Laura GLesby Photo
City Labor Relations Director Wendella Ault Battey at Monday's committee meeting.
(Updated) Seventy-five parks employees are now one step closer to a new contract — three years after their last city labor accord expired.
UPSEU Local 424’s New Haven chapter, the Parks and Blue Collar bargaining unit which represents some employees of the Department of Parks and Public Works as well as animal control officers and public safety mechanics, have reached a tentative agreement with the city that, if approved by the Board of Alders, will result in a retroactive, five-year permanent contract for the bargaining unit for the first time since 2020.
If approved, the contract would include a new salary step system, a 2 to 3.5 percent raise most years, and a raised retirement age from 62 to 65. It will increase costs to the city by $813,369 through 2025.
During a Board of Alders Finance Committee meeting in City Hall on Monday, the committee alders voted unanimously to favorably recommend the proposed labor agreement, which now heads to the full Board of Alders for further consideration and a final vote. Click here to read about the new proposed union contract, which would run from July 1, 2020 to June 30, 2025, in full.
Director of Labor Relations Wendella Ault Battey took the lead Monday on presenting on the changes proposed in the agreement.
A key change is that an eight-step salary schedule will be condensed to a two-step system.
Workers will receive a retroactive wage increase of 2 percent for 2020 – 2021, after which the new salary scale will be implemented. Then, from July 2022 to July 2024, union members will receive an annual 3.5 percent raise.
Those combined salary adjustments mean that by 2025, a union member at step 1 could make between $51,841 and $75,307, while a union member at step 2 could make between $57,217 and $84,887.
“By condensing the steps from seven to two, we were able to elevate most of the workers on the bottom step,” said Battey.
The agreement also raises the retirement age for employees hired after the contract’s ratification from 62 to 65, with an early retirement pension penalty of 5 percent (up from 2 percent) for each year below the age of 65.
In addition, the agreement makes a number of changes to the healthcare options for the employees, requiring new employees to participate in a High Deductible Health Plan (HDHP) in which the city contributes 50 percent of the deductible and employees take on 12 percent of the premium cost shares by July 2024.
Salaries proposed for the year starting in July 2024.
Finance Committee Chair and Westville Alder Adam Marchand pointed Monday night to the following language in a summary document provided by the city: “Subcontracting is not grievable or arbitrable; City shall not lay off and City shall use best efforts to fill vacant positions.”
“Management always has a right to subcontract,” asserted Battey. In her view, this language simply prevents the union from challenging that right should the city decide to subcontract in the future. “We don’t have to get their permission, it’s just notice.”
Battey said that the guarantee that the city “shall use best efforts” to fill vacancies in the department stemmed from a thorough discussion over wording with union bargainers.
(Update:) On Friday, Liz Ditman, the labor relations representative for UPSEU Local 424, Unit 128, responded to Battey’s comments: “Wendella Ault Battey’s quote about subcontracting is egregious. The Union still has it rights to challenge subcontracting under the Municipal Employee Relations Act, which is where all of the subcontracting claims for this bargaining unit have been filed and will continue to be filed and fought tooth and nail, so her claim that they don’t need our permission and they now just have to give us notice is emphatically false.”
“We know there are a lot of vacancies” across city departments, said Marchand. How will this contract affect hiring and retention efforts?
There are currently six vacancies among members of the bargaining unit, Battey said.
“While we’re able to hire, we see lots of turnover,” added Acting City Budget Director Michael Gormany.
“We definitely think the pay raise will attract more employees,” said Battey.
To all the people comments and dialoging about the Mayor's budget, NOW is the time to be vocal and make your voice heard! Talk to you Alder about your prioritizes, these contract are the largest drivers of our annual budget!