When you spend some time with James Carey, you realize that public service and AFSCME activism run in his blood.
Carey, a 14-year veteran of the Wolcott Department of Public Works, serves as president of Local 1303-063 of Council 4. His father Peter retired in 2019 from the Wolcott DPW after an impressive 46-year career.
“My dad taught me the importance of the union and standing up for your fellow workers,” Carey said. “He was constantly fighting to get things done. We believe in AFSCME 100%”
Carey currently works as the group leader within the Parks and Recreation Division of the DPW. He and his crew are responsible for maintaining all the public grounds in Wolcott, including town parks, athletic fields, a new athletic complex, and a 3.6-mile walking trail that includes a boat launch. Members of the 14-person bargaining unit are also responsible for repairing, town roads, keeping public properties clean, planting flowers, spreading mulch and much more.
Wolcott is a classic Connecticut small town, with less than 17,000 residents living in an area of 21.6 miles. There is a high demand for services that Local 1303-063 members have been meeting throughout the COVID-19 crisis.
“The town’s been great [throughout COVID-19] at keeping us informed and working hand-in-hand with us to make decisions and seeing what works best for our members,” Carey said.
At the height of the pandemic, Carey said the union and the town worked out a rotating schedule with split shifts to minimize exposure “so we could provide the public with the services they needed.”
Safety protocols ranged from the obvious— a requirement to wear mass, a rule preventing multiple crew members from riding in trucks—to the creative. When the town faced an initial shortage of hand sanitizers, “Animal Control Officer Roz Nenninger developed a home brew” of aloe and rubbing alcohol (donated by Litchfield Distillery). Carey and the union made crew members used the sanitizers until supplies arrived.
Although Local 1303-063 members returned to a normal shift schedule in before Memorial Day, they are still working with extreme caution and care as they monitor public usage of town land.
“We have a lot of public spaces to maintain. The parks have stayed open. It’s nice people can get out and get some fresh air. This [pandemic] is new for all of us. No decision is right, and no decision is wrong…We’re just trying to make it work for everyone,” Carey said.
Married and the father of three, Carey has personally experienced the worries that come with COVID-19.
“My wife was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis,” he said. “so she has to be careful with her immune system. But she’s in good spirits and she’s strong. She’s a warrior.”
He added, “In the beginning, I didn’t want to go in the house because I was afraid of bringing the illness home. Mentally, there’s a toll. Everyone is fearful. It’s such a weird virus. One person’s fine but another has it.”
Stress levels multiplied, too, during an investigation into allegations that former Public Works Director David Kalinowski committed larceny. In May, the Wolcott Police Department released an 800-page report which found probable cause that Kalinowski stole from the town. Kalinowski subsequently stepped down from his position.
Local 1303-063 members took a stand against the managerial corruption that had shaken confidence in the department, damaged employee morale and turned the DPW into a “toxic place,” as Carey described it.
“We all live in this small town. We’re all taxpayers,” Carey said. “The members stood up and did their part to make sure this wasn’t going to [go] any further than it already did.”
The good news is that thanks to the dedication of Local 1303-063 members, and the leadership of Mayor Tom Dunn (a former DPW employee and AFSCME member), the ship headed back in the right direction.
“It’s turning around, people are starting to respect us,” Carey noted. “The Mayor comes down every day and he’s communicating with us. It’s brought us closer together.”
The best part, Carey noted, is that morale has picked up and townspeople are noticing a renewed focus on beautification and improvement projects that Kalinowski had stifled during his tenure.
“Hearing the way people are talking around town, you do get that feeling of appreciation again,” Carey reflected. “Work is getting done for the public and things look good. It’s nice getting compliments.”
Carey is quick and insistent to share credit on the entire DPW crew, including immediate past President Mark Bove, a highway foreman who led the union for nearly 20 years.
“I give Mark a lot of respect. He’s very smart and very knowledgeable. Everything that’s good in our contract is because of him,” Carey said.
If Carey learned anything from his dad, from co-workers like Bove, and from Council 4 staff representatives Pat Sampson and Rob Montuori, it’s the importance of AFSCME membership.
“The union is much bigger than a raise, or your retirement or health care. The union gives members a voice to fix what needed to be righted,” he pointed out.
