Union Vote for Homecare Workers in New York

Close to 200,000 individuals who are paid to provide care for disabled family members through Governor Kathy Hochul’s Medicaid-funded homecare initiative are set to vote on unionizing. This potential change could bring about increased costs for taxpayers.

The 1199 SEIU union, which holds significant political influence, stands to gain more power and a substantial influx of membership dues from workers involved in the Consumer Directed Personal Assistance Program (CDPAP), which has faced numerous issues over the years.

If the vote moves forward, it could expand SEIU’s membership to 450,000, marking what the organization claims could be the largest union vote ever. However, critics are concerned that unionization might lead to higher program costs, ultimately impacting taxpayers.

The union had anticipated pushing for unionization from the onset of the program change in 2025, and it formally filed paperwork with the National Labor Relations Board recently, although no vote date has been announced yet.

Governor Hochul made significant changes to the program, appointing one company—Public Partnerships LLC—to oversee payroll for CDPAP. Many have viewed this decision as a favor to the union, despite ongoing challenges, such as unpaid workers and even fraud allegations.

Allegations have also emerged suggesting that the bidding process for the $1 billion CDPAP contract was designed to benefit PPL, with the Department of Justice filing a lawsuit claiming Hochul’s associates at the Department of Health manipulated the bid to allow the company to collect more Medicaid funds later.

Ken Girardin, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, expressed his concern, stating, “If this goes forward, it will amount to the biggest abuse of the Medicaid program in its history.” Sources indicate that around 65,000 personal assistants have signed up for the program.

A spokesperson for PPL mentioned that the company is neutral regarding the unionization effort and respects the personal assistants’ right to decide on unionizing. They’ve also signed a neutrality agreement with the union at the onset of this process.

Cadence Aquaviva, a spokesperson for the Health Department, shared that the Department of Health does not hold an official stance on the unionization push, adding that the state will have the final authority to approve any rate hikes that might emerge if 1199 succeeds in the election and begins negotiations with PPL.

Hochul’s spokesperson, Jonah Allon, asserted that they are committed to providing high-quality care for patients, fair compensation for workers, and a responsible use of taxpayer money.

Interestingly, a low voter turnout could potentially benefit the union, as they would only need a simple majority of the votes cast to succeed. A source noted, “It would be a shame if they had 5,000 people vote and they had 195,000 other people unionized because of it.”