District Animal Control Controversy Boils to the Surface Yet Again

Problem plagued District Animal Control (DAC) is dealing with yet another dilemma; one of the part-time employees has had his hours cut to only six hours on Saturdays, and while the DAC board insists it was in response to budgetary problems, workers believe it is yet another ploy to keep them from unionizing.

Gail Evanko, a part-time DAC employee (currently out of work for medical reasons,) said that Dave Dorsa has had his hours reduced from 20 to six, and that Dorsa had told the the DAC board if he didn't have enough hours he couldn't afford to stay in the position. If Dorsa leaves DAC, Evanko said, the workers will no longer have a majority vote, which would end their bid for unionization.

Dave Dorsa said Animal Control Officer Paul Neidmann had called yesterday to  tell him his hours were cut due to budgetary reasons, however, Dorsa has his doubts; like Evanko, Dorsa is convinced it was done in an effort to bust their bid to unionize. He also said he felt cutting the hours at the shelter was a disservice to the animals and residents alike.

Dena Fleno, recruiting rep for union Council 4 AFSCME, said the DAC employees were moving forward with their plans.

"We have an election date set," Fleno said. "Unfortunately, this is why we need a union because employers think they can do whatever they like. He (Dorsa) is still eligible to vote even with his hours cut. While we believe the employer is doing everything in their power to make life miserable for the employees, it has only served to strengthen their (the employees) resolve to do this."

Woodbridge administrative officer DAC board member Joe Hellauer denies the board is trying to prevent a union.

"When we met last week," Hellauer said, "we were running over on payroll."

When the board crunched the numbers, he said, they realized they were still operating on summer hours, and that they had not cut evening hours once winter began, something they normally do by November.

"I have a very tight budget," Hellauer said, "and about half of it is salaries."

Hellauer added that back in October, the board had decided it ultimately wanted to reconfigure the labor force to two full-time employees with one part-time workers. He added that full-time employees are always preferable as they are often more disciplined and dedicated.

Orange First Selectman Jim Zeoli agreed with Hellauer on all counts.

"This has absolutely nothing to do that topic (the union,)" Zeoli said. "It's irrelevant to our operation. What we discovered while going through our budget was that we were over-expended and Paul (Neidmann) had not shifted over to winter hours. We gave him (Dorsa) two weeks notice that his hours would be cut until June."

Zeoli said the board could produce previous minutes from meetings that would back up their actions.

"They're trying to make anything they can into something it's not," Zeoli said. "Unfortunately, that is not the case with this; this has nothing to do with the union."

Zeoli added that if Dorsa decided to quit his position, it would be unfortunate as they never like to lose an employee.

As far as Dorsa is concerned, he said he does plan to stay on and continue to work on Saturdays.