Revere crossing guards seek union

REVERE – Citing the expense of buying their own uniforms and other concerns, 18 crossing guards are seeking union representation.Two of the workers declined to identify themselves Thursday for fear of retribution, but said guards hope to unionize through the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.School Committeewoman Ann Raponi supports their efforts.”There is no harm in these (people) trying to get involved with AFSCME. There is no doubt they are adamant about this,” Raponi said.Raponi said her understanding of the potential representation and bargaining process is that the guards work under the Police Department, not the School Department.Superior Officers Association President James Guido said he is not aware of the organizing effort.”This is the first I’ve heard of it,” he said Thursday morning.The guards said they must buy their own jackets with special reflective material and other clothing and say they take responsibility for filling sand barrels in the winter and spreading sand on crosswalks.The guards’ push to organize comes as police unions are signing off on contracts that include random drug testing and preserve police details for officers.It also comes in the wake of well over a year’s worth of City Council debate over Public Works Department operations that included a city and DPW union dispute over a residency challenge to a department worker.Some of the $295,000 for police raises has been set aside in the city budget but Mayor Thomas Ambrosino warned in November he may call unions back to the bargaining table to revisit raises if things get bad.An Ambrosino letter to the City Council hinted that call could come sooner rather than later.”I expect that, in the very near future, I will be engaging each of the municipal unions in discussions involving the deferral of future benefits for the purpose of avoiding significant reductions in personnel.”Ambrosino earlier this month said he is bracing for reductions in state aid to the city in July, possibly as early as January.To see video related to this story please visit www.itemlive.com