Newly unionized Lackawanna County public defenders are seeking their first contract.

The attorneys first became Teamsters in spring 2013, when nine of 10 assistant public defenders voted in favor of organizing, said Craig Pawlik, secretary/treasurer for Teamsters Local 229.

"Part of the issue was obviously pay," Mr. Pawlik said. "Another big issue was the caseloads."

Staffing changes, such as outgoing full-time public defenders being replaced with part-timers, had put a strain on the attorneys, but under Chief Public Defender Larry Moran, Mr. Pawlik said caseloads have become less problematic since then.

"Things are going in a much more positive direction," he said.

In a first collective bargaining agreement, unions and management often look to establish a basic framework of rules, such as grievance procedures and union security clauses.

Both sides had tentative agreements in some areas, including vacations and personal days, but Mr. Pawlik said the lawyers are seeking arbitration to resolve the wage issue.

Lackawanna County employs seven part-time assistant public defenders whose annual pay ranges from $19,247 to $19,679, according to a document Lackawanna County Communications Director Joseph D'Arienzo provided.

First Assistant Public Defender Joseph Kalinowski makes $56,664. The other two full-time assistant public defenders make $36,282 and $36,078.

The small group of public defenders join six other classes of Lackawanna County workers represented by unions, including 218 prison, community corrections and juvenile detention workers; 64 probation workers; 89 children and youth workers; 227 health and human services workers; 93 deputy sheriffs and 12 detectives.

Aside from the detectives, county commissioners are either in negotiations or in arbitration with the rest of the unions.

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