IBEW 1245 Members at Island Energy Secure New Agreement and Equity Wage Adjustments

IBEW 1245 has secured a one-year agreement, along with wage equity adjustments, for the newly organized workgroup at Island Energy, a department of the City of Pittsburg. IBEW 1245 gained recognition of the group, formerly represented by Teamsters, earlier in the year, approximately two months before the expiration of their Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The group maintains both electric and gas utilities on Mare Island in Vallejo.

Despite the challenge of bargaining a new agreement during a global pandemic, Senior Business Representative JV Macor and I, along with bargaining unit negotiating committee members Sonny D’Amico and Bradley Bond, began negotiations with the City in June. The IBEW 1245 negotiating committee conducted several meetings with the City of Pittsburg bargaining team virtually using Microsoft Teams.

The IBEW 1245 team negotiated a one-year contract with several improvements to the existing Teamster MOU, including improved standby language, improved overtime provisions, new rest period and meal language, union leave time for shop stewards and officers. Additionally, IBEW and the City agreed to language that required the parties to conduct a salary survey for IBEW classifications, meet and confer over market rate equity adjustments, and, if applicable, recommend to Council to adjust wages to the median of comparison agencies.

The newly organized members at Island Energy unanimously ratified the new MOU on August 18, 2020, and the City of Pittsburg adopted it on September 21, 2020, at which time the IBEW negotiating team went back to the table to secure the equity adjustments. On November 16, 2020, the Pittsburg City Council approved equity adjustment of 14%, 19% and  20% for the newly IBEW 1245 represent classifications of Utility Maintenance Worker, Utility Technician, and Utility Lineworker, respectively.

–Al Fortier, IBEW 1245 Assistant Business Manager