A Narrow Yes From Union Members On New Contract With CL&P

The union representing 1,100 hourly workers, including nearly 400 linemen, wrapped up months of negotiations and protests Thursday night when its members narrowly approved a new contract with Connecticut Light & Power.

With the votes tallied, the margin of approval was a slim 64 votes, said Frank Cirillo, business manager of Local 420 of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers. Turnout for the vote was about 99 percent, union leaders said.

"We were biting our fingernails all evening," said Cirillo, who said he thought members approved the four-year contract because union leadership recommended it and because the company dropped a few unsavory aspects. "I'm glad it's over. But I'm shocked it went through."

Another reason the contract passed, Cirillo said, was because the union didn't have the option of striking over staffing levels. Without that ability, union members accepted to offer on the table.

"The members that voted yes voted not with their hearts, but their brains, and the members that voted no are angry," Cirillo said.

Both sides gave in on key issues in the contract, including whether to raise staffing levels and work rules. The new contract ensures four years of raises for union members, while asking them to increase their contribution to their health plans. The contract also allows for new worker schedules to be drawn up.

"This four-year contract is good news for both employees and customers," Bill Herdegen, president and chief operating officer of CL&P, said in a statement." Throughout our negotiations with the union leadership, we were committed to maintaining the comprehensive benefits offered by CL&P while also improving service and holding the line on rising costs for our customers."

In October, workers strongly voted down a offer that had lower raises and didn't address issues about work rules. Then union leaders said that they couldn't recommend the deal to their members, and only a few percent voted for the plan.

Although the new contract opens a door to the future, it seems that the issue of staffing levels for linemen won't fade into the background. The union's sustained calls for more line workers reached a pitch this summer when members protested at the state Capitol and the Hartford office of parent company Northeast Utilities.

Cirillo said that the conversation about an adequate number of line workers will be brought to the governor and regulators, whose job it is to ensure the reliability of the electrical system for residents and ratepayers.

John Fernandes, president of IBEW Local 457, said that the union is "committed to working with our elected leaders and state regulators to ensure that CL&P provides the adequate staffing levels necessary to bring safe and reliable power to Connecticut ratepayers."

The approved contract involves raises in each of the next four years ? 3 percent, then 2.75 percent, 2.5 percent, and 3 percent ? a pay increase that union leaders are quick to point out as the smallest in company history. Also, the initial increase is retroactive only to last September, not June when the contract expired.

Source: http://hartfordcourant.feedsportal.com/c/34278/f/623720/s/27a3d991/l/0L0Scourant0N0Cnews0Cbreaking0Chc0Eibew0Eclp0Econtract0Evote0E20A130A1170H0A0H465890A20Bstory0Dtrack0Frss/story01.htm

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