The Professional Staff Congress at the City University of New York has brought in another unit of Research Foundation employees, this one at CUNY's New York City College of Technology. On Feb. 15 and 16, the National Labor Relations Board held an election for the unit of 140 clerical and professional staff. The vote was 70-10 for PSC representation.

This was the third collective bargaining election among foundation employees and the third overwhelming victory for the PSC. The other two elections were for workers at the University Application Processing Center in December 2002 and at LaGuardia Community College one year ago. After the first election, UAPC lost its grant covering the bargaining unit workers and they were absorbed into CUNY.

The research foundations are private, nonprofit educational corporations managed separately from the public CUNY system. They employ more than 4,000 staff across the city, according to PSC associate executive director Mary Ann Carlese. Most of the employees are considered part-time or temporary, and do much of the same work as instructors, counselors and administrative staff in the university. The union hopes to organize all 4,000.

"Everyone is pleased to see our colleagues in the RF who have been intimidated, monitored, arbitrarily reassigned or summarily dismissed now have the benefits of PSC representation ," says Bob Cermele, PSC chapter chair at the technology college.  [Julie Berry / Barbara McKenna]

March 7, 2005