WNYLaborToday.com Editor’s Note: Pictured above, Joe Wild (seated at the far end of the table) - a Health Care Consultant/Taft-Hartley Specialist based in Western New York, has created a series of unique Upstate New York Union Funds Manager Roundtables that either can be attended in person or anywhere else via Zoom.  These opportunities are working to bring together those in the field who very rarely or do not have an opportunity to interface with others in their profession.  Those who’ve participated and are continuing to participate rave about the offer, telling WNYLaborToday.com they would recommend it to anyone in the profession.  (WNYLaborToday.com Photos)

(BUFFALO, NEW YORK) – Steve Hoover, Melissa Del Prete, Meghan Lefsyk and Kevin Koval have something in common: They are all Union Fund Administrators - a unique position to hold in a Labor Union, which also carries a heck of a lot of responsibility when it comes to taking care of the needs of their Members and Retirees.

It’s also a position that makes them brethren in a field where there’s little chance to interface with other Fund Administrators - people they can ask questions about what they are dealing with, offering suggestions on how to tackle issues, sharing ideas and building relationships that can yield a variety of positive results.

But Hoover is in Buffalo with U.A. Plumbers & Steamfitters Local 22, Del Prete in Rochester with Laborers Local 435, Lefsyk in Albany with Bricklayers Local 2, and Koval in Syracuse with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 43.

For people like these, there’s not much of a chance for them to get together in person for a happy hour of shop talk while knitting together a professional comradery of sorts that Union Fund Administrators/Managers would like to have.

But all of that has changed, thanks to Joe Wild - a Health Care Consultant/Taft-Hartley Specialist who saw a need and built the necessary bridges through a series of unique roundtables across New York State that can be attended either in person or via Zoom.

“I’ve been to two of them,” said Hoover, Fund Manager for Buffalo’s Plumbers Local 22, which has 1,900 Active and Retired Members in its plan.  “They’ve ‘been extremely beneficial.’  ‘Every day you’re putting your nose to the grindstone, working and having no opportunity to talk to others who are working the same kind of job.’  ‘Getting like-minds together is so important because it seems like I work in a silo sometime.’  ‘You learn about the good, bad and ugly.’  ‘It’s good to see what others are working on so you can upgrade’ (your skills and system).  ‘I would absolutely recommend them.’”

Del Prete, Fund Administrator for the Laborers Local 435 in Rochester who’s responsible for 1,600 Active and Retired Members in their plan, says: “It’s a ‘great’ forum ‘to discuss issues and get feedback on handled situations.’  ‘There are not a lot of people who do these jobs.’  ‘It’s like calling up a girlfriend and bouncing ideas off each other.’  ‘The biggest thing for me is the networking.’  It’s like a ‘secret’ fraternity.”

Lefsyk, Fund Administrator for Albany’s Bricklayers Local 2 - which is responsible for 1,200 participants, tells WNYLaborToday.com her first thought when learning about the offered roundtables was: “‘There are other people, like me, out there?’  ‘I’m not losing my mind?’  It was ‘very reassuring.’  I’m an observer and take everything in.  ‘I wanted to know if there was something I could do better because I didn’t know it all.’  (Union Leadership) ‘thinks they know how all this works, but they don’t.’  ‘I still feel I have a lot to learn, but I know I’m not alone.’  This job ‘is just a different beast.’  I’d ‘definitely recommend this.’  ‘I’m still taking it all in, but this is such a comfort.’”

Koval, the Assistant Plan Manager for Syracuse’s IBEW Local 43, which has around 2,000 participants, says: “I’ve done it two times, remotely.  It’s been ‘very helpful and I’m enjoying some great discussions.’  ‘It’s invaluable because you’re getting so much (helpful) information.’  It’s an ‘opportunity to ask questions in a built-in connection’ (with others in the profession).  ‘You hear how they are doing things and how they are handling’ (the job).  ‘I would definitely recommend it to others’ (Fund Administrators).  ‘It is time well spent and of great value.’”

The Fund Manager/Administrator Roundtables’ purpose is to learn from one another by sharing best practices, discussing experiences - both positive and negative, in a safe environment, and developing contacts and resources across Upstate New York to assist with understanding policies, procedures, compliance and better/more efficient ways to do their job.

