ANALYSIS: Incoming members may shift it from pro-business bent
November 12, 2001
Martha Modeen; The News Tribune
The Tacoma City Council that will enter chambers in January will be much different than the one that governs today.
One likely shift: a new sympathy for labor.
New council members won't abandon the city's focus on economic development. That focus has paid dividends in the form of jobs and new buildings that will dot the landscape.
But the incoming council could represent a philosophical shift of sorts, from a pro-business council in recent years to one that will listen to labor.
On the existing council, Mayor Mike Crowley, Kevin Phelps and Doug Miller are key business votes. Bill Evans, Bil Moss and Sharon McGavick also join in. As for labor, the council had been missing a pro-labor voice since Steve Kirby, a friend of police and firefighters, left for the state House and Dave De Forrest died.
Now, Mayor-elect Bill Baarsma and some of the other incoming council members could add a new, unpredictable factor to council votes, particularly with unsettled labor contracts.
One labor leader is pleased with election results.
"I don't think we'll have any more strength than we've had before, but we'll have somewhat better access and a more friendly ear," said John Thompson, secretary-treasurer of the Pierce County Central Labor Council, which represents 58,000 AFL-CIO workers countywide.
What's not clear is if a "friendly ear" will translate to the five of nine votes needed to approve measures.
The city has unsettled labor contracts with four unions representing about 740 of its 3,000 employees. The groups include information technology employees, garbage truck drivers, sewer workers and 320 police officers.
Initiative 747, the property-tax limiting measure that passed last week, will place more pressure on the city's budget, adding $2 million in budget cuts to $6 million already planned.
The last budget cycle meant a loss 12 police officers. With another 19 officers who have retired or quit, the department has 31 fewer officers than just a couple years ago, said Pat Frantz, president of Local 6, which represents Tacoma police officers.
"With the passage of Initiative 747, I don't know how the city is going to get by without laying people off," Frantz said. "The city has budget constraints. We understand that."
As for the police union's unsettled contract, Frantz said: "No matter who's on the council, I don't see our contract being settled outside of arbitration."
Incoming council members could account for anywhere from one to four votes for labor. On the campaign trail, they received varying degrees of support from local labor.
Baarsma won backing from some 22 unions. During his campaign, he advocated for police and firefighter issues, and previously voted in favor of police contracts when he served on the council. Labor groups collectively contributed more than $15,000 to his campaign.
Mike Lonergan, executive director of the Tacoma Rescue Mission, was proud to highlight his labor endorsements during the campaign, including police, firefighters and the Central Labor Council. However, he'll likely be independent and hard to predict.
Rick Talbert, who won the District 4 seat on the East Side, received backing from some labor groups, such as iron workers, Teamsters and the Pierce County Building Construction Trades Council. He, too, likely will be independent and will vote by issue.
Connie Ladenburg, the apparent winner for South Tacoma's District 5, has been a strong supporter of public safety issues and is sympathetic to labor. During the campaign, labor groups including the police union opted to support her opponent, John McGinnis, though she did gain a dual endorsement from firefighters. She's signaling now that she, too, will weigh the issues one at a time.
"It's no longer a good thing to separate out issues or constituents," Ladenburg said. "This is a time we need to come together. I don't see us totally focusing on just labor issues or business. It's important to think what's best for all of us."
The council would have had a far more decisive bent toward labor had McGinnis, former president of the Central Labor Council, and library board president Beckie Summers been elected. Both had established track records for supporting labor.
Still, Baarsma said things will be different: "You'll see a council asking a lot of tough questions."
Meanwhile, fair wages for city employees likely will continue to be a hot topic. Last December, the council awarded raises and cost-of-living adjustments to managers that in some cases totaled nearly 18 percent.
From the city's perspective, some managers had been paid below market. But the hefty salary hikes angered organized labor and rank-and-file employees, particularly since managers' pay raises followed city-wide budget cuts and a new energy surcharge.
"It was a slap in the face of labor," the Central Labor Council's Thompson said. "It was, 'We're going to do it regardless of what you think, regardless of what you negotiate.'
"It raised a red flag for all the labor unions. They went out and looked for their own candidates."
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* Staff writer Martha Modeen covers Tacoma. Reach her at 253-597-8646 or martha.modeen@mail.tribnet.com.
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