Over 8,000 Con Edison workers were locked out on Sunday after talks with the Utility Workers Union of America broke down. A weekend of hard negotiations and the impending heat wave did not help both sides reach an agreement. Con Edison says it has dispatched 5,000 people, mostly managers and retired supervisors, to fill in for the locked out workers.

Con Edison says it has offered the unionized workers a two week extension on their contract, provided that they wouldn’t go on strike without giving a 7 days notice. The union came up with a proposal of its own, claiming it was ready to keep workers on the job without a contract until the end of the negotiations. Both offers were rejected by the respective parties, but Con Ed says that the deal is still on the table.

Meanwhile, Con Edison spokesman Allan Drury said that the 5,000 managers who had been asked to fill in for regular workers were “trained and experienced,” adding that Con Edison would continue to provide its regular services as the summer’s worst heat wave yet has begun to loom over the North East.

In a statement, Con Edison also said that “all company personnel has been preparing for the possibility of a union work stoppage for months.”

Many union workers, however, did no share that optimism.

“[Con Edison] has placed their customers and the public at great peril,” union spokesperson John Melia told the Daily News. Melia said the managers that have been called to replace union workers “don’t have the knowledge or the expertise” to operate the system on the long term.

Union President Harry Farrell shared similar concerns: “They’re asking retired supervisors to climb poles and work in manholes and stuff – I just don’t see it happening.”

“As temperatures rise and the threat of power outages grows, I urge Con-Ed to end the lockout it has imposed and for all parties to resume good faith negotiations,” said Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. “Con-Ed employees deserve respect and a fair contract, and residents of the New York City region deserve assurances their power will continue without interruption as the heat wave continues. Both goals can be achieved if we work together and settle this dispute amicably–and as soon as possible.”

Con Edison sure won’t be having it easy, as a series of storms last Friday have caused massive power outages all over the East Coast, leaving over two million people without power. All this in the midst of a record-breaking heat wave that has seen temperatures hover in the high 90’s this weekend.

Scattered power outages were also recorded in Queens and the Bronx on Sunday. Con Ed spokeswoman Sara Banda however claims that those small-scales blackouts are typical of this time of year, and that the 650 power outages recorded in Queens on Sunday were in fact below average.

With both sides blaming each other for the breakdown in talks, it is hard to tell whether the Union is taking advantage of the heat wave to make unreasonable demands, or whether Con Edison is being unnecessarily stubborn in conducting the negotiations. Either way, both sides seem far from reaching a compromise.

“Consolidated Edison and the utility workers union must go back to the bargaining table and start talks again,” urged New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli. “Resolving this impasse and lockout is in everyone’s best interest. With temperatures high, customers need assurance that service will not interrupted.”

Meanwhile, the heat wave is showing no sign of slowing down. It may be time to buy an inflatable pool, or for us less-fortunate city dwellers, to start sacrificing some goats to the almighty Spirit of Air Conditioning.

Buzz about the Saigon Grill delivery dispute even made an appearance on Facebook. Photo By: Andrew Schwartz

Lee, who works regularly with food service workers, says conditions on the Upper West Side have improved as a result of the Saigon Grill drama, with higher tips from concerned customers and owners who want to stay on the right side of the law.
“The neighborhood knows,” Lee said. “People are more aware of some of these problems.”
In the meantime, delivery workers at other restaurants have followed suit—literally. In May 2008, workers who took legal action against management at the Chinese-Cuban chain Flor de Mayo received an undisclosed settlement from owners. And a lawsuit filed in April 2007 by delivery and kitchen workers against Ollie’s Chinese restaurants is still in a pre-trial phase.
Molly Biklen, one of the plaintiff’s lawyers in the Ollie’s case, said the Saigon Grill decision was “very encouraging. It’s a large decision that really shows that restaurants can’t get away with this, or it will come back to haunt them later.”
The press-shy Ngets haven’t made many public comments about the case, but in the past they have handed out letters to clientele asserting their innocence and saying they were being extorted. The restaurant is still dishing out Vietnamese specialties and delivery has resumed. Justice Will Be Served reports that the restaurant has reinstated some, but not all, of the deliverymen.
A woman answering the phone at the office of the Ngets’ lawyer, S. Michael Weisberg, said Weisberg had no comment at the present time.
But Brian Baxter, who blogged on the trial’s opening day for the publication American Lawyer, quoted Weisberg as saying that a large settlement would bankrupt his clients.
Buzz about the delivery dispute has rippled throughout the neighborhood, and even made an appearance on three Facebook groups, including one with the title “Saigon Grill is tasty, but slave labor cotton was soft.”
David Hardisty, a graduate student studying psychology at Columbia University, found out about the boycott from friends at school. He said his department used to order in from Saigon Grill, but now orders from Saga Grill, a Vietnamese restaurant on 123rd Street and Amsterdam Avenue.
Mia Mazer, a Harlem resident, was in her junior year at LaGuardia High School when she first passed the pickets. She said she no longer eats at Saigon Grill.
“I was horrified,” she said. “With restaurants in New York City, we always want the cheapest food. We don’t take into consideration how that might affect these workers.”