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Teamsters and residents press Malden council over layoffs tied to failed override
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Summary
Union and residents told the Malden City Council that planned layoffs and budget cuts following a failed override are hurting long-serving employees and single parents; Teamsters Local 25 said it filed labor charges and urged the council to honor collective-bargaining layoff rules.
At a Malden City Council meeting that suspended committee rules to allow public comment, Steven South, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 25, said the city notified union members of "significant layoffs" affecting more than a dozen employees and that the union had filed unfair-labor charges with the Massachusetts Department of Labor Relations. "We were notified, about a week ago exactly, that there was gonna be significant layoffs within the city of Malden and specifically with the Teamsters Union bargaining units," South told the council and residents.
South said the union represents more than 200 city employees and that the layoff notices appeared to conflict with the contracts' seniority-and-bumping provisions. He cited the proposed layoff of Michelle Conley, a 41-year employee, and said the city recently hired new workers who would remain while long-serving employees were slated to be let go. "If you're truly laying off to save money, then laying off the lowest paid and replacing them with the highest paid on overtime, that's fake," South said.
The council had earlier agreed to allow a 30-minute public-comment period with two minutes per speaker, and several residents used the time to press the council on the proposed budget cuts. Denise Balboni Kawi recounted personal financial hardship after losing her husband and urged councilors to "prioritize what truly matters, fund public safety and stop allocating money to projects that are not essential to the city's core infrastructure." Michelle Connelly read a letter from police cadet Shanae Iguanosa, who described being a single mother of two and said the layoff jeopardized her housing and career pathway.
Councilor McDonald, chair of the finance committee, reminded the public that no council votes were scheduled at the meeting and outlined the review process for the mayor's proposed FY27 budget, including a public hearing and committee review before any votes. McDonald also encouraged affected employees and community members to participate in the finance committee meetings.
The Teamsters' filings and the union's claim of contract violations are under way with state labor authorities, per South. Councilors did not take any immediate action to reverse or change layoff notices during the meeting; councilors and staff said the matter would be handled through the finance process and appropriate legal or bargaining channels.
The council adjourned at 8:22 p.m.; the finance committee will hold an overview meeting next week and a public hearing is tentatively scheduled for June 2 as part of the 45-day statutory review of the mayor's FY27 appropriation.
