New York City reaches labor agreement with DC 37, largest municipal union
NEW YORK -- Mayor Eric Adams announced a landmark labor agreement with New York City's largest municipal union Friday.
The union represents about 90,000 workers, a quarter of the city's unionized workforce.
As CBS2 political reporter Marcia Kramer explains, it will help the city with hiring to fill gaps in key agencies.
They answer 911 calls, help your kids cross the street when they go to school, and work in school cafeterias, parks and hospitals.
Now, the union that represents them, DC 37, has reached a tentative contract agreement with the city.
The five-year deal, retroactive to May 2021, guarantees an $18 an hour minimum wage for every worker -- well above the state rate of $14.20.
It also includes raises of 3% for the first four years, 3.5% in the fifth year, and gives every member a $3,000 signing bonus.
The mayor said the contract deal was personal for him because his mom, Dorothy, was a member of the union as a cafeteria worker.
"It's a great deal for workers and fair to the city taxpayers," Adams said.
But the most profound change is the mayor's flip-flop on remote work. When he took office, he was dead set against it, but the difficulty of recruiting people to work for the city apparently changed his mind. There are some 27,000 open spots on the city payroll.
"We need to remain competitive in city government, and that means thinking differently in the way that we hire, recruit and retain workers," said Henry Garrido, with DC 37.
The union still has to vote to ratify the contract.
Generally, the first union to settle sets a pattern for the rest of the city's collective bargaining agreements, but police union president Pat Lynch says not this time because his members face "unique needs and challenges."
"PBA members are stretched well past our breaking point," Lynch said in a statement. "Far too many police officers have left for better pay and better quality-of-life in other policing jobs. The NYPD's ongoing staffing emergency is impacting public safety for all New Yorkers."
Last year, over 3,700 cops resigned or retired. Those who quit before becoming eligible for retirement was the highest number on record.
