If union interests are endangered, trust Shelly Silver to come to the rescue — even at the expense of New York’s most vulnerable citizens.

The Assembly speaker has been splashing cold water on Gov. Cuomo’s plan to deal with the abuse of disabled and mentally ill individuals in state-run facilities.

Cuomo proposes a special-needs focused “Justice Center” with the power to discipline — even prosecute — abusive employees.

Extensive news coverage has made the need for such an entity abundantly clear.

Last month, the Senate passed a bill modeled largely along the governor’s outline.

On Wednesday, Silver said that “there should be a greater independence in the new ‘watchdog’ agency” than is proposed.

And, oh yes, more “due process” for state workers.

Conveniently, those are a couple of the very issues raised by the Civil Service Employees Association — the largest state-employees union.

Silver’s intrusion comes shortly after Post State Editor Fredric U. Dicker reported that CSEA tried to link support for Cuomo’s reforms to the evisceration of a contract provision that grants bonuses to workers who opt out of state health-insurance plans.

Watering down that provision would have produced a potential $6 million bonus windfall to 1,700 CSEA members.

Following Dicker’s report, CSEA denied any “direct linkage” — while dropping it.

But, when all else fails, unions resort to an old reliable — legislative control — to get their way in Albany.

CSEA dropped by Silver’s office last week to “share” its concerns.

But there’s a big reason CSEA is raising “independence” and due process” issues: It’s been complicit in perpetuating abuse.

Virtually every time the authorities accuse a worker of abuse, CSEA fights the case tooth and nail. The result: Even the worst abusers almost never get fired.

Cuomo’s reforms hold out the promise of putting an end to that practice.

CSEA doesn’t like it. And Shelly Silver shares those “concerns.”

Same-old, same-old.