IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 4-20-06 CONTACT: PUBLIC INFORMATION
SILVER CITY—On April 6, the Western New Mexico University Labor Management Relations Board received a Representation Petition from the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 18 for a unit of all blue collar employees and campus police officers (excluding supervisors, management and confidential employees). The petition did not mention any other employee groups.
Of the approximately 343 regular fulltime WNMU employees, approximately 40 individuals make up the blue collar and campus police officer group.
The WNMU Labor Management Relations Board will hold a special closed meeting on Monday, April 24, at 10 a.m., in the conference room of 1311 N. Grant Street, Silver City, NM, for the purpose of discussing administrative adjudicatory matters. The meeting will not be open to the public.
The WNMU Labor Management Relations Board is a neutral body that mediates between WNMU and AFSCME. The Labor Management Relations Board was appointed by the WNMU Board of Regents in August of 2005 and is comprised of JP Jones, Armando Galindo, and David Lopez, Chair.
The WNMU Board of Regents has consistently maintained their position that a secret ballot election would be in the best interest of the employees. The WNMU Board of Regents has also expressed a desire to expedite the election process as quickly as possible.
“The position of the administration of WNMU remains that it is the right of our employees to organize if they so choose. The Board of Regents and the WNMU administration recognize and appreciate the remarkable contributions of WNMU employees. Union representation is an employee decision; the Board of Regents and Administration will respect and support whatever decision the WNMU employee group makes,” said President Counts.
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