Somerville Reaches Contract Extension With Crucial City Workforce

SOMERVILLE, MA — Mayor Jake Wilson announced that the city has agreed to a new contract with the Unit D employees of the Somerville Municipal Employees Union on Thursday.

The Unit D portion of the union is composed of the city’s parking staff, social workers, custodial and facility supervisors for the Department of Public Works, specialized police department clerical staff, and Inspectional Service Department workers.

Key provisions of the three-year Memorandum of Agreement include a three percent retroactive cost-of-living adjustment for both Fiscal Year 2023 and Fiscal Year 2024, one additional week of vacation as well as a transition to a vacation time accrual system, an increase to the longevity bonus system, and eligibility to Somerville’s new eight-week Paid Family Medical Leave program that took effect last April.

As part of the market adjustment, starting rates for FY25 will increase by an average of 13%, while existing employee rates will increase by an average of 14%.

“When City Hall runs well, the whole local economy is stronger. That starts with the basics: strong services, a stable workforce, and fair union contracts that help us recruit and retain the people who keep this city moving,” Wilson said in a statement. “I’m grateful to Unit D and our team for the good-faith work that brought us to signing today.”

The contract is retroactively in effect for FY23 through FY25, as the previous Unit D contract had expired in June of 2022 after being signed in 2019 by former Mayor Joe Curtatone. During Katjana Ballantyne’s mayoral tenure, she did reach a contract extension with the SMEA’s Unit B employees.
According to Wilson, the contract will now be brought to the City Council for final approval.

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