Keep the Government In the Government

BUFFALO, NEW YORK

Attendees at the 95th Annual Delegates Meeting of New York's Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA)/Local 1000 joined with its Erie County members on Sept. 29 to fight the threat of contracting out a significant portion of the county government. Their downtown rally, attended by more than 1,000, came in response to a report by the Buffalo-Niagara Partnership promoting such a move — and as Erie lawmakers were mulling over a fiscal plan leading up to the county executive's budget.

"Keep Big Business Out of Erie County Government" was the theme the protesting delegates sounded again and again. Declared President McEntee, addressing the crowd: "Public employees are not the problem here. We will not be bullied by a county executive or by Big Business run amok." Added CSEA Pres. Danny Donohue (an International vice president), "It's interesting that these same big businesses that want to tell the rest of us how things work are helping themselves to more than their fair share of government subsidies, tax breaks and other benefits at taxpayer expense."