Union: National Grid Not Paying Workers On Time

One of the state's largest electricity companies has repeatedly failed to pay its workers what they’re owed, a union official charged this week.

"National Grid, make no mistake about it, is a company in crisis," said Brotherhood of Utility Workers Council President Dan Hurley, who said a new payroll system resulted in workers going unpaid after working during Tropical Storm Sandy last year, and it has failed to reflect the pay increases contained in a new contract signed May 11.

"We're not a company in crisis," said National Grid spokeswoman Jackie Barry. She said the company's switch to the new system in October was complicated by Sandy's landing across the East Coast shortly afterward.

"We had thousands of employees working in locations that were not their usual work locations," she said.

Hurley, who said the payroll problem affects both union and non-union workers for the power company, filed a June 26 wage complaint with the office of Attorney General Martha Coakley, who fined the company $270,000 in January for failing to pay workers on time for their work during Sandy.

Barry said National Grid had not challenged that fine and made the payment.

In mid-May, 1,200 National Grid workers in Massachusetts and Rhode Island were prepared to strike during negotiations on a new contract, an action that was averted as both sides agreed to a new deal. Hurley said despite the agreement, workers have not seen the contractually obligated pay increases reflected in their paychecks.

"We had many people who worked in excess of 100 hours in New York during Hurricane Sandy, and they got zero pay," Hurley said.

"We are still working on resolving some of the issues related to the new SAP office system that we installed in October. It's a very complicated undertaking. It involves merging and consolidating many company functions, including finance, HR, payroll, supply chain and others," Barry said. "We have made very significant progress in resolving many of the issues that we had associated with the transition to the new system."

Barry said the system used to bill customers for power consumption is separate from the SAP payroll system, which she said is widely used.

A June 26 email from National Grid to its employees acknowledged that "many represented employees" were underpaid in checks issued the week of June 10.

"Resolving the payroll issues remains a top priority for U.S. leadership and The Payroll Improvement Team. The team is working hard to complete the off-cycle payrolls, deliver the wage statements and begin the statement service as soon as possible," the unsigned email said. "However, they also must invest the necessary time and effort to ensure they process correctly and that they are accurate."

The company, which serves areas outside Boston and some western parts of the state, has about 1.2 million customers in Massachusetts.

Read more

National Grid Eyeing New Tower Site