* Warning: This is an unofficial, introductory copy of the bill.
The official copy considered by the City Council is the first reader copy.
Introductory*
City of Baltimore
Council Bill R
(Resolution)
Introduced by: Councilmember Schleifer
A Resolution Entitled
A Council Resolution concerning
title
Paying DPW Workers What They Deserve
For the purpose of calling on the Mayor to provide temporary Department of Public Works employees who work on the back of garbage trucks with an immediate $4 per hour raise, at a minimum; and calling the Mayor and union officials to re-negotiate the contracts of those permanent Department of Public Works employees to include a $4 per hour raise, at a minimum.
body
Recitals
Both our temporary and permanent Department of Public Works (“DPW”) employees deserve an immediate wage increase of a minimum of $4.00 per hour.
Should anyone be working 10-hour days, sometimes in 100 degree heat or below freezing temperatures, while hanging onto the back of a garbage truck doing trash collection for only $11.00 an hour? The answer is an unequivocal no. It is no wonder that we have a shortage of available employees. Who could survive with just one job at these minimal wages? The City of Baltimore should operate under the concept of “one job should be enough,” if we want employee continuity and sustainability.
Our current workforce shortage and crisis is directly tied to the paltry hourly wages we are paying our dedicated and hardworking DPW employees. We should provide these employees with a modest hourly wage increase that would show how appreciated they are, making them more interested and motivated to provide the services our City desperately needs.
To make matters worse, Baltimore City, in order to cover the current employee crisis, is utilizing outside, independent contractors. This actually costs our City more money than if we just gave our hard working DPW employees the salaries they deserve.
While the Mayor has the ability to immediately enact a $4.00 per hour wage increase for the affected temporary employees and move their starting hourly rate to $15.00, the Mayor should also work with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (“AFSCME”) to provide the same $4.00 minimum increase for the permanent employees.
Over the past 6 months, DPW employees have had to endure enough stress, hardship, and challenges that, at a bare minimum, they deserve a decent wage. The Council strongly urges the Mayor to enact this modest change immediately so that our City can move forward and provide a better quality of life for all Baltimore residents.
Now, therefore, be it resolved by the City Council of Baltimore, That the Council calls on the Mayor to provide temporary Department of Public Works employees who work on the back of garbage trucks with an immediate $4 per hour raise, at a minimum; and also calls on the Mayor and union officials to re-negotiate the contracts of those permanent Department of Public Works employees to include a $4 per hour raise, at a minimum.
And be it further resolved, That a copy of this Resolution be sent to the Mayor, the Acting Director of the Department of Public Works, the Labor Commissioner, the Director of the Department of Human Resources, AFSCME Executive Director, Maryland Council 67 and President of Maryland Public Employees, Local 44 Glenard S. Middleton Sr, and the Mayor’s Legislative Liaison to the City Council.