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Local 955 tells council wage-opener priorities: market adjustments, step-scale fixes and binding arbitration
Summary
Local 955, representing about 300 city employees, presented wage-opener priorities including missed pay‑grade adjustments, additional step scale steps to address compression, help for DOT-related sleep studies and binding arbitration for grievances.
Andrew Hutchinson, union representative for Local 955, told the Columbia City Council that his unit will pursue wage-opener items this year focused on market adjustments, step-scale fixes and better grievance enforcement.
“Most of them focus on economic issues since this is the wage opener,” Hutchinson said, identifying pay‑grade and market adjustments, step-scale changes and ordinance revisions as the union’s bargaining objectives. He said the city previously treated pay‑grade adjustments as a management right and that the union will press to have those issues negotiated this year.
Hutchinson said the current step scale prevents some employees from reaching the full pay-range maximum because the number of steps leaves little room at the top. He proposed adding steps so employees maxed on the step scale can still progress toward the grade maximum. Hutchinson said the step plan took effect in the current contract cycle and the union expects additional work on compression and performance-management alignment.
On workplace testing and medical requirements, Hutchinson asked the city to consider assistance for employees who must complete sleep studies after occupational medicine referrals, noting those tests are covered by insurance but often occur before individual deductibles are met.
Hutchinson also asked the council to support binding arbitration for grievance and disciplinary appeals. “When you get to the end of that process, if I believe that we are right and the city believes that they are right, then we can both split the cost of an arbitrator to then award that decision,” he explained, saying the current process ends at the city manager.
He identified specific job titles that were not evaluated in the city’s classification and compensation study and said the union will request corrections; examples included container maintenance technicians and other classifications in solid‑waste and equipment maintenance. Hutchinson said Local 955 represents roughly 300 employees.
Council members asked clarifying questions about the timing of step plans, holiday pay for compressed schedules, and the cost-sharing mechanics of arbitration. Hutchinson said arbitration is expensive and is used selectively but often encourages negotiated settlements rather than routine filings.
The council did not take a formal vote; the presentation was submitted as the union’s FY26 bargaining priorities and will move into the city’s established bargaining timeline.
