FLO TRIPI A VOICE OF CLARITY AMID MEDIA DECEPTION

Rochester, N.Y.--  In the April 4 Easter Sunday edition of the Rochester Democrat and Chronicle, WNY Region 6 President Flo Tripi argued to the editorial board that the labor community has been unfairly treated in the newspaper's attempt to rile the readership about the role of public employee unions in New York State. 

The D&C must of relented to her persuasion knowing full well that public employees are probably tired of getting bashed day after day.  After all, public employees are a core of their readership--  we are also the adverstisers as well as subscribers too.  We can and will affect their bottom line, if need be. 

And, as a matter of journalistic policy, the editorial board does not usually make exceptions to print recent letters from the same writer back to back--  but they did in this case.  Tripi and many contributors to this blog have also pointed out that the D&C's ongoing coverage of  our state's fiscal mess is not fueled by strident public employee unions as they would like readers to believe-- despite their relentless news reports and editorials slamming organized labor.

Despite these deceptive ploys, today we salute the D&C for publishing this guest essay with the full knowledge that the journalistic assault on public employees will continue to play out on the front page, local section, opinion pages and blogs of this newspaper.

We encourage the public debate about the role of New York's public employee unions-- but only when it is done with fairness, honesty and civility.  Here is the essay that was published on April 4:

Well, at least the Democrat & Chronicle Editorial Board got it half right in the March 21 editorial "Public workers must help" with New York state budget deficit.

The D&C got it right stating public employees should not be made the scapegoats for Albany's ills. In addition to paying their fair share in taxes, public employees support the local economy through their purchase of goods and services from those in the private sector.

But the Democrat & Chronicle Editorial Board is absolutely wrong to call for a wage freeze for public employees and other cuts that would do little more than chip away further at the already damaged middle class.

Public employees continually take the blame in this paper because it's the easy way out. Rather than seek out the real problems, just kick the first public employee you see.

Professional sports teams throughout the state have received hundreds of millions in tax breaks and subsidies to build and improve stadiums.

Instead of pointing the finger at public workers, why doesn't the D&C call on those sports teams to give the subsidies back?  How about the rest of Wall Street? Our tax dollars have bailed them out, too. Have people on Wall Street sacrificed across the board? No. Instead, the banks took the tax money and awarded multi-million dollar bonuses to a few at the top.

What about other businesses that receive tax breaks and ship jobs overseas? Shouldn't we ask for that money back, especially since the jobs are no longer here?

Yet the D&C wants the snowplow driver, the nurse's aide, the corrections officer, the group home staffer and other state employees to give up a modest raise that they'll use to support their families and make ends meet?

Public employees have already made their share of sacrifices. They've been asked to do more and more with less and less for years. Their services are needed now more than ever, as more and more people reach out for a little help to get through tough times. Public employees often work short-staffed and in dirty and dangerous jobs. The state budget should not be balanced on their backs.

Tripi, of Rochester, is CSEA Western Region president.