NEW YORK CITY OFFICE OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING BOARD OF COLLECTIVE BARGAINING ---------------------------------------------------------X In the Matter of the Impasse Proceeding - between - LOCAL 621, SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION,
OCB DOCKET # I-275-20
Petitioner
-
and -
IMPASSE PANEL REPORT AND RECOMMENDATIONS
CITY OF NEW YORK, Respondent
-----------------------------------------------------------X IMPASSE PANEL: Sandra J. Meckler, Esq. APPEARANCES: FOR LOCAL 621, SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION: Gordon, Gordon & Schnapp, P.C. Kenneth E. Gordon, Esq. James M. Thayer, Esq.
FOR THE CITY OF NEW YORK: Les Morsillo, Esq. Senior Assistant General Counsel Office of the Mayor Office of Labor Relations
IMPASSE PANEL REPORT
Procedural History On July 26, 2019, Local 621, Service Employees International Union (“Local 621” or “the Union”) filed a petition for Amendment of Certification with the Office of Collective Bargaining (“OCB”) seeking to add the title of Executive Program Specialist (“EPS”) at the New York City Department of Transportation (“DOT”) to its existing certification. On that same day, the Union also filed a petition for Amendment of Certification with OCB seeking to add the title of Assistant Commissioner at the Fire Department of New York (“FDNY”) to its certification. Pursuant to a Stipulation of Settlement on February 14, 2020 with the City of New York (“the City”), the Union agreed to withdraw its petition and the City agreed to establish a new Level III in the existing title of Supervisor of Mechanics (Mechanical Equipment) (“SMME Level III”). The EPS at issue in the petition, Eric Dorcean, would be placed in the new title with no diminution in salary, with the ongoing salary rate for Level III employees to be addressed in collective bargaining. On June 8, 2020, the parties entered into a similar settlement agreement stipulating that FDNY Assistant Commissioner Mark Aronberg would be placed in the newly created title of Executive Director of Fleet Operations with no reduction in salary. The salary rate for this title would also be the subject of bargaining with Local 621.
The parties held six collective bargaining sessions between August and November 2020, but were unable to agree on the salary rates for the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles. On November 19, 2020, the Union filed with OCB a Request for Appointment of Impasse Panel. On March 1, 2021, I was appointed as the Impasse Panel arbitrator to make a report and recommendations on the disputed issues. The parties on May 5, 2021 submitted a Joint Stipulation of Fact and pre-hearing memoranda to the Panel. The parties appeared before me by videoconferencing on June 8, June 17, July 13, and August 17, 2021 to present evidence and offer witness testimony, with full opportunity for cross-examination. On December 8, 2021, the parties submitted legal memoranda in support of their positions. At the request of the Panel, the parties supplied supplemental information and evidence on January 14, 21, and 24, 2022, at which time the record was closed.
Background Since its formation in 1970, Local 621 has been the collective bargaining representative primarily for four supervisory titles involved in the repair and maintenance of motor vehicles and other mechanical equipment. In 1989, the City consolidated the four titles into the new title of SMME. This title initially had only one civil service level, with four assignment grades: Base pay SMME, Assistant Supervising Supervisor Class II (also known as Senior Supervisor), Assistant Supervising Supervisor Class I (also known as Assistant Chief), and Supervising Supervisor (also known as Chief). Until 1999, SMMEs had been prevailing rate employees covered by New York State Labor Law Section 220,
when the SMME title was reclassified as a Rule XI Career and Salary Plan title with coverage by the Citywide Collective Bargaining Agreement. The City currently employs approximately 180 employees in the SMME Level I title. Over the course of the next few decades, several other civil service titles accreted to Local 621. In 1992, the Union filed petitions to represent the titles of Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance and Deputy Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance at the Department of Sanitation (“DOS”). The New York City Board of Certification (“BOC”) determined that the Deputy Director position did not qualify as a managerial title within the meaning of Section 201.7 (a) of the Taylor Law and Section 12-305 of the New York City Collective Bargaining Law and added the title to the Union’s certification of representation. The BOC, however, decided that the Director title met the statutory definition of a managerial employee and ruled that this title was ineligible for collective bargaining. [Local 621, SEIU, 50 OCB 7 (BOC 1992)] In 2015, citing changed circumstances, the Union again filed a petition to represent the DOS title of Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance. The BOC held at this time that the title was eligible for collective bargaining with the exception of the Deputy Commissioner for Support Services position, which the parties agreed was managerial. [Local 621, SEIU, 8 OCB2d 32 (BOC 2015)] In response to Local 621’s representation petition, the BOC in 2006 also added the title of Administrative Director of Fleet Maintenance (“ADFM”) to the Union’s certification, with the exception of one employee who both parties agreed was managerial. [Local 621, SEIU, 78 OCB 2 (BOC 2006)] In December 2006, the City created the title of SMME Level II and began to phase out the ADFM title. There are currently approximately
ten SMME Level II employees working at the New York Police Department (“NYPD”), the Department of Environmental Protection (“DEP”), the DOT, and the FDNY. [Tr. 114] In 2011, the BOC further amended Local 621’s certification to include the NYPD title of Director of Motor Transport (“DMT NYPD”). [Local 621, SEIU, 4 OCB2d 57 (BOC 2011)] One employee at NYPD currently holds this title. The Union filed petitions in 2019 with the BOC seeking to represent the titles of Executive Program Specialist (DOT) and Assistant Commissioner (FDNY). The City and the Union entered into stipulations of settlement in 2020 that led to the creation of the titles of SMME Level III and Executive Director of Fleet Operations (FDNY). As a result of the settlements, Eric Dorcean became an SMME Level III at DOT and Mark Aronberg assumed the Executive Director title, with neither employee subject to any reduction in salary. The settlements provided for the titles’ salary ranges to be determined through collective bargaining, which led to the instant impasse proceeding after the parties’ unsuccessful negotiations. The parties agree, however, that a single salary range should apply to both titles.
