7-23-19 - Tentative Agreement Reached for Sysco NM

To All Sysco Members:  

Your Teamster Negotiating Committee wrapped up negotiations with Sysco NM today with a Tentative Agreement.  This has been a long, drawn out process that started in the early months of 2019.  After a lot of long sessions of back and forth, your Local 492 Negotiating Committee believes we have reached the point that we have been given the best deal the Company is willing to offer. 

There will be a meeting this Saturday, July 27, 2019 at 4 pm at the Union Hall (4269 Balloon Pk Rd NE, 87109) to go over the details of the Tentative Agreement and answer your questions. We will also pass out the ballots Saturday and you will have the opportunity to vote at the end of the meeting. For those of you that are out of town or cannot make it, we will also holding meeting very soon in Farmington, Las Cruces and Roswell and will also be mailing any unclaimed ballots from the meeting to the address you have on file with Local 492. Make sure to call Darlene at 505-344-1925 ex 12 if you have moved so that you get a ballot.    

We made a lot of headway getting some of the biggest issues addressed that you, the members, told us you had with your contract.  Some of the bigger issues resolved include;

• Several improvements to the vacation language, including:

An increase to 2 weeks’ vacation after only 6 months seniority,

A 5^th week for those with 25 years or more,

The option to cash out all weeks of vacation

Company will now cash out all unused vacation upon voluntary quit, retire, resign or layoff

Paid vacation will now show as “time worked” when calculating overtime hours.

• Part-time employee’s improvements include preventing future overuse of using part-timers and terminating part-timers at will.
• The Union gave the Company the ability to post driver bids as single day (They are not forced to do so but now once again have the ability)
• The Company must now notify the Union before changing WHIP or DIP
• Increased the meal allowance for overnight drivers
• Added new language to the grievance procedure we hope will help better resolve issues that come up in the future.
• Added language to stop the abuse of supervisors working, including requirement to exhaust all those wanting overtime.
• Paid Holidays and Paid Vacations will now be included as “time worked” when calculating overtime hours.    

Some of the smaller issues resolved include:

• Multiple issues resolved regarding posting bids
• Posting overtime sheets
• Driver protection if bid is abolished
• Restructured night differential in the whse
• Extra break for whse employees working long hours

We understand that everyone wanted a huge raise and your committee did everything we could, short of a strike, to get you guys the raises that you wanted.  Although the numbers were not as high as we all had hoped, we were able to get the largest increase that Sysco NM employees have ever seen and it was front loaded. Front loading means that the increase is compounded every year with the next increase and so on. We know that these increases will still be viewed as “not enough” by some of you, but the Company was unwilling to move any further than their last offer. It is now up to you to decide whether this agreement is acceptable. Because of all of the great language improvements made to the contract, the Union is recommending this Tentative Agreement. We hope to see this Saturday!!!!