Thousands of Philadelphia city workers on strike but judge orders some back to work
Philadelphia – A strike organized by nearly 10,000 workers in the city of Philadelphia entered his second day on Wednesday while a judge ordered certain distributors of emergency services and essential employees of the water service to return to work.
The judge of the Court of Common Pleasters, Sierra Thomas-Street, granted the city an injunction on Tuesday indicating 237 out of 325 workers from the city center of the city 911 must return to work because their absence creates a “clear and present danger to threaten the health, security or well-being of the public”. The prescription does not prevent these workers – 32 fire distributors, five supervisors and 200 police distributors – from participating in the strike during hours on leave.
The judge also ordered workers in the Water Department at work because they are essential to ensure that fresh and clean drinking water is available for residents.
Looking for better salary and benefits, the District 33 Council of the American State, County and Municipal Employees announced the strike on Tuesday, stimulating nearly 10,000 blue passes to leave the post. During the day, the strikers signaled to traffic panels near the town hall and formed stake lines outside the libraries, city offices and other workplace.
The mayor, Cherrelle Parker, said that the city suspend the collection of residential waste, would close certain swimming pools in the city and shortened the hours of the leisure center, but promised to operate the city. Police and firefighters are not on strike.
Parker, a professional democrat, promised that the celebrations of July 4 in the birthplace of the country would continue as usual.
In a statement on Tuesday, the mayor said that the city “put its best offer on the table”. The city offered increases of 13% during its four-year term, including the bump of 5% from last year, and added a fifth stage to the remuneration scale to align with other city unions, she said.
The District 33 Council is the largest of the four main unions representing city workers. The president of the Greg Boulware union, Greg Boulware, said that the city did not happen to the salary increases that the research union.
The union leaders, in their initial contract proposal, asked for annual increases of 8% each year of the three -year contract, as well as hikes and bonuses of up to $ 5,000 for those who worked on the pandemic. The union also asked the City to pay the total cost of employee health care, or $ 1,700 per person per month.
In November, the city’s public transport system avoided a strike when the parties agreed with a one -year contract with increases of 5%.
A strike of 33 waste from the District Council in the summer of 1986 left the city without collecting garbage for three weeks, which led the garbage to accumulate in the streets, alleys and deposit sites.