New York City Collective Bargaining Law Pursuant to Section 12-311.c.(3)(b) of the New York City Collective Bargaining Law (“NYCCBL”), the Impasse Panel is required to consider wherever relevant the following standards in making its recommendations for the terms of settlement:
(i) comparison of the wages, hours, fringe benefits, conditions and characteristics of employment of the public employees involved in the impasse proceeding with the wages, hours, fringe benefits, conditions and characteristics of employment of other employees performing similar work and other employees generally in public or private employment in New York City or comparable communities;
(ii) the overall compensation paid to the employees involved in the impasse proceeding, including direct wage compensation, overtime and premium pay, vacations, holidays and other excused time, insurance, pensions, medical and hospitalization benefits, food and apparel furnished, and all other benefits received;
(iii) changes in the average consumer prices for goods and services, commonly known as the cost of living;
(iv) the interest and welfare of the public; (v) such other factors as are normally and customarily considered in the determination of wages, hours, fringe benefits, and other working conditions in collective bargaining or in impasse panel proceedings.
The Union’s Position
Local 621 contends that based upon the statutory criteria set forth in NYCCBL Section 12-311, the salary ranges for the new titles of SMME Level III and Executive Director (FDNY) should be a minimum of $204,210 and a maximum of $226,825. This proposed range is based on a 40-hour workweek, in contrast to the 35-hour workweek advocated by the City. Until the recent dispute with the creation of Level III, the SMME title had always been recognized as a 40-hour title. According to the Union, the City understood that the SMMEs’ overall supervision of complex agency fleet operations was a 40-hour job because of the high level of monitoring required to oversee subordinates who also work 40-hour schedules. The City’s attempt to now carve out an exception for Mr. Dorcean as a Level III with a 35-hour schedule not only defies logic since SMME II employees with fewer
subordinates are 40-hour employees, but it fails to fairly account for the highly complex nature of the duties performed. In the Union’s view, the Executive Director title held by Mr. Aronberg must also be considered a 40-hour position. Mr. Aronberg is responsible for all aspects of FDNY fleet management, which as of 1996 includes the division of Emergency Medical Services (“EMS”). He directs the maintenance and repair of all FDNY vehicles, manages a capital budget of $150,000,000 to $200,000,000, and leads the Department’s response at all major emergencies. [Un. Ex. 9] With the exception of a small number of administrative employees, Mr. Aronberg’s subordinates are 40-hour employees, including all of the SMME Level I and Level II employees he supervises. In contrast to the City’s claim that his job is a 35-hour position, Mr. Aronberg averages 62 to 63 hours per week. [Tr. 228-229] The Union also draws a comparison with Joseph Mastropietro who, like Mr. Aronberg, had been an FDNY Assistant Director. Mr. Mastropietro, until his retirement, supervised the work at facilities relating to the Department’s fleet and received a salary of $208,578. [City’s Supplemental Information, 1/14/2022 (“CSI 1/14/22”)] The Union disputes the City’s claim that the duties and responsibilities of Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg have not changed since the time that they had served in 35-hour managerial positions. In their testimony, Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg detailed the drastic changes in their jobs because of the pandemic response and staff reductions. Furthermore, the fact that City managerial positions have a 35-hour workweek in no way addresses whether they should be 40-hour positions once they become eligible for collective bargaining. When the BOC determined in 1992 that the DOS Deputy Director
title was eligible for collective bargaining, the City initially wanted to retain the title as a 35-hour position. The title, however, was recognized as a 40-hour position after mediation. Similarly, the ADFM title had been a 35-hour managerial title until the BOC in 2006 ruled that the title was eligible for collective bargaining. The City created a new SMME Level II with a 40-hour workweek to replace the ADFM title going forward. In the Union’s view, the history of the Deputy Director and ADFM titles confirms that the status of Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg as 35-hour managerial employees in no way dictates that they should be 35-hour employees in their new non-managerial titles. To the contrary, the history of the Deputy Director and ADFM titles is decisive precedent for the outcome that the Union seeks here; i.e., the recognition of the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles as 40-hour positions. The Union contends that the City’s reliance on the Report and Recommendations in Impasse Proceeding I-262-14 is misplaced. In that case, the Panel considered the appropriate salary ranges and hours for two long-existing titles, the DOS Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance and the NYPD Director of Motor Transport. The Panel recommended salary raises that adhered to the municipal pattern settlement and that retained the long history of the titles as 35-hour positions. In contrast, the titles at issue here are newly created, with no history of a specified workweek. In the Union’s view, basic fairness demands that the workweek for the titles here more accurately reflect the actual number of hours required for the positions. Contrary to the City’s suggestion, the availability of compensatory time is not a solution, since the evidence shows that Mr. Aronberg has accumulated over 1000 hours of compensatory time that he will almost certainly never be able to use. [Tr. 244-245]
The Union says that it is seeking a salary range for the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles that is consistent with the amount Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg are being paid as alleged 35-hour employees, but that is adjusted to reflect their actual 40-hour status. Mr. Aronberg’s current annual pay is $178,684 and Mr. Dorcean’s is $198,472 which, according to the Union, reflects the City’s assessment of fair rates of pay for these employees as 35-hour employees. Because the positions should be 40 hours per week, the proper adjustment is to employ a 40/35 multiplier, as was applied in the case of the DOS Deputy Directors. For the 40-hour positions, this would yield a salary range with a minimum of $204,210 and a maximum of $226,825. The Union points out that this a proposed range and does not presume that either employee here would be paid at the top of the range. In contrast, according to the Union, the City’s proposed salary range of $160,058 to $198,472 is plainly inadequate and inconsistent with the salaries of other high-level supervisors. While the nominal range for a DOS Director is $155,872 to $179,712, the City itself has allegedly recognized that the range is inadequate. In 2018, Edward Rasmussen, who at that time was a DOS Director at the Bureau of Motor Equipment (“BME”), received a salary increase of 23%, raising his pay to $178,702. Though now serving in a lower assignment level at the Cioffe Boro shop, Mr. Rasmussen has retained the Director title and through coalition raises receives a current salary of $188,205, which is above the contractual maximum for the DOS Director title. [Tr. 396-397] Giovanni Ianniello is currently responsible for the field operations previously performed by Mr. Rasmussen, as well as some of the duties performed by Director William Wehner prior to his retirement.
