousand dollar project is two years in the making, funded
entirely through donations from the community. Over one thousand three hundred
fifty names of Broome County residents who died in service will be displayed on
the monument. Memorial committee chairperson
Lana Rouff says the tribute is long overdue. Rouff says, "Nowhere in Broome
County had there been a list, a visual list of individuals that had lost their
lives through military conflicts or the wars throughout Broome County." The memorial will be built at the Northwest Corner of the Arena. For more details: For more information contact Region 5 Vet Chair - Richard Fletcher - 607-741-4663
PEF's
ALL NEW FREE legal plan [Effective
January 1, 2006] for all members was announced at
the convention this year. The PEF Membership Benefits Program has
engaged the law firm of Feldman, Kramer and Monaco, P.C. - a leader in the
field of providing legal plan services to union members and their families -
to help with your legal needs. Through it's National Legal Office (NLO),
attorneys will be available to answer legal questions, write letters and
review documents relating to personal legal matters - all in the strictest of
confidence. The
PEF Membership Benefits Program serves as the administrator for the Legal Plan
and the members' point-of-entry for participation in it. Membership
Benefits will assure that all members have access to the plan and will monitor
it to assure that members are being assisted in a timely and professional
fashion. Membership Benefits is also on the job to help any members who
needs additional assistance. If you want to join the current PEF Legal Service Plan, you must do so by December 1, 2005. The annual cost is $70/year - ($65 payroll deduction). Click here:
for
the comparison from the current program to the NEW FREE Legal
Plan that will be in effect January 1, 2006.
Watch your mailbox in November for all of the details !!!
If you have questions regarding this program, please e-mail us or call PEF
Membership Benefits at: 1-800-342-4306 - Ext. 243
COME CRUISE WITH US Click on the picture below for all of the details:
updated 10/2/05
Letter from Roger Benson to "Go Public" Rally Participantdated 09/27/05 click here: Go Public Letter As part of the "Go Public" Campaign Roger Benson is asking us to write a letter to the editor of your local newspaper urging their support of this bill. Also, encourage your family, friends and co-workers to do the same. Below is a sample letter you can use as a basis for your letter to the editor of your local newspaper. click here: Letter to Editor
STOPprivatization.com is a project of the New York State Public Employees Federation dedicated to shining a light on the misguided and wasteful practice of privatizing public sector work. Visit: http://www.stopprivatization.com This website is a tool to educate the general public and the taxpayer as to the chronic waste of tax dollars and loss of accountability that results from misguided efforts to privatize state services and to provide a counter-balance to the ideologues that demonize public sector employment while seeking to profit from the provision of these services. Go public - Take Action Below is the legislative package being supported by the Public Employees Federation. This package includes a bill (S3923\Spano/A1259/John) requiring that a cost/benefit analysis be prepared by a State agency before contracting for personal services. This bill is important to ensure that the public knows the true cost of contracting out governmental services. A second bill, (S1920\Robach and A6542\Lupardo), requires the State to keep track of the numbers of employees employed through contracts for personal services and the value of the contract. This bill is vitally important for ensuring that the public knows the true size of State government. The package also includes a bill (A5626\Brodsky) that would substantially increase accountability and disclosure related to public authorities. This bill would help reduce waste and inefficiency at the more than 730 State and local authorities by creating a process under which they can be abolished or merged with State agencies. As the stories about multiple scandals related to waste, fraud, and abuse in the press will attest, these authorities must be reined in and subject to greater oversight and civil service laws. Finally, the Go Public package includes a bill (A9\Silver) that would increase the information that lobbyists must disclose related to their efforts to influence State contract awards. Since billons of tax dollars are expended annually on contracts for goods and services, it is vitally important that efforts to influence these awards are made public. Similar proposals have been made by the Senate and the Governor. These leaders should agree on a common bill and make it the law. I urge you to support the “Go Public - Get Accountable” package of bills because disclosure and accountability are essential if New York is to truly reform its government. E-Mail Governor Pataki and your Legislature Click Below:
Subject April 2005 PS&T Longevity Lump Sum Payment (LLS) Purpose To inform agencies of OSC’s automatic processing of the LLS payment and to provide instructions for payments not processed automatically. Affected Employees Longevity-eligible employees in BU 05 with Increment Codes of 1976–2000. Effective Date(s) Payment will be processed in a separate check dated April 20, 2005 (Administration) and April 28, 2005 (Institution). There will be no direct deposit for this payment. Background Chapter 419 of the Laws of 2004, which implements the negotiated agreement between the State and the Public Employees Federation (PEF), provides for a Longevity Lump Sum payment of $1,250.00 or $2,500.00. Eligible PEF Employees Employees in graded positions (Grades 001-037) and NS
