By Emmelie De La Cruz
During a legislative meeting on Tuesday, June 5th, 2012, D.C. City Councilmembers voted unanimously in support of Councilmember Jack Evans proposed Budget Support Act (BSA) to reinstate the carry-over leave for D.C. teachers and other city workers.
Previously, Councilmember Mary Cheh introduced legislation to reduce the number of carry-over leave hours for city workers by two weeks—from 30 days to 20 days—in an attempt to legislate issues which have traditionally been negotiated.
If signed by Mayor Gray, the original carryover amount of 240 hours will be restored and strengthen the notion that working conditions for the city’s employees cannot be altered without renegotiation.
Thank you Councilmember Jack Evans. We appreciate your support and your courage to stand up for what is right.
I had no idea our leave was threatened. What would have happened to those with more than 20 days accrued? Would they just have suddenly lost it? That can’t be right.
Yes, the extra amount of carryover leave would have been lost. President Saunders and other labor leaders were opposed to Councilmember Cheh’s legislation and advocated to restore the original number of leave hours a government employee can carry over to the next calendar year. It would have been unfair to minimize the hours already accrued. We will be updating you on any next steps.