Borough Assembly approves IBEW Union contract - Updates
Notice: Release as of July 13, 2017
The Assembly of the City and Borough of Wrangell voted to implement the Collective Bargaining Agreement, as amended, with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) 1547, as approved by the bargaining unit. The contract is effective July 1, 2017 and expires on June 30, 2020.
Notice Release as of July 11, 2017:
PUBLIC NOTICE
The Borough Assembly will hold a Special meeting on Thursday, July 13, 2017, at 5:30 p.m. at City Hall, regarding the following items:
Executive Session: Discuss with the Borough Manager and the Borough Attorney, the proposed amended Collective Bargaining Agreement between the City and Borough of Wrangell and the International Brotherhood of Electric Workers (IBEW).
Request that the Borough Assembly implement the Collective Bargaining Agreement, as amended, with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) 1547, as approved by the bargaining unit and recommended by the Borough Manager.
Kim Lane, MMC, Borough Clerk
City & Borough of Wrangell
Letter to the Community
July 5, 2017
Dear City and Borough of Wrangell residents and employees:
I am Carol Rushmore and am currently serving as interim Borough Manager. Lee Burgess is the Finance Director. We are “management.” You can say anything you feel about “management,” but we are the individuals you are referring to when you talk about “management” as part of the strike and the union negotiation discussion. We are not executives of a for-profit company. We do not get paid in stock options and bonuses as rewards for keeping labor costs down. We are government employees. Your taxes pay for our salaries and benefits. Your taxes, utility rates and harbor rates pay the wages and benefits of all local government employees, union and non-union.
A report issued by the Institute of Social and Economic Research and the University of Alaska Anchorage was released this month that makes me very frightened for Wrangell. It explains how much more dependent local governments are on state and federal money than ever before. It explains how the fiscal health of municipalities is in danger because of declining state revenues. It explains that local taxes will need to be raised significantly just to try to cover the decline in state revenue or there will need to be a dramatic drop in local services. The report can be found here: http://www.iser.uaa.alaska.edu/Publications/2017_06-RegionalAssessmentBo... . We confirmed that approximately $900,000 in Secure Rural Schools funding from the federal government for FY2017 is not going to be paid to Wrangell. This is an enormous loss for the Borough. We also just learned the State is cutting what it will pay the Borough for local police presence at the airport by half in FY18, and then eliminating it next fiscal year. These are only the latest pieces of financial bad news the Borough has received.
Union-represented employees have received 2-3% raises every year since 2011 through the current date upon a satisfactory annual evaluation. The increase is administered by way of step increases each year based on the approved 16-step union pay plan. One employee has been at the maximum step for the last 3 years. In addition to those annual wage increases, the new contract the Assembly ratified on June 20 and described in the next paragraph, provides for additional wage increases on top of those annual increases.
On June 20th, the Borough Assembly unanimously approved a new contract for IBEW-represented workers only. This contract increased starting wages for union-represented positions by 22%-24%. The contract also included adding three additional steps to the top of the union-represented employee pay scale. It also included raising every union-represented employee’s base wage by an additional $0.75 per hour, which amounts to an extra $1,560 per year per full-time union-represented employee, which is the equivalent of an additional 1-2 step increase on their pay scale. In return, all union-represented employees will pay 15% of the cost of their health insurance premiums, which is the same percentage all other non-union Borough employees already pay. The Union claimed the Borough was being unfair and chose to strike over this proposal.
On June 28th, the IBEW proposed workers would return to work and put its unfair labor practice claim against the Borough on hold in exchange for Borough Management participating in negotiations over additional concessions to the now-approved contract. On the same day, I decided to accept this request upon the IBEW dismissing the unfair labor practice claim, as I felt everyone involved in this situation was more than ready for the strike to be over. On June 29 the IBEW did dismiss the unfair labor practice claim and the Borough received a new proposal from the Union.
Since then, I have attempted in good faith to negotiate with the Union additional provisions or modifications to the already ratified contract. I feel the Union’s additional demands are not financially feasible for the residents of Wrangell, nor consistent with what the Union has stated publicly that it wanted. Therefore today, July 5, 2017, I have made the choice to not accept the Union’s last proposal to the Borough and to not make any further offers to the Union. I cannot in good conscience submit the Union’s demands for Assembly review when I feel it threatens the financial future and the sustainability of the Community.
If the Union attorneys file more unfair labor practice claims against the Borough as a result of my unwillingness to agree to their demands, or because I wrote this letter, or for any other reason, I will defend the Borough’s position in front of the Alaska Labor Relations Agency to the best of my ability. If the Union leadership and workers choose to return to strike, that is their right under state law, and I will continue working as hard as I can to coordinate the continuation of adequate public services.
At an Assembly meeting on June 27th, a family member of a Union-represented employee stated she knows the Borough Assembly is not “the enemy,” and that they know that the government employees, union-represented or otherwise, are not “the enemy.” She is right. There are no enemies among local government employees. Hostility and divisiveness is making everyone worse off. No one in this community benefits from the destructive notion that “management is the enemy” or that public employees in general are the enemy. I implore the residents of Wrangell to not say hostile or retaliatory things toward employees. Please do not take seriously anyone who tries to inflame anger and hatred and intolerance using divisive comments about any of your local government employees, whether they are union employees or non-union employees. We are each other’s co-workers, your friends, your family members and we rely on each other to provide adequate services to you.