*Continuous service, as used in determining eligibility for the Longevity Lump Sum payment, is paid service (including part-time annual-salaried service and Sick Leave at Half Pay) or time on Workers’ Compensation Leave or Military Leave without Pay. The following will become eligible for the LLS payment upon processing of Performance Advances in Pay Period #1L, 2005: An employee occupying a position that has been reallocated in recent years, whose salary was equal to or above the job rate of the lower grade, and whose salary, upon application of the April 1, 2005 performance advance, reaches the job rate of the reallocated grade, is entitled to the job rate credit of the lower grade. Such an employee has an Increment Code 0001; OSC will automatically update the Increment Code to 2005’. The employee will not receive an automatic payment; therefore, the agency must submit a transaction in Pay Period 2L to make the payment and update the increment code. For instructions, see the section below entitled “Agency Actions - Payments to Employees Not Paid Automatically.” The following will become eligible for the LLS payment during 2005-2006:
An employee demoted as a result of a disciplinary action or who takes a voluntary demotion from a permanent position after the completion of a probationary period in the higher grade is not eligible for a Longevity Lump Sum payment in the lower grade. OSC Actions - Automatic Processing OSC will automatically insert a row on the Additional Pay page to make the payment using the Earnings Code LLS. The longevity payment is $1,250.00 for five (5) years at the job rate and $2,500.00 for ten (10) years at job rate or a prorated amount, as described below:
Employees who are full-time on March 31, 2005 or full-time employees who are on leave with partial pay, Workers’ Compensation Leave, Military Leave, or employees on a Voluntary Reduction in Work Schedule (VRWS) receive the full payment. Note: For employees under the Voluntary Reduction Program, the agency must verify that the Full/Part Time Indicator on Job Data 2 is “Voluntary.” The LLS is a one-time, lump sum payment which is included as salary for retirement purposes and in the calculation of overtime compensation (refer to “Overtime Compensation), Part III, Page 1 of the OSC Salary Manual). The 2005 longevity payment will be included in the calculation of overtime earned from April 1, 2005 through March 31, 2006 for all agencies. The Additional Pay page will be populated for eligible employees with the following:
Agency Actions - Payments to Employees Not Paid Automatically To pay an employee after the automatic payment has been processed, use the Additional Pay page as follows:
*If an Institution agency enters a transaction in Pay Period 2L for an employee who returned to the payroll on April 14, 2005, the effective date should be 4/14/05. If an Administration agency enters a transaction in Pay Period 1L for an employee who returned to the payroll on April 7, 2005, the date should be 4/07/05. If the employee did not receive an automatic LLS payment because the Increment Code was incorrect, the agency must, in addition to submitting the LLS earnings, request the Action/Reason of DTA/CIC (Data Change/ Correct Increment Code) on the Job Action Request page. The appropriate increment code must be entered in the Increment Code field. Control-D Reports and Preparation
for Prior to the automatic processing, NPAY756, PS&T Longevity Eligibility Listing, will be available for agency review on March 11, 2005. This report is a preliminary listing of employees eligible for the LLS as of March 11, 2005. Agencies should review this listing carefully, paying particular attention to employees who are ineligible due to an “Unsatisfactory” rating between January 1 and December 31, 2004. Corrections to the preliminary listing should be submitted on the Correction Sheet, which is attached to this Bulletin. (The form may be duplicated if additional copies are needed.) This form must be used to add employees who do not appear on the listing, to delete employees who should not appear on the listing, and to change incorrect information pertaining to an employee appearing on the listing. Do not add employees whose eligibility will change due to a transaction that will be processed prior to Pay Period 1, 2005 (Administration) or Pay Period 2, 2005 (Institution). The Correction Sheet should also be used to add eligible employees in NS positions that are equated to grades. If the equated grade is not listed on the Budget Certificate, agencies must submit documentation of the salary equation along with the Correction Sheet. Corrections should be submitted as soon as possible and must be received no later than March 25, 2005. Please fax corrections to the Salary Determination Unit at (518) 474-2601. After the automatic processing, NPAY770, One Time Payment Report, will identify all employees receiving the automatic payment. Deductions & Withholding Taxes Deductions will be taken for Federal, State, New York City and Yonkers City taxes, Social Security/Medicare, retirement normal contributions, garnishees and Federal levies. There will be no special tax calculations. For employees receiving the payment who have an additional tax amount in their record, the additional tax will also be included in the tax calculation for this payment. Payroll Register and Employee’s Paycheck The Earnings Code LLS and the amount will be displayed on the payroll register. The Earnings Description, PS&T Longevity LSP, and the amount will be printed on the employee’s paycheck. Questions Questions about this Bulletin may be directed to Joann Boomhower in the Salary Determination Unit at (518) 486-3090.
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Send mail to pefregion5@yahoo.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
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01/09/06
On December 30, 2005, the Department
of Civil Service announced a number of major changes relating to the
administration of the Promotion Test Battery (PTB). There are two policy changes
that are most significant to PEF members.
NEW
FREE Legal Plan
