Failure to Reach Agreement Could Negatively Impact Residents

(YOUNGSTOWN, OH) – Teamsters Local 377 is calling on negotiators for the City of Youngstown, OH to meet with its members so they can address outstanding issues in the collective bargaining agreement they are negotiating. Local 377 members work in the Street Dept., which repairs and maintains roads, among other responsibilities.

“This proposal isn’t just bad for our members, it’s bad for Youngstown,” said Steven Anzevino, Local 377 President. “The department is losing staff because many jobs that require a commercial driver’s license pay better, additionally, some members are working twelve-hour days for 21 days straight during the winter. This puts the public at risk of having unsafe roads due to drastically delayed maintenance and driver fatigue. The good news is that we can resolve this contract if the City returns back to the bargaining table.”

At issue is the City’s proposals regarding paid time off and overtime, which effectively lead to a pay cut, and the municipality’s refusal to grant the workers retro-active pay since their last contract expired on December 31. Dan Watson and Fred Saunders are drivers in the Street Dept. who serve on the union negotiating committee.

“We only have 19-20 members who can plow a street, and we’re already down one third from seven years ago,” said Saunders. “Our hourly wages aren’t that high. We’re willing to put up with that because of the benefits we have, but now they’re trying to take that away.”

“The City of Youngstown saying ‘we’re done negotiating,’ we feel that’s a slap in the face,” said Watson. “The City is trying to remove provisions from the contract that provide better benefits, so we need to return to bargaining and hash this out, because it isn’t over.”

Teamsters Local 377 represents workers in a wide variety of industries throughout Northeastern Ohio.

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