Rhode Island news | projo.com | The Providence Journal

« Governor urges Rhode Islanders to conserve power | Today | Foot found may belong to missing URI student »

August 2, 2006

Heat chases meter readers off Providence streets

PROVIDENCE – Meter readers for the city have stopped patrolling the streets today because of a union contract clause that sends outdoor city employees either home or to work in a cooler locale on days when the mercury in downtown Providence hits 90.

The meter readers are now working in an air-conditioned location, according to Rhoades Alderson, the city’s communications director. He was not sure what type of work they're doing.

The union contract with Local 1033 of the Laborers International Union of North America includes the meter readers, the city’s parks and public works departments and those city employees who work for the Providence Water Supply Board, Alderson said.

The contract clause states that when the temperature hits 90 degrees, “all outside crews shall be dismissed without loss of pay and inside City Hall employees in non-air-conditioned offices shall be reduced to a skeleton force.”

If they act before it hits 90, department directors can call their outside workers in to either an air-conditioned working environment or a “pre-approved enclosed cooler working environment which is not air-conditioned” instead of sending them home, according to the contract language.

Alderson does not yet have details on how many city workers have been sent home today and yesterday. However, when the mercury hit 90 a few weeks ago, he said 39 parks employees, 45 public works employees and 32 water employees were sent home.

Posted by Kate Bramson at 3:08 PM | Permalink

August 2, 2006

Heat chases meter readers off Providence streets

Comments

Post a comment