In late February, some 70 members of Local 326 who are employed at the Allied Waste facility in Wilmington, Delaware voted overwhelmingly to endorse a new, five-year contract that boosts wages and secures fair, affordable health care coverage for members and their families.

“We are in agreement that this is the best contract we’ve ever had here at Allied Waste,” Terry Frieze, a driver and shop steward.

“This contract is a tribute to our members’ strength and resolve—they deserve a lot of credit for sticking together while this contract was negotiated,” said Mike Ciabattoni, Vice President of Local 326 in New Castle, Delaware. “Even while negotiations dragged on, our guys stood their ground and conducted themselves as professionals. They didn’t buckle under pressure from the company attorney’s tactics. They deserve a lot of credit for this.”

Ratified by a nearly 4-1 margin on February 27, the contract secures annual three-percent wage increases and a $500 signing bonus for the drivers, helpers and mechanics. After nine months of slow negotiations, conditions changed considerably after Allied Waste began contract negotiations free of their attorney.

“The attorney was determined to not give our guys a fair contract,” Ciabattoni said. “Throughout it all, our guys stuck together and we continued to come to the table in good faith. Finally in February, the company’s head of labor relations and I sat down and hammered out an agreement in a day. The members’ overwhelming vote is a testament to good-faith bargaining.”

The major sticking point was the company’s health care proposal, which called for significant increases in employees’ health care contributions, including doubling workers first-year contributions and not capping increases in following years.

“By the end of negotiations, the company agreed to absorb the entire first year increase with no additional cost to employees,” Ciabattoni said. “For the remaining years of the contract, health-insurance premium increases are capped at nominal figures.”

Local 326 expressed gratitude to Bob Morales, Chuck Stiles and John Mahoney of the Teamsters Solid Waste Division.