NYSNA Online ExclusiveNYC Council approves support for RN pension change
On June 13, the New York City Council passed a home rule message in support of NYSNA’s state legislation to include RN positions on a list “physically taxing” jobs in the New York City Administrative Code. This is a significant step, not only for the RNs of HHC and city mayoral agencies, but for the association's legislative efforts at the City Council level. This proposal is among the very few pension proposals the City Council has agreed to consider this year. It is a tribute to the persistence of NYSNA members that this measure has moved so far, so fast. Now that the home rule message has been passed by the City Council, the “physically taxing” measure must also be enacted as state law. Nurses who work for the city Health and Hospitals Corporation have been calling state legislators, urging them to pass the measure before the end of the legislative session. Employees who hold “physically taxing” positions may be eligible to retire early with full benefits, providing they have worked for the city for at least 25 years. RNs who would benefit from this option will make additional contributions to the city pension fund if the measure passes. Nurses run a greater risk for physical injury on the job than many of the other workers that are already on the list. -30- With more than 34,000 members, NYSNA is the oldest and largest state nurses’ association in the nation. It is an influential union for RNs, representing nurses in New York and New Jersey. Offering a wide range of services to its members, NYSNA fosters high standards of nursing education and practice and works to advance the profession through legislative activity. It is a constituent of the American Nurses Association and of the United American Nurses, an affiliate of the AFL-CIO. |
|
|