Upper Darby municipal workers voted unanimously Monday, Dec. 16, 2024, to authorize a strike, paving the way for a potential walkout as soon as New Year’s Day.
The approximately 115 workers, members of TWU Local 234, provide a wide range of municipal services in Upper Darby, including garbage collection, snow removal, street and highway maintenance, sewer and drainage system maintenance, police and township vehicle repairs, street lighting, and animal control. Most are in the Public Works Department. Their contract expires at midnight on Dec. 31.
The vote empowers union leaders to initiate a strike at any time after the contract expires.
“Upper Darby administrators have dragged their heels and have not negotiated a contract for our members in good faith,” TWU Local 234 President Brian Pollitt said. “Their contract demands are outrageous and would harm both workers and residents. We are sounding the alarm.”
“We don’t take this action lightly,” Gene Olivant, a Sanitation Department Driver and lifelong Upper Darby resident, said. “We are members of this community. Many of us live here, and our extended families live here. But the mayor and his administrators have launched a vicious attack against us and our livelihood. We believe they are also quietly planning to cut essential municipal services that we provide and that residents depend on. We can’t stand by and let this happen.”
On May 31, 2024, Local 234 requested to begin negotiations for a successor agreement, but the township stalled and didn’t come to the table until November. At the November session, township negotiators were completely unprepared. They did not produce an initial contract proposal until December 5, and what they presented was full of unreasonable demands, including reducing the workforce, tripling workers’ healthcare costs, eliminating job titles, and removing seniority rights.