New York's Poorest

[Zephyr]

Please read this newspaper article about the plight of New York's Poorest-- FDNY EMS EMTs and Paramedics, and vote in the poll. Thanks!

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008...ore_pay-2.html

[akflightmedic]

Bad link...story not found???

[Zephyr]

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/2008/06/02...more_pay-2.html

Oops, somehow the URL got compressed. If cut and paste doesn't work, here's the text WITHOUT the poll. Please answer the online poll if you can...

EMTs drive home plea for more pay

BY KATHLEEN LUCADAMO

DAILY NEWS CITY HALL BUREAU

Monday, June 2nd 2008, 4:00 AM

NEW YORK has the Finest, the Bravest and now the Poorest.

The city's Emergency Medical Technicians, an arm of the FDNY, are sporting car visors highlighting their demand for a raise.

All the silver visors show the EMTs' emblem, and one version reads, "EMTs and Paramedics - New York's Poorest," while another says, "Saving Lives at Work, Living in Poverty at Home."

A third has a spin on CPR: "Can't Pay Rent at Home."

"It's a humorous way of calling attention to a very serious problem," said Bob Unger of Local 2507, which represents 2,700 EMTs and paramedics.

The members' contract expired two years ago, and their starting salary remains at $27,295, far lower than that of their Civil Service counterparts. They top out at $54,000 after 20 years.

Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta recently acknowledged the city would be down 121 EMTs this summer because of recruitment trouble, forcing members to rack up overtime.

At least one EMT was recently brought up on charges for refusing to do overtime, according to the union.

Unger declined to give details because the case is pending. But he said workers are periodically docked a day's pay for failing to do "excessive overtime," and he fears more will face charges as the demand for EMTs rises with summer accidents.

"The overtime that is ordered becomes so extreme that a lot of our members just burn out," said Unger. "At what point does your professional judgment get impaired by exhaustion?"

klucadamo@nydailynews.com

[AZCEP]

Nobody saw this coming when FDNY took over EMS? Is the union involved the IAFF? If so, did anyone really think they were going to go to bat for EMS?

The fire commissioner can step up and decide to make things right, or cut EMS loose.

[Richard B the EMT]

(Again, I gotta say this?)

In a payback to the fire fighters of the FDNY, and to "protect" their jobs, in exchange for votes, New York City mayoral candidate Rudy Giuliani, after being elected (over David Dinkins, a one term mayor) had first, the New York City council, and then the New York State legislators, change the laws, that the EMS, then being run under the New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation, could be removed from that management, and put under the management of the FDNY. This "Merger" happened going into midnight of March 16/17, 1996.

Giuliani wanted to eliminate both the EMS, and the HHC, "Privatizing" both of them. The FDNY, operationally (back then) did the "Red Headed Stepchild" routine with us, first taking away our Forest Green pants, jackets, ties, and white shirts, and putting us into the Navy Blue uniforms you see us in now. Then, while we have to wear the uniform, we were not considered a "Uniform" service; instead, we were considered "Civilian Employees" of the FDNY.

If an EMS station had any history, it was totally disallowed. The EMS station at Bellevue Hospital, which had the distinction of being the home of the first organized Ambulance Service in the United States, was forced into a name change. Instead of being called "Bellevue Station", we were forced into calling it "Kips Bay Station", a seldom used community name that I think is only used by a local YMCA, and maybe a movie house.

The union local for the EMTs and Paramedics of the FDNY is Local 2507 (Uniformed EMTs, Paramedics and Fire Inspectors of the FDNY {UEP}), of District Council 37, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME). We are fighting for better wages, and beat back several court cases trying to forbid us becoming a Uniform Service. That last is separating us from the assorted secretarial, janitorial, road repair, and even tree trimmer worker type unions that are also part of DC 37, and placing us into a different bargaining unit for contract negotiations.

Despite then Mayor Giuliani, and current ("lame duck") "Mayor Mike" Bloomberg, we will get better wages and benefits (and my personal hopes that it won't be at the expense of any other unions' contract negotiations).

The only things that "UEP" and "IAFF" have agreed on, as far as I am aware (that was a disclaimer, folks), is that a gentlemans' agreement was reached that no IAFF member can work for a "Private" ambulance services unit that operates within the NYC 9-1-1 system, which in effect is a job threat to the UEP members. Also, for those who remember the blond-haired lady fire fighter from "Third Watch" who was both a fire fighter and Paramedic, utilized as needed by fire or EMS, a similar agreement was reached between the unions to keep her character a representation of fiction, not reality.

(On-Duty FDNY Fire Fighters, except when on "Medical Calls" at "First Responder" level, even if trained as EMTs or Paramedics elsewhere, are mission specific to fighting fires and effecting rescues. On-Duty FDNY EMTs and Paramedics trained elsewhere as fire fighters are also mission specific as EMS)

(Side note: The device is not a "visor", it is one of those large "heat shield" screens that blocks the sun by covering the entire front window and dashboard.)

As for me, now, instead of buying my uniforms to the description of the department, locally, the department now buys them for me. I just have to go to the Quartermasters office, in Fort Totten, Bayside, Queens, NYC, (Bell Blvd exit off the Cross Island Parkway) to be fitted.

[FormerEMSLT297]

No, the union involved is DC-37 Local 2507 and 3621 AFCSME,, they represent all NYC employees who are not cops, FF and Sanitation workers.

This disgrace has ebbn going on for YEARS, and years.. one of thereasons i left.

The hostile takeover of NYC-EMS, by FDNY was nothing more than an attempt by Mayor Guiliani to save firefighter jobs, and prevent closing firehouses. What mayor is popular when he does that???

So, we give them some advanced first aid training, and send them to all the medical calls, and poooff,, they cant close firehousese cause call volume is up.

The Best is that the former union preisdent of FDNY, Thomas Von Essen, was appointed as FDNY Commissioner under Mayor G, and he SOLD his guys down the river, and basically forced it down their throats.

Mayor G, who ran the first time underthe I'll make EMS its own third service and SAVE if from HHC, (Health and Hosp), ran the second time and forgot all the things he promised our union, and sold NYC-EMS personnel, and FDNY, down the RIVER.