After years with no contract, ECAT employees close to getting pay raise

After years without a pay raise, a labor contract that would finally give ECAT employees a wage increase is going up for a union vote. Escambia County has negotiated a tentative contract with Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1395, the union that represents ECAT employees, which will now be put before union members.

The ECAT workers haven’t had a permanent labor contract since Escambia County took over day-to-day operations of the bus system in 2017. They’ve been working under the existing contract, and although the Escambia Board of County Commissioners agreed to a 4% raise for employees it hasn’t gone through because a new labor contract has yet to be ratified by a union vote.

Negotiations have been ongoing for years, primarily between Escambia County Administrator Wes Moreno and Mike Lowery, president of the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1395. They have agreed to a contract before, but the union did not to vote to ratify it and negotiations began again.

The board discussed the most recent proposed contract at their meeting last week and approved several articles Lowery and the union wanted addressed. Those included allowing ECAT employees to use bulletin boards for messaging; having the county's human resources department manage their sick leave instead of the union; and approving 120 hours of union leave time for ECAT employees with the option to donate an additional 40 hours if they use it all.

Lowery said the union leave time was needed because it allowed employees to be reimbursed by the union for time they take off for training, arbitration, collective bargaining, or working grievances. Before voting to approve, the article became a point of discussion for some commissioners who said a ratified contract is long overdue in order to give ECAT employees raises.

“It’s high time that we give people what they deserve,” said Escambia Commissioner Lumon May. “I mean because of some of the wording here, people may not be putting food on the table. Eggs are going up, bread is going up, gas is going up, but we’re not giving people their money and we’re allowing for politics to not allow for people to get their money.”

County Commissioners Robert Bender and Jeff Bergosh echoed sentiments that they wanted to get a contract approved that would potentially pass a union member vote and did not want to delay over issues that may not be as pressing as a pay raise.

“We’re trying to get you to a point where we can get your employees the raises that we’ve already approved,” said Bergosh. “We’ve got to get past this hurdle and this contract has to be ratified. That’s the goal. Work with us and give your men and women that raise. This is the path to the raise.”

Some county leaders question if some of the issues Lowery is bargaining over have delayed the process unnecessarily. Lowery said he was confused by questions that indicated he had delayed employees getting a raise, saying that was up to the county administrator, but some commissioners pushed back saying they had approved the raise and ratification was the only thing standing in the way of ECAT employees getting it.

The county negotiates contracts with four other departments including corrections, fire, EMS and operational services, or public works. Those contracts were outstanding, along with ECAT's, when Moreno first came on board as county administrator. The bus system's labor contract is the only one left to be ratified.

“If we impose these articles as management has presented,” said Bergosh, “which are reasonable and align with what other unions are doing, will you commit to putting this to a vote of all your members where there can be maximum participation at a location that is going to facilitate maximum participation? We’re trying to work with you but this is the only bargaining group we’ve not been able to put to bed.”

“I’m a little confused what Commissioner Bergosh is asking me,” said Lowery. “We recommend the contract at ratification. I cannot control which bargaining unit employees show up to vote, that’s on them, each individual.”

Now that the board has approved the three articles, union members will have the opportunity to vote on the tentative contract on April 16. There are 79 ECAT employees and 30 vacant positions, Moreno said. If the contract is approved, employees will get the 4% pay raise and to a greater extent will be under the county’s policies and procedures.

This article originally appeared on Pensacola News Journal: ECAT employees pay raise scheduled for union vote in Escambia County