By Namu Sampath
masslive.com
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. — Ambulance provider American Medical Response said its employees are planning to strike on Sunday, but not over wages: They’re seeking to avoid crossing any union-related picket lines while on rescue calls.
At a press conference on Tuesday afternoon, Patrick Leonardo, the regional director of AMR in Springfield, said the company’s proposed contract “goes beyond meeting expectations,” and includes a 35% overall pay increase, higher entry-level pay, ratification bonuses, health benefits, enhanced retirement benefits and increased holiday pay. AMR has contracts in Springfield and Greenfield.
Leonardo said the snag is a proposed union clause that says that “members can refuse to respond to a call if other unions are on the picket line unless they deem it life-threatening.”
“A delay in care caused by the refusal to cross picket lines could result in preventable deaths,” said Leonardo.
Teamsters Local 404, the union representing the employees, posits that AMR takes issue with more than just the clause.
“Negotiations are a total package,” said Bryan Donovan Jr ., the president of Teamsters Local 404 and the primary union representative for AMR employees. “AMR is just cherry-picking with what’s already been approved.”
When asked specifically about the clause in question, Donovan said, “Employees want to respect workers who have a picket line in place and will administer services based on need, but Teamsters aren’t against treating patients.”
He said he couldn’t go into what warrants a need, as that would get into medical terminology, but said there have been other unions that have been successful in negotiating this clause into their contracts, including Boston MedFlight and Armstrong Ambulance.
Both, he said, are examples the union provided to AMR as a suggestion for contract language early in the negotiation process. “They refused to do that,” he said.
Donovan said the union filed a 10-day strike notice with AMR last Thursday, which is required prior to a strike. The notice, he said, also aimed to “resolve negotiations during a cooling-down period.”
Instead, he said the company took claims to the media rather than hashing it out with its unionized employees.
“The company isn’t acting in the best interest of its employees. These employees are Samaritans, and AMR is exploiting their hard work by acting in bad faith,” he said.
On Sunday, if no deal is reached, the unionized employees in Springfield and Greenfield will be on strike until negotiations are resolved.
Donovan said by refusing to respond to the strike notice or to negotiations, AMR is “putting its employees on the street.”
“I’m disappointed that the company has decided to take this public,” he said.
The company has 322 paramedics and EMTs in Springfield, responding to about 50,000 calls a year, according to the company’s website.
During the press conference, Leonardo said AMR is “dedicated to collaborating with the union, representing the employees and is fully committed to the negotiation process.”
In the event of a strike, Leonardo said the company has protocols in place to maintain “critical emergency services, safeguarding public health.”
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