The Holyoke City Council spent two hours in a spirited discussion about fair pay, sick and vacation days for city employees last Tuesday, with Council President Todd McGee making sure that everyone had ample opportunities to speak their views unencumbered by frustrated colleagues.

Also, in the public comment section, a resident requested that the City Council take up at another meeting addressing the issue of rotting trees that pose a danger. Another resident, JR Rivera, from Cabot Street, spoke on the urgency of the city assigning money to the Public Safety Committees.

The debates among councilors began with a motion on the agenda presented by Councilor Tessa Murphy Romboletti to immediately moved out from the Ordinance Committee, which reviews issues related to the adoption, amendment or deletion of any city ordinance (as well as petitions for the establishment of telephone poles and wires; and petitions for zone changes), the issue of salaries and benefits to be rushed out the committee, chaired by Councilor Linda Vacon, and become the center of a vote immediately. In an unusual move, Councilor Murphy Romboletti requested a vote from the councilors to move forward on the matter immediately.

Usually, committees take up matters at their own pace with discussions and then present their vote to the full City Council. This time, Councilor Murphy Romboletti urged her colleagues to bypass the usual route because certain department employees are paid far below what other municipal employees in the region are paid. “This is definetly more urgent,” she said.”It’s our responsibility to make the city a competitive place to work. … It is the employees’s market out there.”

The specific agenda item that had been in the Ordinance Committee sought to give the city’s Law Department the authority to hire a paralegal above mid range up to no more than max without needing further approval from City Council “due to special circumstances.”

Councilor Vacon expressed opposition to fast-tracking the matter because the Ordinance Committee is charged with doing deep dives into proposals before coming before the full council for an official vote. And, in fact, her committee was already taking up the matter, including asking for information about what other departments offer employees in terms of salaries, vacation days, sick and holidays.

“What this attempts to create, taxpayers of Holyoke,” said Councilor Kevin Jourdain addressing viewers directly, “is carte bllanche for the mayor to assess as unlimited amount of vacation up and to including 30 days of vacation. Citizens of Holyoke: Are you getting 30 days of vacation?”

Councilor McGee had introduced changes to benefits packages that include:

Vacation leave* with full pay shall be accrued based upon the length of continuous employment as of the benefit eligibility date as follows:
Less than five years 15 days*
At least five years 20 days*
At least 10 years 25 days*
At least 20 years 30 days*

Councilor Juan Anderson Burgos pointed out that some matters make it out of committees faster than others.

“My job here is not to offend anyone or to cause a distraction,” he said. “But I want to make a couple of points —  this is my third term and I’ve seen how business is conducted here. I’ve seen personally some of my own orders held up in committee intentionally.”

Councilor Israel Rivera said he sees his job as “moving Holyoke forward.”