AFSCME Privatization Update

Source: BY CHASTITY PRATT DAWSEY, Detroit FREE PRESS (MI), May 9, 2008

The food program provided to Detroit Public Schools students could soon be served, as well as managed, by school employees.

The Detroit Board of Education voted unanimously Thursday night to allow the contract with Philadelphia-based Aramark Educational Services, LLC to expire on June 30. Aramark has managed the $44-million food-services operation since 2001.

....... The vote came after at least a year of lobbying and protests staged by union employees who argued that DPS employees could do a better and cheaper job of running the food services.

..... Aramark President Dennis Maple wrote in a May 6 letter to Calloway that DPS should stick with his company. He also offered to work under contract to help transition to in-house management by employees.

Posted by Info Center at 11:13 AM in Food Services | Publicization | Schools K-12 | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Michigan

Source: AFSCME Works Onlin Xtras, February 22, 2008

When it became clear it would cost taxpayers too much, plans to outsource the jobs at three state hospitals where employees are represented by AFSCME Council 62 were formally dropped last month.

AFSCME has said for years that all privatization efforts are costly to taxpayers. Two years ago, when Council 62 members first learned of the plans to privatize state hospitals in Richmond, Evansville and Madison, the direct care employees held rallies, put up signs and drummed up community support to defeat the proposal.

Posted by Info Center at 2:13 PM in Health | Mental Health | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Indiana

Source: AFL-CIO blog, April 25, 2008

Kevin Christensen, lead researcher in the AFL-CIO Center for Strategic Research, writes about a great victory for food service workers and custodians with AFSCME at the University of California-Davis.

AFSCME Local 3299 has won a four-year fight to end outsourcing of food service work in the 10-campus University of California (UC) system, after UC-Davis announced last week that nearly 200 workers currently employed by Sodexho will be eligible to apply for university employment, and so become AFSCME members.

Related article from the Sacramento News Review: On the payroll

Posted by Info Center at 11:47 AM in Food Services | Higher Education | Victories | Permalink
Tags: California

Source: by Allan Appel, New Haven Independent (CT), April 29, 2008

New Haven's public schools are moving toward managing their own kitchens. The surprise announcement came during a briefing by Chief Operating Officer Will Clark at the Board of Education's (BOE) monthly meeting Monday.

...... Larry Dorman, a spokesman for AFSCME Council 4 local 287, representing the custodians and local 3144, which represents facilities supervisors at the schools, said Aramark's ejection from the food business is "only half the equation. We need to see them expelled from the facilities maintenance as well."

Posted by Info Center at 11:43 AM in Food Services | Schools K-12 | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Connecticut

Source: AFSCME Local 3694, Josephine County, OR, Feb 22, 2008

This is an update on ERB Unfair Labor Practice ruling. To review, the Employment Relations Board (ERB) ruled in October that the Josephine County Board of Commissioners (Ellis, Riddle, and Raffenburg) illegally privatized Mental Health in 2006 and committed an Unfair Labor Practice in the process. This ruling only spoke to why the BCC chose to privatize the programs, not if there were other valid reasons for privatizing. ERB ruled the violations of the law were "egregious" and "flagrant."

The ERB Order included a half dozen main components, including back due compensation to employees as well as returning the programs to the County.

Oregon Employment Relations Board Case UP-26-06

Posted by Info Center at 10:51 AM in Mental Health | Publicization | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Oregon

Source: AFSCME Works Online Xtra, February 22, 2008

When it became clear it would cost taxpayers too much, plans to outsource the jobs at three state hospitals where employees are represented by AFSCME Council 62 were formally dropped last month.

AFSCME has said for years that all privatization efforts are costly to taxpayers. Two years ago, when Council 62 members first learned of the plans to privatize state hospitals in Richmond, Evansville and Madison, the direct care employees held rallies, put up signs and drummed up community support to defeat the proposal.

Posted by Info Center at 11:34 AM in Health | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Indiana

Source: OREGON AFSCME e-lert #1, Jan. 11, 2008

You'll recall that last fall, the union won a major Unfair Labor Practice award against Josephine County. The Oregon Employment Relations Board found that the county had privatized over 100 mental health workers in retaliation for Local 3694's four-day strike in early 2006. The vast majority of Local 3694's bargaining team and strike activists worked in JoCo Mental Health.

ERB's order (.pdf) said the county had to rehire all those employees, make them whole for any lost wages and benefits, reimburse Council 75 for lost union dues and pay a $1,000 civil penalty. The last item doesn't sound like much until you understand $1,000 is the maximum fine the law allows ERB to issue. Overall, the penalty was -- and is -- a very big deal.

