Residents Turn Out to Support Locked Out National Grid Gas Employees

In response to the lockout on roughly 1,200 National Grid employees on June 25, residents came out to share their concerns regarding potential safety issues during a meeting on Tuesday night.

The company locked out employees after they failed to come to an agreement with steel unions during contract negotiations. Different than a strike, a lockout occurs when a company opts to not let employees work. Because National Grid has refused to bend on certain issues, particularly those involving health care and pensions for new hires, there is a significant number of experienced workers being replaced by workers lacking the education and background that is necessary for safe gas fitting procedures.

“I have concerns about what’s been going on and I’m worried about gas lines put in by someone who is not experienced,” said resident Linda Brassard. “Just this week, right next to my house, a brand-new home is being built. They dug today, and I have concerns if they put gas lines in, that it’s not going to be conducted by someone who has experience. This could potentially affect the safety of my family and residents in the neighborhood. Unless it’s an emergency, I don’t think gas lines should be replaced or new ones should go in, until this lockout is over and the experienced workers are back on the job.”

John Buonopane is a Melrose resident who is the president of a union that represents 400 employees who have been locked out, several of whom live in Winthrop. Having been employed by National Grid for 30 years, Buonopane is well versed in safety matters involving gas lines and is part of an emergency response unit attached to the company.

“I’ve spent a lot of time in Winthrop over the years, I’ve been through floods, carbon monoxide calls, and gas leaks,” said Buonopane, who is going from city to town explaining why it is necessary to implement a moratorium to prevent safety issues. “I’m personally someone who responds to these issues, and I am urging you to consider this.”

According to Buonopane, several experienced employees have been replaced by inexperienced people. Many have never had experience in the field and have literally been taken from their desk jobs, given a quick training, and sent out into the field. So far, there have been 30 complaints addressed to the Department of Public Utilities, involving shoddy work. Buonopane is hoping that towns and cities will be proactive and adopt a moratorium, which would prohibit National Grid from starting any new or replacement projects.

“It’s not an exaggeration,” said Joe Garcia, who is a resident and National Grid employee for 18 years. “There are people that come out from the office and get put out in the field after taking a two-day course. It’s absurd. I know the contractors aren’t trained as much as us. There are a lot of procedures and countless hours of training that go into fixing a gas leak. The company is not following procedures and it could result in an explosion or a serious injury.”

Steve Calla, director of the Department of Public Works, addressed the necessary permitting steps that would need to be taken for new work to be started by National Grid.

“Any new projects would need to be permitted before ground is broken and at this point there are none pending,” said Calla.

The Council agreed to refer the permitting discussion to DPW and research the issue more thoroughly before making a resolution. They will also take special circumstances into consideration.

“I think we should consider certain circumstances,” said Councilor-at-Large, Michael Lucerto. “If a family has been out of their home for a while due to flooding, we shouldn’t make them suffer any longer, and allow the work to be completed.”