City Celebrates Tenth Anniversary of Labor-Management Committee Founding

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
September 14, 2011

For more information, please contact:
John Langley, Deputy Director of Utilities, City of Bloomington, 349.3656, [mailto:langleyj@bloomington.in.gov]
Jared Schlemmer, Communications Director, City of Bloomington, 349.3406, [mailto:schlemmj@bloomington.in.gov]

Bloomington, IN - This week, the City of Bloomington celebrates the 10th anniversary of the Utilities Department's Labor-Management Committee.

"Congratulations to our partners on operating what we believe to be one of the longest-running public sector Labor-Management organizations in the state of Indiana," said Mayor Mark Kruzan.

In 1999, the City of Bloomington Utilities Department recognized a need for improved relations between unionized employees and department management at its two wastewater treatment plants, Dillman Road and Blucher Poole.

The Utilities Department proposed hiring a private-sector management company to operate the plants, and proceeded to develop and publicly advertise a request for proposals (RFP). The City's RFP prompted AFSCME Local 2487, which represents the Utilities Department and other unionized city employees, to petition utilities administration to allow plant employees (both union and management) to submit their own proposal in response to the RFP. The City agreed and, after both public and private hearings, accepted the Utilities Department's employee proposal to form a labor-management committee. In August 2001, the Utilities Department's Wastewater Treatment Labor-Management Committee (LMC) held its first meeting.

Since then, the committee has served as an ongoing forum for discussion of plant issues, and has fostered an ethic of open communication between managers, and operations and maintenance personnel. Some of the LMC's major focus areas have included working through budget issues associated with equipment purchase and replacement, establishing standard operating procedures for individual plant operations, safety training and awareness programs, and operator and maintenance education.

"It's easy to recognize and support communication," Kruzan said, "but it takes hard work and dedication to keep the dialogue open for this length of time. Other LMCs have existed around the state, but those committees tended to fade when relationships improved. However, this one has a demonstrable dedication to continued open dialogue. They solve problems, and that ultimately serves the needs of the community. I congratulate them on their successes."

For more information on the LMC, please visit [http://www.bloomington.in.gov/utilities|http://www.bloomington.in.gov/utilities], or contact John Langley, Deputy Director of Utilities, at (812) 349-3656.

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