Posted by Info Center at 11:08 AM in Mental Health | Victories | Permalink
Tags: Oregon

Source: By GREGORY N. HEIRES, Public Employee Press (NY), November 2007

About 40 Local 375 members who were laid off in the budget crisis of 2003 have returned to the School Construction Authority, capping a long campaign by the union to win back their jobs.

..... The authority's failure to meet its legal obligation to assign 40 percent of its design, drafting and inspection to in-house staff was at the core of the lawsuit. For years, the local had contended that SCA was not meeting that requirement; the suit showed the union was right.

Posted by Info Center at 3:06 PM in Publicization | Victories | Permalink
Tags: New York

Source: District Council 37 Public Employee Press, October 2007

Earlier this year, professionals at the Dept. of Environmental Protection were concerned about reports that the city would farm out the design work for a major section of its $6 billion water tunnel project.

...... Local 375 demanded a meeting with management to press the department to keep the work in-house. At the July 2 session with 1st Deputy Commissioner Steven Lawitts, Fort was accompanied by Chapter 13 President Vincent Moorehead, Chapter 8 President Steve Awad and Business Rep Karl Toth.

Fort underscored the local's position that the in-house staff would bring in the project at a lower cost than consultants, thanks to their expertise and institutional knowledge. He pointed out that in-house design work on the Manhattan section, including thousands of drawings and other documentation, had saved at least $40 million and was competed two years ahead of schedule.

The local estimates that keeping the Kensico work in-house will save the city $57.2 million in design costs alone. The design, construction and construction management budget for the project is $1.3 billion.

Posted by Info Center at 2:31 PM in Victories | Water & Sewer | Permalink

Source: Posted by James T. Mulder, Post Standard (NY), October 01, 2007 4:53PM

The state has backed away from a plan that would have forced a takeover of Onondaga County's Van Duyn Home & Hospital by Community General Hospital. Instead, the state has given its blessing to an alternate plan that will allow the neighboring Onondaga Hill institutions to remain separate, but set up a new nonprofit corporation to do joint planning for the nursing home and hospital.

...... A state panel known as the Berger Commission recommended late last year the private hospital take over the deficit-ridden Van Duyn, a 526-bed nursing home. The commission said a takeover could reduce duplication of services at the facilities, cut Van Duyn's operating costs and save money for county taxpayers.

Both the county and the Civil Service Employees Association union, which represents VanDuyn workers, sued the state to block the takeover.

Posted by Info Center at 10:44 AM in Health | Victories | Permalink

Source: By Adam Wise, Daily Tribune (WI), September 26, 2007

The Wisconsin Rapids School Board elected Tuesday night to fill current custodial vacancies with non-union employees on its own, a change from its recent plan. For the past month, the School Board has contemplated outsourcing its custodians as another measure to cut spending in the district.

This past summer, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Local No. 1075 bargained language into its latest contract that limited the school district's ability to outsource only through attrition.

Posted by Info Center at 2:51 PM in Custodial | Schools K-12 | Victories | Permalink

Source: Lisa Black, Chicago Tribune (IL), September 12, 2007

As about 75 senior citizens and supporters looked on, Lake County officials Tuesday overwhelmingly approved a plan to build a new nursing home to replace the tax-supported Winchester House in Libertyville.

...... Officials said they could not rely on the private sector to fill that need, but they will form an advisory board of professionals to help the new facility avoid repeating past problems.

....... Talks regarding the nursing home's future escalated in late 2005, when the county laid off 54 Winchester workers -- or 16 percent of its 330 employees -- because of its financial woes. That is a scenario officials said they would like to prevent from recurring. "They've been talking about privatizing this place or closing it," said Matthew LaPierre, who represents 250 Winchester workers through the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Posted by Info Center at 1:55 PM in Health | Victories | Permalink

Source: By Johnny Brannon, Honolulu Advertiser (HI), Wednesday, September 5, 2007

A long-delayed curbside residential recycling program will likely be launched in Mililani and Hawai'i Kai by late October, but a controversial new fee for a garbage collection option wouldn't be enforced until January.

....... The recycling program, which could later be expanded island-wide, comes more than three years after a similar project in Mililani was halted by a dispute with the union that represents city garbage workers. Then-Mayor Jeremy Harris had pushed to expand a privatized recycling project islandwide before leaving office in early 2005.

But the United Public Workers union successfully argued that the move would violate an agreement that allowed the city to shift from manual garbage collection to automated collection. Hannemann's plan calls for UPW members to collect recyclables.

