AFSCME union delays strike
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, May 18, 2004
Plans for Ironton city employees to hit the picket lines are off - at least for now.
Union leaders said the issue is now in the Ironton City Council's hands.
After meeting in arbitration for more than five hours Monday, the AFSCME local 771 union agreed to postpone the strike for three weeks until 6 a.m. June 7 in a last-ditch effort to allow Mayor John Elam and the council to agree on a plan to generate revenue and bring some of the nine laid off employees back to work.
"We are trying to help the citizens out while we let council make up their minds what they want to do," said union President Joe Johnson.
As part of the deal, the assistant water clerk will be reassigned back from police dispatching to her original position, at last temporarily.
"We are really happy that we were able to immediately avoid a strike," Elam said. "I think the reason it was avoided was that council has (voiced willingness) to implement a partial municipal fee and continue to look at ways to generate revenue."
The union, which includes employees in the city's street, sanitation, flood, water and sewer departments, police dispatchers, income tax and water collection offices and the meter maid, had planned to strike because both sides had been unable to come to terms during wage and insurance negotiations.
Though the lack of a .25-cent raise was the official reason, the union was primarily concerned about job security after the May 1 layoffs of 10 municipal employees that included eight AFSCME workers - three employees in the sanitation department, three in the street department, a water department clerk and a custodian.
In addition, two non-union administrative employees were also laid off - the assistant code enforcement officer and the facilities manager. The vacant position of economic development director has not been filled.
Johnson and the union still would like to see council implement a $10 per month, per household municipal fee that could generate $500,000 to fill the city's half-million dollar deficit between revenues and expenses. Some of these funds could be used to help bring back at least some of the employees.
Despite an outpouring of public support, the fee was voted down last week. Union members plan to circulate petitions later this week to help convince council that the community is willing to pay a little more.
"We have done what we can do," Elam said. "Now it is necessary for council to help come up with a viable means to enhance our revenue that includes some of the plans that have been presented to them."
As of early Tuesday, Councilman Jesse Roberts and several other councilmen said they had heard the news through the media but not directly from the mayor. Still, Roberts said he believes that council will come up with a plan to meet the mayor half way.
"I think council has said they are willing to work with the mayor on a plan," Roberts said. "I think it is wonderful that the union want to be a part of the plan. But, I think it is a misnomer that people would go back to work just because we may pass a fee because it would still just be filling a gap in revenue and expenses."
Councilman Bill Nenni said he is drafting a comprehensive plan that incorporates several councilmen's ideas to address the municipal fee, sanitation problems, the reciprocity agreement and shortfalls in the water department.
The plan will most likely be on the May 27 agenda, Nenni said.
Elam said he will immediately begin preparing plans to use any revenue generated to operate the city most efficiently.
No promises have been made, but Elam said he would like to bring a few employees back as soon as something would pass.
"It would be my intention to do so. I would address the services that have been most compromised first," he said. "Right now, we are about three days behind in garbage collection."
No matter what council does, the union understands that everyone will not be hired back immediately, Johnson said.
"I have faith that the mayor will do what is right for the city," he said.