Stronger
Representing more than 1,200 active members in 14 different titles working in all city agencies, Health+Hospitals Corporation (H+H), NYC Housing Authority (NYCHA), and the City University of New York (CUNY).
Representing more than 1,200 active members in 14 different titles working in all city agencies, Health+Hospitals Corporation (H+H), NYC Housing Authority (NYCHA), and the City University of New York (CUNY).
Wednesday, May 21
6 p.m.
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In the past five years, the Retiree Fund’s expenditures for prescription drugs have nearly doubled due to the explosion of expensive brand name drugs in the market. At the same time, contributions from the City, which the Fund relies on as its sole source of income, have not increased for decades. In fact, the Fund recently saw a reduction in contribution income from the City-MLC negotiated health care stabilization fund due to its uncertain financial condition. The result of this “perfect storm” has been recurring annual deficits that are dangerously draining the Fund’s reserves.
To maintain the Fund’s solvency and ensure it can continue to provide benefits to all retirees and their families, the Trustees have been left with no choice but to reduce the Fund’s annual maximum family drug benefit back to $5,000 per calendar year, effective April 1, 2025.
Accordingly, as of April 1, 2025, if you have reached the $5,000 limit, you will have no further coverage for the year.
While we know this change will adversely impact some retirees and we are sympathetic, the Trustees must preserve and protect the financial stability of the Fund for all retirees in both the short and long term.
The Board of Trustees
SEIU Local Civil Service Forum
Retired Employees Welfare Fund
I hope you are all well and have had a wonderful and productive year. The Executive Board and I want to wish everyone a joyous holiday season. As we close out 2024, I’d like to bring everyone up to date with some important end-of-year information.
We have tried to set up a preliminary meeting with the City to discuss our next contract, but it’s to no avail. While our contract is not over until 2027, the early bird does get the worm, so we were hoping to get a jumpstart on the process. To our CUNY brothers and sisters, the payout dates for senior colleges is Jan. 23, 2025, and for community colleges, the date is Jan. 31, 2025.
The Executive Board is informing all members that we must raise union dues by $6 a paycheck. Our Local’s operating costs and monthly per capita fee paid to SEIU International have increased regularly and substantially in the last 12 years since our previous dues increase in 2012. With creative financial oversight by the Board, we have not passed along any increase to members and have still managed to make significant strides with wage enhancements and defending our members.
The City’s attack on public sector unions also has contributed to our burgeoning costs by requiring us to be even more vigilant in defending our members and our union. For example, our legal expenses grew as we fought to defend our members’ contracts and civil service law rights from management. We’ve also engaged in extended legal battles with the City to expand our union’s job titles.
We looked at every alternative to a dues increase, and if not required by financial necessity and mandated International increases, the Executive Board would have voted otherwise. This was not an easy decision or one we made lightly. It is our hope that SEIU Local 300 will not have to raise dues again for at least another 12 years.
We hope this sufficiently explains why the Executive Board reluctantly must implement this small dues change.
On behalf of the entire Executive Board, I thank you for your continued support this past year. By sticking together, we have strengthened our union and our bargaining position with the City. If you have not already done so, please provide us with your updated contact information as we continue to move toward full digital communication with all our members and retirees in the new year. You can click in the purple box above this message to send your updates to our office.
In Unity,
James Golden
President
