Providence finance committee recommends tentative three-year contract with Laborers Local 1033

The Providence City Committee on Finance on June 12 voted to recommend approval of a tentative three-year collective bargaining agreement between the City of Providence and the Rhode Island Laborers District Council, Local 1033, covering July 1, 2025, through June 30, 2028, after a public hearing and a fiscal-note briefing.

Paul Winspear, chief people officer for the City of Providence, told the committee the agreement is designed to “safeguard the city's financial future, respond to labor market realities, and respect the needs of our workforce.” Winspear described the package as a compromise intended to balance equitable wage growth with the city's budget constraints.

The committee was presented a fiscal note, which the director of finance summarized as showing a total cumulative fiscal impact of $10,376,213 across the city and the Providence Water Supply Board for the three contract years. Key elements in the tentative agreement described to the committee include a one-time $1,000 stipend to be paid in June 2025 to active Local 1033 members, cost-of-living adjustments of 2.75% (FY26), 3.5% (FY27) and 5% (FY28), increases to shift differentials and CDL stipends, modest increases to certain union benefit contributions, and a scheduled joint wage study to be completed by December 1, 2025.

Director of Finance Sarah Silveria presented the fiscal details to the committee, saying the cumulative wage cost is $9,071,113. The fiscal note listed a one-time stipend cost of approximately $686,000, a CDL/shift differential cost of about $410,280, an increase to Union Benefit Trust Fund contributions costing roughly $267,555 over three years, and an estimated FICA impact across the three years. The fiscal briefing also noted negotiated increases in employee health-care co-share rates that yield a net savings of $311,769 to the city across the contract term. The director told the committee the $1,000 stipend would be paid from the fiscal year 2025 budget if the agreement is approved and that staff expect to process it before June 30, 2025.

Ronald Koya, business manager and secretary-treasurer of Local 1033, urged the committee to ratify the agreement, saying the contract “ensures that our members can continue to perform these services at a fair wage, both to them and to the taxpayers.” Koya also noted the membership ratified the tentative agreement on May 2, 2025.

Council members questioned several components during the discussion. Councilor Graves raised concerns about the stipend eligibility window and the potential for newly hired employees to qualify under the draft dates; she also pressed for data on how long employees historically remain on paid administrative leave pending disciplinary hearings and asked staff to provide non