Unions in New York City were less than enthusiastic yesterday following the release of Mayor Michael Bloomberg's budget for the coming year, and his calls for union cooperation in cutting costs. District Council 37 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees---the largest union in NYC with 125,000 members, and a trend setter for many smaller unions---will be submitting its proposals for a new budget to Mayor Bloomberg in the coming weeks, and officially had no comment. Several candidates for the presidencies of the Sergeants Benevolent Association and the Uniformed Firefighters Association, meanwhile, were vocal in their criticism of Bloomberg's proposed cuts in funding for the Police and Fire Departments.
See "Unions Wary of Cooperation Call", WILLIAM MURPHY, Newsday, April 17, 2002