Schumer discusses NLRB office remaining in Buffalo, FEMA grant for stream gauges

SYRACUSE — The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has abandoned plans to consolidate its Buffalo regional office with the Pittsburgh regional office.

The office of U.S. Senator Charles Schumer (D–N.Y.) made the announcement in a news release issued on Nov. 7.

The senator first made his concerns about the potential closing known early this summer.

Schumer in July called both Thomas Perez, U.S. Secretary of Labor, and Mark Pearce, NLRB chairman, urging them to reconsider the proposal. It would have downgraded the Buffalo regional office to a sub-regional office and move some services, including direct access to the regional director, to the Pittsburgh regional office.

“[The decision is] good for all Central New York businesses because they’ll get more attention,” Schumer said, while speaking with reporters outside Syracuse City Hall during a visit on Nov. 10.

The proposed consolidation would have made the Pittsburgh regional office the primary office for western Pennsylvania, a portion of West Virginia, as well as upstate New York. 

The Buffalo regional office is currently the primary regional office for all of New York, with the exception of the New York City metropolitan area. 

Schumer in July urged Perez and Pearce to reject the proposed consolidation, saying it would lead to delays in investigations, decisions, enforcement, and elections. 

It would also likely diminish the resources available to labor and management in New York. 

In addition, the proposed move would have made it difficult for workers and businesses to participate in hearings with the out-of-state travel requirement. 

Having direct, in-person access to a regional director is “critically important” for labor and management across the state, particularly during emergency situations, the Democrat said in the Nov. 7 news release. 

For example, when a situation involves an injunction, the regional director files the documents. Then, Schumer’s office contends attorneys on both sides of any labor dispute would “likely” want to argue their case in person.

Having a regional director based in the Pittsburgh office would have made it “harder” for unions and employers to “access” the regional director, considering the distance involved and the increasing caseload that would occur as a result of the consolidation.

“The proposed consolidation would have had a detrimental impact on the ability of hardworking New Yorkers to join together and collectively bargain. This victory will allow union members and those who want to become union members to have a strong voice on the job. ” Mario Cilento, president of the New York State AFL-CIO, contended in Schumer’s news release.

River stream gauges
In the same question-and-answer session with reporters outside Syracuse City Hall, Schumer also reacted to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) grant of nearly $1.5 million for the New York State Canal flood-warning system. The grant is for the installation of rain and stream gauges along the Oswego River, Mohawk River, and upper Hudson River basins.

Both Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D–N.Y.) made the announcement in a news release that Schumer’s office issued Nov. 7.

Stream gauges, also known as precipitation gauges, measure rainfall in areas at risk of flooding. The stream gauges also measure the water level of rivers and stream systems to detect cresting waters. 

“These stream gauges are very inexpensive and really can save lives because they can alert communities hours and hours and hours before a river and a stream or a creek crests that there’s a flood coming down. At least people can evacuate. They can make preparations to avoid some of the problems that floods cause,” said Schumer.

With this funding, the state canal flood-warning system is combining forecasting, early-monitoring systems, and precise flood warnings to get first responders and local communities the real-time data they need in the risk or event of flooding. 

The grant will pay for the installation of precipitation gauges that officials will use in combination with existing monitoring devices and data to monitor changing conditions throughout each watershed as severe weather events occur, the lawmakers said. 

The nearly $1.5 million in funding represents the final installment of federal funding for the project, meaning that FEMA is covering the full cost of installing the stream gauges. 

Federal funds previously only offset 75 percent of the $5.9 million project, the lawmaker said.

The effort seeks to mitigate river-flooding risk in three New York river basins, including the Oswego, Mohawk, and Upper Hudson Rivers. 

The affected counties include Onondaga, Oswego, Oneida, Madison, Cayuga, Lewis, Herkimer, Tompkins, Chemung, Schuyler, Seneca, and 12 additional New York counties, Schumer’s office said.

The lawmakers previously announced other federal funding for these gauges in November 2013 and April 2014.

Tropical Storms Irene and Lee, Superstorm Sandy, and the periodic flooding in upstate New York have taught government officials that they “cannot shortchange programs” that communities rely on to keep citizens safe and well-informed, and that help first responders, Schumer said.                                        

Contact Reinhardt at ereinhardt@cnybj.com