Lower MUA Workers, Families Protest Layoffs

VILLAS — A standing room only crowd of Lower Township Municipal Utilities Authorities (MUA) employees, family members and United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) union bosses and members filled the authority’s meeting room Oct. 7 protesting a proposal before the MUA Board of Commissioners to abolish the position of two long time employees.
MUA employees Kathy Armbruster and Dawn Cottrell have been given 90 days notice their positions were being “abolished.”
At issue, the MUA is creating a new position of chief financial officer (CFO). At the meeting, employees accused MUA Executive Director Mike DeMarcantonio of eliminating two office positions to fund the $75,000 to $90,000 salary range for the new, CFO position.
Following a lengthy closed session meeting, the public meeting reopened with Board Chairman Pete Bitting announcing no decision had been reached.
During public comment, resident Betty Church, a former long term MUA employee, said she worked 25 years with Armbruster and found her to be an excellent worker. She questioned why the MUA hired a staff engineer earlier in the year “when in 35 years with all the development that was going on, that was never necessary.”
“It seems your doubling your professional staff but when it comes to the workers, you want to shaft them,” said Church.
She also questioned why MUA hired an additional lawyer, a conflict attorney, while the authority already has a solicitor, Peter Tourison. Church said a lot of people have lost confidence in DeMarcantonio and the Board of Commissioners.
Claire Galiano, vice president/director of the professional division of United Food and Commercial Workers Local 152, said the union reached out to the MUA’s attorney seeking a meeting with the board to discuss alternatives to the job elimination but received no response. She said working conditions for the two employees whose positions will be eliminated had become unacceptable.
Robert Fothergill, former executive director of Lower Township MUA, said if MUA was going to get rid of employees, “it should be on the basis of last hired goes.”
He questioned the need to create a CFO position.
“What in God’s name are you doing? You have auditors. You have an executive director. I prepared the budget for 10 years,” said Fothergill.
“I’ve also been told there are other employees here that are walking around with a target on their back,” he continued. “Is that any way to build an organization?”
DeMarcantnio said a CFO would be a certified public accountant and a certified municipal financial officer. He said MUA has a $9 million budget.
“It is getting to be more than in-house staff can handle,” said DeMarcantonio.
He said MUA’s budget has been short over $600,000 for the past five years including $500,000 short this year. DeMarcantonio said laying off the two women and hiring a CFO would save $40,000.
Resident Terry Cooper asked if members of the board of commissioners had been kept in the dark about the elimination of the two positions.
“You are going to let these two girls lose their jobs?” she asked. “I hope you can sleep at night knowing what you are doing is wrong.”
Church asked if the two positions were being eliminated, who would be handling the billing for the MUA, would it be the new CFO?
“You are going to pay a CFO to do data entry?” asked John Armbruster.
Kathy Armbruster, who has worked for the MUA for 30 years, asked about an item in the proposed budget under water/sewer payments indicating $73,000 would be saved. DeMarcantonio said a bank would collect the water/sewer bill payments. He said more employees could be laid off.
Galiano told the Herald, UFCW saw the proposed moves as “union busting, pure and simple.” She said Kathy Armbruster brought the union in for MUA office workers one year ago and the elimination of her job may be retribution.
Galiano said she was approached by DeMarcantonio and told there was a paramount need for qualified purchasing agent (QPA). MUA paid for Cottrell to upgrade her skills as a QPA which she met 35 days before the deadline, she said. Despite becoming a QPA, her position is being abolished and a CFO hired, said Galiano.