Public Employee Press

Grievance Victories
City corrects $9,900 back pay glitch

By DIANE S. WILLIAMS

Nine Local 1505 members and retirees each received $1,100 in back pay after union leaders worked with the Sanitation Dept. to resolve a payroll system glitch that for years shorted the workers their night differential.

"I noticed the night differential in my paycheck and after taking to others I realized not everyone was getting it," said Shop Steward Dominick Stella, a 28-year Sanitation veteran.

"Members on shifts that work evenings 4 to 12, and nights 12 to 8, were being paid," Stella said, "but for years the guys on the 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift did not get the 15 percent differential on the hours clocked before 8 a.m."

Work it out

So Stella called Council Rep Anthony Mammalello and Local 1505 President Dilcy Benn, "who did their homework and found that we are entitled to differential money. They worked hard on our behalf," Stella said.

Mammalello called Labor Relations about the payroll error, and in a series of labor-management meetings he was able to resolve the grievance at Step 3 without going to arbitration.

The Office of Labor Relations gave the Sanitation Dept. 30 days to resolve and correct the pay shortage for the eight workers and retirees.

Management admitted there was an error in their calculations, but the glitch was corrected four years ago when the city converted to a computerized payroll system. "With the six-year statute of limitations in place, members were only allowed to collect the differential pay for about two and a half years," Stella explained.

On each shift at the Fresh Kills landfill about 12 to 15 workers are assigned the physically-taxing job of examining trash for evidence of terrorism, moving garbage to the tipping floor, maintaining the facility, and loading trash from dump trucks onto barges and rail cars to be transported to out-of-state landfills.

"I'm going to pay some bills or maybe take a well-deserved vacation after this long winter," said Stella. Most of the members affected have 10 to 20 or more years on the job. He said, "The back pay is not a lot, but in this tight economy every dollar counts."

"The shop stewards are the eyes and ears of the union. If the steward had not called the rep and if the union had not reached out to the agency, the members would still be underpaid," said Benn. "Fortunately we have a very good working relationship with the Dept. of Sanitation and they did not hesitate to correct the problem.

"Our members do not make a lot of money," Benn added, "but the Sanitation Dept. always does right by them."