Last Wednesday was amazing! 

 Local 34 members elected a phenomenal group of leaders at the membership meeting. 

Afterward, we joined other union and community members to march for strong contracts, good jobs, organizing rights, youth opportunities, and safe streets.  2,000 people attended the event.

During the rally Dana Greene, a senior administrative assistant in the School of Public Health, told the massive crowd: “I’m here with my fellow co-workers to say that we would like to work with Yale to change the job advancement process to make promotions and career pathways clearer.”  According to Local 34 contract surveys, over 90% of our members want to move up at Yale. Click here to read more about this issue and other contract priorities.

Read more in the news:

And check out the the slide show below!

Over the past month, hundreds of Local 34 members have discussed departmental and contract issues with our supervisors. Now, by coming all together on April 25, we will demonstrate our commitment to working with the University to achieve a great contract. United together with our allies in Local 35, GESO and the community, we can win:

• Job advancement that includes more E level positions, a streamlined audit process, and more internal hiring;
• A jobs pipeline that connects more people to good jobs;
• Excellent healthcare options; and
• Wage increases that help our families cope with the difficult economy and keep up with rising costs.

Let’s tell the University we’re ready to get to work!

By protecting our standards and winning improvements in these four areas, we can ensure that our members continue to have access to excellent, affordable care. Click on the image below to read more.

We have already made progress in building the labor-community partnerships to make a pipeline possible. The new Board of Aldermen in New Haven, which includes several union members, has already released a legislative agenda that prioritizes the creation of a jobs pipeline, solutions to violence and crime, and opportunities for young people. Together, we can seize the opportunity to improve our work experience, stabilize our communities and extend access to good jobs.  Click on the image below to learn more.

Clear, accessible promotion opportunities allow our members to gain skills and build careers with dignity.  So, we are committed to building power and winning the changes that will make job advancement a reality.  Click on the image below to read more.

From the department level to the highest levels of University administration, our 2012 contract campaign is an inclusive,  membership-based process designed to give our Union a voice at every level of decision-making at Yale. We began by developing our contract interests based on over 2100 member surveys. Over 300 C&Ts have joined Union department organizing committees, and we have set a goal to involve members in over 100 Department Caucuses to discuss survey results and Employee Participation Meetings with management.

An informed and engaged membership only makes our Union stronger. So, while this negotiations process is complex, we are striving to make it as transparent as possible.  This flyer is designed to clarify the process and your role in it, but if you have additional questions contact the Executive Board member in your area, your steward or organizer, or call the Union office at (203) 624-5161.  Together, we can win a strong contract, transform our workplaces, and secure our futures.

Local 34 Vice-President Tony Lopes joined Local 35 stewards in a meeting late last fall to ask management to fill open positions late last year, where he described the concerns he hears from his members in neighboring buildings. “The patient care and research work that we do in the Medical School absolutely require environments free of dust and pests,” he said. “The University needs to ensure continued staffing levels that guarantee an excellent standard of cleanliness in our areas.”

Patricia Gordon, a research assistant in the Genetics Department adds that “over the year I worked in TAC, it was apparent that custodial services were being reduced.”

“With the essential research and clinical diagnostic work that is done in the building, along with the seminars and other special scientific events, it is important that the medical school maintain a clean and safe environment. The custodial staff does an excellent job, but there are not enough of them for the entire building to clean all the floors, restrooms, and lunch areas adequately.”

As the Local 34 members explained, this restructuring would affect both local support in their departments and their own careers. Staffing reductions, the implementation of lower-level and part-time positions, and other recent changes present real challenges for a career path for Clerical and Technical employees. In addition, the creation of 10-month positions and shared services raises concerns about the quality of the service provided to our students and faculty, our work being downgraded and, in some cases, shifted to students and other employees.  In their letter, Local 34 members told the administrators that  “the decisions regarding restructuring, new positions, workloads, job descriptions, and level of service should involve the employees and the faculty affected by those decisions – the very ones who know the departments best.”

During September, in academic departments from African American Studies to Economics to Physics, Local 34 members held EPMs with faculty and business managers to communicate these concerns face-to-face. After 70 EPMs across campus held throughout the summer and fall, the administration responded by sending a memo agreeing to slow down the restructuring and proceed “in a renewed, thoughtful and thorough manner” and work more closely with Local 34 members, chairs, and faculty.

More specifically, the administration assured the C&Ts that “the movement and integration of work into the various shared services units will not lead to the reduction to a 10-month position for any C & T currently holding a 12-month registrar or business office position in the Humanities Division. In the meantime, we are working with faculty, management, and staff to develop criteria for department staffing levels based on department needs during the shared services restructuring.”

Governor Dan Malloy and Local 34 President Laurie Kennington

On Tuesday, February 14, UNITE HERE at Yale hosted Governor Dan Malloy, AFSCME, and the New Haven Board of Aldermen for an informal lunch at our office at 425 College Street.  The meeting provided an opportunity for the new city leaders, unions, and the governor to discuss common goals for the upcoming year.

After a brief welcome by Local 35 President Bob Proto, President of the Board, Jorge Perez and President Pro Tempore Jackie James-Evans presented the key points of the legislative agenda released by the Board of Aldermen earlier this month.  Demonstrating remarkable consensus and leadership, all 30 members of the Board have signed on to a vision that prioritizes access to good jobs, youth programming and attention to crime and violence in New Haven.

In the subsequent conversation with Governor Malloy, job creation and a jobs pipeline took center stage.  Local 35 member and Alderwoman of Ward 23 Tyisha Walker insisted that the inability to find work was among the toughest challenge for her neighborhood.  According to a new report by the Connecticut Center for a New Economy, the unemployment rate was 13.6% last year in New Haven, and even higher in neighborhoods of color.

Pictured left to right: Brenda Jones Barnes (Local 34, Ward 13 Alderwoman); Barbara Constantinople (Ward 11 Alderwoman); Brian Wingate (Local 35, Ward 29 Alderman); Dolores Colon (Local 34, Ward 6 Alderwoman).

For decades, our Unions have been a key part of maintaining access to good jobs in New Haven and connecting residents to training opportunities and available work. Local 34 President Laurie Kennington pointed to the common ground between the community and Yale workers.  Dolores Colon, Local 34 Member and Alderwoman of Ward 6, spoke from her experience of the union adding that membership in Local 34 has meant the difference between food stamps and a secure future. Alders Delphine Clyburn and Alfreda Edwards emphasized that that local companies should make commitments to hiring local people.

Governor Malloy agreed, saying that “local hiring is a fair question to ask of anyone.” He outlined ongoing efforts by the state to create jobs at small businesses.  The Aldermen welcomed these efforts and challenged Malloy to take bold steps in Hartford to give Connecticut’s cities economic relief and actively promote local hiring.

After the meeting, Local 34 Chief Steward and Ward 25 Alder Adam Marchand remarked that he had never quite seen a gathering like this one, in which elected leaders and working people spoke honestly and urgently to each other about economic challenges. In many ways, the meeting was the fruit of the hard work and participation of our members.  The last time Malloy was in our building was the eve of his 2010 election. UNITE HERE rallied to get out the vote, making Connecticut one of the only states that resisted nationwide anti-union trends.  This same volunteer work helped to elect the new Board of Aldermen last fall.  Currently 6 UNITE HERE members serve on the Board.