Fort Detrick’s garrison and a labor union are waiting for a military judge to decide whether it’s illegal for the garrison to provide work uniforms to its blue-collar employees.
The garrison started providing work uniforms for Fort Detrick public works employees under the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers’ Columbia Lodge 174 in 1995. They stopped that practice in 2013.
Union business representative Rick Compher said the uniforms were likely cut due to budget restrictions. The garrison now argues that providing the uniforms violates a federal statute.
According to Lanessa Hill, spokeswoman for the Fort Detrick garrison, the Army is prohibited from using appropriated funds for uniforms other than personal protective equipment, or PPE. PPE may range from the protective suits used in infectious disease research labs to hard hats used at construction sites.
The work uniforms consist of a heavy-duty shirt, either long-sleeved or short-sleeved, and jeans. According to union representatives, Fort Detrick also contracted with a dry cleaning company that would wash the clothes. Each employee had three or four sets of these uniforms.
Currently, union workers who use the uniforms are responsible for washing them, which worries union representatives.
“People don’t need to take home any hazards outside the gates of Fort Detrick,” Compher said.
The union filed an unfair labor practice charge against the garrison in July 2013. After multiple attempts at negotiation, the union entered the arbitration process with the garrison Nov. 4.
The union argues that the garrison has violated requirements to meet and negotiate in good faith and has “chilled” the relationship the union has with the Directorate of Public Works.
Hill has declined to discuss details of the arbitration until a decision is reached.
