Friday, November 19, 2010

Park Workers Win Bitter Battle To Form Union In Hudson River Park

On April 19th 2010, Hudson River Park's Maintenance and Operations (M&O) personnel voted by a majority of 7 to 5 to join IUOE Local 30. 16 workers in total were waiting for a decision by the New York State Labor Relations Board to know if their vote to join IUOE would be upheld. The board heard the appeal on November 9 and quickly ruled in their favor.

Manhattan

How difficult is it to unionize 16 workers at a park in Manhattan?

Ask the people at the International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 30, and the Hudson River Park Trust, according to the New York Daily News.

The two sides have been haggling over a vote taken in April by members of the park's maintenance and operations unit to join the union.

The fight may finally be over. Last week, a panel from the state Public Employment Relations Board rejected the trust's objections and reaffirmed certification of the union vote.

"The trust has no plans to appeal PERB's recent decision. Our next step is to begin negotiations with Local 30 toward a labor-management agreement for the 16 employees identified as the bargaining unit," a spokesperson for the trust said.

The election was close, with seven workers voting for the union and five against. Another three ballots were deemed "deficient" and one remaining person didn't vote.

"The workers love this park and the people in the community love this park," said Kirk Kelly, an organizer for Local 30. "We are eager to move forward and be part of a constructive relationship."

The union claimed that the trust spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on legal fees, adding that much of that money went to a firm specializing in "union avoidance."

riverrat
May 2010. A 15 foot inflatable rat, courtesy of International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE)
Local 30, greeted park-goers attending the ribbon-cutting ceremony at the opening of Hudson River Park’s newest facility at Pier 62 in Chelsea. According to Local 30 the rat and informational picket was organized to protest Hudson River Park Trust President Connie Fishman’s continued use of taxpayer and donor funds for a high priced “union avoidance” law firm in an attempt to overturn the union’s election victory in the Park‘s Maintenance and Operations Department.

Read More:

New York Daily News - November 17, 2010 - Lisa Colangelo

A Walk In The Park - October 28, 2010

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