Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News
Members of Teamsters Local 957 are voting today on whether to accept a fact-finder’s report that sifted through five areas of contention between the union and Wright State University.
Dayton attorney John Doll, who represents the local, said talks between the union and the university have been stymied by five open issues — including a university-proposed parking fee increase for bargaining unit members, changes in seniority employment rights and the addition of 10 furlough days in which Wright State could lay off workers without pay each year.
Wages and a union-desired health insurance plan also remain open issues, Doll said.
The local represents about 115 Wright State driver, maintenance, groundskeeper, custodial and other workers. Some 10 university Lake Campus workers are also counted in the membership.
“Generally, people were not pleased” with the fact-finder’s report, Doll said. “They were not happy with it.”
“The fact-finder sees the option of furlough days as a means of employees spreading the burden around versus layoffs,” wrote the fact-finder, Carol Bader. “They are useful for lesser financial crises, rather than placing the full burden on a few laid-off employees.”
However, Bader disagreed with the university on two points, saying the number of furlough days should be capped at five, not ten, and if work requires overtime, then members should be permitted to work — mirroring similar provisions in a contract with police employees.
Votes should be counted today, and a result may be known later this afternoon, Doll said.
