As our Bargaining Team continues to negotiate over wages and other economic items, we will schedule lunchtime meetings to hear your input, answer questions and discuss items of concern. We welcome your questions and appreciate your suggestions.
Last Friday, July 1, our Bargaining Team made proposals and/or discussed the following:
Article 1, Recognition
The proposed classifications under discussion include the Automation Engineer, Building Automation Control Technician, Instrument Technician Operating Engineer, Sprinkler Fitter, High Voltage Electrician and Maintenance Mechanic. Our Bargaining Team rejected the Building Operating Engineer because many of the duties identified in the job description overlapped with those found in the Service Engineer and SOE position.
Thanks to Sergio Ramirez, Teamsters 2010, who worked with Ken Kaidin, DDC Shop and Sergio Sanchez, Utilities, to address these issues. Ken Kaidin and Sergio Sanchez worked on language that would clearly identify which job duties belonged to which classification, thereby limiting “gray” areas, or work that could be perceived as out of classification work. Plumber Rahsonn McGlothen stepped forward to address concerns over the Sprinkler Fitter position and Sam Huffman, Housing, spoke to the Maintenance Mechanic position.
Our Team still has to review UCLA’s latest proposal, which includes the proposed classifications and job descriptions.
Our Bargaining Team submitted a proposal for wages for the new classifications.
Article 7, Performance Evaluation
Our Team accepted the University’s last proposal.
Article 10, Training and Development
We still need to reach agreement on two key sections.
One section addresses favoritism and the other the vision of our newly proposed Training Committee. Our Bargaining Team has proposed that employees who take classes to improve their job related skills receive financial assistance.
UCLA last proposed that compensatory time be increased to 180 hours. Our team is holding firm on 240 hours, but with the following compromise:
A maximum of one hundred twenty (120) hours in any calendar year that may be used as vacation and that any hours up to two hundred and forty hours will be paid out within the calendar year.
Article 25, Grievance Procedure
The University backed off its proposed changes and our team accepted its last offer.
Article 26, Arbitration
Our Bargaining Team has not moved off our previous language which proposes to speed up the arbitration process. We did agree to add a few arbitrators to our list, which makes our list more diverse.
We are requesting that UCLA freeze rates at the June 2022 level.
New Article, Licenses and Certificates
This is a new article and we have agreed to the certificates and are crafting language which is acceptable to both our Union team and to UCLA.
Our Union proposal is as follows:
Hero Bonus – $10,000
Year 1 – 10% wage increase
Year 2 – 7.5% wage increase
Year 3 – 6.5% wage increase
Year 4 – 6% wage increase
Year 5 – 6% wage increase
Article 46 – Duration
We have proposed a 5-year contract and UCLA has proposed a 4-year contract.
Equity Committee
Flooring Installers, by our Union and by the Universities documentation, are around 25% away from equity. Our Union team proposed that Flooring Installers receive the following:
Flooring Installers $37.46 rate effective June 30, 2022
Our Bargaining Team has discussed creating an “Equity Committee” which would review “equity” concerns. We will submit a proposal when we next meet.
Our next bargaining meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, July 6, 2022.