Letter to the Editor from Anthony Natale

Last week, The Daily Pennsylvanian published a four-part series on maintenance requests and the relationship between FRES staff and management.

I have been employed with the University and Facilities and Real Estate Services for over 39 years, and my father was employed by Facilities prior to me for over 20 years. I have been a union official with the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 835 for 26 years, I presently serve on the union Executive Board, and I have been Chief Shop Steward on campus for six years. I am also a proud Penn parent, having been fortunate enough to have two of my children graduate from the university via the tuition benefit provided by Penn.

I want to clarify the relationship between our union and the management team at Facilities. In our world, union and management often do not agree on all issues related to the workplace. However, together management and union are committed to an open dialogue designed to identify and resolve issues both through informal methods and through formal procedures outlined in our collective bargaining agreement. These procedures have been mutually negotiated and provide a formal forum to bring both sides together to attempt to resolve issues in a professional manner. FRES and union leadership may not always agree, but we work collaboratively to address concerns that affect the university community. I, along with our union leadership, encourage staff to exercise their rights and use the processes provided by the collective bargaining agreement to resolve any issues between staff and management. As the leader of Local 835 here on campus, our union’s goals are similar to that of FRES, which is to provide the best service possible to our Penn students, faculty, staff and others. Lastly, I believe in mutual respect, and I feel assured throughout all of my years at Penn and as a union leader that both FRES and Local 835 have that type of respect for one another.

Anthony Natale

Chief Shop Steward

Local 835 IUOE

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