UCS VACCINATION POLICY
At approximately 2:30 Friday afternoon September 10th Court Unions, along with Court personnel, received the written policy as well as religious and medical exemption forms, intended to be implemented on 9/27 by the Chief Judge regarding Mandatory Vaccination (See attached). Please remember none of these policies or procedures have been negotiated with the Union per your Collective bargaining agreement. The Union has an obligation under the Taylor Law to act when its members rights are being violated. In this case, the Court has failed to enter into good faith negotiations regarding testing for non-vaccinated members, and the requirement of mandatory vaccination of those same members. Be advised that on Friday, September 3, 2021 CSEA filed an application for injunctive relief against UCS with the Public Employee Relations Board Office of Counsel, based on the Court Systems unwillingness to negotiate with CSEA or any other Court Union. That request is currently being processed by PERB, we ask that members remain calm and allow the legal process to effect the change we seek. Please understand, as I have had this conversation with multiple members over the last weeks, CSEA is not attempting to enter into the political fray that the COVID 19 pandemic has become, we are doing our sworn duty to insure that all members rights under the contract and the Taylor Law are preserved. Rest assured that CSEA is doing everything legally possible to get a result that all can live with.
UCS TESTING POLICY
Testing is slated to begin next week for every employee that has not been vaccinated. If you are intending to do so, make your vaccination appointment as soon as reasonably possible, in an effort to avoid testing procedures any longer than necessary. If you have been vaccinated be sure to upload your required documents in order to be excluded from mandatory testing.
CSEA has been made aware of multiple issues concerning testing in some of our more rural areas. If you need to use more time to obtain a test based on availability of testing sites near home or work, OCA will be requiring employees to charge your their accruals. Keep track of your time used over the one hour and proof of the need for a longer time period (example: no test site or appointments in your area or travel route to or from work). If there is a cost associated with testing, keep your receipts. Most of the testing should be covered by insurance. Keep a detailed log of travel and time spent to have testing done. Keep in mind this log and information will be needed once OCA is brought to the table to negotiate with us.
VIRTUAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING
Local 334 will be scheduling a virtual membership meeting on Wednesday September 15th at 6:00 p.m. Link to attend will be provided by Tuesday evening on the 14th.
DEFERRED COMP
Dan Kain will be hosting NYS Deferred Compensation Plan Enrollment and Retirement webinars later this month. Please use the links below to register for the webinars.
To register for one or more of the webinars, you may click on the links below:
Enrollment Webinars: (In this webinar you will learn about Deferred Compensation and how it can help you save for retirement as well as how to enroll)
Tuesday, September 21, 2021 10:00 am
https://nationwidepcsales.webex.com/nationwidepcsales/onstage/g.php?MTID=e828fad4a9b610c6efdc4e41c51cdac47
Tuesday, September 21, 2021 12:00 pm
https://nationwidepcsales.webex.com/nationwidepcsales/onstage/g.php?MTID=ed5863ad466a982eb6f447a783f861c3
Wednesday, September 29, 2021 12:00 pm
https://nationwidepcsales.webex.com/nationwidepcsales/onstage/g.php?MTID=ecc274b89b484a202720c7f3d66f9f0c3
Pre-Retirement Webinars: (We will go over how to calculate your NYS Pension, how and when to withdraw Deferred Compensation Funds, the taxes involved with doing so and much more)
Monday, September 20, 2021 12:00 pm
https://nationwidepcsales.webex.com/nationwidepcsales/onstage/g.php?MTID=e6b3b855c914010c37f31ad966d88c606
Thursday, September 30, 2021 10:00 am
https://nationwidepcsales.webex.com/nationwidepcsales/onstage/g.php?MTID=e23a30ca5de00fbae414bfb478dd5bbd7
Use this link to schedule a phone appointment with Dan:
http://dankainphoneappointment.myRetirementAppt.com
SYRACUSE METS
Order your tickets now for the Syracuse Mets vs. the Buffalo Bisons game on Thursday, September 30th, 6:35 p.m. at NBT Bank Stadium in Syracuse. We will be on the Party Deck and admission will include an all-you-can eat picnic from 6:35-8:30 p.m. and our own cash bar. Tickets will not be mailed and can be picked up at the Group Will Call, window #7 at the box office, between 5:30 and 7:00 p.m. the evening of the event. Order your tickets today before they run out – limited seating! Reservations must be received by September 23rd. See the attached flyer and registration form for further information.