Mayor: DPW Union Agrees to New Contract, Workers to be Recalled

The town might be bracing for a hurricane this weekend, but another major storm has passed.

Mayor Jason McCoy said on Thursday night that Department of Public Works employees represented by Local 1471 of AFSCME have ratified a two-year collective bargaining agreement.

McCoy said a special meeting of the Town Council will be called for Monday to vote on the contract. McCoy has initialed all the necessary pages, but needs the council to give him permission to formally sign the deal.

McCky has initiated the recall of the workers scheduled to be laid off as a result of the stalemate.

Calls and e-mails  to union representative Larry Dorman were met with messages saying he was out of the office until Sept. 6 and unavailable for comment.

McCoy said he was glad the union approved the deal, a contract he said was good for both the town and workers.

He also broadcast the announcement on his Twitter account.

The major highlights are:

• Compensation raises of up to 2.5 percent for two years.

• A switch to a health maintenance account system that will save employees 5 percent on their co-pays.

Local 1471 represents building maintenance workers and some water pollution control authority operators. McCoy had sent out layoff notices to some workers to make up for what he said was a $113,000 budgetary shortfall. The deficit was created, he said, because the cheaper health plan had not taken effect under a new contract.

McCoy said the process will be put in place Monday to have those workers recalled. The layoffs were to take effect Wednesday, Thursday and Friday - the first three days of school.

McCoy said he did not anticipate any break in services.