Workers seeking to be part of a union

Some employees have expressed concern over unpaid work hours.
By JOHN W. GOODWIN JR.
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
GIRARD -- Girard Municipal Court employees are seeking union representation after being caught in the middle of a funding battle between Judge Michael Bernard and city officials.
Several court employees who did not want to be named have confirmed that all employees in the court have signed consent cards and are waiting for the judge and city officials to be notified.
Ken Norris, a Teamsters representative, said court employees have approached the Teamsters seeking representation. He said letters notifying the city and Judge Bernard have been sent, but he refused to give further comment until those letters have been received.
"We have been approached, but I don't want to give any details until everyone is notified," he said. "I just think it is fair to the workers that the city be notified before reading it in the press."
Norris said he is hopeful that the city and judge will sign letters voluntarily recognizing the union. Should the city and judge not voluntarily recognize the union, he said, the employees would have to vote on unionization with a majority vote rule.
Mayor's comments
Mayor James Melfi said he has been told the court employees were seeking union representation, but he has not received anything from the Teamsters.
"I have received no notification, but when we do, if we do, I will notify the law director and we can go from there," he said.
Melfi said he and Jerry Lambert, safety service director, would be responsible for negotiations with the court employees, but some questions, such as the level of control the city would have over those unionized employees, would have to be answered.
"We are ultimately responsible for all union employee negotiations in the city," he said. "This would be another union for which we would be responsible for negotiations."
Court employees technically work for the judge and at the judge's discretion.
Eleven court employees were laid off due to funding in mid-November. Those employees returned to work Monday, but some have expressed concern over 64 hours of work per employee for which they have not been paid. The unpaid work was done just before the employees were laid off.
Employees' lawyer
Atty. Dennis Haines of Youngstown said he is representing the employees who are owed pay. He said no court action has been taken yet, but a lawsuit could be filed should the employees not be paid for the 64 hours. He also said he's representing the Teamsters in its organization effort for the court.
Judge Bernard has said the layoffs were necessary because city officials have refused to properly fund the court. Several city leaders have said that the court was given enough money but that the judge failed to manage that money appropriately.
jgoodwin@vindy.com