May 2008 Newsletter

Volume 1, Issue 3
ALLIANCE
CWA 1141
May, 2008
President
Michael Ostrander
Downstate VP
Theresa Rampello
Executive VP
Thomas Slavin
NYSNA VP
Michael Collilns
Headquarters VP
Jennifer Deso
UUP VP
Anne Marine
Upstate VP
Nancy Lott
Secretary
Pranvera Syla
Treasurer
Clare Miner
CWA 1141 would
like to thank
Marianne Perry for
all her years of
dedicated service.
You were a
tremendous leader
and advocate. Good
luck in your
new position!
SAVE
THE
DATE!
FRIDAY, AUGUST 22, 2008
LANTHIER’S GROVE
ROUTE 9—LATHAM, NEW YORK
Inside this issue:
The Water Cooler
2
CWA Welcomes New President
2
Union Plus Benefits
2
CWA Day 2007
3
What Would You Do
4
Dresser-Rand Strike 2007 CWA 313
4
Did You Hear?
• Julie Rivecca, (Utica RO) Got
• Traci Szalkowski (Rochester RO) the
proud mother to her 5 year old son
was the top seller in a school
fundraiser which awarded him with a
MP3 player and a monetary award to
go towards his college education.
• Angell Law (Communications
Assistant, UUP) is excited to share
that her son Warren and his girlfriend
Rose made her a Grandmother to
Elijah Warren...he was born June 19,
2007 and was 7lbs., 9oz., 21 inches
long - Congratulations!
• Diane Miller (HQ) and her husband
welcomed their 2nd grandson, Jeffrey
Aiden to the family October 14, 2007.
Jeffrey is the son of my daughter,
Cara and son-in-law, Billy Ciano.
Jeffrey is also the little brother of twoyear old, Christopher. And...their
daughter Michelle received an
internship at ABC Studios in NYC on
the LIVE! with Regis and Kelly Show
(first full time intern ever on the show).
She is doing this her last semester at
SUNY Albany and will graduate in
May with a BA in Communication,
minor in English. And, last, but not
least, their other daughter, Jamie was
selected to the Dean's List the Fall
Semester (2007) at SUNY Plattsburgh.
She has since transferred to SUNY
Albany, majoring in English, minor in
Special Ed. Congratulations Diane and
you should be very proud!
•
•
•
•
engaged on Valentine’s Day in Lake
Placid!
Jean Kissane (Member Benefit Trust)
After 10 years of dedicated service,
Jean Kissane retired July 20, 2007.
Jean along with her husband Kevin
have three grown children, two
grandchildren and one on the way.
We wish Jean all the health and
happiness in her upcoming endeavors.
Thank you Jean for all your years of
dedicated service.
Regina Kane (UUP Benefit Trust Fund
Representative) received an
Associates Degree from HVCC in
1993. Regina then went back to finish
her bachelor’s degree in 2001, and
then graduating from Russell Sage in
May 2007 with high honors. Her
degree is in Interdisciplinary Students
concentration Business and Sociology.
Aaron Bifaro (Travel & Conference
Service) was recently elected to the
Board of Directors for Special
Olympics in New York. He is involved
in the planning and fundraising for
events throughout the state.
Jim MacFawn (Capital RO) married
Thea Brewster, who is a English teacher
at Shaker High School and a NYSUT
member of the North Colonie TA, on
Saturday July 7, 2007 (7/7/07). A
beautiful reception was held at the
Desmond in Colonie and the couple
went on a cruise for their honeymoon.
• Lori Agnew (Member Records) and
•
•
•
•
her husband Ron celebrated their 25th
Wedding Anniversary on September
18, 2007. They are taking a trip to
Las Vegas to celebrate.
Kathy Robinson (Utica RO) son has
recently returned from his second
deployment in Iraq.
Ginnie Fagnan (Rochester RO) and
her husband Mike welcomed their 3rd
grandchild. Their daughter Christine
and son-in-law Chuck of Stanton, Texas
gave birth to a beautiful baby boy
named Charlie. He arrived on March
6, 2008, weighing 7lbs., 13oz. and 20
inches long. Ginnie and Mike just
returned from Texas with lots of
pictures and are counting the minutes
until they can return.
