City Waiting for State
DC 37: Pay Talks Hostage to Budget

By MEREDITH KOLODNER

District Council 37 Executive Director Lillian Roberts told a subdued, lightly-attended delegates assembly meeting March 25 that no new contract negotiating sessions would be set up until after the state budget was settled, according to sources who attended the meeting.

LILLIAN ROBERTS: Several big items unresolved.

The contract report drew neither questions nor discussion during the relatively short meeting, which also touched on the lack of progress on a residency deal, more than 100 layoffs at the Housing Authority and the potential of 1,400 job cuts at the Off-Track Betting Corp.

Mayor Eyeing State Aid

DC 37's contract expired March 2. The explanation for the delay in negotiations, as understood by several attendees, was that the Bloomberg administration was waiting to see how much money the state would allocate to the city before it continued to bargain.

The last session was held Feb. 26, when the city offered a two-year contract with wage increases of 3 percent and 3.5 percent, union sources said. DC 37 originally asked for a four-year deal at 4 percent per year but reportedly is willing to settle for a three-year pact. DC 37 officials told delegates that they were assured two 4-percent raises had been allocated in the Mayor's budget proposal.

The Mayor's Office declined to comment.

The deadline for the state budget was April 1, but legislators are not bound by law to settle by that date.

Sources involved in negotiations said that a central sticking point involved benefit payments and reversing the reduction of starting wages agreed to in the 2004 contract. DC 37 officials have said in the past that they want to match the pattern established by the uniformed unions, which received 4-percent annual raises in the most recent round of bargaining. The United Federation of Teachers got 7 percent raises over two years.