East Bay Regional Park District AFSCME 2428 Union Votes Down Contract afscme57.org/index.cfm?action=article&articleID=f614ccb0-a047-4fc9-8971-a312ad724239 On Wednesday, June 19th, AFSCME Local 2428 overwhelmingly rejected the East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD) contract offer. The local represents over 90% of the employer’s workforce including rangers, naturalists, supervisors, trades workers, firefighters, lifeguards, and clerical and professional workers. “The offer the District put on the table does not keep pace with the cost of living,” said Cliff Rocha, President of Local 2428 and a Park Ranger at Temescal Regional Park. “Our members are sending a strong message to the Board of Directors to recognize the sacrifices we’ve made over the last two contracts and now that the District has weathered the economic storm it is time to acknowledge their workers with a fair wage. As a park ranger I am already paid seventeen percent less than my counterparts in other public agencies.” The local, representing over 600 workers at EBRPD, has been in intense negotiations since February. Their contract expired on March 31st. Two weeks later the District declared an impasse and a mediator was called in to assist the parties. The major sticking point includes a wage increase that offsets increased retirement contributions and the rising cost of living in the Bay Area. The park workers have made concessions in health care and retirement in previous contracts and have seen their take home pay eroded in recent years. “We have been told by EBRPD’s lead negotiator that the District wants shared accountability and cost savings. We are sharing by paying higher retirement contributions but we will not accept unwarranted takeaways and substandard wages and benefits,” said Eri Glans-Suzuki, Sergeant at Arms of Local 2428 and a Reservations Support Tech at EBRPD. “The District is sitting on healthy reserves. The 2012 unassigned General Fund balance totaled $35.8 million, while the Board of Directors designated another $18.5 million for economic contingencies, for a grand total of $54.3 million of financial flexibility. This amounts to 55.7% of budget. A 20% reserve is considered very conservative; a 55.7% reserve shows a reluctance to adequately staff parks and to invest in a skilled workforce.” Local 2428 requested that the parties immediately return to the table, but the employer is not committing to a date to resume negotiations. “The District has not made reaching an agreement with the bargaining unit a priority,” reported Rocha. “Although the local hopes a deal can be hammered out without calling for a job action, the lack of commitment by the District raises the likelihood of a job action over the Fourth of July.” Members conducted an informational picket at the EBRPD Healthy Parks/Healthy People event on Saturday, June 22, at the Quarry Lakes Regional Recreation Area. See these links for coverage of the event. East Bay park workers prepare to strike July 4 - KTVU Watch KTVU Video
Posted on: Tue, 25 Jun 2013 00:33:20 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015