Published Monday, July 15, 2002
MERCER COUNTY
Herald Business Editor
Public buses are rolling today after union workers approved a new contract Sunday with Mercer County Regional Council of Governments.
Teamsters Local 261 "overwhelmingly'' ratified a new four-year pact, said Doug Robbins, president of the local. He declined to give a specific vote count.
"I'm very happy this is resolved,'' Robbins said. "It's a pretty good package.''
A strike was possible today if union workers hadn't OK'd the offer. Workers rejected an earlier contract offer in June and were ready to strike if the latest contract had been rejected. Local 261's contract expired June 30 but employees had agreed to continue working during negotiations.
The local represents 28 bus drivers, mechanics and other support staff at COG's two transit systems: Mercer County Community Transit, which is primarily a countywide transportation service for senior citizens and the handicapped; and Shenango Valley Shuttle Service, a public bus service in Sharon, Hermitage, Farrell, Sharpsville and Wheatland that COG runs for those communities.
A major concern for COG was that MCCT provides transportation to critical health-care services such as kidney dialysis.
Terms of the new contract call for workers to get a 6 percent raise in the first year of the contract and about 3 percent each year for the following three years, Robbins said. Workers' health care insurance will now come under the Teamsters Health & Welfare Fund.
A major improvement for workers is they now will have a pension. Prior to this workers had no pension or 401(k) plan, Robbins said. Also, workers will now get four more paid holidays and improved safety training and a discipline policy which wasn't in the rejected contract, Robbins said. In addition, COG agreed to put three more workers in full-time positions. Part-time workers will now receive paid vacations.
Jim DeCapua, COG's executive director, was not immediately available for comment this morning.
While workers wanted to jettison a six-tier wage system, Teamsters and COG couldn't come to terms, Robbins said. Under the system it's impossible for newly hired workers to ever reach wage parity with veteran employees, he said.
"They were almost willing to strike on this but not quite,'' Robbins said of workers.
MCCT provides 75,000 passenger trips annually while SVSS logs 125,000 trips a year.
The contract still must be approved by the Mercer County commissioners for MCCT, and a joint advisory board comprised of one elected official from each of the five communities served by SVSS.