Peru unions give back

From left, Bob Rizos, Cathy Phillips and Jeannette Cumber show a sampling of goods collected for a local food pantry by the unions representing, teachers, administrators and civil service employees in the Peru school district.

Knowing the needs in their North Country community, the three bargaining units from Peru Central School wanted to help local families by giving food for the children they work with almost every day.

The Peru Association of Teachers, led by Bob Rizos; Peru Central School Administrative Council, led by Cathy Phillips; and the Civil Service Employees Association, led by Jeanett Cumber, partnered to collect donations of food for their local food pantry.

Members of each association brought in food to donate to the Peru Community Food Shelf in early September.

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 Outreach efforts grow

Julia and Matthew Ceccato help load donations at Hyde Park Elementary School in Niagara Falls. Their dad, Ed, is executive vice president of the local.

The nearly 700-member Niagara Falls Teachers has added an annual food drive to its long list of charitable efforts.

Led by local president Joe Catalano, the NFT netted the Heart and Soul Food Pantry more than 500 pounds of non-perishable food items during its first drive this summer.

The food drive adds to the NFT's impressive list of community service events, including a Holiday Ham and Turkey Drive to benefit Community Missions and the Salvation Army, selling newspapers on Make A Difference Day for the United Way, and awarding several $1,000 scholarships each year to graduating seniors.

The local hosts an annual lottery fundraiser that has built a school in Sierra Leone and supplied its students with uniforms, books, supplies, and food as well as provided essential training for the teachers at the school.

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 Adjuncts win full pay

After a grassroots campaign by members of the Professional Staff Congress, teaching adjuncts at five City University of New York colleges will no longer receive a smaller paycheck for their work in the final week of the semester.

Since 1973, adjuncts at Baruch, College of Staten Island, and Bronx, Kingsborough and Queensborough Community Colleges were paid for only 14 weeks of teaching plus pay if they proctored an exam.

At most CUNY campuses, adjuncts are paid for 45 hours per semester, or 15 weeks of pay, for a three-credit-hour course.

Filling food banks

The Western Sullivan United Teachers and School-Related Professionals local union, with the help of administration and board members, donated nearly half a ton of goods to food banks in Jeffersonville, Narrowsburg and Callicoon.

"Our union hosted a back-to-school picnic for the school community," said local president Michele Brockner.

Each guest was asked to bring food and household items. The response was so great the local will continue the event next year.

"This was a great way to support the communities that support our district," Brockner said.

Settlement benefits UFTers

State Supreme Court has approved a $160 million settlement of a UFT-initiated pension lawsuit that will benefit approximately 48,000 retired and Tier 1 and 2 in-service UFT members.

Each eligible member of the 20-Year Pension Class Settlement will receive a one-time lump-sum payment.

Checks for retirees, ranging from $100 to $7,500, are expected to be mailed after Jan. 1. In-service members will receive a contribution to their Increased Take-Home Pay account.

The class-action suit challenged the calculations of a specific interest allocation of the Teachers' Retirement System's retirement benefit for Tier 1 and 2 members of plans A and C (the 20-year plan).