Members of UE Local 799 ratified a new two year agreement with the Delaware City Schools on February 22. Local 799 represents the school district’s custodial, food service, maintenance, mechanics and transportation employees.
The contract includes a three percent wage increase retroactive to June 30, 2006, with an additional 25 cent hourly increase to the rates paid to food service workers on catering assignments, and to bus drivers on field trips. UE members will get an additional pay raise in June 2007 equal to the raise the teachers’ union negotiates at that time. The agreement also includes a new health care plan packaged with a $750 lump sum payment to offset any additional expenses that members may incur.
In addition to wage increases the negotiating committee made improvements in the grievance procedure, adding language that automatically puts a discharge or suspension of more than three days at the third step of the procedure. Also, the time limits in the grievance procedure were changed to shorten the entire process by twenty-five days.
The negotiating committee fought hard and won improved language in several articles of the contract including hours of work and overtime, seniority and vacancies, discipline and discharge and personal leaves.
Committee members stayed united and fought back the board’s proposals on outsourcing, sick leave, sick leave transfers and other changes that could have hurt the membership.
When school district voters rejected a needed tax levy in the spring of 2006, the union and school board agreed to extend the original June 30, 2006 contract expiration date for six months, allowing school officials two additional chances to win approval of the levy, in August or November. Voters approved the levy in August.
The Local 799 negotiating committee consisted of President Nina Williams, Vice President Dan Compton, Chief Steward Amy Runyon, Treasurer Tawnya Ballard and Secretary Jerry Miller. They were assisted by International Reps. Deb Gornall and Dennis Painter and Field Organizer Karen Hardin.