If you’re not at the table, you’re
on the menu. Those are words
to live by, as far as Felicia Bruce,
Retiree Council 43 president (NYSUT
Teacher Retirees in Florida), is concerned.
That’s why she’s working
in partnership with the Coalition of
Retired Educators Living in Florida
to ensure that sunshine state retirees
cast their ballots in the upcoming
general election.
The brainchild of Florence McCue,
at-large ED 51-53 director, CORELIF
has a simple goal — uniting Florida
union groups, both ahead of the
2020 general election and beyond.
“Everyone was doing their own
thing in Florida, and I knew that if we
got organized and worked together,
we could be more effective politically,”
said McCue who launched the
group last summer, with help from
the American Federation of Teachers.
“This is a great program, and I’m
thrilled that Florence took the initiative
to get it started,” said NYSUT
Second Vice President Ron Gross,
whose office handles retiree issues.
“Florida is an important swing state
and NYSUT retirees, our ‘daytime
army,’ are one of our most effective
political weapons.”
McCue explained that when it
came to political activism, even
NYSUT’s Florida retirees were lone
wolves. The United Federation of
Teachers/Retired Teachers Chapter
— Florida Section, led by Ken
Goodfriend, and RC 43 members
usually handled member outreach
independently.
After recruiting NYSUT retirees to
the group, McCue invited in-service
and retiree activists from the Florida
Education Association; the National
Education Association; and the
Florida AFL-CIO to join the coalition.
McCue hosts biweekly Zoom checkins
to track progress.
CORELIF’s first task was cultivating
member relationships. Partner
groups phone banked, encouraging
retirees to vote by mail in Florida’s
August primary and, with COVID–19
widespread, making wellness
checks. “We wanted to make sure
we had a connection before the
November election,” said McCue,
explaining that each group reached
out to its own members with a unified
message. “The union is here for you
and we’re all in this together.”
“It’s fabulous that we’re working
together,” said Lynne Winderbaum,
Tampa Bay coordinator for the
UFT/RTC—FS.
Using some 40
volunteers, the
group has called
thousands of voters
— UFT/RTC-FS
members and others
in their households.
To ensure
that those who’ve
requested ballots
return them,
they’re using the
AFL-CIO’s Labor
Action Network
which updates
members’ voting
histories every few
days. “We’ll do a
final round of calls in the last few days
before the election to anyone who
hasn’t voted yet,” said Winderbaum.
“We’re doing a vote-by-mail push,
highlighting that it’s safe and reliable
and encouraging folks to do it early
so their vote is counted,” said Bruce,
noting that RC 43 also uses the LAN
to track ballot returns. She uses her
extensive retiree contacts to share
CORELIF’s mobilization message
and recruit phone bank volunteers.
In addition to heading RC 43, she’s a
director for Florida Retired Educators
Association; president of the Treasure
Coast Florida Alliance for Retired
Americans; and a
member of the Florida
Educators Association
Retired, the FEA’s retiree
organization.
“I’ve heard a lot of
Trump voters say ‘never
again’ … his erratic
behavior, mismanagement
of the coronavirus
and attacks on Social
Security,” Bruce said
of her meetings with
retirees. “He’s hurt them,
and they know it.”
NYSUT’s powerful network of
retiree activists in New York State also
lent the coalition a hand. When FEA
President Andrew Spar needed help
contacting in-service and retired AFLCIO
Florida members who requested
absentee ballots, McCue recruited
Long Island, Westchester and UFT
retirees to phone bank.
“Inservice members are being
pulled in so many directions …
retirees have to step up and take the
yeoman’s share of political action,”
said McCue. “We’re determined to
take Florida over the top.”