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Philadelphia's DC 33 ratifies new contract after tentative agreement. What's next?

Philadelphia's District Council 33 ratifies new contract with Parker administration
Philadelphia's District Council 33 ratifies new contract with Parker administration 02:34

Philadelphia's AFSCME District Council 33 ratified its new contract with the city, approving the deal that ended an eight-day strike.

The 2025-2028 contract tentative agreement ratification count was held on Monday before the DC 33 executive board. 

District Council 33 shared the news about the  in a social media post, stating that a total of 2,375 votes were counted, with 1,535 votes in favor of ratification and 838 votes against. Two of the votes were voided.

"The results have been certified by the American Arbitration Association, and we've informed the City to start issuing bonuses. Together, we made this happen," DC 33 president Greg Boulware wrote in a statement, thanking every member who made their voice heard in the voting process.

The eight-day Philadelphia workers' union strike forced some city libraries and pools to close and halted trash pickup for more than a week, causing large piles of garbage to pile up at the city's temporary drop-off sites.

Trash pickup resumed on July 14 and was not impacted once the strike was over. The deal had to be ratified; otherwise, there was a possibility that the union would have to return to the negotiating table with the city, and possibly go on strike again.

The deal grants 9% in raises spread out over three years, averaging 3% per year. The deal also comes with a $1,500 bonus in the first year. The city says the deal will cost $115 million.

Mayor Cherelle Parker has touted the 5% increase from the first year of her administration and said she'll have raised the DC 33 workers' pay 14% through her first term, a figure she notes is more than several of her predecessors.

The union represents about 9,000 blue-collar workers in multiple city departments, including sanitation workers, police dispatchers, maintenance workers at Philadelphia International Airport, and more.

Union members have mixed reactions to the deal

For the three-year agreement to have been ratified, at least 51% of DC 33's members needed to vote in favor of it.

The deal offers considerably less than the 8% a year the union representatives came to the table seeking, a figure they later brought down to 5% a year.

DC 33's attorney, Samuel Spear, said the vote wasn't a close one. "It carried by a comfortable margin," he said Monday afternoon.

Spear said the members were very unified in their strike efforts. 

"They wanted to make improvements for themselves. They thought they made improvements, and we didn't get everything we wanted, but we got a good enough contract," Spear said. "It was a good contract. So, members were satisfied and they ratified it."

Nearly three-quarters of DC 33's members didn't vote on the contract. A labor expert said that could mean they weren't satisfied with the deal but realized it was the best they could get.

"It takes a lot of momentum to go into a strike, and I think that the momentum has been lost," Francis Ryan, a labor studies professor at Rutgers University, said. "And that most people are realistic that it didn't make sense to go back a second time. They'll be back again in three years to negotiate again."

Following the strike, Boulware said the reception of the deal was mixed among union members.

"I don't know what's to celebrate," Boulware previously said. "The same people that were poor yesterday are still poor today."

However, Boulware then said that he believes there are still more wins than losses for DC 33 members in the plan. He pointed to union negotiators fending off what he said were demands from the city.

In a three-page statement posted online, the union said it fought off attempts from the city to "seize control of medical claims payments" and add a surcharge for smokers. They also listed what they deemed "unacceptable" proposals to change sick policy and work rules.

"They tried to get as fair a deal as they could, and they think they got a fair deal, but they want to come back and fight another day," Spear said after the vote. "They certainly want to get more next time, but right now we have a contract for three years."  

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