Posted by Info Center at 11:33 AM in Victories | Waste Management | Permalink

Source: By Megan Tady, In These Times, August 1, 2007

Bill Lokyo never expected to find himself embroiled in a six-year battle over water with a multinational corporation and city officials in Stockton, Calif. .

....... But Lokyo and the group Concerned Citizens Coalition of Stockton (CCOS) felt compelled to challenge a rushed deal that turned the city’s publicly owned water system into a for-profit venture. This month, their perseverance paid off when the city finally sent privatization packing.

........ “It’s both symbolic for the anti-water privatization movement, and it’s a real victory for the citizens’ groups of Stockton—it means that the ordeal of water privatization is over for the city of 270,000 people,” says Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food and Water Watch.

Posted by Info Center at 11:26 AM in Victories | Water & Sewer | Permalink

Leadership Update, Volume #28, Issue #22, AFSCME Council 40 (WI), July 27, 2007

The sale of the St.Croix County Health Center was put off track last week when the buyer, lined up by the County, pulled out. The members of Local 2721 have been part of a grassroots effort to convince citizens that keeping the Health Center was in the best interests of everyone concerned. The would-be buyer cited public opposition to privatization as the reason for pulling out. This is good news, but the battle here isn’t over.

Posted by Info Center at 3:15 PM in Health | Victories | Permalink

Source: Edited by Don Loving, Council 75 Public Affairs Director OREGON AFSCME, e-lert #23, July 25, 2007

Despite efforts to privatize our animal control functions to the Humane Society we were able to beat back the “PETA With a Badge” advocates one more time. This bill would have passed if it had not been for the activities of member leaders concerned over the possible compromised security at the Primate Center of OHSU.

Posted by Info Center at 10:23 AM in Victories | Permalink

Source: By ELISE CASTELLI, Federal Times, July 03, 2007

The Labor Department has canceled plans to outsource 258 administrative support jobs to the private sector after recent law labeled one-fifth of the jobs inherently governmental functions.

The emergency appropriation President Bush signed May 25 classifies all Mine Safety and Health Administration jobs inherently governmental and exempt from public-private competitions, regardless of whether those jobs are considered government functions elsewhere. Sen. Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., sponsored the provision saying that outsourcing functions at the agency would affect the safety of coal miners.

...... The American Federation of Government Employees had argued in a grievance filed June 1 that the change in law changed both the public- and private-sector bids, making the proposals invalid. The grievance also alleged the outsourcing decision violated anti-discrimination laws because many of the employees involved were female, black and over age 40.

Posted by Info Center at 11:37 AM in Federal | Victories | Permalink

Source: OAPSE News, Spring 2007

….Since taking office in January, Ohio Treasurer Cordray has canceled a privatization contract, saving Ohioans more than $600,000. He has recouped more than $400,000 in fees inappropriately charged the state by a leading Ohio bank. And he has exposed more than 7,000 properties owned by the state that are abandoned and run-down. These properties could be used by communities to improve neighborhoods and provide services, but instead have become a drain on local government budgets…..

Posted by Info Center at 11:02 AM in Victories | Permalink

Source: By Steve Peoples, Providence Journal (RI), Thursday, June 28, 2007

Governor Carcieri is backing off a controversial move to replace 180 state employees with private workers at the state-run Eleanor Slater Hospital and veteran’s home. And his plans to expand privatization across a host of state services appear to be dead — at least for now, his office confirmed yesterday.

The dramatic reversal was prompted not by repeated pleas from handicapped hospital residents at State House rallies, nor by several rounds of anti-privatization television and radio ads produced by the largest state employees union, Rhode Island Council 94, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Posted by Info Center at 11:07 AM in Health | Victories | Permalink

Source: AFSCME Reports (Wisconsin Councils 24 & 40), Vol. 8 no. 4, April 2007

State power plant operators can now breathe a bit more easily. The Legislature has restored 271 power plant operator jobs that had been cast into doubt by political shenanigans in the last legislative session.

On Feb. 28, the Joint Finance took action on Gov. Doyle's budget repair bill, which include restoring the jobs. The Senate and Assembly have followed the committee's 16-0 recommendation, so the power plant operators, who are Council 24 members, can go back to doing their jobs instead of worrying about their futures.

Posted by Info Center at 10:36 AM in Victories | Permalink

Source: MSEA News, Vol. 15 no. 4, April 2007

In a recent Arbitration decision, the Michigan State Employees Association (MSEA) aggressively protected bargaining unit work that was temporarily taken from our membership. The temporary loss of this work resulted in financial loss to our members who had job duties and work schedules changed as a result of this management decision.

