Angry Public Workers: Protest New York City Cuts

by Marty Goodman / April 2009

NEW YORK—Stretching some 10 blocks from City Hall, tens of thousands of angry municipal workers protested on a cold March 5 against budget cuts and layoffs threats. Posters demanded that the governor, mayor and state legislature "Protect Our Families," "Preserve Health Care," and enact "Fair Share Tax Reform." They chanted, "United, we will not be defeated!"

"Many seniors need public services in order to live a decent life," said Ana Berroa, member of the Hispanic Senior Action Council and the Institute for Puerto Rican Elderly. "Some are choosing between medication and food." Said 1199 SEIU President George Gresham, "We are not going to let them make us choose between health and education or any other service."

Similar, but smaller, union rallies were held the same day in five cities across the state.

Long overdue, the "Rally for New York" was sponsored by a diverse group of community groups, advocates, non-profit organizations and labor unions—including the United Federation of Teachers, 1199 SEIU, 32BJ, ACORN, AFSCME District Council 37, the Communication Workers of America, the Hispanic Federation, the NAACP, the New York City Central Labor Council, New York Immigration Coalition, the New York State AFL-CIO and the Working Families Party.

Randi Weingarten, president of the United Federation of Teachers, said the rally was the largest of its kind here "in decades." True enough, although the Democratic Party labor leaders had sat on their hands for months, while union leaders fed illusions that workers must "share the sacrifice" of the Wall Street meltdown.

Joining the rally were students facing a $600 tuition hike at campuses of the City University of New York (CUNY) and teachers who face layoffs. About 80 students from CUNY’s Hunter College walked out of class. After a protest, they headed to a rally at Borough of Manhattan Community College, which later joined the demonstration at City Hall. The contingent grew to several hundred.

Even with a $24 billion federal stimulus package to New York state, the state budget still had a $16 billion gap—while trillions were given to Wall Street crooks. Much revenue relies on taxes on Wall Street and real estate, sharply reduced during the capitalist crisis. Tax loopholes for the rich further drained funds.

Even with federal stimulus funds, Gov. David Paterson continued his call to control a "spending problem." Last year, he told public unions, "The party’s over." Paterson threatened to re-open contracts, cut wages and slash pensions for the newly hired, a call echoed by Mayor Michael Bloomberg and the three largest capitalist newspapers.

Paterson threatened $2.5 billion in education cuts and $3.5 billion in health-care cuts affecting every hospital, $350 million in Medicaid reimbursements, plus billions in services to seniors, the disabled, the homeless and veterans.

Mayor Bloomberg called for closing an estimated $4 billion budget gap by slashing education by $1 billion, and he threatened 23,000 layoffs as well as cutting $127 million from the country’s largest public health-care system. Bloomberg proposed increasing sales taxes, which would take an estimated $894 million in additional money from mostly working-class pockets.

The union leadership’s strategy against these measures centered on urging Democrats to support the "Fair Share Tax Reform," a plan that slightly increases taxes on those earning over $250,000 a year. The plan was conceived by the Working Families Party (WFP), a phony labor party that routinely endorses Democrats, but also Republicans. Polls show New Yorkers favor increasing taxes on the rich by 4 to 1.

The income of New York’s wealthiest 5% has grown by 24% over the last two decades, while the incomes of 80% of working families have shrunk. Over the last 30 years, New York has reduced income-tax rates for the wealthiest by 50%, yet working-class families and the very rich paid the same rate—6.85%.

The WFP says its proposal would net $6 billion, short of the $8 billion the WFP says is lost each year in tax breaks for the rich.

An alternate bill by State Sen. Jeff Klein mirrored the WFP’s tax on the rich, but also gave tax breaks for those earning less than $200,000. Reassuring nervous conservatives, Bob Masters, the "pro-labor" WFP co-chair, said, "Senator Klein’s proposal doesn’t make sense right now."

A $131.8 billion state budget deal was announced on March 29, which includes a modified version of the "Fair Tax" reform. While budget details are shrouded in secrecy at our press time, the media reports $6.5 billion in cuts, including $2.3 billion in health-care, and some cuts to education—with likely $600 tuition hikes for its four-year CUNY campuses, Hunter College, and City College of New York. The city budget has yet to pass.