Home support needed for Puerto Rican workers

By DEBORAH A. MILES
When New York state employees faced the possibility of massive layoffs earlier this year, PEF and other unions negotiated with Gov. David Paterson to find other ways to cut costs. Union leaders were able to offer ways to balance the state budget while protecting state jobs, avoiding massive layoffs.

The public employees in Puerto Rico are less fortunate. In March, Gov. Luis Fortuno released a plan to lay off thousands of government employees and suspend public-sector collective-bargaining rights.

The layoffs came on top of a law passed by the Puerto Rico Legislature in June that freezes government employees’ wages and tears up their union contracts.

PEF member Angel Luis Acosta is on the Executive Board for the Labor Council for Latin American Advancement (LCLAA) and is drumming up support to protect the right of employment for public-sector employees in Puerto Rico.

“The public employees of Puerto Rico are facing a battle, not only against layoffs, but also privatization. A lot of the labor leaders there are of the opinion Gov. Fortuno is letting go of the public-sector workers so they can be replaced with private-sector employees,” Acosta said.

Rallies and press conferences have been held in Puerto Rico and New York City to protest the layoffs and union busting. At one event, more than 150 union members filled the steps of New York City Hall June 17.

In September, LCLAA, supported by the NYC Central Labor Council, spearheaded another press conference on the steps of City Hall to protest Fortuno’s plan to address the island’s growing financial deficit by laying-off 25,000 government employees.

PEF and a dozen other unions sent the message to Puerto Rico’s legislators, telling them they won’t stand for Fortuno’s plan to balance its budget on the backs of the working class.

LCLAA hosted a labor breakfast at this year’s Puerto Rican and Hispanic Legislative Task Force conference in Puerto Rico November 5-10. LCLAA representatives urged legislators to tell Fortuno his layoff plans are ill-advised.

PEF President Ken Brynien said PEF affiliate, the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), has been working with the unions in Puerto Rico and has sent people to recent protests.

“SEIU is supporting the Puerto Rican workers on behalf of all its members, including those in PEF,” Brynien said. “What is happening in Puerto Rico is atrocious. We need the solidarity to help protect those workers and stop union busting.