ORDER-2023-30 : An Appropriation in the amount of $72,170 (Seventy-Two thousand, One Hundred Seventy Dollars) to fund Fiscal 2023 of the Local-272 Clerical Union Contract. The requested appropriation is from the following accounts $63,378 from the Contract Stabilization fund (84042-590000), $4,396 from Sewer, Reserve for Retained Earnings (84152-590000) and $4,396 from Water, Reserve for Retained Earnings (84162-590000) to various salary and wage lines as set forth herein.

Transcript (~6 min @ 2:25:20)

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▶ 2:25:16 Jen Grigoraitis: Yes, so that order is held and it can be held in committee for 45 days. Thank you all for being here tonight. Thank you

▶ 2:25:22 Speaker 5: very much for all your time. Thank you.

▶ 2:25:29 Jen Grigoraitis: Next we have order 2023-30 inappropriation in the amount of 72,170 dollars so fun fiscal 2023 of the local 272 clerical Union contract. The requested appropriation is from the following accounts 63,378 dollars from the contract stabilization fund account 84042-590,000 4,396 from sewer reserve for retained earnings account. Number eight four one five two dash five nine zero zero zero zero and 4,396 from water reserve for retained earnings account number 84162-590,000 to various salary in wage lines as set forth here in offered by mayor Broder. We are still under the suspension suspension of our rules. If you I believe we have our city solicitor with us as well as Mr. Delaware, so

▶ 2:26:26 Speaker 2: Good evening counselors. Thank you.

▶ 2:26:30 Speaker 2: Through the chair. I'm happy to start and give a summary it had of the collective bargaining agreements that are before council tonight funding and I can let Mr. Delaware so address the funding mechanism where the finances are planning to come from According to the auditor's office. So these two orders so I'm referring to 2023 30 and 2023 31 through the chair. These are before you tonight as a result of two success or collective bargaining agreements being fully ratified by two different unions within the city one the laborers union, which is I believe currently it's 50. It's generally 50 to 55 labor employees within the city of Melrose that work for us and the clerical Union 33 city employees. Currently these successor Collective Barney agreements cover the time period between June 27th 22 and June 29th 25 These agreements were executed. Like I said by the unions after that ratification votes taken by their full union membership in the city through mayor Broder the end of September 2022 subject only to funding of the economic items by the city council, which is why we're here before you tonight the major economic items agreed upon in these contracts. I did submit as a memo to council before tonight's meeting. I'll briefly highlight those for you now the clerical Union cost of living adjustments fiscal year 23 2% fiscal year 24 one seven five one point seven five percent fiscal year 25, 1.75% the second and third years of the contract for clerical. We agreed to add one new Step that will be added to the salary schedule which will be 2% higher than the previous step in previous steps on their salary scale. It's sort of range between two and maybe six percent. So we've agreed any new Step will be at 2% if we add it and that is an effort to retain senior staff. Honestly a lot of them. At the end of their scale for salary purposes and also to provide for salary growth in our current employees that we value effective fiscal 23. All Elementary School nurses will also be moved up to a group 14, which is the same as the other Middle School and High School nurses historically they were in a lower group and making less so that is obviously in an effort to maintain internal equity and retain those hard to fill positions of the school nurses.

▶ 2:28:45 Speaker 2: the laborers union cost of living adjustments fiscal year 23 actually all three fiscal years 1.75% for coolers the difference here. We added one new step. One new step is added on salary schedule 2% higher than the previous step for each year. So we've added one new step to the end of the salary schedule for each year of their contract and aside from the economic items. I can give you a brief overview just of some of the other agreed to terms of the agreement between the parties which again was negotiated in good faith over a series of collective barbecue bargaining sessions ranging from about March of this year to August or September. The clerical Union during negotiations. We did analyze and upgrade correct the job classification schedule for their Union various titles. We clarified language in various sections of the contract that was long overdue to be clarified and corrected for current practice. We changed sections relative to extra time over time Colin pay clearly defined hours of work finally for School nurses at the various schools. We added a clothing allowance for School nurses. So we added the Juneteenth as a holiday for both unions actually and we amended schedules and tuition reimbursement section to include reimbursement for bargaining and employees for costs associated with obtaining and maintaining mandated licenses as part of their job labor is just a few of the extra items agreed upon. We added a winter operations over time shift differential for work that's done before or after the regularly scheduled shift specifically for snow or ice operations, which is historically difficult to get people to come in for so that was an important item we agreed. Going to set time period we updated a list of state mandated licenses for which a stipend would be received and updated various language around minimum callback hours of work overtime. And we also added Juneteenth as a holiday. So with that I'm happy to answer any questions Council might have on those two contracts. Thank you. Any questions from the council?

▶ 2:30:47 Shawn M. MacMaster: Council McMaster Madam chair, no question. But thank you Miss Phillips, but considering that both contracts have been ratified after the collecting collective bargaining process. I make a motion to conjoin order 2023 30 which is a clerical Union contract with order twenty twenty three Thirty one, which is a laborers union contract second. So