5 CIR 34 (1980)

NEBRASKA COMMISSION OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL | CASE NO. 366
WORKERS, LOCAL UNION NO. 1536, AFL-CIO, |
|
Petitioner, |
|
v. | OPINION AND ORDER
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CITY OF FAIRBURY, NEBRASKA |
|
Respondent. |

Appearances:

For the Petitioner:C. E. Danley

For the Respondent: Richard M. Duxbury

Before: Judges Orr, Kratz and Wall

ORR, J:

This case comes on for hearing on Joint Stipulations of the Petitioner and Respondent. The parties stipulated that wages, holidays and vacation were the only issues before the Commission. Further, the parties stipulated that Auburn, Crete, Blair, Wahoo,

Beatrice, Nebraska City and South Sioux City were the proper cities to comprise the array. The Petitioner and Respondent jointly agreed that Exhibits 4 through 11A would be received, which placed into evidence current wage and fringe benefit data for Respondent City and those cities in the array. The final stipulation of the parties was that there should be one additional job classification: a chemist lineman will be added and that position makes ten cents per hour more than lineman second class.

Section 48-818 states that "In establishing wage rates the court shall take into consideration the overall compensation presently received by the employees, having regard not only to wages for time actually worked, but also wages for time not worked, including vacations, holidays and other excused time, and all benefits received, including insurance and pensions, and the continuity and stability of employment enjoyed by the employee". This rule of overall compensation does not require an identity of benefits, but that the overall compensation be "comparable to the prevalent wage rates paid and conditions of employment for the same or similar work or workers exhibiting like or similar skills under the same or similar working conditions." These determinations must be made on the basis of the evidence introduced by the parties in the trial of the case. Hall Teachers Association v. School District No. 5, Lincoln County, Nebraska , 4 CIR 114 (1979).

Table A below compares Respondent Fairbury's wages for each job classification to the job classifications for each city in the array.

Table B compares Respondent Fairbury's paid holidays to those of the array cities.

The vacation policy of Respondent Fairbury and the array cities are compared in Table C below.

When analyzing the wages paid by the Respondent as compared to the array cities, it becomes readily apparent that Respondent is paying substantially less wages for the same or similar work of workers exhibiting like or similar skills under the same or similar working conditions. Table D illustrates this comparison by setting out Respondent's present wage paid for each job classification and comparing it to the mean and median of the array for each job classification.

Respondent's vacation and holiday policy is comparable to the prevalent as it now exists.

This case is somewhat unique because there is not any disagreement as to the evidence. As stated above, the parties have actually stipulated the makeup of the array and all of the supportive data. Our decision is then based exclusively on uncontroverted evidence.

In considering "overall compensation," the Commission had before it comparative data on vacation,holidays, overtime pay, sick leave, health and accident plan and retirement plan (see Appendixes 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 and 6).

Applying the statutory requirements of Section 48-818 to the evidence, we find the wages in Respondent Fairbury should be as set out in Table E and we do not alter the present vacation and holiday policy of the Respondent.

The parties stipulated that the contract year under consideration runs from January 1, 1980, to December 31, 1980.

IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED:

1. That the wages of the employees of Respondent City of Fairbury shall be as follows, retroactive to January 1, 1980.

JOB CLASS WAGE

Head Cashier $4.87

Billing Clerk 4.71

Secretary 4.84

Storekeeper 5.85

Water Service Man 6.01

Power Plant Operator 6.40

Maintenance Foreman 6.69

Line Foreman 7.93

Lineman, 1st Class 7.35

Lineman, 2nd Class 6.17

Meter Reader 5.99

Sewer Plant Operator 6.27

Chemist/Lineman 6.27

2. That vacation and holiday policy of Respondent City of Fairbury shall remain the same.

All Judges assigned to the panel in this matter join in the entry of this Opinion and Order.

Entered September 30, 1980

NOTE: Appendices not typed in.

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