Utica Zoo workers vote to unionize

UTICA, N.Y. — Workers at the Utica Zoo voted Thursday to unionize. They will join the Civil Service Employees Association following the National Labor Relations Board election.

Zoo workers include zookeepers, veterinary technicians, education and ambassador animal specialists, buildings and groundskeepers, administrative specialists, and gift-shop employees.

Zoo officials said they will work with the new union.

“The Utica Zoo board of directors and management team felt it was important to provide all our employees an opportunity to vote in an election conducted by the National Labor Relation Board,” a statement from the zoo read.

“We’re happy to have won our election and have the support of the Utica community and its leaders,” Kallen Muste, an educator at the zoo, said in a press release. “I’m incredibly proud of the staff here and everything we have accomplished. I’m looking forward to working together with management to get this amazing team what it needs to make the Utica Zoo the best it can be.”

Labor issues raised by a group of 26 workers included a high turnover rate, having a stronger voice on the job, and improving working conditions.

“I worked at a unionized zoo in California and I know the issues we have here require us to work closely with management to solve,” said Garrett Buck, zookeeper. “I know that we could bring the important changes this zoo needs through our expertise, effort, and solidarity. I hope we can work together with management for swift negotiations and a better Utica Zoo.”

Zoo officials said it’s now time to sit down with the union at the negotiating table. “We will continue to be fiscally responsible to the organization,” the zoo statement read. “It is our expectation that during the negotiating process, the entire zoo team will continue to prioritize excellence in animal care and a great visitor experience for our patrons.”

As one of New York’s largest unions, the CSEA represents nearly 300,000 workers at counties, towns, villages, school districts, library systems, authorities, and public corporations. It is one of the largest affiliates of the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees which, in turn, is an affiliate of the AFL-CIO.