The Union’s proposed salary range also favorably compares with the salaries at DOT. Mr. Dorcean, considered by DOT to be at the level of an Associate Deputy Commissioner, receives annual pay of $198,472, while the Assistant Commissioner of Permit Management and Construction Control receives annual pay of $204,086 for a 35-hour workweek. [Tr. 373-374, City Exs. 1 and 2] The DOT Chief Technology Officer receives annual pay of $208,667 for a 35-hour job below the level of Commissioner. [Tr. 374, City Exs. 1 and 2] Both employees supervise far fewer subordinates than Mr. Dorcean. [City Ex. 2] The Union’s proposed range of $204,210 to $226,825 is allegedly far more consistent with the salaries of even lower-ranking top supervisors at the DOT than the City’s proposed range of $160,058 to $198,472. The Union’s proposal also fairly reflects the circumstances at FDNY. Mr. Aronberg testified that his supervisors believe that he is entitled to a pay increase. [Tr. 237] As previously noted, Mr. Aronberg’s closest equivalent at FDNY was Joseph Mastropietro, who also had been an Assistant Commissioner with an annual salary of $208,578 before his recent retirement. [CSI 1/14/22] The Union points out that the City’s proposed minimum of $160,058 is an 8% increase over the minimum salary of $148,202 for the SMME Level II title. The Union argues that this is inconsistent with existing differentials between SMME Levels I and II. Since the minimum salary for the SMME I title is $121,196, the differential between the two Levels is 22.28%. [Un. Ex. 17] Even if only this 22.28% differential were applied, the Level III minimum of $181,221 (i.e., $148,202 multiplied by 22.28%) would still be inadequate here. The Union offered the testimony of several witnesses in support of its position:
Joseph Giattino Mr. Giattino had been a DOS employee in various positions since 1971 and served as the President of Local 621 from 1996 until his retirement in 2021. As President, Mr. Giattino attended labor negotiations, grievance proceedings, and labor management meetings on behalf of Local 621 members who work at various agencies throughout the City, including DOS, NYPD, FDNY, DEP, Parks and Recreation, the Department of Correction (“DOC”), and the Department of Citywide Administrative Services (“DCAS”). During his tenure, Local 621 represented the titles of SMME Levels I and II, DOS Director and Deputy Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance, NYPD Director of Motor Transport, and Supervisor of Ironworks. [Tr. 92-93] The SMMEs at Level I and Level II are 40-hour employees who predominately supervise other 40-hour titles. [Tr. 96-98] When the Deputy Director title accreted to the Union in 1992, it converted through mediation from a 35-hour title to a 40-hour title, with a raise in the minimum and maximum salary ranges commensurate with the longer workweek. [Tr. 102-103] When the ADFM title accreted to the Union in 2006 and the position began to transition to the new title of SMME Level II, it also converted from a 35-hour to a 40-hour title. [Tr. 112-113] The DOS Director title remained a 35-hour title after its accretion to the Union in 2015. [Tr. 115] Eric Dorcean Mr. Dorcean testified that he had worked at NYPD for 25 years before assuming the position of DOT Executive Program Specialist. [Tr. 141-142] Pursuant to the representation petition filed by Local 621, Mr. Dorcean in July 2020 became a SMME Level III, with responsibility for the repair and maintenance of the DOT fleet and the
supervision of 130 to 140 subordinates. [Tr. 142,146, Joint Stipulation at par. 18] Mr. Dorcean said that in 2020 his title changed to SSME III and his duties increased due to pandemic-related compliance issues and staff shortages. [Tr. 168-169, 175-176] Mark Aronberg Mr. Aronberg testified that he began work for the City as a paramedic at EMS in 1982. When EMS and the FDNY merged in 1996, Mr. Aronberg transferred to FDNY fleet services. Rising through the ranks, Mr. Aronberg became the Assistant Commissioner of Fleet Services in 2012, with responsibility for the repair and maintenance of various FDNY and EMS fleets. [Tr. 182-183, 190] As a result of the settlement between the City and the Union regarding the representation petition, Mr. Aronberg’s title changed in June 2020 to Executive Director of Fleet Operations. [Joint Stipulation at par. 26] Mr. Aronberg is responsible for approximately 325 subordinates, including about 50 to 55 uniformed firefighters and fire officers. [Tr. 193-193] He oversees an annual capital budget of $120,000,000 to $200,000,000 and is responsible for administering DCAS policies regarding the Department’s fleet. [Tr. 210-213] Mr. Aronberg also personally responds in his supervisory capacity to multiple alarm fires and major incidents, such as building collapses or hazardous material issues. [Tr. 221-223] While he performed these same duties as Assistant Commissioner, Mr. Aronberg had additional responsibilities as the Covid crisis emerged with its concomitant operational and fiscal restraints, [Tr. 225-227] Mr. Aronberg further testified that all of the SMMEs he supervises are 40-hour employees, along with about 90% of the total staff. In February and March 2020, while he was still a managerial employee, Mr. Aronberg averaged 62 hours a week; in 2021, he averaged 63 hours a week. [Tr. 227-229] Mr. Aronberg has accrued over 1000 hours of
compensatory time that he will probably never get to use. [Tr. 232, 245] Mr. Aronberg further testified that his supervisor had advised him that he was interested in giving Mr. Aronberg a salary increase and agreed that his workweek should be forty hours. [Tr. 232-233, 247] Carl Chiaramonte After serving in NYPD and DOC fleet maintenance titles and Union positions as shop steward, treasurer, and trustee, Mr. Chiaramonte became the President of Local 621 in January 2021. In his various Union roles, Mr. Chiaramonte attended executive and general membership meetings, disciplinary hearings, and collective bargaining sessions. [Tr. 257-258] In Mr. Chiaramonte’s view, the new SMME Level III must be recognized as 40-hour position, since every SMME Level I and II employee from the inception of the title over 30 years ago has had a 40-hour schedule. Similarly, the new FDNY Executive Director must be recognized as a 40-hour title, since the position involves a 24/7 operation that includes the supervision of primarily 40-hour employees. Both new titles require critical decision-making skills based on ever-changing information, often in emergencies and highly complex circumstances. The titles are responsible for the maintenance and review of vast fleets and the supervision of large units. [Tr. 259-260] Unlike the titles at issue in the I-262-14 Impasse Panel Report, which had operated as 35-hour positions for decades, the titles before this Panel are newly created in agencies where the lower level employees have 40-hour workweeks. [Tr. 265-266] The relevant precedents here are the cases in which the Deputy Director title changed upon accretion in 1992 from a 35-hour to
a 40-hour title and the ADFM title in 2006 converted to the new title of SMME Level II with a 40-hour workweek instead of 35 hours. [Tr. 272] Howard Green Mr. Green worked for the New York City Office of Management and Budget for over 25 years, retiring in 1994 as the Associate Deputy Director of the Budget. [Un. Ex. 16] Mr. Green had responsibility for the City’s labor budget and participated in all negotiations concerning salaries and benefits. [Tr. 280] Mr. Green now serves as a consultant on a variety of labor relations issues. In this impasse proceeding, Mr. Green multiplied by 40 the current salaries of $178,684 and $198,472 paid to Mr. Aronberg and Mr. Dorcean, respectively. He then divided by 35, to arrive at a minimum and maximum salary range of $204,210 to $226,825, to reflect a 40-hour workweek. [Tr. 287, Un. Ex. 8A] The cost to the City for the Union’s proposed salary range for both incumbents would be .20% of the total salary cost of the Local 621 bargaining unit. On an hourly rate, however, the City’s true cost is zero since they are receiving 5 more hours of work for 5 more hours of pay. [Tr. 288-296, Un. Ex. 12] The City’s proposed range is 8% above the minimum for SMME Level II and the maximum is Mr. Dorcean’s current salary. The Union’s proposed range is the two incumbents’ salaries adjusted for a 40-hour week. [Tr. 301] Although DOS Director Edward Rasmussen is in a lower position, his salary is approximately $10,000 above that of Mr. Aronberg and $10,000 below that of Mr. Dorcean. If the Impasse Panel determines that a 35-hour workweek is correct, the Union alternatively proposes: (1) an 8% increase over Mr. Rasmussen’s salary with an 8% range, i.e, a minimum of $203,261 and a maximum of $219,522 or (2) an 8% increase over the maximum salary for DOS Director
of $179,712, i.e. a minimum of $194,089 and a maximum of $209,616. [Tr. 301-317, Un. Ex. 8B] Based upon the foregoing evidence and testimony, the Union argues that the Impasse Panel should deem the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles to be 40-hour titles with salaries paid in accordance with the Union’s suggested range.
