|
To all Local 1320 Members
Please Be Advised
At
4 pm on December 22, 2009 one day before the deadline the Local as well as our
attorneys were served with the appeal papers by the NYC Law Dept. Attached is
a brief memo from Mary J. O'Connell General Counsel DC 37 be advised that we are
immediately working on our response.
Please attend the January 12, 2009
General Membership Meeting and hear a full Presentation from our attorneys on
the process. In Unity and Solidarity we will prevail.
For more information,
see memo
from Mary J. O'Connell General Counsel DC 37. (PDF*)
Comptroller
signs final Determination and Order. For more information,
click
here. (PDF*)
Finally
the Pieces of the Puzzle
Come Together
By Jim Tucciarelli
Since 2005 the members of Local 1320 knew that we voted to go to litigation
to get a prevailing rate for our titles but we never knew who the Comptroller
would compare us to or what was the rate of pay for those titles. Finally the
pieces of the puzzle are coming together. After months of preparation we got into
court and made our claims to an Administrative Law Judge for her to make a recommendation,
an independent view of the proceedings as presented by Sean Connelly of Hunts
Point can be found on our web site (see Apples
To Apples PDF*).
After nine
days of testimony and much deliberation and review Judge Alessandra F. Zorgniotti
in her September 10, 2009 decision (see Judge
Zorgniotti's decision PDF*) affirmed
the position taken by the Comptroller to compare STW's to the Operating Mechanic
A title and the SSTW's to the Plant Operators in Con Edison represented by Local
1 and 2. This long awaited decision provided the titles we would finally be compared
to, but there was still some uncertainty as to what the wages and supplements
would be because in the Local 1 and 2 contract there is a minimum and maximum
wage progression which takes 12 years to reach the maximum rate. We knew the titles
but did not know what we would be paid.
On October 20, 2009 the Comptroller's
office issued a summary of the Prevailing Wage Rates and a Summary of the
Prevailing Wage Benefits (see
attached PDF*) which finally posts
the rates of pay for the titles and provides the supplemental benefits. At last
we know who we are compared to and what the rate of pay is.
Sisters and
Brothers the puzzle is almost complete. The Comptroller notified the City and
the Local that they have until November 6, 2009 to provide written comments on
his findings and as of this article our attorney is preparing our response. After
the Comptroller reviews the written comments he will issue His Final Order and
Determination. At that point the Parties have 30 days to appeal the final determination.
We are finally getting to the end of this nightmare. I would like to thank each
and every one of you for your patience and fortitude in seeing this process thru
to the end. I know it has been extremely difficult in trying to maintain a normal
lifestyle for yourself and your families while earning the same wages since 2002.
We will report to you any progress that is made in bringing this issue to a final
resolution.
Local 1320 website
At
Local 1320 it is our goal to provide current, up to date information to our members.
You can now easily access the latest Local 1320 news, meeting notices, benefits
information and much more. You can also contact your union officers directly if
you need assistance. The website will be continually updated, so be sure to check
in and stay on top of the current events at Local 1320.
Call
for submissions
This site is meant to serve all members,
so please let us know about additional features and links which would be useful
to you.
Add your voice to the Local 1320 Newsletter, 'The Open Line.'
Please send articles, stories, letters, cartoons, etc. to Jim Tucciarelli at his
e-mail address listed below. Contact
212-815-1320 or e-mail
1in2bus@msn.com | 