Lastly, I want to say from the bottom of my heart that I am touched by the unwavering willingness of our community members, including those represented by a labor union, to drop everything they are doing and help their community in times of adversity and need.
Respectfully yours,
Carol Rushmore
Interim Borough Manager
Press Release:
June 29, 2017
Garbage Curbside Service Returns
As of this morning, the CBW's regular curbside garbage service will resume.
We will also be collecting additional large dumpsters to cover the backlog of those who were not able to haul the large dumpsters. If you have removed your dumpster or locked your dumpster, please return them to their normal status so we can collect the garbage.
The solid waste transfer station's operating hours will remain the same as they have been this week, through tomorrow, Friday, June 30th. These hours are 10:00am-1:00pm and 2:30-6:30pm.
We will return to regular transfer station hours as of Saturday, July 1st.
Customers who regularly have their garbage collected Monday through Wednesday, and have not yet the chance to dispose of the garbage at the transfer station, may still bring their garbage to the station this week.
We want to thank the public for their patience and cooperation in handling their garbage over the course of the last week. We also want to thank those who offered their time to help others with their garbage. You know who you are, and so do we. Thank you all!
Press Release:
Wrangell Union Member Workers are on Strike
June 22, 2017
Media contact: Carol Rushmore, Interim Borough Manager
Today, June 22, 2017, the City and Borough of Wrangell employees who are members of the IBEW Union are on STRIKE. Union member employees include those in Public Works, Water, Sewer, Sanitation, Garage, Ports and Harbors, Electric, and Pool maintenance (excluding Department Heads).
Borough Management will provide updates regarding any expected service disruptions that may occur. More detailed releases will be posted to the Borough’s Facebook page and on http://www.wrangell.com/community/members-ibew-union-strike-wrangell and on KSTK Radio. The announcement soliciting temporary workers to establish a pool from which to hire from can be found at http://www.wrangell.com/community/seeking-temporary-workers.
Thank you for your patience. Please visit www.wrangell.com for updates or call City Hall at 907-874-2381 if you need more information.
Updated the morning of June 24th:
Garbage Service During Union Strike
At this time, the Sanitation Department will not provide curbside garbage collection during the union strike. All residents and businesses will be required to transport their garbage to the solid waste transfer station (aka The Dump).
There will not be an additional fee charged to customers for bringing their regular garbage quantities to the transfer station. There will still be fees charged for quantities outside of the service size for which each customer has applied.
With the metal hauling project expected to be complete on Sunday, June 25th, the transfer station will reopen next week with the following anticipated schedule:
Monday - Friday 10:00am-1:00pm and 2:30pm-6:30pm
We ask that you schedule your garbage delivery, as best possible, on the day of your normal garbage collection. This will help with congestion at the transfer station. Please expect a wait line at the facility, as we will need to maintain order with the traffic. We realize that garbage from the Thursday and Friday customers was not collected this week; therefore, these customers may plan to bring their garbage to the facility as early as Monday and then fall into a regular weekly delivery routine, which coincides with the day their garbage is regularly collected.
Customers with the ability to do so may haul their garbage container(s) to the transfer station for disposal; otherwise, the garbage can be removed from the container, bagged if necessary, and hauled. As required by code, all refuse intended to be placed in refuse containers shall be bagged, which will help if it’s necessary to remove the garbage from the container to haul.
At the current time, there will be no burning at the dump. Open burning shall comply with the State’s guidelines, which can be found through this web link: http://dec.alaska.gov/air/ap/docs/obrguide2016.pdf. Burn barrels are exempt from local permit provisions, as long as the barrel is attended at all times, is no closer than 20 feet to any structure, and is clear of any overhead obstructions. Items that are not organic in nature, are plastic and petroleum based, or are laden with other chemicals and shall not be burned.
Please check back periodically for potential modifications to this plan. Any changes will also be posted to the Borough's Facebook site and will be on KSTK's Community Calendar announcements.
If you are affected by the services that are, or may become, suspended or reduced, we encourage you to seek the help of family and friends in making alternative arrangements.
Water Treatment and Distribution During Union Strike
Wrangell's Water Treatment Plant and the Water Distribution systems are currently under operation by an ADEC-Certified Level II Water Treatment Operator and Level II Water Distribution Operator. Water treatment and delivery are expected to continue to the community, uninterrupted. Please call Public Works at 874-3904 if you have any questions.
We still request that the Wrangell community conserve water to ensure an adequate water supply for all resident and businesses. USE WATER WISELY!
Harbor Services During Union Strike
Harbor services will continue. Please call and leave a message on 874-3736 if you have any questions. Messages will be checked regularly and calls will be returned as soon as possible. There may be delays in responses.
Electrical Outage Information
This morning there was an electrical outage caused by a bird strike to the lines, and a portion of town was out of electricity. Linemen from the electrical department offered their assistance to return electricity to the area. The City would like to thank them for their response and assistance.