The City’s Position The City maintains that the record fails to support any justification for the 14.3% salary increase advocated by the Union for the two former managerial positions recently accreted to the Union with the titles of Executive Director and SMME Level III. The evidence reflects no change to the duties and responsibilities of the positions since certification that would warrant such a windfall. In contrast to the Union’s stance, the City’s proposal conforms to the existing salary structure for similar high-level supervisory positions in the City and offers an 8% increase in the minimum incumbent salary over employees in the immediate subordinate title of SMME Level II. This 8% premium is allegedly consistent with the salary ranges determined by other impasse panels in similar circumstances in which formerly managerial titles were added to a union’s certification and placed in a new level within the title. The City’s proposed range maintains Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg at their already substantial salaries, while providing a fair range to those who may be appointed to the titles in the future. This result would also be consistent with the long history between the City and its unions that a mere change from non-represented managerial status to union membership does not confer unfunded economic benefits.
According to the City, the Union’s claim that the workweek of the two positions must be increased from 35 to 40 hours has no support in the record and is simply an attempt to construct a rationale for an unwarranted wage increase. The Union makes this argument on the basis that the two employees have been placed into completely new titles, with responsibility for primarily supervising other 40-hour titles. In the City’s view, the evidence shows that these positions are new in name only, requiring the exercise of the same duties both before and after certification. Both positions require the performance of high-level executive functions, which in similar cases throughout the City are almost universally assigned 35-hour workweeks. Neither position requires the direct operational supervision of vehicle repairs that lower level employees of the title perform. In the case of the SMME title, the job specification for Level III details that the assignment involves the supervision and administration of fleet services overseeing at least 100 employees, with wide latitude for the exercise of independent judgment and decision-making. Level I employees are responsible for the direction and supervision of assigned personnel in connection with mechanical repairs. Level II employees perform work of greater complexity or span of control involving the direction of maintenance and repair operations and may incidentally perform the duties of Level I. [Jt. Ex. 2] The City argues that it is logical for SMME Level II employees to be assigned a 40-hour work schedule that conforms to the workweek of those they supervise and whose duties they may incidentally perform. The Level III assignment, in contrast, involves an executive-level oversight of fleet operations that is qualitatively distinct from lower-level supervisory positions in the title.
Furthermore, both Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg have successfully operated within a 35-hour framework throughout their tenure in their respective positions. To the extent that it becomes necessary for them to work beyond their 35-hour schedule, they are now entitled under the terms of the collective bargaining agreement to additional pay in the form of compensatory time. According to the City, the precise question of the expansion of the workweek for newly accreted titles was decided in a prior impasse award, which declined to mandate a change from a 35-hour to a 40-hour workweek since “the length of the workweek involves the exercise of management discretion concerning the level of service it should supply.” [I-262-14 at p. 66-67] The City maintains that its proposed salary range is consistent with the salaries paid to positions with comparable levels of responsibility at other large City agencies with substantial and complex fleet operations. The NYPD Director of Motor Transport, Vartan Khachadurian, is paid a salary of $167,614, with responsibility for overseeing a fleet of over 9,000 vehicles and supervising over 300 employees. [ City Ex. 4, Un. Ex. 7] The DOS Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance, Edward Rasmussen, receives a salary of $188,205. Although he currently serves in a reduced role at DOS, it is clear that his salary was based upon his prior position in overseeing the entire fleet operation. [Tr. 391-393, 389, 402; Un. Exs. 6A and 6B] On December 9, 2020, Mr. Ianniello became the DOS Director of Motor Equipment, with a salary of $168,219. [CSI 1/14/22] According to the Union’s own evidence, both the DOS Director and the NYPD Director of Motor Transport oversee larger fleets and supervise more employees than either Mr. Dorcean at DOT or Mr. Aronberg at FDNY. [Un. Ex. 7] Yet, without producing evidence to justify such a pay differential, the Union proposes that both Mr. Dorcean and
Mr. Aronberg should receive substantially higher pay than either of their counterparts at DOS or NYPD. Furthermore, the Union’s proposal is contrary to the fundamental principles of municipal pattern bargaining in promoting fairness and stability throughout the City and to the specific criteria in the NYCCBL providing for the consideration of the terms of employment for similarly situated employees when making impasse recommendations. In support of its position, the City presented the testimony of three witnesses:
Margaret Forgione Ms. Forgione is the DOT First Deputy Commissioner, with responsibility for overseeing all six of the DOT’s operational divisions: Bridges, Ferries, Traffic Operations, Roadway Repair and Maintenance, Transportation Planning and Management, and Sidewalks and Inspection Management. In addition, Ms. Forgione oversees Fleet Services and the operations of the five Borough Commissioners’ offices. [Tr. 367-368] Because fleet services are part of her operational responsibilities, Ms. Forgione hired Mr. Dorcean in 2017 and oversees his work. In her view, the Union’s proposal to increase Mr. Dorcean’s workweek by five hours and to provide a 14.3% pay raise would be unwarranted and highly disruptive to the overall salary structure of the DOT executive staff. The Union’s proposal would result in a salary of $226,825 for the same duties that Mr. Dorcean had prior to representation. With the exception of the DOT Commissioner, this would make him the fourth highest paid employee in the agency, with a higher salary than Deputy Commissioners with a greater scope of responsibility; e.g., the Deputy Commissioner of Roadways with 1200 employees and responsibility for overseeing the
resurfacing of 1,000 miles of roads and highways each year, and the Deputy Commissioner of the Staten Island Ferry, who oversees the safe transit of over 25,000,000 passengers each year. Under the Union’s proposal, Mr. Dorcean would also be paid more than the DOT’s General Counsel. [Tr. 369-370, City Ex. 2] This wage disparity would be further amplified by the compensatory time he would receive for additional hours as a represented employee. Ms. Forgione also testified that she considers the proposed increase to a 40-hour workweek to be unjustified since Mr. Dorcean successfully worked a 35-hour week in his prior managerial position and his duties have not changed since representation. The 35-hour workweek has proven effective for many managers who, like Mr. Dorcean, are exercising high-level executive duties and not performing shop-level supervision. In the event he needs to work additional hours, Mr. Dorcean is entitled to request compensatory time. [Tr. 370-371] Rocco DiRico As the DOS Deputy Commissioner for Support Services, Mr. DiRico is responsible for both the Bureau of Motor Equipment (“BME”) and the Bureau of Building Maintenance, with a combined capital budget of almost $200,000,000. With an annual salary of approximately $221,000 and the typical 35-hour managerial workweek, Mr. DiRico oversees the sanitation fleet, participates in vehicle procurement, and manages approximately 1100 employees. [Tr. 387-388, 390] Mr. DiRico testified that the DOS organizational chart from 2016 accurately reflected Edward Rasmussen as the Executive Director of Support Services Operations. In that position, he oversaw the training, budget, and field operations for five boro vehicle repair shops. [Tr. 389, Un. Ex. 6A] In 2018, Mr. Rasmussen moved to a lower position on the organizational chart with responsibility for
