BILL NUMBER: S7829
SPONSOR: JACKSON
 
TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the civil service law, in relation to establishing a
managerial or confidential higher education differential
 
PURPOSE OR GENERAL IDEA OF BILL:
This bill, also called the MC Higher Education Differential bill,
ensures that eligible management and confidential (MC) employees of the
State of New York will be on equal footing with their union-represented
subordinates and coworkers for this critical piece of compensation.
 
SUMMARY OF SPECIFIC PROVISIONS:
Section 1 amends the civil service law by adding a new section 154-d
that would allow eligible managerial or confidential employees - with
proof of eligibility - to receive higher education differentials that
shall be lump sum payments which are not added to base salary, not
subject to salary increases, and not pensionable.
Section 2 is the effective date.
 
JUSTIFICATION:
Eligible employees represented by the Public Employees Federation (PEF)
will receive Higher Education Differential payments of $600 in both 2024
and 2025. This differential was not extended to MC employees even though
the majority of MC employees serve in positions that require higher
education and/or professional credentials. This has exacerbated ongoing
salary compression issues between MCs and their subordinate union-repre-
sented employees and has worsened MC employee morale. Further , as
certain titles in State service may be either MC-designated or union-re-
presented, union-represented employees in the very same title and salary
grade will receive this differential while their MC co-workers will not!
This bill addresses, in part, the inequitable compensation of MC employ-
ees who, unlike their coworkers, are prohibited from engaging in collec-
tive bargaining for salary and benefits by the State's Taylor Law.
This bill is a first small step in addressing compensation inequity for
unrepresented MC employees and ensuring that ALL State employees will be
treated fairly in matters of compensation and benefits.
 
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill
 
STATE AND LOCAL FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
N/A
 
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately