Philly Medical Examiner’s Office employees ordered to return to work due to amount of bodies in storage

PHILADELPHIA – Thousands of District Council 33 members are on strike and the city is feeling its impact.

What we know:

The City of Philadelphia filed three injunctions in the Court of Common Pleas. 

Regarding the water department injunction, the city was granted 72 employees who were ordered to return to facilities. 

The court also ordered 237 dispatchers to return to 911 call centers, with regard to the second injunction filed. 

The last injunction filed targeted illegal picketing activity which prevented employees from accessing the city’s facilities. 

“They were harassing our employees, harassing our residents, blocking access to health centers, to libraries, to recreation centers, to sanitation centers across the city, to our water facilities. We were able to get an injunction on this third motion as well, since this order went into effect,” aid Garcia. “The city has received numerous reports of noncompliance.”

On Thursday, more than 30 Medical Examiner’s Office staffers were ordered back to work because of a growing backlog of bodies in storage, the AP reports.

Economic matters remain the major issue, but District 33 President Greg Boulware has said there are also “a lot of work rule situations that we still have not worked through.” 

The union also seeks some flexibility on the city residency requirement for workers.

The city has offered a three-year contract with annual raises of about 3%, which the union said amounts to little more than $1,000 after taxes for members making $46,000 a year on average.

Mayor Parker on Thursday continued to champion the city’s offer to District Council 33, which she calls ‘historic’ and ‘fiscally responsible.’ 

“The City of Philadelphia put its best offer on the table, and unfortunately, District Council 33 did not accept it,” Parker said on Thursday. “The City of Philadelphia offered to return to the table today and the union did not accept that offer.”

Parker claims the city’s offer that raises wages by more than 13% is the largest increase a Philadelphia mayor in their first term has extended to District Council 33 in over 30 years. It’s a larger increase over 4 years for municipal blue-collar union workers, than recent agreements in New York, Washington D.C., Washington, and Phoenix. 

Included in the city’s offer is also a fifth-tier pay scale for District Council 33 and an opportunity for union members to take part in the city’s $2B housing plan.

“We want our DC 33 colleagues working alongside us now, as soon as possible,” Philadelphia Managing Director Adam Theil said. “The proposal – the fair and fiscally responsible proposal that’s on the table – will pay DC 33 employees more.”