Chrissy Phillips (Member Benefits), is
now an Independent Pampered Chef
consultant. If you would like more
information on hosting a home or book
a show give her a call at x1232 or
home (518) 729-4727.
Congratulations to our $500
scholarship winners:
Amie Marois
Todd Rogers
Rory Quackenbush
Kris Waddington
Jessica Swota
This will be an ongoing column. Please submit any “tidbits” you would like included in our next issue to [email protected]
CWA WELCOMES
NEW PRESIDENT
I thought I would take the opportunity for my first column in the
CWA 1141 newsletter to introduce myself to everyone. I have been
working in the NYSUT Member Benefits department for 15 years.
Over the past 15 years I have been active in the local. I initially got
my feet wet becoming the shop steward of Member Benefits back in
the early to mid 90’s. I then took on the responsibility of Grievance
Chair. I assisted the local with negotiations in the mid 90’s. During the
late 90’s I completed my Certificate in Labor Studies through the ILR
(Industrial Labor Relations) School of Cornell University. At the same
time, I was the Executive Vice-President of the local. I took over as
acting President for about 4-6 months but decided not to run for
President at that time. I have taken a few years off but always stood by
in the wings offering assistance to Marianne Perry whenever it was
needed. Currently I’m re-enrolled with Empire State to complete my
Bachelors degree online with a concentration in Labor Studies.
I’m a very busy husband and father of 2 including an 11 year old
daughter and a 15 month old son. Who knows, maybe a 3rd to follow
at some point (remember, it’s good to be busy). My wife works
second shift for a local hospital so I get home and take care of my kids
up till bed time and then turn myself over to both school and union. I
had forgotten just how demanding the responsibilities were for the
union, but not only have I hit the ground running, I think I’m running
in the right direction. I try and give every matter brought to me my
best effort and will continue to do so.
I look forward working for, and with, all of you.
Michael Ostrander
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Brighten your spring with flowers!
Order discounted flowers online or by phone and have them
delivered anywhere in the world, satisfaction guaranteed.
Save 20% on every order with the Union Plus Flower Service.
Goodyear Tires
and Services
Up to 10% Off
Get your car ready for the spring/summer driving season
while supporting fellow union members and save on tires
and services from Goodyear.
Go to the link below for both floral and tire discounts…
http://www.unionplus.org/benefits/custom.cfm?union_co
de=CWA&source=msn.
Thanks to all the hard work from the CWA Day Committee and JP Cruise Lines, August 24, 2007 was a day
filled with tons of fun! It started out a little sad saying goodbye to our President - but then it was dancing to the DJ,
singing along to some great music, hanging out with fellow CWA sisters and brothers or just sitting, relaxing and enjoying
the amazing scenery along the Hudson River! If you ask anyone...they will tell you...THIS WAS THE BEST CWA DAY EVER!!!
Page 3
WHAT WOULD YOU DO?
What would you do if you
overheard a manager discussing
the poor job performance of a
fellow CWA member? These
comments were being made in a
group setting that included unit
members, management and local
members.
A. Speak out immediately, defending the member, even
though that would mean embarrassing your manager.
B. Ask the manager to speak privately, and inform them
that they are being inappropriate and that any
discussion about someone’s job performance should be
directed only to the member.
C. Jump on the band wagon; add some of your own
observations about poor job performance.
D. Immediately inform the offended member what was
said about them.
This section is to generate some discussion amongst your co-workers. If you’d like to participate, e-mail your
response to [email protected] and in our next issue we’ll print the percentages to each response.
NEWSLETTER TEAM...
Kathy Robinson (Utica RO)
Editor
Traci Szalkowski (Rochester RO)
Design/Layout
Teresa Swartz (HQ - Legislation)
Research
Julie Rivecca (Utica RO)
Research
We want to hear from you!
THIS IS YOUR NEWSLETTER!
Please submit your thoughts, suggestions
and ideas to Kathy Robinson.
E-mail her at [email protected]
Page 4