Public Employee Press

Truckers win Class A differential

Grievants from Locals 376 and 983 to share $1/2 million in back pay. New differential set at $25.48 per shift.

By DIANE S. WILLIAMS

A group of 39 workers with Class A Commercial Driver’s Licenses will get over $500,000 in back pay from a grievance that was first arbitrated and finally settled between the Dept. of Transportation and DC 37 locals 376 and 983.

The grievance winners and future employees will also get a differential of $25.48 for each shift they drive trucks that require the Class A license.

“Our members are only required to have Class B licenses for their jobs,” paving and repairing city streets, said Gene DeMartino, Local 376 president. “This is the first time prevailing wage workers will get an assignment differential.”

For years DOT assigned Local 376 Highway Repairers and Local 983 Assistant City Highway Repairers with Class A licenses to operate huge flatbed tractor-trailers carrying automatic paving machines, milling machines, bulldozers, payloaders and concrete barriers. DOT even encouraged and trained them to get the Class A license.

But when it came to fair pay, there was a hitch. DOT refused to fork over Class A wages, or about $33 an hour. When local leaders found out about it, they worked together to file an out-of-title grievance and hauled DOT into arbitration.

“We used the concept of ‘equal work, equal pay’ on this grievance to get a higher payout for members in both locals,” explained Local 983 President Mark Rosenthal.

Impartial arbitrator Susan Panepento heard both sides and determined that labor lawyer Stuart Lichten and DC 37 were right in claiming that since July 2003, the 39 DOT workers had performed duties beyond their job descriptions. Lacking a comparable city job title to base a cash award on, the arbitrator ordered DOT and the union to negotiate a settlement.

As a result, 28 HRs who spend four or more hours a day driving heavy-duty trucks will receive a $25.48 daily differential retroactive to March 2003. The 11 ACHRs will collect from July 2003. “Each member stands to pocket about $12,000 or more in back pay,” said Frank Burns, assistant director of the DC 37 Research and Negotiations Dept. “We’re glad Research and Negotiations Dept. worked with us to help get the money our members deserved,” DeMartino said.

“The substantial back pay for the original grievants shows it’s important to come to the union if you are working out of title,” said Local 376 Treasurer Tom Kattou. “It took two years, but the locals were very persistent.”

“This is a great win for the members,” said Rosenthal, who won a similar out-of-title grievance against the Parks Dept. a few months earlier. “We negotiated the best possible agreement with the city. Any time you can get a 20 percent raise per day, it’s wonderful.”