From day one, this member-led campaign pushed forward leaders and activists from all departments across the AEA, AMSP and CAMP chapters toward winning a fair contract. This contract fight proved to also bolster and ignite organizing for the Local 21 Gold Card Campaign where members continue to set a sizzling pace for securing recommitments and signatures to the union’s new dues check-off cards.
CAMP Vice President and Bargaining Team member Olympia Williams, a ten plus year employee of the City who is working as a Community Services Supervisor, explains the plan perfectly, “We started early, long before contract expiration, to set a solid foundation to get broad portions of the membership involved, not only for the contract fight but also to be active and engaged for the three-year term of the recently ratified MOU.”
Local 21 Representative and Lead Negotiator Matt Mason reports that, “after collectively establishing leaders, the Bargaining Team conducted a survey, identifying the most important issues. We then set up large all-member meetings to review the results of the survey and establish the priorities based on those responses.”
The members were clear, wanting salary improvements of at least 3% a year with no givebacks, while also tackling the wage inequities across a few classifications. Strong member leadership and a clear understanding of the members’ priorities led Local 21 to substantial bargaining table gains:
1.) Economic security with an 11-percent wage increase over three years (5%, 3%, & 3%)
2.) Equity adjustments moderating long standing wage inequalities
3.) The establishment of a Labor Management Committee with real checks and balances
4.) Increased Professional Development funds
The MOU sets a strong groundwork for upcoming negotiations for our three chapters, which represent workers from engineers to senior librarians to senior analysts to maintenance supervisors. Thank you to our Bargaining Team Members: AEA’s Brad Fox, Tala Fatolahzadeh, Chris Dayley; AMSP’s Steve Contreras, Angel Alvarez and Jess Perez; CAMP’s Olympia Williams, Julie Jennings and Tomika Price; and Local 21’s Matt Mason, Kristen Schumacher and Michelle Hatfield.