Csba Attorneys

CSBA Business Agent Lee Gordon, CSBA Office Administrator Joseph Fagan and yours truly had the pleasure of meeting with 29 new ACS Agency Attorney Internes this past Wednesday afternoon. Thank you for watching and participating in our orientation presentation and for becoming our newest members!

CSBA Collective Bargaining has begun! We met with negotiators from the Mayor's Office of Labor Relations ("OLR"), Office of Management & Budget ("OMB"), and from most of our larger agencies on Tuesday, and submitted our formal list of 29 demands.

Here's a sampling:
A 21% pay raise over three years;
Eliminate the "hiring rate" (the subminimum) for our titles;
Make Remote Work PERMANENT, and expand it to up to three days per week;
Student Loan Repayment Assistance;
Promote from within and create a clear promotional path;
Return our title to Permanent/ Competitive through an Education & Experience ("E&E") Exam, with NYS Bar Admission counting as a 100% score;
Paid leave to take the NY Bar Exam and to attend the Bar Admission ceremony;
Job, compensation and advancement protections against Artificial Intelligence ("AI").

Many thanks to our Bargaining Committee (expanded this year for greater input and representation), our Board of Directors, and to numerous CSBA members for helping us craft such a well-balanced list of outstanding proposals.

The process always takes months, and that's why we fought to get to the table early in order for our demands, including title-specific ones, to be reviewed and responded to in a timely way. We will keep you posted as developments occur, and expect to discuss bargaining more fully at our General Membership Meeting on Wednesday October 28.

It was a pleasure to meet with the new Agency Attorney Internes and the new Agency Attorney at the Department of Social Services ("DSS")/ HRA Office of Legal Affairs today. Welcome to our newest members! I also really enjoyed stopping by to see other DSS/ HRA OLA Agency Attorneys also at 4 World Trade Center.

Their offices are across the street from the 9/11 Memorial. This Friday will be the 25th Anniversary of that horrible day. I thought it would be fitting to share a photo of the site today with its "reflecting absence" names, waterfall and empty footprint.

This coming Tuesday, September 8 (the day after Labor Day), there will be a large Rally & March starting at 4:30PM downtown at Zuccotti Party (Liberty Street between Church Street & Broadway). All the major unions will be there. After a few speakers, we will march up to Foley Square.

With contract negotiations anticipated to commence shortly, this is an excellent time to show up and have our collective power be seen and heard throughout NYC and the nation!

The Federal government keeps making it harder and more expensive for student loan borrowers. Kindly check the status of your loan to see if there are any changes or deadlines affecting you.

Thanks to those who have submitted bargaining suggestions. Our bargaining committee is currently drafting and reviewing demands geared towards improving member's lives. These demands will then be reviewed by our Board of Directors.

Ultimately, the city will have the opportunity to respond to these demands. Failure to agree to a substantial number of demands will demonstrate that recruitment, retention, productivity and morale are not high on their list of concerns.

Upcoming dates:
Tuesday September 1: Local 237 General Membership Meeting, 5PM;
Tuesday September 8: Labor Day Rally & March, starting at 4:30 at Liberty & Church Streets (Zuccotti Park), in lieu of traditional Labor Day Parade;
Wednesday October 28: CSBA Membership Meeting, 6PM.

Check our website www.csbanyc.org or call us at 212-675-0519 for more information.

Civil Service Bar Association « Affiliated with Local 237 International Brotherhood of Teamsters Welcome to the home page of the Civil Service Bar Association (“CSBA”). We proudly represent approximately 900 attorneys who are employed by the City of New York in its dozens of agencies and authorities. Our members work hard and smart each day, enabling their employer to properly and lawfully ...

In just a few short weeks, the heat and humidity of Summer 2026 will be history. CSBA's preparation for a busy Autumn season is already underway. Our Bargaining Committee is meeting next week and our Board of Directors reconvene a couple of weeks thereafter. It's not too late for you to submit Bargaining Suggestions to us via [email protected].

Particularly helpful are demands specific to what we as NYC Agency Attorneys and Agency Attorney Internes want. [Yes, we fully understand the need for competitive, substantially higher salaries in order to afford to remain with our agency, pay our very high student loans and astronomical rent. And Remote Work must be made Permanent, more flexible and expanded where possible!]

We have already demanded updated information on agency attrition rates. Everyone knows that we remain difficult to recruit and retain, and that this creates very significant problems not only for us but for almost every agency and the constituents we assist. Your ideas on creating a clear promotional path and incentives to stay may be particularly helpful.

Thank you as always and enjoy the rest of the summer!

Thank you to the many members who attended our Annual Meeting this past Tuesday. It was longer than average but well worth the time and effort!

As we announced, the following seven members were elected to our Board of Directors, Class of 2029:
- Sean Strockyj (DOHMH) (re-elected)
- Christopher Taylor (DCWP)
- Alexandra Holmstrom-Smith (DCWP)
- Yaa Sarpong (DCAS)
- Dassi Karp (DCWP)
- Amal Alzendani (DCWP)
- Alexandra Reese (DCWP)

I sincerely look forward to working with each of you as well as with the entire Board of Directors. And thank you all who previously served and/or offered to serve our members as we fight to obtain the best possible contract and to enforce our rights thereunder.

Reminder: Our Annual Meeting is tomorrow, Tuesday June 23, 2026, starting at 6PM. As it is remote only, you must obtain the log-in information from us. Please email us ASAP at [email protected] to obtain access to our member-only event!

A street sign will be unveiled tomorrow, Saturday June 13th at 2PM, in memory of Aldona Vaiciunas, our Grievance Coordinator and Office Administrator for more than 25 years. The ceremony, complete with speeches, local press coverage and refreshments afterwards, will take place by the corner of Hudson Avenue and Evans Street in the Vinegar Hill section of Brooklyn (next to Dumbo).

As Aldona was also the long-time President of the Vinegar Hill Neighborhood Association, the sign placement by her corner is perfect.

The closest subway is the York Street station on the F line (the first stop in Brooklyn).

Aldona was exceptionally talented and devoted to our members. I hope as many people as possible attend so we can pay Aldona the final tribute that she richly deserves!