Due to the intervention of Governor David A. Paterson, Consolidated Edison and the Utility Workers of America Local 1-2 agreed late Saturday to a three-day cooling off period after the union and management were unable to reach agreement by a midnight contract deadline on Saturday, June 28th. Talks between the union and management are expected to resume on Tuesday, July 1st, at 9:00 a.m.

Governor Paterson had been monitoring talks between both sides as the deadline approached and was particularly concerned about the possibility of service disruptions given the warm summer temperatures. After it became clear that an accord would not be reached, the Governor spoke by phone late Saturday with union president Harry Farrell and ConEd CEO Kevin Burke. He suggested that a suspension of talks would allow emotions to subside and give both parties an opportunity to return to the bargaining table in a measured way.

The Governor expressed thanks to the union and ConEd for agreeing to temporarily halt negotiations. He will continue to closely monitor the situation as it develops.

(Yehuda Drudgestein – YWN)