For Immediate Release
Wednesday, February 16, 2005
District Council 1707 Ratifies Long-Awaited Day Care Contract With New York City
Thousands Attend Contract Ratification
New York —Nearly 4,000 public day care workers by acclamation overwhelmingly approved a five-year agreement with the New York City Day Care Council and the City of New York that will give them a 14 percent increase by April 1, 2005, and a $1,000 lump sum signing bonus after ratification.
Almost 7,000 members of Day Care Local 205 of District Council 1707, AFSCME, had been without a contract since December 31, 2000. Two strikes, a march over the Brooklyn Bridge, a number of large protests at City Hall and throughout the city produced a contract victory in this long-fought labor dispute.
DC 1707 Executive Director Raglan George, Jr., who brokered the deal with the mayor said, "These workers who care for our most precious assets—our children—won this battle because they persevered, remained courageous and understood that struggles like this do not happen overnight."
District Council 1707 and Local 205 are currently in discussions with the New York State Senate and Assembly to receive assistance on retroactive pay as the city claims budgetary woes.
