TWU Keeps Fighting for 9/11 First Responders

On the 23rd anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, TWU members and officers in New York City continued their years-long fight to get first responders the recognition and compensation they deserve. 

The TWU contingent – with participants from Local 100, Local 106, and Local 1400 – met with U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) in midtown Manhattan shortly after the annual memorial ceremony at Ground Zero. Gillibrand vowed to continue advocating for TWU members encountering bureaucratic hurdles, including those impacted by the MTA’s failure to produce records documenting their time working in the dangerous conditions in Lower Manhattan after the terrorists crashed hijacked commercial jets into two World Trade Center towers. 

Joining Senator Gillibrand at the meeting were: Local 1400 President Pat Reynolds, Local 100 Executive Board Member Mario Galvet, Louise Atsaves, whose husband George was a structure maintainer and 9/11 first responder who passed away in 2021, Local 106 Recording Secretary Jose DeJesus, Local 106 Union Representative Todd Napoletano, Local 100’s Steve Ruisi and retired Local 106 member Thomas Yankow.  

Reynolds, Galvet, George Atsaves, DeJesus, Ruisi and Yankow were all part of the TWU’s 9/11 response. Thousands of members went above the call of duty and worked in toxic conditions for weeks – and in some cases developed long-term medical problems because of their service.

Gillibrand pledged to do everything she can to help TWU members, and her staff received as list of 2,100 TWU members who were present at Ground Zero in the days and weeks following the terrorist attack from Galvet. Those members should be eligible for compensation and assistance from the federal government, notably FEMA.  

“I’m fighting to permanently fund the 9/11 Health Program so they can always get the care they need,” Gillibrand said, promising to be “a pain in the ass” for anyone in the federal government who throws up red tape.