Written by Frank Mulligan
 

NEW BEDFORD — A spotty air conditioning system and concerns with air quality at New Bedford District Court have led to a call to close it down while repairs are made.
 

Citing "numerous ongoing unsafe working conditions," the union representing courthouse staff sent a letter to the Mass. Trial Court on Aug. 15 calling for the closure, and threatening to take legal action.
 

National Association of Government Employees President David J. Holway stated, "I am writing on behalf of our members to yet again demand that this facility be closed until all repairs have been completed and the building is safe for our members."
 

The Mass Trial Court has responded that progress with repairs is being made, and that there were no plans at present to shut down.

 

The building, located at 75 N. 6th Street, was built in 1981.
 

System repairs are being made during the evenings and overnight, according to NAGE.

Holway said that the courthouse staff had been reaching out with health and safety concerns in such volume that "we may be pressed to pursue litigation in this matter."

 

It's been an ongoing issue for many years, according to the union, but reached "its pinnacle" earlier this summer when the air conditioning went out during a heatwave, which forced employees to work in a 100-plus-degree building.

Conditions said to be worse than described

"On top of a crumbling courthouse, and a host of visible health and safety problems, the court was forced to close in late morning for the safety of employees and the public alike," according to a NAGE press release.

 

Holway said he toured the building on Aug. 5, and found conditions worse than the courthouse staff had described.

Holway said Trial Court Administrator Thomas Ambrosino had said repairs were being made. Holway said that was "laudable."

However, the "missing component" was a commitment to close the courthouse so the large volume of repairs can be effected quickly to avoid workplace disruptions, Holway said in his letter.

 

Repairs being made in 'fits and starts'

He said the Trial Court had declined to do that, and repairs were being made in "fits and starts" during evenings or overnight.

He said workers had be moved from certain areas in the building, especially the basement, due to adverse effects from the repair process.

 

No plans to close courthouse at this time

Trial Court spokesperson Erika Gully-Santiago said Ambrosino had responded to Holway's letter, and would continue to communicate with him on this issue.

Gully-Santiago added there were no plans at this time to close the courthouse down while repairs are being made.

She said the courthouse has closed early on hot days due to issues with the HVAC’s cooling system.

 

Decisions on whether to close, or how early to close New Bedford District Court are made by the Trial Court administrator and district court leadership, she said.

Progress being made on system repairs

Gully-Santiago said that on some occasions, District Court jury trials had been moved to Bristol County Superior Court in New Bedford.

She said the courthouse is owned by Bristol County, but that the Trial Court Facilities Dept. has been working on the repairs to the courthouse’s HVAC and plumbing systems, and is also deep cleaning the courthouse.

She said progress has been made and the work is ongoing.

The Trial Court brought in "chillers," which provide cooling air, on Aug. 10, and is working to make them more effective at temporarily cooling the building, she added.

The origional article can be found here. 

NAGE has again written to the Trial Court Administration, demanding the closure of the New Bedford Disctrict Courthouse. The letter can be found linked below. 

Letter to TC Administration 8.15.24

We have received a response to President Holway’s demand that the Trial Court close the New Bedford Courthouse until repairs are complete, and the working environment is healthy and safe. Included in Administrator Ambrosino’s response was the letter linked below that was sent New Bedford Court leadership earlier this week.

While we are encouraged by the Court’s long-term plan as it is laid out in the letter, we are not satisfied with the determination to keep the courthouse open. We will continue to advocate for our member’s health and safety, and to that end, have secured the Court’s commitment to bring in DPH to assess conditions in the building. In addition, the Trial Court has promised thorough air quality testing. We will keep you updated as this matter continues to progress.

Trial Court Letter to New Bedford Leadership

NAGE has written to Trial Court Administrator Tom Ambrosino over the deplorable conditions at the New Bedford Courthouse. Our members deserve to work in a clean, healthy environment and the Administrator is refusing to work with NAGE to improve working conditions. We will keep you updated as this matter progresses. 

July 30th Letter to Admin Ambrosino

We are pleased to notify you that NAGE has entered into an agreement with the Trial Court for a job reclassification plan that will benefit all NAGE members. The agreement provides as follows:

• Reclassifications will go into effect January 27, 2025.
• Two weeks after January 2025, the NAGE-negotiated 3% salary increase will go into effect for all members.
• Member's current step dates will remain unchanged.
• The promotional factor in the contract will be improved to a minimum 5% increase.
• The new starting vacation rate will be 3 weeks per year. Employees currently accruing less than 3 weeks will move to a 3 week accrual schedule.
• The new starting salary step will be Step 3. Employees below Step 3 will move up to Step 3 upon conversion.

The new salary schedule will look different than the current schedule, with more value between steps, and in some case new top steps. The overall average value of the new scale is 3% higher than the previous scale.
 
As many employees know, this proposed plan has been under discussion for some time. Credit goes to your Local President for working to ensure the best possible outcome from these negotiations, and for their insistence that we not move forward until we had assurances that we had secured the best possible outcome for our members.

 

You should have received an email showing the changes in your job series as well as your individual increase. If you did not receive this email, please reach out to Kelly Warner at kwarner@nage.org to request a copy.

MOA on Trial Court Reclassification

January 2025 Salary Chart