Dereliction 

To the editor: 

Retirees are accustomed to breaches of faith by labor and political leaders who otherwise have a moral obligation to protect our hard earned health benefits.

The latest betrayal? Last year, State Senator Pete Harckham sponsored the Health Equity for Retirees Act, legislation that would forbid the diminishing of public sector retirees’ health insurance benefits, such as through a switch to Medicare Advantage. 

He recently withdrew his bill, seemingly succumbing to pressure from District Council 37, the United Federation of Teachers and the New York State AFL-CIO (DC 37’s Henry Garrido and the UFT’s Michael Mulgrew serve on its executive council).

The bill will likely now not come up for a vote. Adding insult to injury, the arm twisting calls for a watered down version with a UFT-inspired poison pill, i.e. health benefits can be reduced as long as they apply equally to active employees! 

It is no coincidence that the State AFL-CIO has endorsed Harckham. And that their offices are at 50 Broadway, owned by the UFT. As a grassroots reform UFT member organization, A Better Contract (ABC), has observed, “This isn’t just political irony. It’s political rot.”

The pressure campaign is analogous to the political thuggery that Garrido has exerted on City Council members to oppose Intro 1096, which would codify health benefit protections. When a similar bill was being considered; he told the Daily News in 2023: “I’m prepared to withdraw support … money, endorsements — everything.”

DC 37 has now endorsed City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams for mayor, a consistent roadblock of Intro 1096. 

Retirees will keep reminding union voters which candidates and labor leaders have their back.

Harry Weiner