HONESDALE, PA — The entire staff of the Honesdale Department of Public Works (DPW) has quit their jobs.

Their director, Joseph Rulis, is gone. Before they left, the six employees who worked under him wrote a letter, dated March 27, to the borough council:

“After discussion among ourselves about working conditions within the Borough, we’ve decided to submit this letter of collective resignation effective Wednesday, April 10, 2024.

“We would be happy to reconsider this decision and potentially retract our resignation if a meeting is held by Wednesday, April 3 to discuss our position.

“We request this meeting be held with Department of Public Works employees, Director Rulis, Assistant Director Daniels, Borough Council administrative staff, and Council representatives.

“Items we’d like to discuss are general working conditions, rescinding the acceptance of Director Rulis’s resignation, and working with Mr. Rulis to resolve lingering concerns, such as compensation and union representation.

“We appreciate the important work done by the DPW here in Honesdale. We would prefer to continue this valuable work and find a resolution.”

“DPW signing off....”

The letter was signed by Mark Daniels Sr., Mark Daniels Jr., Roger Kenyon, William Corcoran, Harry Seitz, and Douglas Gombert.

The DPW attends to a wide range of tasks in the borough. They maintain Central Park, clean the streets, pick up debris, and plow snow. Who is currently providing these services?

“Going forward for the foreseeable future the tasks you listed will be performed by contracted individuals/companies,” said Councilor Noelle Mundy, the chair of the personnel committee. “Unfortunately, as this is a personnel matter, there is not much else I can contribute, but to say that the Borough is prepared to function as normal with the help of outside contractors, which will not result in any further cost to the taxpayers.”

Union supports workers

The DPW was on the verge of unionizing. Mark Daniels Jr. told the River Reporter last week that he’d just spoken to a representative from their would-be union, the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), which is still very interested in having them join.

Daniels said he believes someone at borough hall may have waylaid the paperwork sent by the union, which never reached the employees. He said the borough hired a new manager who left within a week. The DPW secretary also quit in April.

He said he was with the DPW for four months and that his father, Mark Daniels Sr., was with the department for 27 years. He said “a big part” of why he left was the inadequate pay. But that wasn’t all.

“We were constantly being lied to” and bullied “constantly,” Daniels said. They were threatened daily that they’d be written up over a DPW truck spotted in the “wrong” part of the borough, or for attending to matters that were a routine part of their job. 

He said “90 percent” of the harassment came from one person: the longtime borough secretary, Judith Poltanis. Poltanis did not answer a request seeking comment. Williams did not address Daniels's comment in his response to the paper.

Daniels said that in the middle of a big snow plowing job, workers had to go home and come back six to eight hours later because the borough didn’t want to pay overtime. He was also displeased that the borough made certain education/training mandatory, that workers had to pay for it if they didn’t stay for two years, and that he wasn’t told when he was hired that this would be the case.

The board is not saying why the council did not gather the DPW workers together to talk out their differences. Was that something the borough was considering?

“That falls under personnel matters that can’t be discussed,” said Councilor Jim Hamill.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with information provided by Mayor Derek Williams after the print edition went to press.