NAGE Saves DWD Jobs after Patrick Administration Cuts
May 1, 2008
The Patrick administration had the hatchet out as the state unceremoniously whacked 30 managers from the DWD payroll. According to employees, the pink slips came with little explanation and nary a thank you for the longtime service and dedication of the public servants. Some employees were escorted out of the building by security guards, with no time even to say farewell and good luck to their colleagues of so many years.
Three Civil Service employees who had continued their association with the union were able to hang on to their jobs, as NAGE successfully fought to have them reinstated.
When the three received their layoff notices without the opportunity to exercise their bumping rights, NAGE filed a grievance and urged the employees to file a complaint with the Civil Service Commission. NAGE also wrote a letter to Secretary of Labor Suzanne Bump, decrying the state's violation of Civil Service law. Within days, DWD completely reversed some terminations and allowed all managers with bumping rights to roll into union positions.
"Job cuts in any situation are very difficult, but the way the state handled this particular situation was shameful," said John Mann, president of Unit 1, Local 292. "In some cases, these people had a decade or more of experience with the state, and they were just pushed out the door like they had done something terribly wrong. It was incredibly disrespectful."
"I'm proud to be in a union that treats people with dignity, and I'm proud that we were able to get people whose Civil Service rights were violated, back to work."