Yale and Locals 34 and 35 of the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees Union jointly announced on Dec. 19 that they had reached agreement on six-year contracts for the University's 3,700 clerical, technical, service and maintenance employees. The contracts were ratified the same day by the unions' members and are effective from Jan. 21, 1996 until Jan. 20, 2002.
"These agreements are good for Yale's employees, good for the University, and good for New Haven and the surrounding communities," President Richard C. Levin said. Mr. Levin joined with Local 35 President Robert Proto and Local 34 President Laura Smith in crediting the personal mediation efforts of New Haven Mayor John DeStefano Jr. with encouraging a final resolution of 13 months of negotiations.
In a joint press conference with Mayor DeStefano announcing the successful resolution of the negotiations, both Yale and union leaders expressed optimism that the new agreements will also create a foundation for improved labor relations in the future.
"We can now look forward with anticipation to the start of a new semester without the distractions and tensions that have accompanied this bargaining process," President Levin wrote in a recent letter to the University community announcing the negotiated agreements. "It is also appropriate that we should begin the New Year resolved to work together with our employees and their representatives to build a better future."
Contract negotiations began in November 1995, shortly after President Levin outlined the University's bargaining objectives in a message to the Yale community. "We expect to negotiate compensation packages that are in line with those of other large employers in the region," President Levin wrote. "Like other employers, however, we will seek ways to moderate the growing costs of benefits while being responsive to the needs of our employees. Moreover, to retain our position as one of the world's great universities, we must have the flexibility to manage Yale efficiently and deliver high quality services at reasonable cost."
The contract agreement reached with Local 35 provides Yale with limited subcontracting authority and other management flexibility options in exchange for special job security protections for bargaining unit employees.
As stated in the Dec. 19 joint announcement of the settlement, "The University gains limited subcontracting rights in exchange for enhancing job security guarantees for current and future employees. Yale will be able to engage subcontractors to perform most kinds of work which Local 35 workers perform. In return, no current employee can be laid off or suffer a reduction in hours for any reason. No future employee could face a layoff or reduction in hours as the result of subcontracting. In no case will unionized staffing levels drop below 80 percent of current scheduled hours. None of the work in Yale's dining hall system will be subcontracted. Instead, a variety of cost-saving programs have been agreed upon that will allow Yale to supplement existing dining services with 'food court' or 'brand name' dining options. The parties also agreed to create a joint labor-management committee to identify service and productivity improvements in Yale's residential college dining halls."
The agreement on subcontracting also establishes a subcontractor minimum wage of $7 per hour, which will increase by 3 percent annually, beginning in 1998.
The new contracts with Locals 34 and 35 provide competitive annual wage adjustments for employees in both bargaining units in each year of the six-year duration of the agreements, as well as a "signing bonus" in lieu of retroactive wage adjustments in the first year. Employees will enjoy improved pension benefits, including a supplemental matching benefit option, while redesign of the bargaining units' retiree and active employee health care plans will yield millions of dollars of savings for Yale. The agreement also resolves all outstanding issues between the parties regarding so- called "casual employees" in Local 35 and brings those employees under the coverage of the contract.
The parties also settled all of the more than 40 negotiation- related unfair labor practice charges and companion grievances that had been filed during the course of negotiations, with the exception of a pending complaint regarding cancellation of dues deductions when the prior contracts expired. All 30 pending subcontracting grievances in Local 35 also were withdrawn.
On Dec. 20, the negotiating committees for both the University and the unions convened for their 54th and final bargaining session. A 56-page Memorandum of Agreement was signed by Michael Boyle, chief negotiator for Locals 34 and 35, and Brian J. Tunney, chief negotiator for the University. Contracts are expected to be published next month.