Unions representing the city’s life-saving ambulance service workers are backing ex-Gov. Andrew Cuomo for New York City mayor, abandoning incumbent Eric Adams whom they endorsed four years ago.
The thousands of EMS workers represented by the two unions are among the few that have not landed new labor contracts with the Adams administration, even as they say they face low pay and a dire lack of resources.
“Our EMS workforce has been lied to by politicians for years. Their contracts have lapsed, leaving them unable to afford to pay for basic necessities, all while they’re tasked with ensuring the safety and well-being of our loved ones,” Oren Barzilay, president of FDNY EMS Local 2507, and Vincent Variale, president of Uniformed EMS Officers Union Local 3621, said in a joint statement Wednesday.
Local 3621 represents 600 EMS officers and Local 2507 counts 4,100 members — including emergency medical technicians and paramedics and fire protection inspectors who were on the front lines during the worst of the COVID-19 outbreak.
“This situation is unsustainable. It’s time for action—and no one gets things done like Andrew Cuomo. We fully support and endorse Andrew Cuomo for mayor because the safety of New York City depends on it,” the unions’ joint statement said.
Low pay has been a sore point for the life saving ambulance workers, Barzilay, the Local 2507 ambulance workers’ union boss said.
Ambulance response times during life-threatening emergencies jumped in the last year, according to recent FDNY data — and the department blames ongoing staffing and recruiting troubles as contributing to slower responses.
“Emergency Medical Services (EMS) faces a lack of resources in terms of emergency medical technicians and paramedics as well as a smaller pipeline of potential recruits,” the FDNY said in the report.
“This reduction in capacity leads to fewer in-service hours per day for EMS.”
Cuomo vowed to address the grievances over compensation for EMS technicians and paramedics.
“Our EMS first responders are on the frontlines of every emergency. They are often the critical link that keeps a loved one alive when tragedy strikes,” Cuomo said.
“Yet, time and again, the city’s leadership has failed them.”
Cuomo claimed that there are EMS families forced to live in homeless shelters.
“We will give these heroes the resources they’ve earned so that the city may recruit the talent and retain the experience NYC needs. EMS will once again be a respected and desirable job,” he said.
During an interview Wednesday, Barzilay praised Cuomo’s handling of COVID-19, despite the controversy over his administration’s March 2020 order directing nursing homes to admit recovering coronavirus patients and him writing a profit-making book about the pandemic.
“I thought Cuomo did a good job during the pandemic, especially with the information he had at the time,” Barzilay said.
He recalled telling Cuomo that EMS workers did not have enough personal protective equipment, when City Hall under then-Mayor Bill de Blasio claimed there was an adequate supply.
“Cuomo addressed it,” Barzilay said.
Cuomo is the front-runner for the Democratic nomination, according to recent polls.
Adams, a Democrat, announced he will not run in the Democratic primary and instead has launched a long-shot bid for re-election as an independent candidate.
