Salisbury’s city employees vote to ratify first-of-its-kind union

SALISBURY, Md. – The city of Salisbury is making history, as its employees have voted in favor of ratifying a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). It’s a first both for the City, and the Eastern Shore of Maryland.

“They now have a seat at the table when it comes to their wages, hours, and working conditions, and their benefits. They didn’t have that in the past, and that’s a big change,” said AFSCME Maryland Council 3 President Patrick Moran.

The CBA includes 6% in total raises for full- and part-time employees over two years. A 4% increase will go into effect on July 1st, with another 2% increase implemented in January of 2025. In addition, the contract establishes on-call pay and a pay premium for working during weather emergencies and Christmas. Pay premiums for those working evening and night shifts are also being expanded, along with workplace rights, protections, and benefits.

Moran says this contract covers about 200 employees. He adds that AFSCME represents public employees across the country, and particularly in Maryland.

“We worked in conjunction with the firefighters and police to organize the folks that work for the City,” Moran said. “The workers in the City of Salisbury came forward and said that they wanted a union. The mayor at the time, Mayor Jake Day, said that’s a great idea and they started getting organized.”

Looking ahead, Moran said he is excited at the prospect of expanding supports for employees covered by the contract.

“We’ll continue to build a strong relationship, and make sure that peoples’ needs are covered, whether that’s in wages or resources to do the jobs,” Moran said.