Downers Grove, Ill., Local 15 has taken a state mandate and turned it into an organizing opportunity that is already bringing in new members.

“It’s been very good,” Local 15 Business Manager Chris Riser said. “The company is happy, and the employees are too. They’re working a lot.”

The organizing opportunity came about when the Illinois Commerce Commission, the agency that regulates public utilities in the state, told ComEd, Illinois’ largest utility, to solve the problems of mislocations and of locators not showing up.

The locator position — someone who finds and marks underground utilities before construction or excavation projects begin — was contracted out and not represented by Local 15. But the mandate stated that the company work with Local 15 on a pilot program where the locators would be hired on a temporary basis.

Through some tough negotiations, Riser, along with Senior Business Agent Jim Collins and Business Agent Mike Keating, were able to secure a number of benefits, including paid holidays, parental leave, medical coverage, a 401(k) and a cash balance pension plan. Locators will also be eligible to apply for permanent roles under the broader Local 15 contract after 10 months.

The program, which began April 1, has brought in 44 new members so far, with additional rounds of hiring planned for later in the year. And the no-shows and mislocations have dropped significantly.

“I think the program has been successful because of the training from the company and the support the locators get from Local 15,” Riser said.

The pilot is being run in Lake County, just north of Chicago. If things continue to go well, Riser said, Local 15 plans to negotiate a permanent agreement for locating throughout its service territory, which would require a significant number of new members.

This is the first time Local 15 has represented locators since the mid-2000s. It now represents all the members in the physical and clerical departments, from meter readers and call center workers to mechanics. It also represents overhead, underground and substation departments in addition to the physical and clerical employees at Constellation Nuclear.

For Jeremy Cotham, the locator work isn’t new. As someone with experience, he’s classified as a Locator A, one of two positions the workers are slotted into.

“I enjoy the work that I’m doing,” Cotham said. “It’s not the same place every day. I’m not stuck inside a building staring at the same four walls.”

Before starting at ComEd, Cotham drove a truck and served as a volunteer firefighter at two stations.

Cotham said his plan is to get hired on in a permanent position and stay with the utility until retirement.

“I plan to stay because the company is one of the best in Illinois and it has a very good reputation for benefits and pay,” he said. “Most people there don’t go out looking for a new job once they get in.”

He’s also keenly aware that those prized benefits and pay are thanks to a union contract.

“Having union representation is very important. They fight for you to have the best pay possible and the best benefits,” Cotham said.

Cotham echoed Riser on keeping locators in house.

“This pilot program has shown that ComEd is more than capable of handling their own locates instead of having an outside contractor perform the work,” Cotham said. “I think this should be a full-time position and ComEd should slowly start taking over their own locates throughout the ComEd territory.”

If that happens, that means more people getting job security, Riser said.

“We just want people to get into a good job in Illinois,” Riser said. “This is how we make the middle class stronger.”