the Cioffe Boro Repair Shop. Despite his new position, Mr. Rasmussen retained his existing salary and civil service title and is currently paid a salary of $188,205. [Tr. 389, 397; Un. Ex. 6B]
Daniel Pollak As the Associate Commissioner of the Office of Labor Relations (“OLR”), Mr. Pollak is responsible for negotiating collective bargaining agreements with municipal unions, advising City agencies on labor-management issues, and serving as an aide to the OLR Commissioner and First Deputy Commissioner. [Tr. 413] Prior to representation, both Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg were managers with salaries falling within the broad range of the City’s managerial pay plan. Although both employees had the typical municipal managerial workweek of 35 hours, many managers throughout the City routinely work additional hours beyond this schedule without any increase in compensation. While acknowledging the important roles fulfilled by Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg, the City’s position in this proceeding reflects its fundamental view that a change in representation status alone does not entitle an employee to a pay increase. Both employees received a high level of compensation as managers because of their critical work, and they knowingly accepted their salaries with the understanding that managers often work additional hours beyond their schedules without additional compensation. The City’s proposed salary range of $160,058 to $198,472 encompasses the current salaries of both incumbents. The minimum of the range is 8% above the salary for
the incumbent minimum rate for SMME Level II* and the maximum is Mr. Dorcean’s current salary. To the extent that they work additional hours beyond their 35-hour workweek, Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg are now entitled under the collective bargaining agreement to compensatory time. [Tr. 414-416, City Ex. 3] The Union’s proposed 14.3% increase along with a longer workweek would, in Mr. Dorcean’s case, result in a salary of about $226,000. That salary would be close to or above the salaries of some Commissioners. It would be above the salary of DCAS Commissioner Keith Kerman, who is the City’s chief fleet officer, and that of DOS Deputy Commissioner DiRico. In contrast, the City’s proposal maintains reasonable salary relationships to other high-level executive positions, such as the NYPD Director of Motor Transport and the DOS Director. [Tr. 420-423, City Ex. 3] Most titles in the City, whether managerial or represented have either a 35-hour or a 40-hour scheduled workweek that may require additional hours. If the title is represented, the Citywide agreement provides for compensatory time. If the compensatory time is not used by retirement, an employee can run out his or her combined annual leave, compensatory time, and sick leave for up to one year. For employees hired after 2004, sick leave is converted to terminal leave at a rate of one day of terminal leave for each three days of sick leave. [Tr. 424-426]
*The salary range for the SMME Level II is $148,202 to $164,555. Four DOS SMME Level II employees currently earn $152,926, and DOS SMME Level II employee Frank DePalo earns $164,555. Five NYPD SMME Level II employees earn between $152,648 and $164,555. Four other SMME Level II employees at agencies throughout the City are paid at the minimum of the range, with the opportunity to earn cash overtime. [Tr. 418-419; City Ex. 3, CSI 1/14/22, Union’s Supplemental Information 1/14/22 (“USI 1/14/22”)]
Furthermore, 35-hour managers in the City often supervise 40-hour employees, up to and including Commissioners who indirectly supervise 40-hour titles. This includes many instances in which formerly managerial titles acquired union representation and maintained their 35-hour schedule while supervising 40-hour employees. [Tr. 428-429] As examples of 35-hour titles supervising 40-hour employees, Mr. Pollak listed the following positions: Supervisor of Traffic Device Maintainers Levels II and III, Administrative Traffic Enforcement Agent, Associate Supervisor of School Security, Parks Enforcement Captain (not formerly managerial), and Supervising Deputy Sheriff Level II. [Amended City Ex. 3, Tr. 515, CSI 1/14/22] Mr. Pollak testified that the history of the ADFM title does not provide a precedent for moving the titles here from a 35-hour to a 40-hour workweek. In 1994, the DOS Deputy Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance title with a 40-hour workweek accreted to Local 621. In 2006, the BOC found that the duties of the ADFM title were similar to those of the Deputy Director title and added the title to the Union’s certification. In negotiation, the Union sought and the parties eventually agreed to increase the weekly hours to 40 and to set the minimum salary at the same rate as the Deputy Director minimum because of the similarity of the titles. In this case, however, the titles at issue are more similar to the NYPD Director of Motor Transport and the DOS Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance, which are both 35-hour titles and which a prior impasse panel declined to convert to a 40-hour title. Mr. Pollak said that approximately 85% of represented employees, including those represented by Local 621, have settled on voluntary agreements with the City for the civilian pattern of bargaining in the 2017-2021 round. If the Union’s proposal were granted
in this case, the Union would have achieved an additional benefit beyond what was funded in the municipal pattern and would potentially encourage other unions to seek impasse in the hope of achieving an award that exceeds the pattern. If a union seeks an additional benefit such as monetary compensation instead of compensatory time, the union typically negotiates to fund the benefit within the pattern agreement. For example, both the NYPD Captains and the DOC Deputy Wardens obtained this benefit by agreeing to an increase in the length of the workweek to fund it within the pattern settlement. A departure from this practice has the potential to undermine the stability of municipal labor relations. [Tr. 433-434] In summary, the City argues that the Union’s proposed adjustments, if adopted, would create a dangerous precedent for employees to receive large salary increases after union certification despite unchanged duties and responsibilities. The City’s proposal, in contrast, maintains a stable salary relationship between these titles and the positions they supervise as well as between these titles and comparable titles in other City agencies. The salary range offered by the City is inherently reasonable in that it encompasses the salaries of both incumbents, comports with the historical precedent of retaining salary structures with unchanged duties after union accretion, and provides flexibility in future hiring for the titles.
