Facing potential primary challenges next year, members of a breakaway Democratic conference in the state Senate are looking to build stronger ties to organized labor. Zack Fink filed the following report.
Members of the Senate's Independent Democratic Conference are pushing new legislation that would make it easier for public sector workers to join a union.
"Here we are under threat from the federal government that we are going to lose our right, the most important right we have as working men and women in the labor movement is collective bargaining. So I think we have to stand firm," said Jeff Klein, the leader of the state Senate's Independent Democratic Conference.
But what was noteworthy about the rollout of the otherwise unremarkable bill were the labor leaders who stood with the IDC in support.
"We have a coalition of union members not only from the the private sector but from the public sector," said state Senator Marisol Alcantara of Manhattan.
Although the next state elections are a year and a half away, Alcantara, a newly elected IDC member, is already facing a primary from former City Council member Robert Jackson, who ran previously for the seat and announced this week he is running again.
Organized labor could play a critical role in who prevails in that race and other expected challenges against IDC members. But labor leaders who gathered with the IDC at the Capitol this week seemed to be sending a message that they could very well support IDC members in those primaries.
"Certainly want to thank the leader here, Jeff Klein. I know him an awful long time, and Jeff, I just want to say thank you for not only supporting this legislation, but really a career of fighting for working men and women throughout your career in elected office," said Mario Cilento of the AFL-CIO.
Klein says he has not discussed the labor bill with Majority Leader John Flanagan. Klein's IDC and Flanagan's Republican conference work together in a coalition that controls the Senate.
"Zack, I'm always careful and circumspect. I don't know the exact details. But I think we did a lot of things for labor and business. But we did some things for labor regarding dues deductions," Flanagan said. "You know, I'm willing to have discussions on virtually everything."
Should the bill pass the Senate, it should have no problem passing the Assembly, which is controlled by Democrats and viewed as very pro-labor. Asked about it this week, Speaker Carl Heastie said they are supportive in principle but haven't yet seen the bill.