Res 0655-2018

By Council Members Miller, Brannan, Chin, Eugene, Levine, Yeger, Kallos, Ampry-Samuel, King, Adams, Williams, Ayala, Treyger, Levin and Ulrich Whereas, The aftermath of the September 11, 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center exposed thousands of first responders to toxic dust and fumes, which, according to the World Trade Center Health Program, has resulted in ongoing physical and mental health conditions linked to exposure to such dust and fumes at the World Trade Center and other affected areas; and Whereas, Subparagraph a of paragraph 36 of section two of the Retirement and Social Security Law defines the term "Qualifying World Trade Center Condition" and provides for making the determination as to whether a condition is World Trade Center-related; and Whereas, According to the New York City World Trade Center Health Registry, nearly 60,000 New York City employees, 4,177 of whom are civilian employees, have reported that they participated in rescue, recovery and cleanup operations following the World Trade Center attacks; and Whereas, Many civilian employees have been forced to exhaust their own sick leave, miss work without compensation or retire prematurely in order to attend doctor's appointments and receive treatment for their qualifying World Trade Center conditions; and Whereas, On September 11, 2017, Governor Andrew M. Cuomo signed into law section 92-d of the General Municipal Law, granting unlimited sick leave to public employees outside of New York City seeking treatment for a qualifying World Trade Center condition; and Whereas, New York City grants line of duty sick leave to uniformed employees belonging to the Department of Correction, Fire Department, Police Department and Department of Sanitation, a benefit those employees may use while seeking treatment for a qualifying World Trade Center condition; and Whereas, On October 23, 2018, the Mayor of the City of New York announced that approximately 2000 civilian workers would receive sick leave, retroactive to September 11, 2001, to seek treatment for a qualifying World Trade Center condition; and Whereas, Many civilian employees of New York City still do not receive sick leave benefits through General Municipal Law � 92-d, line of duty sick leave or the Mayor's recent announcement; and Whereas, New York City bears a special responsibility to ensure that all public employees who have developed health conditions as a result of their participation in World Trade Center rescue, recovery and cleanup operations have access to as much paid sick leave as necessary to receive the best possible treatment for such conditions regardless of the department or division in which they are employed; now, therefore, be it Resolved, That the Council of the City of New York calls upon the Mayor of the City of New York to grant sick leave to all civilian officers and employees of the City of New York seeking treatment for a qualifying World Trade Center condition. LS # 4776 10/29/18 AS 2 1