(NEW YORK CITY) - Unionized City Council Employees rallied on the steps of New York City Hall earlier this week to call on Council Leadership to finalize a contract agreement covering 96 employees whose wage rates have yet to be settled.

Dozens of City Council Employees in the Body's Central Staff accreted into the Association of Legislative Employees (ALE) shortly before the Union reached its first-ever contract agreement with the City Council in early 2024 - and while the workers are covered by the non-economic portions of the original contract, their salary minimums and maximums have yet to be finalized.  

Brook Frye, a Senior Data Scientist who also serves on ALE's Bargaining Committee, said a wage boost for her and her colleagues in the four titles who didn't get a raise in the initial contract is a long time coming.

She argued that because her direct supervisors received a 20% wage boost, the 96 Union Members should receive an "equitable" bump.  

"We've just never really had a system that sets accountability and because of that we're falling really behind in wages compared to comparable titles that work for the Mayor and our supervisors. It's a design flaw that has allowed us to fall really far behind our supervisors," she said. 

Frye's salary is around $103,000 a year, nearly double what the lowest-paid Council Employees make, but, Frye said, it's not a competitive salary for someone who's been in her role for over eight years.

Frye wouldn't say exactly what Salaried Members are hoping to win in bargaining - but said she and her colleagues are "severely underpaid."

ALE President Matt Molloy also declined to provide the exact wage goals for the Union - but reiterated the Union is pushing for a "significant" wage increase, adding the Union has already come down from its initial wage proposals.

"The Union made some significant movement in our demands to try to meet management's side where they're at and the reason we're calling this rally is we think it's time to wrap it up," Molloy said. "We don't want to see this dragged out anymore."  

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