Date: November 12, 2009
City Administrator
City of Lake Forest Park
206-368-5440
News Release
City Council approves two cost saving union agreements
Mayor David Hutchinson expressed deep appreciation today for the cooperation of Lake Forest Park's two city labor unions. The City Council approved two new labor contracts Thursday night, November 12, 2009, that provide for multi-year extensions of current contracts but delay future market wage adjustments until 2011. This will help balance the City's budget while the City Council continues to work on its revenue shortfall options. The 2009-2010 Lake Forest Park budget has been hit hard by the national recession with declining sales and property taxes as well as major losses in real estate taxes. Without wage concessions the City would have had an additional budget shortfall in 2009-2010. All City employees postponed market adjustments, including the police and public works employees, saving the City over $200,000 in 2010.
Mayor Hutchinson said "I very much appreciate the spirit of cooperation and the strong commitment of our police and public works employees in agreeing to new labor contracts. Both groups know how important it is to protect our current levels of service. We have already made several budget cuts due to the recession and the loss of city revenue. Without labor cooperation we would have been forced to make even more. I thank the union leadership and our employees who understand how important it is to work together at a time like this."
Greg Ward, President of the Police Guild, said: "We wanted to work with the City during difficult economic times while maintaining the level of service expected by the citizens of Lake Forest Park." Tracey A. Thompson, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local Union No. 117 that represents its public works employees, also commented: "Public works employees want to keep our streets, parks, stormwater and other services intact. We are proud of the work we do for the City with a small staff."
The two new labor agreements approved by the Council will extend contracts until the end of 2012, provide inflation adjustments and postpone implementation of market adjustments until 2011 and 2012.
