Labor dispute escalates after Queens public defender group unionizes
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A new staff union at QUEENS DEFENDERS has filed a complaint with the National Labor Relations Board against EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR LORI ZENO and management. AP PHOTO/KEVIN HAGEN
By David Brand
An ongoing dispute between management and employees at a Queens public defender group has intensified after a new staff union filed retaliation charges with the National Labor Relations Board.
Attorneys and social workers at Queens Defenders, an indigent defense organization, voted to unionize with the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys - UAW Local 2325 last month in an election certified by the NLRB March 11. The ALAA, which represents staff at four public defender agencies in New York City, filed the retaliation complaint Monday, charging that Queens Defenders wrongfully fired two staff members who had supported the union effort. Management vocally opposed the union drive.
“We are ready to turn the page with Queens Defenders and develop a productive working relationship with Queens Defenders management ” said ALAA President Lisa Ohta. “However, that will be very difficult as long as our unjustly fired members are not reinstated.”
The ALAA and the employees, a social worker and an attorney, said they were terminated as a result of their pro-union stance. The firings galvanized local elected officials behind the union drive.
“It's always rotten when bosses union bust but extra galling when a legal service organization does it,” Councilmember and city comptroller candidate Brad Lander said at a February rally on behalf of the union.
Queens Defenders management, led by Executive Director Lori Zeno, countered that the staffers had committed ethical violations on the job.
The organization’s director of development, Brian Schatz, said Monday that Queens Defenders denies any wrongdoing and does not comment on pending litigation or investigations.
“We will be assisting the National Labor Relations Board with their anticipated investigation and look forward to a prompt resolution of these claims in favor of our agency,” Schatz said.
On Tuesday, Zeno copied this reporter on an email to ALAA organizer Alexi Shalom.
“After reading yesterday’s press release, I was discouraged to see all too familiar tactics and your continued propagation of misinformation,” she wrote in the email. “As for the charges you have filed, they will be investigated and addressed by the NLRB. We expect that the charges will be dismissed.”
Zeno said management is ready to negotiate a new contract with the union and questioned why the ALAA had issued a press release about the NLRB complaint. “When can we be done issuing false press releases and get to work?” she said.
In a response to the Eagle, Shalom pointed to the statement issued by Ohta, the ALAA president, Monday.
“The statement stands for itself. You say you want to have a productive relationship but you need to hire these workers back,” he added.
