The Way I See It

(OR how to destroy the aging population through lies and threats)

If you have been following my blog you will note I am on a quest to help the NYC Organization of Public Service Retirees a private FaceBook/META group of which I am a member “fight City Hall” .

To better understand what this organization is about follow the following YouTube link:

https://youtube.com/@nycretirees?si=5bW8Aeav15Rnxj9V

You see as a NYC Public Service Retiree and a former Union Shop Steward I have been able to attain a firsthand look at the makings of such a large enterprise. Retiring after 22 years of dedicated service from a permanent disability my only salvation after a low wage position in the City University Of New York at Brooklyn College was having individually paid for Medicare through my earned Social Security and GHI/Emblem Senior Care paid for by the City of NY for dedicating my life for that promise that allowed me a choice in a paid Medigap plan. Medicare covers 80% of my medical costs and Sr. Care pays the other 20%. The Union I worked under was DC 37 and for all 22 years I paid dues from each paycheck to have help in covering prescription drugs, $50 reimbursement for eye exams and glasses, if not using a Union facility, $50 reimbursement for hearing exam and aids, and just last year a total of $1500 paid to a dentist or dental surgeon for dental coverage. Now I know most people will say wow that is great and I would agree we are better than those who never worked a day in their lives but get all that and more by qualifying for City aid. However, my spouse worked over 50 years in total all in the private sector for an average salary. He is a veteran of the Vietnam era, and never asked for anything he didn’t work hard to earn. Same goes for me only I’m not the veteran, nor did I work for 22 years of a 40 year job career in the private sector. I only attained a pension through my Civil Servant 22 year career and it was reduced by half because NYCERS a panel of misfits didn’t agree with social security physicians and my personal orthopedic specialists that I am permanently disabled. Yet, here I am 10 years in retirement using a scooter, walker and/or cane to get anywhere mobile. No doctor was willing to operate because my issues are basically incurable simply because I would need seven at minimum surgeries all accompanied by rehabilitation I am unable to perform. So they give me a possible 30% chance of any success with any surgery. NYCERS however denied it 10 years ago so I have lived with daily pain and limited mobility all these years on a limited income which still costs money with deductibles, etc. None of this includes my additional medical issues developing over my aging process. Requiring me to consume 9 medications daily in order to stay alive.

Rarely, have I complained about this. I deal with it and call on all the strength I can recently muster to live with whatever I can both medically and financially. My spouse retired in 2017 to become my sole caregiver. In the past 3 months he was forced to take on a part time evening job at a local supermarkets to help us pay some of our bills. Believe me the salary he gets is minimum at the very most. But it does cover a monthly necessary electrical and gas bill.

So when I hear people say they envy our position or think we don’t deserve the promised and earned benefits we do receive my blood boils with hurt, anger and frustration. If I could have worked till I was 80 or older I would have. I loved my job. I worked hard. Getting paid for 7 hours a day, five days a week when I actually worked at minimum 12 hours a day for 4 days a week and some weekends, and even on vacation, which I rarely took away from home, etc.. all because I believed in helping the people of my City and the students in the University. I was a committed and dedicated employee with an active Union membership card! Now that same City and the Union I worked for are stressing me, hurting my spouse and I; detrimental to my ongoing health issues and his; are practicing ageism and all because they misappropriated funding sources, have nefarious future plans including Medicare for All which will benefit mostly migrant people who sadly have contributed nothing in taxes, social security deductions, et al, and simply used the retirees themselves, all 250,000 of us as a BETA group to test the waters in their plans to cover their losses they themselves caused to happen. On our backs they wish to be carried and leading us all straight to our early graves. I am not asking for pity, nor asking for anything EXTRA, nor bothering anyone without true cause.

What is now happening to All NYC retirees will without doubt trickle down to future retirees in the ranks of the currently employed. That includes the following job titles: EMTS; FIREFIGHTERS; POLICE; TRANSIT, DEP; SECRETARIAL; COLLEGE ASSISTANTS; NURSES; TEACHERS; TECHNICAL WORKERS, et al. and probably many more titles in Public Service I have innocently left out. Yet, the Union Leadership in NYC specifically DC37 under Garrido and UFT under Mulgrew, both led by SAUNDERS of AFSCME have decided to lie, threaten and pit current NYC employees against fellow union NYC retirees. They are using bullying tactics against the most vulnerable group…retirees.

Mayor Adams is basing his logic on the erroneous reports from DeBlasio to fight our group’s litigation to fight back. Although with the help of the attorneys hired by our organization’s grass root funds, under the leadership of the amazing Marianne Pizzitola, have legally won case after case we presented, he insists are throwing appeals at our victories. REMEMBER, However that we are Union we still possess our “old school” Union spirit to fight the Giant attacking the underdogs! We are battling constantly to survive!

The most appreciated group are the NYC COUNCIL MEMBERS who have signed up in support of CM Barron’s Into 1099 bill. We all are so grateful that they care about NYC Seniors and Retirees of the public sector. They are elected officials overseeing the injustices, helping the most neediest communities, using fair and impartial logic to guide this City in the right direction. There are 17 of the 51 members of this Council who have signed up. There are 36 standing committees on this Council and we are hoping that the number of 17 CMs turns to 36! Support of this nature will give us a larger fighting chance in our battle against this Mayor’s unjustifiable stance against us. It will also allow voters to see the Council Members who sign up as the saviors who care about the aging population.

Now it would be great to keep our hopes alive to see people like Lee Saunders, Nespoli, Joe Borielli, Elizabeth H. Shuler, picking up the gauntlet to save the aging retirees of NYC Public Service. Saving the healthcare and essentially the lives of 250,000 City retirees and former Union Members should be a big feather in their caps! Public impression really does mean a lot!

Points to take away:

1.we are not represented as retirees from our Unions, but we represented those same Unions for decades.

2. we are not asking for anything more than we were promised by the City when we were first hired with our lower wages than our private sector counterparts.

3. tell Mayor Adams, CM Borelli, Union Reps Nespoli, Garrido, Mulgrew to stop threatening and bullying the NYC retirees

4. Support CM Barron’s 1099 bill which has NOTHING to do with Union negotiations, but has everything to do with protecting the promise of no harm to retirees who signed up when hired to be provided with a promised CHOICE of a paid Medigap plan to accompany their individually paid for traditional Medicare program.

5. SUPPORT the Organization of NYC Public Service Retirees and WATCH Marianne Pizzitola on YOU TUBE!

And That’s the Way I See It, here in Jackson

K