Local 9477 Fights For Members’ Right to Time Off

Like everyone, workers at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) nuclear waste repository near Carlsbad, N.M., like to take a vacation, have a personal day off to handle responsibilities like parent-teacher conferences or have enough sick days to carry them through a bad spell of an infectious disease.

But not all managers see it that way and that is when Local 9477 President Rick Fuentes comes in.

If workers want to take vacation or personal time, they have to notify the company during mid-shift the day before and get their supervisor’s approval, Fuentes said. The supervisor has the power to deny or approve it, he said. If workers take the day off anyway, it becomes an unexcused absence that is tracked for discipline purposes.

Managers in some groups give their people time off if they notify them before the beginning of the shift, he said. However, there are managers who abuse their authority to deny vacation time, a personal day or sick leave so they can force their employees into work, Fuentes said.

As a result, he ends up dealing with vacation, personal time and sick leave issues at least a couple days each week, he said, talking to managers, trying to resolve these issues and filing grievances.

“I have a guy who wants to take vacation time and he was denied,” Fuentes said. “The manager didn’t even provide a calendar to his people so they could mark down when they wanted to take a vacation.”

“It’s unfortunate because morale takes a hit when managers do stuff like that,” he said.

Workers can take five sick days per calendar year without denial from the company, he said. But, if workers are extremely ill and take more than five sick days, their absences are tracked. That is when they need to request time under the Family and Medical Leave Act.

Local 9477 members work above and below the surface of the salt mine. Above, they check the containers of transuranic (TRU) waste that are shipped in. This is non-defense related, low-level radioactive waste, such as clothing, tools and equipment.

Below ground, members emplace the waste in salt rooms, mine new panels and maintain the mine.

The union has helped them maintain a decent standard of living for themselves and their families. This year, the workers received a 5 percent raise. Next year, they will get a 4 percent wage increase. During the following two years they will get raises of 3 percent each year. Workers have decent health care and a defined benefit pension. Plus, they cannot be forced to work overtime.

Pictured: Local Union 9477 President Rick Fuentes.

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