Pay raises were off the table. So the workers who keep the Tulsa, Oklahoma, running turned their fight towards defining protections and standards on the job. And they fought hard.
On July 2, and after four months of negotiations during which the city of Tulsa pleaded poverty, the workers ratified three historic contracts. They corrected discrepancies in pay, scheduling, safety, and more.
For Bobby Carner, a utility systems operations administrator in Tulsa’s Water and Sewer Department, the victories weren’t just words on paper. They were proof that organized worker voices can bring about better working conditions.
“I’ve seen colleagues struggle with overtime, staffing, and pay inequities for years,” Carner said. “This year, through our union, we finally got the tools and protections we needed to make our workplaces safer and fairer.”
Carner, vice president of AFSCME Local 1180, played a crucial role in engaging employees across multiple city departments.
From holding individual conversations on the work floor to organizing membership meetings, his team helped gather input on the issues that matter most — from pay and longevity discrepancies to partial scheduling and gaps in safety.
With the city’s cooperation, the members achieved protections with better safety protocols, improved scheduling, resolved wage inequities, and more.
“We got some of our biggest hurdles on paper now,” Carner explained. “We fought for wins that not only directly impact our day-to-day work, but our union work, too. Now, we have access to worksite visits to explain what the union does, and we have steward positions in every department. This is huge for our members and unions in the city of Tulsa.”
The success trickled into three units at the local.
Paul Stratton, lead horticulturist in Tulsa’s Parks, Culture, and Recreation Department and recording secretary for Local 1180, emphasized the importance of codifying quality-of-life improvements.
“We made explicit changes to policies that had been unclear or inconsistent,” Stratton said. “From lead pay for volunteer supervision to clearer overtime limits and reimbursement rules, almost half of the articles in our contract were amended or rewritten. It didn’t cost the city much, but they’ve made a real difference for us at work.”
From pay equity to policy clarity, Local 1180’s victories highlight the power of collective action.
“Every win strengthens our union and protects the people who make this city run,” Stratton added.
AFSCME members across the country are getting organized. And we know when we fight together, we win together.