After months of often-contentious negotiations, the CATS administration and the union that represents some 200 system employees have reached an agreement on a new two-year contract.
Among the major changes in the contract, which was finalized Dec. 1 between representatives of CATS and the Amalgamated Transit Union Local 1546, are increased wages, changes in overtime rules and a standardized paid time off schedule.
“We’re happy with it,” says Katie Guy, the local union president. She declined further comment until after consulting with national union leaders.
The new contract increases wages for CATS bus drivers from $13.25 an hour for a starting operator to $15 an hour. The new pay scale also rises to $19 an hour over the course of nine years. The previous contract increased pay only to $17.75 an hour over 20 years.
The agreement also replaces sick days and vacation days with paid days off, which will result in an increase in paid days off for the majority of CATS employees, and calculates overtime pay only after an employee has worked more than 40 hours in one week.
CATS CEO Bob Mirabito says the new contract benefits both the agency and its employees, and will only slightly increase payroll costs.
“This contract will help CATS recruit new employees because they will be offered a more attractive salary and paid time-off package,” he says. “The changes in overtime rules will ultimately save CATS money that will be used to offset the costs of these increased wages. In the long run, I do not expect this new agreement to increase CATS’ payroll costs by more than five percent over the life of the contract.”
While the union negotiations have concluded with a proverbial win-win agreement, they didn’t begin that way. In the months leading up to contract talks, union leaders and system employees began stepping up their criticism of Mirabito, blaming him for the system’s aging fleet and accusing him of making them work in unsafe conditions. Tensions escalated in June, when union leaders reportedly walked out of a meeting with Mirabito, whom they accused of intimidation tactics.
The two sides returned to the bargaining table in August and met regularly throughout the fall, without incident.
The full CATS board must sign off on the new contract, which will be presented at its regularly scheduled monthly meeting Dec. 15.
—Stephanie Riegel
