COLA worth 10 times pension supplement
To the Editor:

As a state employee and prospective retiree, I can expect less than a 2 percent increase in my pension. Now consider this: According to the American Association of Retired Persons, a 1 percent change as a cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) on the basic pension of $8,500, represents more than $ 5,000 over the next 10 years.

But a supplementation of 1 percent would give that same person just $850 over the same 10 years. That's the COLA's power of compounding.

Let's say "No!" to more pension supplementations.

Let's fight for an automatic, full COLA, but be willing to accept even a limited one, just to get a foot in the door.

Then, in subsequent years, we can work toward a full COLA, guaranteeing that our pensions will not erode in the future.

Thomas Calogero
West Islip

Thanks, delegates, for help after fire
To the Editor:

I thank my fellow delegates to the 20th PEF Convention so much for their donations, collected for me following the house fire that occurred while I attended the convention.

Your thoughtfulness and generosity were very much appreciated.

Merle Davis
Brooklyn

PEF, labor had big role in elections
To the Editor:

Congratulations on your coverage of the 1998 elections.

The favorable results stand in marked contrast to the 1994 off-year elections.

That debacle witnessed the takeover of the U.S. House of Representatives by political forces overtly hostile to the interests of workers, whether salaried or wage earning.

The difference was substantially due to the level of union participation. Unlike the previous off-year election when less than 15 percent of the voters were union members, in this past election nearly a quarter of all voters were union affiliated.

And union voters supported union-backed candidates.

In addition to spreading the word on legislative races, PEF members helped the labor-sponsored Working Families Party (WFP) to win ballot status. In Erie County the WFP won 4,600 votes, approximately 9 percent of the statewide total.

For the first time in decades, labor, through the WFP, now has some badly needed political independence.

Our PEF organization is only as strong as its individual parts. These volunteers merit our recognition and gratitude.

Thomas Grace
Buffalo

Parole's hostility to women must end
To the Editor:

Women at the state Division of Parole will no longer tolerate working in a hostile work environment.

We have filed many charges of discrimination, harassment and retaliation with the state Division of Human Rights.

We find a definite pattern of disparate treatment, especially against females.

PEF and the Civil Service Employees Association are seeking a resolution to this problem, but we believe the governor's office should help get top managers at Parole to acknowledge and correct the problem.

No one can work effectively under these conditions to protect the community.

MILAGIO PLUMEY
(This letter also was signed by more than a dozen other female employees of the state Division of Parole.)

Letters policy

The Communicator welcomes letters to the editor about union issues and events relevant to PEF's diverse membership.
All letters are subject to editing for space, fairness and good taste.
Please keep them brief (up to one page, double-spaced or a maximum of 250 words), and please include your name and phone number for verification.

Send letters to:
The Communicator
Public Employees Federation
P.O. Box 12414
Albany, N.Y. 12212-2414

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