DPW Members Fill Rye Council Meeting to Ask for Fair Contract

Two union leaders who represent the city of Rye Department of Public Works employees asked the city council for a fair contract during last week’s meeting.

The Civil Service Employees Association, CSEA, has been working with the city for the past 15 months to negotiate a fair contract and has entered mediation, a labor relations specialist form CSEA said. They are hoping to reach a fair agreement without getting to an impasse, she said. About 20 DPW workers sat in the audience wearing their reflective orange and green clothing.

The specialist listed the many jobs that DPW workers perform, among them: daily maintenance of roads, repairing pot holes, sewer and storm drains and street lights, weekly maintenance at five pump stations, picking up road kill, cleanup, mowing and trimming at city-owned properties and working as tree crews. She also pointed out that the DPW workers often work in dangerous conditions during the sever storms like last year’s Hurricane Sandy and work weekends and holidays.

“They are a significant part of why the quality of life in Rye is what it is,” she said.

Their jobs have become increasingly challenging because of the storms, said CSEA Local 860 president John Staino. “They offer a value to the city and are asking for contract that honors and respects that,” he said. “We don’t think 0 in 2012 is fair.”

Mayor Douglas French thanked the union representatives and members for coming to the meeting. City council member Julie Killian and Rye resident Jim Amico also commended the DPW workers on their efforts to keep Rye safe during and after recent storms.

“We are hopeful the mediation process will come to a fair deal for all,” French said. “The other impact we are facing is the economy, that is still not going away. We need to look at long term with health care and salaries and make sure it is affordable for the city and fair for you.”