50 YEARS AGO State strike over, but not anger

A two-day, 40-hour strike by over 120,000 state employees came to an end April 2 with the announcement of a tentative agreement which would probably see the state borrow upwards of $60 million to finance it. The agreement, which reportedly angered legislative leaders, was reached at the end of 14 consecutive hours of bargaining. It called for an immediate 4 percent salary hike and a 1 1/2 percent lump sum payment next year, along with continuation of current salary increment schedules. CSEA instructed strikers to report to their jobs on normally scheduled shifts immediately. Troopers were sent to prisons in Attica, Auburn and Elmira to relieve guards forced to work 24 hours when colleagues refused to cross CSEA picket lines. A Mental Hygiene spokesman said “small numbers” of patients were removed from some state hospitals and schools but most entities functioned normally.

Times Union, April 3, 1972