Need info from Labor Gurus! (retro pay)

[KnaveRupe]

I'm a member of AFSCME Local 2206, white-collar employees of the City of Erie. We had been without a contract since December 31, 2005. Last month, we FINALLY signed a contract with the City which included a retroactive 1% raise for 2006.

Some of our members who were employed during part or all of 2006, but who are currently laid off have asked whether they are entitled to the retro pay for hours they worked in 2006. The city is now arguing that only those union members who were employed at the time the contract was signed are entitled to the retro pay. Our (absolutely worthless) AFSCME staff rep has stated that he wont argue for those Union members' back pay, and that he basically agrees with the City's position.

I can't believe that this is the first time that this issue has ever come up in contract negotiations anywhere; there has to be a more-or-less standard way that this type of thing usually plays out. Anyone have experience with this type of situation, or have access to any resources that might help me club our guy upside the head and get him to actually argue on our behalf?

Or am I completely out to lunch on this one, and standard Labor practice is to only afford those retroactive pay raises to individuals employed at the time the contract is actually signed?

Thanks for any expertise anyone can lend me.

[Virginia Dare]

1. Contact the legal dept. of AFSCME is my advice...

I'm sure they've run up against this before.

[bedpanartist]

2. They are owed back pay

the contract is being applied retroactively to all current workers, and therefore, should be applied retroactively to former workers as well. Their current work status is not what is being argued over, and will not effect their being owed a retroactive raise.

For example: You and I worked all of last year 40 hours every week. I was laid off for this year, but you weren't. We both worked those same hours, and the pay portion of the contract goes back to last year. Those hours worked fall under the new contract's wage provisions.

Management is trying to get off the hook paying those workers what they are owed. If they didn't want to pay retroactive wages, they shouldn't have agreed to wages being retroactive to a certain date in the contract.

[Omaha Steve]

3. I'm AFSCME too, they OWE everybody back pay

http://www.afscme.org/

It has always been a standard with our local retroactive covers everybody in the time frame involved. Even if somebody was laid off, retired, was terminated during 2006, they have back pay coming. A call to AFSCME is in order.

http://www.afscme.org/forms/contact_us.cfm

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