Could DC 33 go back on strike in Philadelphia if union doesn't ratify tentative agreement?
AFSCME District Council 33 President Greg Boulware wasn't happy as he left negotiations early Wednesday morning after the union struck a tentative deal with the city to end a strike that piled trash on Philadelphia streets.
One day later, not much has changed.
"I'm not happy now," Boulware said from the union's offices near 30th and Walnut streets Thursday afternoon.
With DC 33 and the city agreeing to a tentative deal, it still needs to be ratified by 9,000 union members.
If the deal isn't ratified, could the union go back on strike?
"Potentially, potentially it could happen," Boulware said.
Boulware said the union is set to vote on that tentative agreement early next week. For the deal to be ratified, 51% of DC 33's members must vote in favor of it. If the deal isn't ratified, Boulware said the union wouldn't need another vote to go back on strike.
So far, Boulware said the reception of the deal has been mixed among union members. He also said he wouldn't provide a recommendation for DC 33 members to ratify the tentative agreement or vote against it.
"If the members chose to accept it, then that's fantastic," Boulware said. "If the members chose to say no, then we would have to go back to the drawing board and get back with the city and start working on what we can change to do better."
"I'm not going to make a recommendation," he added. "I'm going to allow the members who put me in a position. Their ask of me was to go up, stand up and fight and try to get as much as we could get out of this. And we did accomplish quite a bit. But if they feel like it's unsatisfactory to their needs, then they have the right to say so."
The deal, met with celebration during a news conference with Mayor Cherelle Parker at City Hall Wednesday, would see DC 33 members receive a 3% annual raise for the next three years. It's well off the union's ask of 5% a year.
The raises were Boulware's primary issue with the agreement.
"I don't know what's to celebrate," Boulware said. "The same people that were poor yesterday are still poor today."
Boulware said he believes there are still more wins than losses for DC 33 members in the plan. He points to union negotiators fending off what he said were demands from the city.
In a three-page statement posted online, the union says it fought off attempts from the city to "seize control of medical claims payments," and to add a surcharge for smokers. They also listed what they deemed "unacceptable" proposals to change sick policy and work rules.
"Everybody generally looks at the percentage increase over the life of the contract, but there's a lot more to the contract than just the percentage increases," Boulware said. "So I thought we did a really good job of staving off some of the concessions the city was offering, or trying to get from us. We gave up no concessions in this contract, so that in itself is a win."
The union president did not give a direct answer though on why negotiators ultimately accepted the city's deal. In its post, DC 33 said the tentative agreement was voted on by its executive board, with the final tally being 21 in favor and five opposed.
On Thursday, Boulware called the city an "unwilling dance partner" at times.
"Multiple times they kind of like, you know, take it or leave it," Boulware said. "And so we kept digging in and pushing them, and we were able to get things crossed off of the list."
