City and White Plains PBA To Go To Contract Mediation
The White Plains Police Benevolent Association issued a press release April 13 claiming labor negotiations between the City of White Plains and the PBA have broken down resulting in an impasse. The matter will now go in front of a mediator from the New York State Public Employees Relations Board.
The release mentions that proposals were exchanged between the two parties on March 13 and a bargaining session date was set for April 25. Just two days later, March 15, the PBA claims in the release that the city requested an impasse after sending a letter reducing their offer and then on March 16, canceled the April 25 bargaining session.
The collective bargaining agreement between White Plains and the PBA ended in June of 2010. Since then, the PBA and the city have not been able to reach a new agreement.
The 2012-2013 White Plains Proposed Budget includes $1.4 million in the Reserve for Financing to provide salary settlements for three unions – police, fire, and Teamsters— at the rate previously negotiated by the CSEA (Civil Service Employees Association) according to White Plains Commissioner of Finance and Budget Director, Michael Genito.
The CSEA negotiated a four-year contract with White Plains that will end June 30, 2015. In that contract employees would receive a 2 percent increase each year over the three final years of the contract.
“The City of White Plains has repeatedly acted contrary to the interests of the citizens, police and the bargaining process in labor negotiations with the Police Benevolent Association, ultimately leading to a long and arduous impasse that will cost taxpayers money and damage the department,” PBA President Rob Riley said in the April 13 release.
Calls to the White Plains Mayor’s Office had not yet been returned at the time this article was posted.
