New York City has reached a tentative contract agreement with Local 891 International Union of Operating Engineers, which represents public school custodians, Mayor Bill de Blasio announced Jan. 6.
Additionally, Local 891 has reached a tentative contract agreement with Local 94 International Union of Operating Engineers, which represents school firemen and stationary engineers who work primarily in the city's public schools but are not employees of the city's; rather, Local 891 serves as their individual employer.
According to de Blasio, health care cost savings will reduce the cost of the deal to $207.3 million from $248.3 million. The city and the Municipal Labor Committee, an umbrella group for municipal unions, agreed to the savings.
To date, de Blasio's administration has reached contract agreements with more than 71% of the city workforce that had previously been working under expired contracts.
Locals 891 and 94 have worked without contracts since 2008 and 2007, respectively.
De Blasio said the tentative agreements fit the pattern established by the United Federation of Teachers contract in May and require no new funding over previous budgetary projections. The proposed nine-year contract with Local 891 would run, retroactively, from Jan. 1, 2008, to Dec.r 31, 2016. The proposed nine-year contract with Local 94 would run, also retroactively, from Oct. 22, 2007 to Oct. 21, 2016.