Posted by Info Center at 10:39 AM in Corrections | Victories | Permalink

Source: Local 3299 News, Local 3299

...Local 3299 currently represents over 19,000 workers at all ten UC campuses and all 5 of the medical centers. Workers represented include custodians, food service workers, cooks, bus drivers, licensed vocational nurses, nursing assistants, medical assistants and technicians. Six years ago only about 2,000 of the 19,000 represented workers had signed a green membership card. Today more than 11,000 workers have signed the green membership card and become voting members of our union. Because our membership has increased so significantly we were able to win first time ever victories over the last 6 years including a 6.3% raise in one year, stopped contracting out of our jobs, and shocked UC when we had our first ever STRIKE!! Because more than 9,000 workers have joined AFSCME, our membership jumped from 12% to 54% and this has resulted in great gains for our membership….

Posted by Info Center at 2:40 PM in Victories | Permalink

Source: AFSCME 48: Newspaper Voice of Milwaukee District Council 48, January 2007
… As for job security: the County can’t lay off any bargaining unit employees in 2007 “unless the State and/or Federal government fails to provide the funding mechanism and/or program dollars, or if the State and/or Federal government enact legislation limiting or prohibiting the County from maintaining current funding levels.” Moreover, the County has agreed not to privatize work currently being performed by bargaining unit employees who are current incumbents in such positions.
And from Jan. 1, 2008, through Dec. 31 2008, the County agreed not to privatize bargaining unit work except for the work of bargaining unit positions that are vacant on Jan. 1, 2008, and those belonging to bargaining units which are vacated by resignation or retirement, (but not discharges) of bargaining unit employees in 2008. The county has agreed not to hold open 2007 vacancies solely for the purpose of privatization in ’08. And the County agreed not to reassign employees to a different work location or department/division in order to accomplish a privatization goal….

Posted by Info Center at 4:39 PM in Victories | Permalink

Source: Council 13, Public Employee Press, Vol. 35 no. 6, November/December 2006
When the Altoona Area School District announced plans to privatize its transportation services over the summer, the members of Local 2952 feared the worst. But good contract language, solid labor-management skills, and tough negotiations saved the jobs and preserved most benefits of more than 40 members.
"It's a major accomplishment," said Staff Representative Ted Manna. The five-year contract with Student Transportation of America, which members approved in a 39-to-2 vote on July 17th, provides the same base pay as the previous contract, plus annual increases.
Nearly all of the workers' previous benefits were maintained. In addition, members of 2952 will receive a new longevity pay benefit.

Posted by Info Center at 5:07 PM in Schools K-12 | Victories | Permalink

Source: By Bill Jones, AFSCME Illinois On The Move November/December 2006 #103
“Crossing-Guards Left Standing at the Curb,” the local newspaper headlines read on Wednesday, Sept. 27, after an emergency Personnel Committee meeting to consider an agreement between the city and the local school district.
The Intergovernmental Agreement would have given the school district responsibility for all school crossing guards, meaning that three positions covered under our labor agreement, which expires December 2008, would be terminated from the city. The positions have been in AFSCME since 1988.

Posted by Info Center at 4:11 PM in Schools K-12 | Victories | Permalink

Source: Wisconsin Council 40 Leadership Update November 3, 2006 Vol. 27 no. 33

Members of Local 3363 at the Richland County Pine Valley Health Care Center recently won a new two-year contract in Interest Arbitration…. The real issue in arbitration was management’s right to subcontract our work performed by Union members. The Employer sought new language that would grant it the unfettered right to contract out for work along with a side letter only acknowledging the Union’s right to bargain the impact of such a decision. Local 3363 sought and won no change in the contract’s Management Rights clause which means the County must bargain with the Union concerning the decision to subcontract out work and the impact of such a decision. Staff Rep Jennifer McCulley represented Local 3363 in the proceedings.

Posted by Info Center at 1:51 PM in Health | Victories | Permalink

Source: DAVE UMHOEFER, Journal Sentinel (WI), Oct. 13, 2006

In the first test of Milwaukee County Executive Scott Walker's privatization proposals, a key County Board committee on Thursday sided with retaining county employees for courthouse security screening and housekeeping. The Finance Committee voted unanimously to delete Walker's plan to privatize more than 70 positions. .........

The vote came after testimony from union leaders and workers who questioned whether private companies would provide the same quality of service as county employees who run courthouse visitors through metal detectors at public entrances and clean county facilities.

Posted by Info Center at 11:37 AM in Custodial | Public Safety | Victories | Permalink