Like sand through an hour glass, these are the days of the Derby transfer station.
Quick version:
First, in 2008, Derby officials fire two Department of Public Works employees who, according to city officials, mismanaged the town’s transfer station. They allegedly didn’t fill out rigorous sets of data as required by state law.
The workers denied the claims and said they were being railroaded.
Then, the city brings in Annex Associates, a private company, to set things straight at the transfer station, a place where residents can dispose rubbish for a fee. It’s a better deal for the city, public officials said. Things are going so good the city extends the private company’s contract.
Meanwhile, in an effort to get their jobs back, the two fired workers and their union take on city officials.
Things get personal at some point, as one of the workers leaves a box of Band Aids at a local bar, allegedly saying a politician is going to need them. It’s a joke, the ex-worker says. Clearly a threat, the politician answers.
This year, the state labor board tells Derby to reinstate union workers at the transfer station — Annex has to go. Derby asks for a clarification of the state labor board’s decision.
DIDN’T YOU HEAR US? GET ANNEX OUT! That’s the clarified word from the state labor board.
The two fired workers, meanwhile, are confident they’ll get their jobs back.
Second paragraph of this story, starting with the word “first?”
Not entirely accurate. Turns out the transfer station hasn’t had a full permit to operate from the state since 1996. It fell through the cracks, Derby officials and officials from the state Department of Environmental Protection agree. It’s going to cost some cash to set everything straight.
Derby opts to close the transfer station, temporarily. Residents now using a transfer station in Shelton. At the last Board of Aldermen meeting of 2009, Staffieri hints the city may opt to sell it.
