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QUESTION

What are the most effective measures to address the pay and promotional gap for city workers?

2:03:29

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3 min

Council Member De La Rosa inquires about the most impactful measures to close the pay and promotional gap for city employees.

She mentions potential approaches like career counseling, workplace culture surveys, oversight of promotional exams, engaging CUNY for employment pathways, and assessing promotional points for upward mobility.
Gloria Middleton, president of Communication Workers of America Local 1180, suggests high school outreach programs like Q And A to encourage students to pursue city jobs.
Middleton states that DCAS lacks authority to hold agencies accountable when they violate civil service rules.
She cites an example where an agency did not certify an administrative manager list within 30 days after all candidates scored 100 on the exam.

Carmen N. De La Rosa

2:03:29

Right?

2:03:30

So I do have a question I do have a question in terms of what we've presented today as a council, right, under the leadership of our speaker.

2:03:39

We are so laser focused on closing this gap, and some of the ideas that have come out include offering career counseling, right, which is done, but is not done in a way that is structural, cross agencies, making sure that workplace culture surveys are in place, making sure that promotional exams.

2:04:01

Well, making sure that we understand and that they cast reports on the decision making process for promotional exams making sure as chair Lewis mentioned, CUNY is a big part of that of that pathway to employment, making sure that the public is engaged in the outreach.

2:04:20

And then finally looking at ways in which promotional points can be assessed, right, in in in the upward mobility of employees.

2:04:30

Which one of these bills?

2:04:31

Or can you give us your professional sort of criteria in terms of which one of these books would be most impactful in your in your estimation, in us closing the gap.

2:04:43

And what are some of your thoughts about us as a city being able to administer these things in a way that is impactful for workers?

Gloria Middleton

2:04:51

Well, using the Q And A program as a pathway, we have suggestions, and Greg can speak more to it about getting to high school students

Michael Greco

2:05:06

Mhmm.

Gloria Middleton

2:05:06

And letting them know about being able to come into city service.

2:05:10

And there is a program that we have talked about with the administration Mhmm.

2:05:16

Which would educate young people as to how important it is to have a civil service job and how secure it is.

2:05:26

As far as Decast, there's there's a lot of things that Decast said that while I know they have good intentions, Their sort their hands are sort of tied by the agencies.

2:05:39

The power they don't have the power that they need to hold these agencies accountable.

2:05:46

It's, in my opinion, in my experience, it seems like the agencies do their own thing and it takes a lot.

2:05:54

For decast to hold them accountable.

2:05:57

They're we're going through something right now with a civil service for a particular agency where they did not abide by the civil civil rules they picked and chose who they want to become administrative managers.

2:06:10

Because they were because they were that band when everybody scores a 100.

2:06:15

And we're asking DCAS to now go back because they're supposed to certify who they called.

2:06:21

And it's supposed to be done within 30 days.

2:06:24

It was not done within 30 days.

2:06:26

So you're telling me that decast does not does not have the power to oversee what these agencies are doing.

2:06:33

If we had if a member hadn't spoke up and we hadn't caught it, they would have gotten away with it.

2:06:39

So there has to be more accountability for the agencies to report to DCAS.

2:06:43

I think they need a little more power in order for these these gaps to be taken care of.

2:06:51

That's what I speak on.

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Arthur Chilliotis, President Emeritus and Current Business Manager of Local 1180, on Improving Promotional Opportunities and Compensation for Minorities and Women in Civil Service Positions