Members of New York’s largest well being care employees union simply voted to topple their longtime president amid accusations of mismanagement and lavish spending.
Yvonne Armstrong, senior government president of Service Staff Worldwide Union 1199 East, simply defeated George Gresham in a landslide vote of 26,623 to 11,722 in an indication of main discontent over the present management.
The outcomes had been introduced by the union Sunday after an official depend Saturday night time.
Gresham, who began out as a housekeeper at Presbyterian Hospital, had been president since 2007.
However he was dogged by accusations of utilizing union-fund accounts as his private “piggy bank” to learn himself, household and allies, in line with a latest Politico investigation. He denied wrongdoing.
Gresham is also sick.
“Although this election did not go as I had hoped, I want to congratulate the candidates from both slates for their victories,” Gresham mentioned in an announcement launched Sunday. “No matter who you voted for, at the end of the day we are all part of our precious 1199 family, and I know that we share the same deep love for our union and the labor movement.
“It has been the honor of my lifetime to serve as your President for the past 17 years. I started my journey as a proud rank-and-file member in housekeeping at Presbyterian Hospital 50 years ago, full of the same passion and commitment that still drives me today to fight for the rights and dignity of all healthcare workers, our patients and communities.”
Gresham performed a key function in profitable will increase in New York’s minimal wage and increasing home-care providers and Medicaid funding, which is the monetary lifeblood for a lot of hospitals that make use of his members.
SEIU 1199 East is a part of the most important well being care employees union within the nation, representing 450,000 complete members all through New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, Maryland, Florida, and Washington, DC.
Gresham has urged union officers to maintain their eye on the ball by combating again in opposition to proposed federal cuts in Medicaid and to barter stronger labor contracts.
“Once my term ends in June, I look forward to a new role in our great union – [as] an active 1199 retiree,” Gresham mentioned.
The event got here as New York Metropolis United Federation of Lecturers President Michael Mulgrew, who has been in energy since 2009, is dealing with a troublesome re-election struggle himself.
He’s is battling a spirited problem from Amy Arundell, the previous Queens borough consultant who has held key positions within the union. She beforehand served in Mulgrew’s dominant unity faction within the union.
Mulgrew scored a giant victory when he persuaded the state Legislature and Gov. Kathy Hochul to approve a class-size-reduction legislation in New York Metropolis lecture rooms.
However his unity caucus is dealing with rising discontent. Final 12 months, challengers to his slate received seats within the retiree chapter and the unit representing paraprofessionals.
Retirees had been notably incensed over proposed modifications of their Medicare protection.
