Local foils City's contract-out attempt

Members of Local 120 in Tacoma faced a situation earlier this year where City management was attempting to let an entire work group of computer programmers die of attrition.

The City’s plan was to replace the Union workers with contract programmers. But the members of Local 120's Tacoma bargaining unit fought successfully to win back the jobs, and force the contractor to utilize Union workers in their contract work with the City.

The Tacoma Public Utilities Customer Service programmers’ group had slowly but surely withered away to a shadow of its former self. Over the course of the last four to five years, the members of this group were promoted, retired, or transferred to other City departments, and management failed to fill the vacancies. What was once a strong group of nine Union workers, now was an overworked staff of three.

City management decided the time was right for privatization, and made an informal request for bids to contract out the bargaining unit's work. They hatched a plan whereby contract programmers working for Cap Gemini, Ernst & Young of New York would be hired at over twice the cost of using Union workers, sending much of the work to their New York headquarters.

Local 120's membership immediately took action, forcing management to bargain the impacts of the loss of Union jobs. They were successful in obtaining 120 hours of City time for the Union's team to prepare an alternate proposal to counter the contractor's plan.
Midway through the counter-proposal process, management decided it would be in its best interests to work out a joint proposal with the Union, since the Utility Board had voted unanimously to defer a confirmation vote on the original Cap Gemini proposal. The Board sent a strong message to management: “Work it out with the Union.”

Although the joint agreement did not stop the contractors entirely, it did significantly lessen the impact of the Cap Gemini plan.

The Union was able to successfully reduce the total number of replacement workers from five to two over the course of the two year agreement, and forced management to fill a senior programmer vacancy right away, with a Union worker.

Highlights of the joint agreement:

• Three programmer vacancies will be filled with Union workers, not contractors
• Provides for phasing out of two of Cap Gemini’s staff during the two-year contract
• Long-term programming work will be done by City programmers, not contractors
• Cap Gemini's contract is of limited duration, and will end when the existing Customer Service system is replaced
• Keep the work in Tacoma — Cap Gemini’s people will be living and working here, not New York
• Training for Union programmers.

— John Ohlson, Local 120, Tacoma