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1776 and 23 Wine and Spirits Members Ratify New Four-Year Contract
Plymouth Meeting, PA, June 5, 2012 - The PA Wine and Spirits members of UFCW Local 1776 and 23 ratified a new four-year contract with the Commonwealth on Sunday, June, 3.
Wendell W. Young, IV, President of UFCW Local 1776, said that his members and the members of Local 23 in Western Pennsylvania approved the pact by a 85 percent to 15 percent margin.
Local 1776 represents more than 2,000 Wine and Spirit workers in Southeast, Northeast and Central Pennsylvania. Local 23 and its President, Anthony M. Helfer, represent 1,500 members in stores in the western part of the state.
The contract covers four years starting last July 1, when the previous contract expired, and runs through June 30, 2015.
Young said that the contract continues to contain important protections for members of the bargaining unit, including, but not limited to, the obligation of any employer who is operating essentially the same or similar business in whole or part to adopt all of the terms and obligations of the contract. The contract further obligates the Commonwealth to advise any prospective operators that it "is binding in its entirety upon them for the duration of its term."
Young said the new contrat provides wage increases in the second, third and final year of the agreement, after a first-year wage freeze. This is consistent with the state’s contracts covering more than 65,000 members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) District Council 13 and 20,000 members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 668.
Young added that the contract maintains current health and welfare provisions and pension language, again consistent with AFSCME and SEIU’s contracts with the state
.
“Considering the economic challenges facing the Commonwealth and the way in which public workers have been under attack in so many places around the country, we believe that we reached an agreement that is fair to our members and to the state,” Young said.
He added that Sunday's vote will send a strong message to the legislators who want to privatize the Wine and Spirits stores.
He said that the House Republican leader, Mike Turzai, is telling people that he plans to bring his privatization bill to the floor for a vote within the next two weeks.
“Our next steps are clear,” Young said. “We need to continue to call our State Representatives to tell them that Turzai’s scheme is wrong for Pennsylvania. It’s wrong for our families, our communities and all of Pennsylvania’s taxpayers.”
Local 1776 members can obtain their State Representative’s name, mailing address, phone number and email address here.
Young said that the fight against privatization remains a “hard-fought grind against determined, well-financed profiteers who will not give up easily.” He added:
“Our members work hard. Last year they generated more than $513 million in taxes and profits for the state treasury after all expenses were met. This is a reliable and growing source of revenue for all taxpayers in Pennsylvania. It’s overlooked and understated by those who want to privatize the stores. They don’t care about the positive impact on our state’s economy of the more than 5,000 union and non-union jobs that are tied to the stores, or the nationally-modeled role they play in preventing the sale of alcohol to minors or inebriated persons.”
Young said that Pennsylvania taxpayers and customers "have only to look at the current situation i n Washjington State to see the negative impact of its privatization scheme." He said:
"The news outlets are trunning story after story describing price gouging, hoarding and customers driving across the border to Oregon because the prices in Washington are rising after only a few days under privatization. Taxes are going up, prices are going up and selection is going down
"Meanwhile, 1,500 workers who were in the stores are out of their jobs. The same thing would happen to more than 5,000 union and non-union mena and women in Pennsylvania under the scheme making the rounds in Harrisburg, at a time when our state's economy can least afford it."
Locals 1776 and 23 compose the UFCW of PA Wine and Spirit Council, chaired by Young, who led the bargaining team for the workers in negotiations with the Commonwealth
.
Sunday's voting took place in eight locations around the state – Plymouth Meeting, Harrisburg, Pittston, Altoona and four locations in the UFCW Local 23 jurisdiction.
Local 1776 represents more than 2,000 Wine and Spirit workers in Southeast, Northeast and Central Pennsylvania. Local 23 and its President, Anthony M. Helfer, represent 1,500 members in stores in the western part of the state.
The contract covers four years starting last July 1, when the previous contract expired, and runs through June 30, 2015.
Young said that the contract continues to contain important protections for members of the bargaining unit, including, but not limited to, the obligation of any employer who is operating essentially the same or similar business in whole or part to adopt all of the terms and obligations of the contract. The contract further obligates the Commonwealth to advise any prospective operators that it "is binding in its entirety upon them for the duration of its term."
Young said the new contrat provides wage increases in the second, third and final year of the agreement, after a first-year wage freeze. This is consistent with the state’s contracts covering more than 65,000 members of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) District Council 13 and 20,000 members of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 668.
Young added that the contract maintains current health and welfare provisions and pension language, again consistent with AFSCME and SEIU’s contracts with the state
.
“Considering the economic challenges facing the Commonwealth and the way in which public workers have been under attack in so many places around the country, we believe that we reached an agreement that is fair to our members and to the state,” Young said.
He added that Sunday's vote will send a strong message to the legislators who want to privatize the Wine and Spirits stores.
He said that the House Republican leader, Mike Turzai, is telling people that he plans to bring his privatization bill to the floor for a vote within the next two weeks.
“Our next steps are clear,” Young said. “We need to continue to call our State Representatives to tell them that Turzai’s scheme is wrong for Pennsylvania. It’s wrong for our families, our communities and all of Pennsylvania’s taxpayers.”
Local 1776 members can obtain their State Representative’s name, mailing address, phone number and email address here.
Young said that the fight against privatization remains a “hard-fought grind against determined, well-financed profiteers who will not give up easily.” He added:
“Our members work hard. Last year they generated more than $513 million in taxes and profits for the state treasury after all expenses were met. This is a reliable and growing source of revenue for all taxpayers in Pennsylvania. It’s overlooked and understated by those who want to privatize the stores. They don’t care about the positive impact on our state’s economy of the more than 5,000 union and non-union jobs that are tied to the stores, or the nationally-modeled role they play in preventing the sale of alcohol to minors or inebriated persons.”
Young said that Pennsylvania taxpayers and customers "have only to look at the current situation i n Washjington State to see the negative impact of its privatization scheme." He said:
"The news outlets are trunning story after story describing price gouging, hoarding and customers driving across the border to Oregon because the prices in Washington are rising after only a few days under privatization. Taxes are going up, prices are going up and selection is going down
"Meanwhile, 1,500 workers who were in the stores are out of their jobs. The same thing would happen to more than 5,000 union and non-union mena and women in Pennsylvania under the scheme making the rounds in Harrisburg, at a time when our state's economy can least afford it."
Locals 1776 and 23 compose the UFCW of PA Wine and Spirit Council, chaired by Young, who led the bargaining team for the workers in negotiations with the Commonwealth
.
Sunday's voting took place in eight locations around the state – Plymouth Meeting, Harrisburg, Pittston, Altoona and four locations in the UFCW Local 23 jurisdiction.
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