Public Employee Press

Arbitrator orders retro pay for hospital worker

Six years ago, Amar Yasin went to work in the Duplicating and Mailing Dept. at Metropolitan Hospital. He made it his business to learn the intricate steps to operate the complicated equipment he was asked to run.

It took a while to figure out that what he was doing wasn’t actually “his” job, and that he was working out-of-title.

Yasin approached his supervisor and requested an informal resolution of the problem. In November 2004, her denial led the Local 1549 member to file a grievance. Clerical Division Grievance Rep Efrain Perez went into action. Now, three years later, after grievance steps 1, 2, 3 and an arbitration hearing, the question has been resolved.

“Our member was clearly working out of title,” said Perez. “Management couldn’t see it, but the arbitrator did.”

Yasin was backed up by Local 1549 and the DC 37 Legal Dept. “We had illustrations of all the machinery he operated,” explained Perez. Attorney Idina Gorman won words of praise from her client: “She was very thorough and did a beautiful job,” he said.

Now the father of three is waiting to receive a check for the back pay he was awarded. The hospital must give Yasin the difference in compensation between Clerical Associate III, his job title, and the pay for the work he was doing as a Computer Aide, Level I — from the date he filed his grievance to the date of the arbitration.

Sadly, the job he learned to love is no longer his. Now he is pushing carts of mail through the corridors of the hospital. But Yasin is satisfied that he — and his union – did the right thing. “I always tell members, ‘Don’t give up’,” said Perez. “It took time and perseverance, but we took it all the way.” Assistant Clerical Division Director Renee Gainer applauded Yasin’s tenacity and example. “He’s an inspiration for the many other members of Local 1549 who are working out-of-title," she said.