Discussion
In considering the appropriate salary range for the new titles of SMME Level III and Executive Director of Fleet Services, I have reviewed the evidence and testimony, the
Joint Stipulation of Fact, the prior impasse reports cited by both parties, and the pre-hearing and post-hearing legal memoranda. In so doing, I have analyzed the standards set forth in NYCCBL Section 12-311 regarding the issuance of recommendations for the terms of settlement in impasse procedures. I have given due consideration both to the Union’s legal and equitable arguments in support of its proposed salary range and the City’s expressed interests in fiscal responsibility, overall pay equity, and stability in municipal labor relations. The transcript and evidence citations are intended as references and do not imply that other evidence was excluded in making this Report. The Union’s proposed range of $204,210 to $226,825 is largely predicated on the concept that the two titles must be compensated as 40-hour positions, rather than as 35-hour positions. According to the Union, in the case of the new SMME Level III title, the proposed 40-hour workweek would simply reflect the three-decade history of the SMME title as a 40-hour position. Regarding Mr. Aronberg’s position at FDNY, the Executive Director is a new title with no workweek history as either a 35-hour or 40-hour title. The Union argues that in both instances, a range based on a 40-hour schedule more accurately reflects the actual length of the employees’ workweek, the critical nature of the jobs, and the supervisory roles they perform with respect to “trades” titles with 40-hour workweeks. I do not find these arguments to be persuasive. While the titles may be new, the positions to which they are applied are not. The DOT hired Mr. Dorcean in 2017 as Associate Deputy Commissioner of Fleet Services with the civil service title of Executive Program Specialist to oversee the supervision of the repair and maintenance of the DOT fleet. [Tr. 141-143, Jt. Ex. 4A] The FDNY promoted Mr. Aronberg in April 2012 to FDNY Assistant Commissioner of Fleet Services with responsibility for all aspects of fleet
management, including vehicle purchase, repair, and maintenance. [Tr. 183, 242-243, Un. Ex. 9] With the exception of various compliance and staffing issues due to the Covid pandemic, the record does not establish any significant change to the duties of either Mr. Dorcean upon becoming an SMME Level III or to Mr. Aronberg upon becoming the Executive Director of Fleet Operations. [Tr. 168, 175, 212-221, 242-243] It bears noting that Mr. Dorcean became an SMME Level III on July 15, 2020, and Mr. Aronberg became the Executive Director on June 8, 2020. [Jt. Stipulation, paragraphs 18 and 26, Un. Ex. 5] At the time they assumed their new titles, both employees had been experiencing coronavirus-related work disruptions for several months due to the state-wide stay-at-home order instituted in mid-March 2020. Therefore, the workplace changes did not occur because of the placement in new titles, but because of the pandemic-related exigencies faced by untold numbers of City employees. Nor am I convinced that the titles must be converted to 40-hour workweeks because SMMEs have a long history as 40-hour titles who supervise subordinates in trades positions, such as auto mechanics, electricians, and machinists, or because the new titles primarily supervise subordinates with a 40-hour workweek. Both Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg successfully served in their critical roles as 35-hour managerial employees before union representation. As is the case with many managers throughout the City, they provide effective high-level supervisory oversight without the necessity of a workweek identical to their subordinates. I understand that both employees perform important work that often extends beyond a 35-hour schedule. As managerial employees, both Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg accepted salaries with the understanding that City managerial titles do not receive overtime pay. With union representation, both are entitled under the Citywide
collective bargaining agreement to receive overtime remuneration in the form of compensatory time for work over 35 hours per week. Although the Union argues that compensatory time insufficiently compensates the employees here, this contractual term nevertheless provides an additional negotiated benefit post-accretion for the same duties they previously had performed as managers outside of collective bargaining. In this regard, I note that the term “managerial” under Civil Service Law Section 201.7(a) differs from the common usage of the term by referring specifically to employees who are ineligible for collective bargaining as “persons (i) who formulate policy or (ii) who may reasonably be required on behalf of the public employer to assist directly in the preparation for and conduct of collective negotiations or to have a major role in the administration of agreements or in personnel administration provided that such role is not of a routine or clerical nature and requires the exercise of independent judgment.” Thus, a recognition by the BOC or the particular agency that an employee is entitled to union representation does not imply that the employee performs no managerial duties in the colloquial sense of the term. The Union points out that SMME Level I and II employees with a 40-hour workweek are responsible for the repair and maintenance of City fleets in agencies with fewer than 100 direct or indirect subordinates. The SMME job specification defines SMME Level III as employees responsible for the supervision and administration of fleet services with at least 100 employees. [Jt. Ex. 2] The Union argues that it defies logic that smaller fleets would be supervised by 40-hour employees at Levels I and II, while larger fleets involving greater responsibilities, such as those in the FDNY and DOT, would be supervised by 35-hour employees. The persuasive testimony and evidence in the record
