Hello 1199 Family. I am very excited to report that last week I received my first vaccination. The process could not have been easier. The staff were fantastic, and I feel fine. I'm thrilled to be part of our increasing vaccination numbers in Upstate/Western New York State. Also, in our region (as across the country) case numbers, hospitalizations, and death tolls are continuing to decline. Read More
New York, NY - 119SEIU President George Gresham has released the following statement regarding recent racially motivated attacks against members of the Asian-American community: Read More
On March 22, 2001, 1199 launched a program to assist union members and their families to obtain citizenship. The program was jointly administered by 1199’s Benefit and Pension Fund and its Training and Upgrading Funds. Read More
1199SEIU President George Gresham released the following statement regarding President Joe Biden’s signing of the American Rescue Plan: Read More
Last week, I received my first vaccination at Interfaith Medical Center in Brooklyn, NY. (And I feel great.) 1199ers at Interfaith have been doing incredible work throughout this vaccination effort. Central Brooklyn was hit particularly hard by the pandemic, and it was wonderful to see Interfaith caregivers, who have given so much, working to restore the health and wellbeing of thousands of Brooklynites. Interfaith 1199ers and hundreds of thousands of caregivers like them have been playing central roles in vaccine rollout programs that protect our communities. Read More
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, adding a third vaccine to those available in the United States. All three vaccines have been approved by the FDA under an Emergency Use Authorization (EUA). An EUA makes the vaccine available for public health emergencies with continued use if people benefit from it. Read More
“Reports that the State Department of Health is planning to dramatically cut health care services in one of the hardest hit areas of New York City are deeply disturbing. Read More
On Friday, February 19th we welcomed nearly 6,000 Personal Assistants (PAs) at Concepts of Independence into the 1199SEIU family -- the largest group to join our Union in the last decade. Read More
The Bread and Roses Gallery, also known as Gallery 1199, often served as a venue for the Union’s African American History Month programs. Just as the auditorium’s stage provided a platform for speakers and performing artists, the Gallery played a similar role for graphic artists and multi-media exhibits. Read More
Dear Sisters and Brothers, I am happy to report that I will be receiving my second dose of the Pfizer vaccine on Thursday, Feb. 25 at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in Brooklyn. I’m relieved and grateful that I will be protected from COVID-19. It has been very painful to watch so many seniors (and their families) in our communities be affected by this deadly virus. What’s as concerning is the number of seniors and retired people I’ve spoken with don’t want to take the vaccine. They have been frightened by lies and misinformation. Read More
COVID-19 shines a light on the critical, behind-the-scenes role of laboratory workers in patient care. 1199SEIU represents laboratory workers at Northwell Health’s Plainview Hospital on Long Island’s North Shore. The 219-bed community hospital serves residents of Nassau County, which, by early February had a total of 130,933 COVID-19 cases. At Plainview, as at all hospitals, lab workers are integral in diagnosing and treating COVID- 19. The virus continues illuminate the role of so many unseen healthcare heroes and the critical role in healing the sick and moving the nation past the pandemic. Read More
Our 2021 legislative agenda reflects both immediate worker protections, like Emergency Paid Sick Time and longer-term solutions to ensure the healthcare workforce have a voice in care delivery, greater protections from pandemics and other emergencies, and necessary industry oversight to ensure quality care. Read More
During an unprecedented national crisis, 1199ers moved to the vanguard to defeat perhaps the worst president in our nation’s history. Now we are moving to the front lines to help our nation heal and move forward from a confluence of health, economic, social and democratic crises. Read More
In January, after 50 years at Kingsbrook Jewish Medical Center in Brooklyn, Clinical Laboratory Scientist Fritz Joseph hung up his lab coat for the last time. At retirement age and with Kingsbrook’s lab downsizing, Joseph decided to dedicate his life full-time to art. Read More
As COVID-19 raged throughout New York City’s metropolitan area, there was an unexpected pilgrimage north to New York’s Hudson Valley. Real estate brokers touted economic renewal and a revived sense of close-knit, small-town community. Healthcare facilities proudly displayed banners proclaiming that “Healthcare Heroes Work Here.” It was a tableau of Rockwellian Americana. Read More
For Jesse Aguirre, a transport messenger at St. John’s Episcopal Hospital in Queens, NY, COVID-19 work became personal in April, when the 29-year-old’s mother was admitted to the hospital with the virus. She died after a month-long struggle. As painful as it was to say goodbye, Aguirre also believes that God led him to the work at St. John’s, so he could be at his mother’s bedside. Read More
What started as a hospital beautification project has become a historic initiative that’s transforming healthcare and addressing long existing disparities in Central and Eastern Brooklyn. Read More
Healthcare workers are among the first in the nation to be eligible to take the new COVID-19 vaccine—which evidence shows will provide significant protection against the deadly disease. There are two vaccines currently available from Pfizer and from Moderna, and both use messenger RNA (mRNA) technology. Read More
Millions of Bandaided biceps signal a return to normalcy: the COVID-19 vaccine rollout is under way. Read More
