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Ypsilanti Township’s municipal employees union has filed a grievance against the township.
Township officials said the local chapter of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Union filed its grievance shortly after the Township reduced hours for municipal employees to 32 hours a week. The grievance says the township violated the terms of a recently ratified contract when it reduced the union’s hours.
“The language of the contract clearly allows the township to do this if there is an economic need,” John Hancock, the township’s labor attorney, said at Tuesday evening’s board meeting. “So if we go to arbitration the issue will be, primarily, weather or not there is an economic need to do this at this point in time.
“They don’t believe there’s an economic need and they question the timing,” he said.
The township’s three full-time managers met with the union to discuss the procedure to be followed and the reasons for reduction of hours. Hancock said he is trying to expedite the grievance process and go right to arbitration.
“The grievance sits ready to go to arbitration if they want to go for it,” Hancock said at Tuesday evening’s township board meeting. “And I have not had any further communication with them.”
During the public comment portion of the meeting Cheryl Lynn-Bruestle, chief steward for AFSCME Local 3451, said the union did not agree to a reduction of hours in exchange for 16 month of no lay-offs as written in the Township’s recent mailer. She said the union made concessions to reach the township’s goal of a 3 percent cut and did not expect the additional cut to hours.
“This additional 20 percent reduction in our pay with our agreed upon concessions is a disingenuous act by the board,” she said.
Winston Johnson, chief spoksperson for the union, said tough choices had to be made at the bargaining table.
“We were able to give the employer pretty much what they asked for,” Johnson said. “If it had been indicated to us that (a reduction in hours) was the employers wishes or desires we certainly wouldn’t have been talking to our membership about trying to support such an action.”
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Township shortens work week to 32 hours