Dear PBA Member,
I am writing with an update on union elections. As you may be aware, elections for all positions on the PBA’s Executive board will be held this June. In accordance with our bylaws, candidates for those positions must submit nominating petitions in May.
Before the nomination process begins, I believe it is important for all PBA members to know that I will not be seeking re-election.
This decision is part of a philosophy I have long held: a rider cannot switch horses in the middle of a battle, and the PBA must not change leadership in the middle of a contract fight.
As you know, the contract agreement we have just reached ends in 2025. If I were re-elected, our fight for the next contract would be in full swing when I age out of the NYPD in 2026, a fact that the City would seek to use to its advantage at the bargaining table. There is also no telling when another crisis – another natural disaster, another tidal wave of anti-police sentiment – will break out in our city or in our profession.
Transitioning to new PBA leadership under those conditions would not be in our members’ or our union’s best interests. To remain true to my principles, I must allow the change to begin now.
While there is never a perfect moment to make this kind of change, right now our union is in the strongest position we have seen in years. Our historic contract agreement not only gives us certainty and security for the next several years. It has also showcased the depth of talent on the PBA’s executive board. Every aspect of this contract, especially the modern chart pilot program, was a team effort. The members of that team have shown that they are ready and able to build on that success and lead our union into the future.
For the remaining months of my term, the PBA will be focused on the ratification and implementation of our contract settlement. Our priorities are to get our members the money they are owed forthwith, and to successfully roll out the modern chart pilot program. We will also press forward with every battle we are currently waging in court, in Albany and in City Hall, while working to prepare our union for a smooth and stable transition.
In the coming weeks, I want to continue the conversation about where our union was in the past, where it is today, and where it should head in the future.
For now, however, I want to assure all members that an impending change in leadership will have no impact on our core mission: your rights, your safety, your quality-of-life, and the pay and recognition you deserve for protecting New York City. That is what the PBA stands for – and that will never change.
Fraternally,
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Patrick J. Lynch
President |