And it offers an array of education about health care policies, pensions, annuities and trends that are accessible to those who manage Multi-Employer Trust Funds.

Wild - whose consulting business has partnered with Buffalo-headquartered Walsh Duffield Companies & Strategic Retirement Partners, has - over the years, built a solid track record in the business, helping develop three Labor Divisions and Labor Advisory Boards for three different Health Care Plans. 

In the past, he has also partnered with Cornell University’s School of Industrial Labor Relations (ILR) to create on-site and WebEx Educational Labor Seminars that have addressed - for example, Affordable Care Act directives, the impact of COVID on health care coverage, general health care issues and pensions. 

(For More On Wild, Read: ‘Wild About Joe’ - Union Leadership ‘Marvels’ Over Health Care Consultant Joe Wild, ‘Who’s Made It His Mission To Help Organized Labor Make The Right Decisions For Their Members, Whether He Gets Their Business - Or Not’ - WNY Labor Today: Your On-Line Labor Newspaper, Bringing You Labor News From Across The Nation, New York State & Western New York)

“Over the years ‘I’ve learned that the people who do the most work with health care and pensions really don’t have the time to talk to others’ (in the profession),” Wild told WNLaborToday.com.  “They ‘always don’t have a chance to discuss anything with each other, even though there’s a real need for that.’  (The Roundtables are) all ‘free and I love seeing them open up with each other, it’s cool, with the issues they are facing and how they handle them.’  ‘It’s really a safe zone where they can talk candidly.’  ‘Personally, I wanted to understand their issues.’  ‘And I always have a Labor Lawyer there (in attendance, either in person or via Zoom) to answer their questions.’”

Wild also got Linda Donahue, retired Labor Educator at the Cornell ILR School in the Rochester area - an old friend, involved in the roundtable effort. 

The two have collaborated on dozens of beneficial on-site presentations for Union Leadership over the years that involved everything from health care to COVID.

“Joe is ‘really filling a niche here,’” Donohue told WNYLaborToday.com.  “This is a ‘small group of people that offer a real impact service.’  ‘He’s created common ground where they can come together in an effort to better serve their Members.’  ‘And he is really interested in getting the best possible information out.’  ‘He’s done a hell of a job.’”

While many might not believe it, Wild does not get much, if any, business off the roundtables. 

“That’s ‘not my primary’ focus,” said Wild, who has carved out a name for himself of helping Unions and providing an array of beneficial information that ultimately helps their Memberships.  “It’s ‘all about getting them to know what they did not know.’  ‘To elevate their involvement and support for the Labor Community.’  ‘And, when I sit and learn with them, I get to know what they need and that allows me to better help them.’”

Wild has physically held the Fund Administrator Roundtables in Rochester (one at Sheet Metal Workers Local 46 that WNYLaborToday.com sat in on/pictured below), Syracuse and Albany - which, again, are accessible to anyone who contacts him.

He has plans to expand the physical location of the roundtables to Buffalo in 2025, hoping to schedule at least one quarterly throughout the new year so more Fund Administrators/Managers can take part.

“We’ve had more than (20) take part in each session,” Wild said.  “We’re ‘just trying to connect more in Fund Administration throughout’ New York State.”

Wild has also partnered with Labor’s Bookstore, a website in Charlotte, North Carolina that is run and operated by former Cornell ILR Staff Alice Torres (who worked alongside Donahue in Rochester), where background information on the Upstate New York Fund Managers Roundtable is housed and offered, including past videotaped roundtables (WNYLaborToday.com Editor’s Note: Anyone interested in accessing this information should call Wild directly at 716-225-3787  to obtain a password allowing entry).

“It ‘doesn’t surprise me that Joe is doing this,’” Donahue added.  “He ‘wants to connect people who are not benefitting from getting all the information they need.’  In the past, those who participate ‘have the best info.’  ‘There’s nobody else that’s doing this.’  ‘And the people who participate want to learn more and Joe provides what benefit’s them.’”

Said the Rochester Laborers Del Prete: “I would (100%) recommend it.  ‘It’s great info and getting a chance to network with your peers.’  And Joe ‘is such a great guy.’  ‘His experience is huge.’  ‘What I like is Joe doesn’t come off like someone who wants to sell you something.’  ‘There’s no pressure.’  ‘That’s so refreshing.’”