indicates, however, that many City employees with 35-hour schedules, both managerial and represented, are supervisors for subordinates with 40-hour schedules. The Union also disputes the relevance of the City’s evidence regarding employees in formerly managerial titles who retained a 35-hour workweek post-accretion while supervising 40-hour subordinates. [City Ex. 3] The Union points out that the titles, unlike those here, do not supervise employees in the trades. Furthermore, the cited titles have not yet been the subject of collective bargaining over the length of the workweek. I am not persuaded, however, that the nature of the work performed by subordinates is material to a consideration of the appropriate length of a high-level supervisor’s workweek. Furthermore, as both parties point out, a change to the length of a workweek is, of course, subject to future collective bargaining. In a prior impasse, Local 621 also argued that the two newly accreted positions of NYPD Director of Motor Transport and DOS Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance should be compensated as 40-hour employees rather than as 35-hour employees. The Panel declined, in the context of an interest proceeding, to mandate an increase in the length of either Director’s workweek, which it believed to be a matter of management discretion in the level of service it wished to provide. [I-262-14, p. 66] The Union maintains that the Panel’s determination to adhere to the municipal pattern settlement and retain the 35-hour workweek is inapposite to this matter since, unlike here, the two existing titles in that case had long been deemed 35-hour jobs. As noted earlier, I do not find that the assignment of new titles to Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg is the salient point of consideration. I attach weight, however, to the evidence showing that both employees competently performed
their substantively unchanged executive duties with a 35-hour workweek both before and after union representation. For the above reasons, I do not believe that the salary range for the new titles should be based on a conversion of the current pay of Mr. Dorcean and Mr. Aronberg to a 40-hour workweek. The question thus turns to the appropriate basis for setting the salary range for the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles. The City argues that its proposed range of $160,058 to $198,472 is consistent with the salaries paid to comparable employees in other City agencies with large and complex fleet operations; i.e., the DOS Director of Motor Equipment Maintenance ($188,205) and the NYPD Director of Motor Transport ($167,614). Both positions report to Deputy Commissioners and, according to Union Exhibit 7, oversee fleet operations with more vehicles and total personnel than the operations overseen by either Mr. Dorcean or Mr. Aronberg. The Union argues, however, that neither the DOS Director nor the NYPD DMT offer an appropriate basis for comparison, since both positions had long operated as 35-hour titles. In the case of DOS, the Director title has a tangled history with varying degrees of supervision and responsibilities. In 2016, the DOS had two directors: William Wehner, in charge of Vehicle Acquisition and Warranty, Materials Management, and Administrative Services, and Edward Rasmussen, in charge of the Central Repair Shop and all of the boro shops. When Mr. Wehner retired in May 2020 at a salary of $171,156, the only nominal Director at that time was Mr. Rasmussen, who had moved into a position at the Deputy Director level supervising only the Cioffe Boro shop, but who nevertheless retained his prior salary and civil service title. [Tr. 394-396, Un. Exs. 6A and 6B, CSI 1/14/22] In contrast, the titles at issue here are responsible for large fleets with at least
100 subordinates and are therefore materially distinct from the single-boro shop responsibilities of Director Rasmussen. In the Union’s view, the inadequacy of the City’s proposal is demonstrated by the comparison of Mr. Rasmussen’s salary of $188,205 with Mr. Aronberg’s salary of $178,684 for a position of far greater responsibility. The Union also disputes the City’s contention that the DMT title at NYPD is analogous to the two titles here. The Fleet Services Division is a para-military organization headed by the DMT and a full uniformed Inspector, with 52 uniformed employees. The civilian and uniformed employees, with the possible exception of the DMT, all report directly or indirectly to the Inspector. In contrast, the DOT fleet workforce is civilian, and the FDNY has no uniformed officers above the rank of lieutenant. Furthermore, the City itself has allegedly recognized the differences between the DMT and the titles here, since the DMT salary range of $152,648 to $168,293 is below the City’s proposed range for the titles of SMME Level III and FDNY Executive Director. I see no persuasive basis for tying the range of the SMME Level III and FDNY Executive Director titles to the standard of Mr. Rasmussen’s salary or to the maximum salary of the DOS Director, as the Union has offered as alternatives. For reasons that are unclear in the record, in February 2018 the DOS increased Mr. Rasmussen’s salary to a level above the contractual maximum for the DOS Director title.* As noted above, Mr. Rasmussen’s current salary with coalition percentage raises is $188,205, although he no longer is in charge of BME field operations. I do not believe that a salary rate that exceeds
*Associate Commissioner Pollak testified that OLR was not involved in the process by which Mr. Rasmussen’s salary was increased “because we would not have approved a salary above the maximum for the title.” [Tr. 447]
the terms of the parties’ collective bargaining agreement is a reasonable basis for evaluating the appropriate salary range for the Executive Director and SMME Level III titles. Furthermore, the evidence shows no convincing reason for setting the salary range based upon an 8% increase to the maximum salary for the DOS Director title. In my view, a fair benchmark is the collectively-bargained pay range for the titles which are in the line of promotion or which could reasonably be reclassified into the new titles in the future. Since the SMME Level III job specification limits the title to employees supervising large fleet services divisions with at least 100 employees, both parties agree that at least at the current time, only supervisors at DOT, DOS, NYPD, and FDNY would qualify.* Clearly, SMME Level II employees with a current salary range of $148,202 to $164,555 are in the line of promotion to the Level III title. As Mr. Pollak testified, the title of DOS Director, with a current salary range of $155,872 to $179,712, and the title of NYPD DMT, with a range of $152,648 to $168,293, could also potentially fit within the SMME Level III title. [Tr. 419-420] In light of the above salary ranges for employees who may be promoted from SMME Level II or otherwise re-classified into the SMME Level III title, the issue then turns to the proper range for the two new titles. The Union posits that the DOS Director and DMT titles are below the supervisory responsibilities of the new titles and that the salary range for the new titles must be higher than the pay currently received by these titles. In the Union’s view, even an 8% increase applied to the top range of the DOS Director title ($179,712) would result in an unjustifiably low range for the incumbent titles here
*Although a job specification for the FDNY Executive Director title has not been implemented at this time, both parties agree that similar analyses apply for the two titles in issue.
