By Jenn Smith,
The Berkshire Eagle
Copyright 2007 MediaNews Group, Inc.
PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Members of the city’s emergency dispatchers’ union are planning an informational picketing demonstration in front of City Hall tomorrow morning for what union President Scott Connors is calling an “unfair” contract offer.
The collective bargaining agreement between the city and the Pittsfield Emergency Telecommunications Dispatchers IUE-CWA Local 81256, a nine-member union, expired June 30, 2004.
Connors said the demonstration is due in part to a hike in the health insurance rate.
The contract offer, which the union voted down Thursday, was a 3 percent raise for each of the next two years.
But if accepted, Connors said the union members would lose between $1,000 and $2,000 per year because they have been told that the co-pay for their health insurance would increase from 10 percent to 20 percent.
“We have no problem with this (insurance plan). We just want to get compensated for it,” he said.
Contract talks have continuously been in third-party mediation, with the two sides last meeting in July. Connors said another session was held two weeks ago, but members were disappointed that Mayor James M. Ruberto did not attend.
“We have the police, fire, EMS and citizens’ lives in hand every time we answer the phone. The union feels that the mayor doesn’t care,” Connors said.
He said that the current base pay rate for a city dispatcher is $12.62 per hour.
The median hourly wage for police, fire and ambulance dispatchers in Massachusetts is $16.90, according to May 2006 data from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Connors said he would like the city to adopt the state’s median as the base rate to cover the difference in higher health insurance costs.
“We have one dispatcher who’s pregnant. She can’t afford to take a pay cut if we sign,” he said.
The dispatcher also said that city dispatchers have a 50 percent turnover rate, which he believes is due to lack of a fair contract and pay.
“It’s unfortunate,” said city Personnel Director David Battistoni with regard to the union voting down the city’s offer. Battistoni said Friday that he was aware of the union’s vote but had not received formal notification.
“From the city’s perspective, an offer was put forward in good faith,” he said.
Both he and Ruberto declined to comment on the specifics of the contract negotiations.
Battistoni said that, of the city’s 10 bargaining unions, contracts have been settled with all but the dispatchers.
“We’ll have to see what happens next,” he said.