The Legislature is not in session, but that doesn’t mean UUP’s outreach efforts are on hiatus.

UUP President Phil Smith said union activists must continue building coalitions with other labor and community groups to advance the union’s legislative goals.

“Now more than ever, we have to reach out to labor and community groups and the faculty senates to educate them about the harm that’s been done to SUNY from budget cuts,” he told Outreach Committee members during a joint retreat with chapter presidents.

How can chapters go about building such coalitions? Cortland Chapter President Jamie Dangler said her chapter has enhanced its influence with lawmakers by building a coalition with local labor councils. Buffalo State Chapter President Rick Stempniak said that attending legislative events for state lawmakers in his area has helped the union personally deliver its advocacy messages.

“The face time you can get with your lawmakers at these events is unbelievable,” Stempniak said.

Electing lawmakers who support UUP’s legislative priorities is also on the political action radar screen. Smith encouraged members and chapter leaders to participate in phone banks to help union-endorsed candidates win in November.

“It is critical that these candidates know UUP helped put them in office,” Smith said.

Phone banks are usually conducted at the regional offices of NYSUT, UUP’s statewide affiliate, but Smith suggested a novel idea for chapters whose campuses are not near a NYSUT office. He suggested such chapters hold cell phone parties. Chapter members could get together and use their cell phones to call fellow unionists.

UUP is also flexing its political muscle through its involvement in the SUNY Rock the Vote voter registration campaign.

Working with the SUNY Student Association and NYPIRG chapters on SUNY campuses, the goal of the campaign is to register as many students as possible to vote in the November election.

Yet another issue that UUP advocates expect to be dealing with is the impact of health care reform on SUNY’s three health science centers. HSC Concerns Committee Co-chair Ray Dannenhoffer of Buffalo HSC said there is concern about how reform might affect the hospital’s teaching mission by having teaching faculty devote less time to teaching and research.

“We must embrace and promote our mission, and as a union we must support the physicians and HSC staff that maintain this mission,” he said.

With the number of items on the plate of UUP’s activists, the union is looking for more members to participate in advocacy activities.

Chapter leaders want to recruit members to take part in regional advocacy training sessions to help the union reach its legislative goals.

Members looking to volunteer should contact their chapter office.

— Donald Feldstein