($194,089 to $209,616). The City, on the other hand, argues that the DOS Director and DMT titles are comparable positions to the new titles and must take into account their established pay ranges to provide consistency across agency fleet operations. The proposed ranges are as follows: City’s proposed range based on 8% increase to the SMME Level II minimum and Dorcean’s current salary: $160,058 to $198,472
Union’s proposed range based on 40 hours and 8% increase to Rasmussen’s salary: $204,210* to $226,825
Union’s alternate proposed range – 35 hours and 8% increase to Rasmussen’s salary: $203,261 to $219,522
Union’s alternate proposed range – 35 hours and 8% increase to the maximum salary for DOS Director: $194,089 to $209,616*
The current salary ranges for the titles relevant here are as follows: NYPD Director of Motor Transport: $152,648 to $168,293 -- currently held by Vartan Khachadurian at $167,614
DOS Director: $155,872 to $179,712 -- currently held by Edward Rasmussen at $188,205 and Giovanni Ianniello at $168,219
DOS Deputy Director: $152,926 to $164,555
SMME Level II: $148,202 to $164,555
SMME Level I (Supervisory Assignments): $126,671 to $131,449
SMME I: $121,196
*The Union has at times referenced slightly different numbers, but those cited here appear to correctly reflect the math.
For the previously discussed reasons, I have considered both the salary range of the lower level employees in the direct line of promotion, i.e., Level II SMMEs, and the salary ranges of related titles in the administration of fleet operations, i.e., the DOS Director and the NYPD DMT. Whether either the DOS or the NYPD has employees who currently meet the terms of the SMME Level III job specification is not the issue before me. Nevertheless, both parties agree that the Level III SMME job specification is broad enough to one day include employees at these agencies and potentially at other agencies as well. Therefore, the salary range here needs to maintain a reasonable relationship to the salary structures of lower levels of the SMME title as well as to the similarly situated employees performing similar duties. As NYCCBL Section 12-311 provides, the Panel’s analysis involves, inter alia, a consideration of the wages, hours, conditions, and characteristics of the public employees at issue with those of other employees performing similar work. In my view, the City’s proposal of an 8% increase to the minimum incumbent salary of the SMME Level II title, resulting in a SMME Level III minimum salary of $160,058, provides an insufficient increase to reflect the substantial scope of responsibility at the highest level of the title and to provide adequate inducement for promotion. The job specification for Level II describes the title as performing “work of greater complexity and/or scope of control” than the highest assignment differential for Level I and includes the oversight and coordination of the activities of a segment or bureau performing fleet repairs and maintenance. The Level III job specification defines the title as involving wide latitude for the exercise of independent judgment with responsibility for the supervision
and administration of a fleet services division of a large agency with at least 100 employees. The duties include the development of safety, training, and operational programs, as well as providing technical advice and expertise on equipment and related matters. [Jt. Ex. 2] Unlike employees at SMME Level II, SMME Level III does not include the incidental performance of duties at the lower level of the title. The job specification thus contemplates a substantially greater scope of administrative authority, responsibility, and expertise than employees at lower levels of the title. I likewise believe that the City’s proposed minimum for the SMME Level III title is an insufficient increase from the salary ranges of the DMT and DOS Director titles. Despite some contrary testimony and legal argument, the City at least tacitly appears to recognize that the duties of the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles are broader in scope and responsibility since its proposed minimum for the new titles ($160,058) is above that of the minimum for employees in the DMT or Director titles ($152,648 and $155,872) who may in the future be re-classified as Level III SMMEs. Similarly, the City’s proposed maximum ($198,472) exceeds the maximum for either the DMT or Director titles ($168,293 and $179,712). Furthermore, unlike the job specifications for the titles of DOS Director and NYPD DMT, the job specification for SMME Level III clearly limits the title to employees who are responsible for a fleet services division overseeing at least 100 employees. I believe that a 4% increase to the maximum salary of a Level II SMME would provide a reasonable incentive for those in the line of promotion, while still maintaining a rational relationship to salary ranges of employees in other agencies who are performing similar duties. The resulting SMME Level III minimum of $171,137 is slightly higher than
the current maximum for the DMT title and falls within the existing range of the DOS Director title. The percentage difference between a salary minimum of $171,137 and a maximum of $198,472 is 15%. I further find that the City’s proposed maximum of $198,472 based upon Mr. Dorcean’s current salary appropriately compensates for the high-level executive work intrinsic to the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles. The salary maximum of $198,472 maintains a reasonable relationship between the two new titles and the related titles in fleet operations, providing a 21% increase over the maximum salary of the SMME Level II title and a 10% increase over the maximum salary for the DOS Director title. It also rationally comports with the salaries of high level managers in the City, including those in positions with greater scope of authority and responsibility. For example, the DOT Deputy Commissioner of Roadway Repair and Maintenance who is responsible for emergency response and for the re-surfacing of 1000 miles of roadways each year earns an annual salary of $207,552, and the DOT Deputy Commissioner of the Staten Island Ferry who is responsible for the annual transit of 25,000,000 passengers earns $210,000. [Tr. 369, City Ex. 2] The DCAS Deputy Commissioner who serves as the City’s chief fleet officer earns $213,783. [Tr. 417, CSI 1/14/22] The Commissioner of Cultural Affairs, the Executive Director of FDNY Pension Fund, the President of the Tax Commission, among other top agency heads, all earn $227,786. [CSI 1/14/22] In conclusion, I find that the City’s proposed minimum for the new titles is an insufficient increase from the related titles in fleet operations and from the lower levels of the SMME title. I recommend a 4% salary increase to the contractual salary maximum for the SMME II title for a salary minimum for the two new titles of $171,137. I also
conclude that a salary maximum of $198,472 meets the statutory standards of NYCCBL Section 12-311.c.(3)(b) and fairly compensates for the responsibilities of the SMME Level III and Executive Director titles. I recommend a minimum and maximum salary range for the SMME Level III and FDNY Executive Director titles of $171,137 to $198,472.
Recommendations
1. The salary for the FDNY Executive Director civil service title and the Supervisor of Mechanics (Mechanical Equipment) Level III civil service title shall have a minimum salary of $171,137 and a maximum salary of $198,472. 2. The aforementioned titles and salaries will be deemed a part of the collective bargaining agreement between the City of New York and SEIU, Local 621 with a term of March 13, 2017 to October 12, 2020 and included in negotiations for the successor agreement.
_____________________________ Sandra J. Meckler
Dated: January 31, 2022
STATE OF NEW JERSEY ) COUNTY OF MORRIS )
AFFIRMATION
I, Sandra J. Meckler, Esq., do hereby affirm upon my oath as Arbitrator that I am the individual described in and who executed the foregoing instrument, which is the Impasse Panel Report and Recommendations.
Dated: January 31, 2022
____________________________________ Sandra J. Meckler