Waste Management Pleased With New Contract

Waste Management of Alameda County, Inc. (WMAC) and the ILWU Local 6 Recycling (Local 6) announce the ratification of a new 6-year Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) on Oct. 30, 2014. Local 6 members voted 111-6.

WMAC and Local 6 leadership reached a comprehensive understanding on several key issues including providing competitive wages and affordable benefits with employees sharing in increased cost of Health & Welfare (H&W) benefits. The new CBA will affect 122 Waste Management employees in Alameda County located at the Davis Street Resource Recovery Complex (Davis Street) in San Leandro.

“Davis Street is a world-class recycling facility operated by world-class people,” said Jack Isola, Senior District Manager, Davis Street. “We welcome back our employees with open arms and look forward to achieving the high diversion goals of the communities that we serve.”

The new CBA provides:

• Tiered Ratification Bonuses based on date of employment, ranging from $500-$1,500
• An immediate wage increase of $1.48 an hour and an additional $0.50 an hour on Jan. 1, 2015, followed by wage increases that will reach $20.94 an hour for a Recycling Sorter/Material Handler on July 1, 2019
• New Classification for Screen Cleaner, Traffic Control, Quality/Baler Check and Audit Control with $1.25 an hour increase above Sorter wages
• $35 a month for family health coverage under the ILWU Local 6 H&W plan with an annual increase of $10 a month

“Our efforts have been to find a balance between the needs of our employees in terms of rising compensation cost and the needs of the company to remain competitive and continue its investments in Alameda County, while protecting our ratepayers and franchise cities,” said Barry Skolnick, President of Waste Management of Alameda County, Inc. and Area Vice President for Northern California-Nevada.

Waste Management of Alameda County, Inc. currently serves more than 194,000 residential households and 14,000 commercial customers throughout Albany, Emeryville, Oakland, Hayward, San Ramon and unincorporated Alameda County, including the Castro Valley Sanitary District and the Oro Loma Sanitary District.

ABOUT WASTE MANAGEMENT OF ALAMEDA COUNTY, INC.

Waste Management of Alameda County is a community-based provider of environmental solutions. We offer residential and commercial curbside collection for recycling, composting and disposal. Our fleet of natural gas vehicles are powered with gas made from trash at the Altamont Landfill. WM EarthCare (www.wmearthcare.com) is our closed loop solution to organic waste. We deliver local solutions with the knowledge and resources of the nation’s largest recycler, Waste Management.

--Information and image from Waste Management