Union chief: Don't pass city budget without labor contract

AFSCME District Council 33 President Pete Matthews asked City Council Thursday not to pass a budget until Mayor Nutter comes to an agreement with the city's blue collar workers, who have not had a new contract for five years.

"We can do this deal," Matthews said, during Council's caucus gathering before the regular Thursday meeting. "We don't want to go to the next mayor."

Matthews said he was willing to negotiate on the pension plan, but not furloughs and overtime. He called furloughs "totally unnecessary," because of the city's improved finances. He also doesn't want to restrict overtime for his members and said that the administration has the authority to sign or not sign overtime slips.

"If city wants to stop overtime, they can do it," he said.

The Nutter administration reached an agreement earlier this year with DC 47, which represents the city's white collar municipal workers.

Council has just one more meeting scheduled next Thursday before the summer recess. Unless more meetings are added, the members are bound to pass the budget then.

"We can work this contract out. The numbers are there," Matthews said. "We can sit down and work this out."

Source: Philly.com