Hempstead Town awards 5-year contract to Civil Service Employee Association workers, with raises of up to 4%

The Hempstead Town Board unanimously approved a new five-year contract for its employees at a special meeting on Tuesday. 

Members of the Civil Service Employees Association's Local 880 ratified the collective bargaining agreement on Dec. 11 with 91% of those voting approving the deal and 9% opposing it, according to the union's Facebook page.

The contract gives employees 2% raises in 2026, 2027 and 2028 and then 4% raises in 2029 and 2030, according to a union fact sheet distributed to members before the vote.

Town spokesman Brian Devine said on Thursday that raises were factored into the 2026 budget, which the town board approved in October.

CSEA 880 president Michael Errico did not respond to a request for comment last week.

The contract gives more generous separation terms to employees hired after Jan. 1, 2013. Under the current agreement, those employees can be paid for up to 50 unused vacation days when they leave town employment. The new agreement allows those employees to be paid for up to 100 unused vacation days.

All workers covered by the agreement get one or two additional vacation days each year following their first year of employment, depending on how many years of service they've logged with the town. For senior employees with 15 years of service or more, the annual number of vacation days increases from 25 to 26.

A new benefit for pregnant workers grants six weeks paid leave during pregnancy or after the child is born. Other benefit changes include eliminating employee contributions for health insurance for workers with 15 years of service, beginning in 2029. The union fact sheet estimates that move will save those workers $6,062 annually.

Elected town officials’ salaries are pegged to inflation under a 2023 law passed by the town board. Federal data released Thursday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics showed year-over-year inflation was 2.7% in November.

The contract also changes the “Tosner” agreement, which governs how part-time employees can switch to full-time employment. Currently, part-time employees who work more than 1,600 hours in a single year can be eligible for full-time employment. According to the union fact sheet, no part-time workers reached that threshold in the past four years.

Under the new agreement, a part-time worker approved to work more than 20 hours in a week must be offered a full-time role after three years. The town attorney's office and union must initially approve the more than 20-hour work week. The full-time offer must be made within six months of the employee's three-year anniversary.

Hempstead's $576 million budget next year keeps the overall tax levy flat. The 2025 budget hiked the levy by 12.1%.