6
QUEENS WEEKLY, MAY 19, 2019
Holden eyes ways to get
Fresh Pond Rd. moving
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BY BILL PARRY
Several elected officials
joined airport workers
and union leaders on the
steps of City Hall last week
calling demanding justice
after Eulen America employees
at John F. Kennedy
Airport were forced in
March to use up paid sick
leave that they accrued
in 2018.
New York City law
clearly authorizes workers
to carry over up to 40
hours of unused sick time
per year.
On May 9, the airport
workers announced
they had filed complaints
with the city Department
of Consumer and
Worker Protection against
Eulen America.
“We were badly understaffed
because workers
were forced to use up their
paid sick leave,” JFK and
Eulen Passenger Verification
Agent Whitney Moore
said. “Those of us working
our shifts had to do
everything, whether it’s
in our job description or
not. For instance, we did
not have enough workers
to push the wheelchairs so
managers, on a daily basis,
asked my co-workers
to push two wheelchairs at
the same time because we
were severely shorthanded.
It ended up being a disservice
to passengers and
workers alike.”
Councilman Francisco
Moya stood with the airport
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workers saying denying
their lawful right to
sick pay is petty, cheap and
shameful.
“Everyone gets sick.
Providing paid sick leave
isn’t a luxury; it’s simply
acknowledging reality and
responding humanely,”
Moya said. “It’s curious
how wealth never trickles
down to the working class
but hardship always seems
to when it comes to corporations
like Eulen America
and their profits. I stand in
solidarity with the Eulen
America workers at JFK
and for treating people with
dignity and decency.”
Eulen America said
these are accusations
by a union which is putting
politics before the
facts in an effort to drum
up support.
“We take our full compliance
with New York City
Worker Protection & Workplace
Laws and all other
applicable regulations and
laws very seriously,” Eulen
America CEO Xavier
Rabell said. “SEIU’s allegations
that workers must use
or lose paid sick leave are
simply false. The facts are
clear, Eulen America has
a generous and well documented
Paid Time Off/Sick
Leave policy for out JFK
employees which allows 40
hours, the maximum permissible
amount, of unused
PTO to be carried over for
use through March 31 of
the following year.”
The union’s allegations
have been noticed on
Capitol Hill.
“Paid sick leave is critical
to hard-working New
Yorkers,” Congresswoman
Grace Meng said. “The allegations
raised by JFK
workers are serious and
I stand with them and
32BJ in their fight to protect
paid sick leave.... Any
attempt to shortchange
working men and women
out of this critical benefit
is unacceptable.”
Read more on QNS.com.
BY MARK HALLUM
On a recent walking
tour of Fresh Pond Road in
Ridgewood, Councilman
Robert Holden made a series
of recommendations
to the city Department of
Transportation (DOT) in
regard to the launch of a
dedicated bus lane along
between Metropolitan and
Myrtle Avenues.
As part of Mayor Bill
de Blasio’s Better Buses
Action Plan announced
in April, the sluggish section
of Fresh Pond Road
between Metropolitan
and Putnam Avenues was
among many across the city
that would get a bus lane to
address congestion on the
thoroughfare.
During the walking
tour, Holden suggested better
light synchronization,
consolidating bus stops and
methods to keep the way
clear for riders to board
and disembark.
“My staff and I gave
many alternate suggestions
on how the DOT can
improve traffic flow on
Fresh Pond Road,” Holden
said. “We look forward to
working in partnership
going forward to determine
what can be done to
make this area much safer
and less congested.”
Holden also placed
emphasis on the intersection
near Putnam Avenue,
where he said the nearby
Fresh Pond Bus Depot and
delivery vehicles put an
additional strain on traffic
conditions.
The mayor hopes that
road redesigns giving
priority to public transit,
speeds will increase by 25
percent by 2020 and complement
congestion pricing in
Manhattan when it is finally
implemented after about
two years since Governor
Andrew Cuomo went public
with a proposal.
According to a DOT
spokesman, the agency has
not finalized a plan and will
be reaching out to local officials
upon completion.
“Making it easier to
get around our city means
New Yorkers have more
time for what matters most
– for their family and themselves,”
de Blasio said in
April during his announcement.
“These measures are
part of our OneNYC strategy
to build a fairer, better
city for all. They complement
congestion pricing,
helping us fix our subways
and reduce traffic delays to
get our city moving.”
The proposal also has
the backing of Assemblywoman
Catherine Nolan
who said improvements to
Fresh Pond were long overdue
.F
resh Pond Road sees
not only local traffic between
Middle Village and
Ridgewood, but the twolane
road also accommodates
the Q58, QM24, QM25
and QM34. Each of these
bus lines see a daily ridership
of about 30,000, the de
Blasio administration said,
and average bus speeds are
5.9 miles per hour in the
morning hours and 3 miles
per hour in the evening.
Reach reporter Mark
Hallum by email at mhallum@
schnepsmedia.com or
by phone at (718) 260–4564.
Eulen America airport worker Whitney Moore rallied against
paid sick leave violations at JFK during a City Hall protest.
Courtesy of 32BJ SEIU City Councilman Robert Holden with members of the
Department of Transportation during the Fresh Pond Road walking
tour Photo via Facebook/Council Member Robert Holden
JFK Airport workers, Queens
pols protest forced worker leave
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