October 2, 2019 - Today, the 492 Teamster members working for NCRTD voted 31-3 in favor of ratifying the 2019 agreement. Congratulations and thank you to all that voted.  We were also able to organize 14 new members today for this public sector unit.

Local 492 B/A’s Trey White, Tracy McCarty and Melissa Malcom and the NCRTD Teamster Negotiating Committee obtained a Tentative Agreement with NCRTD (Blue Bus) on September 26th, 2019 which included a record wage increase of about $1.00 (6.6%) in the first year, which is more than double the increase this group has EVER seen!  This was a long, drawn out process that started in May of 2019.  After a lot of back and forth, the Local 492 Negotiating Committee reached a great deal that will greatly benefit the NCRTD members. We then had a 2.5 hour meeting on Sunday, September 29, 2019 in Espanola where we went over the details of the Tentative Agreement and answered questions.

Three years ago, negotiations took an unfortunate turn over safety partitions for drivers. This year, we were able to finally secure terms that included any new busses purchased after ratification will have partitions installed behind the driver seat for their protection. We also made a lot of headway getting some of the other big issues addressed that the members told us they had with their contract which includes:

• A record 6.6% increase for CDL Positions; Driver II, CSR II, Driver III/Lead and CSR III in the first year! That’s about a $1 raise for most drivers, and even more for the higher grades. A total wage increase of 11.6% by July 2021. (Previous couple of years were 2.7% raises) 
• Health & Welfare increases for year FY2021 will be paid by the District
• Increase in pension rate paid by the District
• New Performance and Promotion language to allow for higher rates paid beyond the contract minimums
• Increased Longevity Award
• $15 per month laundry allowance and new uniforms each year, if needed
• Cleared up several issues regarding bidding
• Warning notice improvements & progressive discipline was introduced
• Made the grievance procedure more efficient and added mediation
• Partitions to keep drivers safe on all new buses
• Added safety clause regarding driving defective equipment
• Air conditioners must be repaired within 4 days
• No outside bus washing during inclement weather
• Higher pay when temporarily reclassified to higher rated job
• Several Cell phone issues cleared up
• District will not force you to use annual leave to make up for short work weeks
• Ability to cash out up to 40 hours of vacation
• New process to improve vacation bidding
• Now only one Probation period (even if promoted/demoted)