IBEW Local 1288 (Memphis TN) Signs deal with Memphis Light Gas and Water for 1 year and raises

MLGW, union extend contract

The union workers of Memphis Light, Gas & Water have agreed to a one-year extension of their contract, which includes a pay raise and addresses some standing issues.

Members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers local 1288, which approved the extension unanimously, will receive a 3% raise, according to company spokesman Mark Heuberger.

He says the labor agreement allows MLGW to maintain its position as a stable employer and trusted leader in the utility industry and to give customers low, stable rates and excellent service.

MLGW agreed to hire 12-13 additional bargaining-unit workers to staff the customer service operations. Those positions currently are staffed by 68 bargaining unit members and about 40 part-time, non-union workers, according to IBEW business manager Rick Thompson.

The utility also agreed to provisions for federal mediation of employee grievances, something Thompson says employees have tried to get for 10 years.

MLGW also will allow employees to get information pertaining to any disciplinary actions pending against them before hearings are held, Thompson says.

According to Thompson, 160 grievance were pending against MLGW when Joseph Lee took over as president and CEO. 72 have been settled.

"We've had more grievances settled in three months than in the past three years," Thompson says. He says Lee has brought "a more rational administration" to MLGW.


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