The Holyoke City Council Finance Subcommittee voted on Dec. 23 to deny a funding package for a new collective‑bargaining agreement covering professional supervisors after several councilors objected to changes including expanded vacation and a guaranteed flex‑time mechanism for management‑level employees.

The package combined three items (13–15) that amend the existing Professional Supervisors Association agreement and recognize AFSCME as the union of record. The subcommittee chair called the package to a roll‑call vote; Councilor Jordan and Councilor Sullivan voted no, Councilor Devine and Councilor Givner voted yes, and Councilor Ocasio voted no, leaving the appropriation motion defeated.

Why it mattered: The contract changes would align vacation accrual and personal‑day rules with recently adopted ordinance rates, remove a practice of end‑of‑year vacation buyback, add a small longevity schedule effective July 1, 2025, and introduce a performance‑based merit payment option. The most contested provisions during the hearing were a clause that sets a 35‑hour base workweek with an explicit flex‑time request process (the employee may request flex time for evening meetings or special projects and the request “cannot be unreasonably denied”) and language tying several supervisory positions to union coverage under AFSCME.

Council debate focused on management authority and fiscal effect. Councilor Jordan said he would oppose funding the package for two reasons: "I didn't support the add on of an extra week of vacation in the ordinance... Number 2, I'm against this lehi time language. This hampers significantly management." He argued department heads should not receive contract protections that limit mayoral discretion over schedules.

Labor counsel and negotiators defended the settlement as a trade‑off of provisions negotiated at the table. Labor counsel summarized changes to wages and overtime language, saying the parties had "agreed to a dollar an hour increase each year for 3 years" while also deleting an unused merit‑pay clause and establishing clearer overtime/comp‑time rules. He described the new flex/time and performance evaluation language as attempts to regularize long‑standing past practice and make expectations consistent across departments.

Union representatives and administration officials also debated legal and charter limits. Labor counsel cautioned that while the charter remains supreme, some conflicts between charter terms and contract language have existed historically and would be subject to arbitration or Department of Labor adjudication. Frank Gentile, a union representative, told the committee the union was open to equitable pay adjustments when justified.

What the vote does: The subcommittee's denial means the requested appropriations tied to the package will not be approved at the subcommittee level. The contracts and associated budget moves can be brought to the full City Council, where final appropriation decisions will be made.

What comes next: Committee members asked staff to provide detailed financial backup and year‑by‑year cost estimates; the administration indicated certain increases have been partly covered by previously budgeted 2% staff COLA and that remaining fiscal impacts were included in the meeting packet. The matter was left to be taken up at the full council meeting for further consideration.

Sources: Discussion and votes on items 13–15 at the Dec. 23 Holyoke City Council Finance Subcommittee meeting.