The transition committee for Mayor-elect Mike Johnston is currently conducting a series of 28 public forums to gather community input that will help develop the administration’s priorities, both long term and for the first 100 days in office.

The group that turned out for the labor relations public forum on Sunday faced a unique task, committee co-chair and Councilmember Debbie Ortega said while opening the event.

Their feedback would help shape the job description for the new position of labor liaison within the administration – a role that hasn’t existed in the mayor’s office for years.

“This one is a little different,” she said to the group of roughly 15 committee and community members from various unions.

Mayor-elect’s committee holds economic public forum, one of many through next week

Attendees huddled around tables for small group discussions about the new role.

The liaison should get out of the office and have direct conversations with frontline workers, the group said, while ensuring the mayor and councilmembers are meeting with workers firsthand as well. The group did not want the liaison to be a proxy for the mayor or become a barrier between workers and the administration.

They suggested the position have deputies with expertise in various professions, so that labor representatives can focus more on talking with the office about industry challenges and solutions and spend less time educating the city about their field.

Johnston should consider making the role a cabinet-level position, the group said. The liaison should have strong knowledge of local, state and federal labor laws, and be someone willing to work with labor unions.

Applications open for Denver Mayor-elect Mike Johnston’s administration

Attendees were also asked to name their priorities within labor relations, offer feedback on whether unions observed the city’s contracting process and to offer suggestions for performance-based and best-value contracting.

The groups listed a bevy of priorities, including an emphasis on worker protections, helping immigrants enter the workforce, retaining workers in the shelter system, making healthcare accessible, educating the public about apprenticeships, hiring a person to enforce consequences for the abuse of protected classes, and paying closer attention to the amount of city services that have been outsourced through contracts.

Multiple other topics emerged as important issues.

Some voiced support for collective bargaining for city workers. The group raised concerns about awarding contracts solely based on the lowest bidder, saying the city should be taking into consideration the quality of employment and work conditions a vendor is offering its workers, and weigh any vendors’ history of wage theft. The city should focus on contracting with vendors who will hire locally and help new vendors learn the process of seeking and securing contracts.

Vendors that receive contracts should be neutral on unions or willing to work with them, some attendees said, so that the city is not “paying the company to participate in union busting.”

Committee co-chairs called the forums important work and thanked attendees for spending a Sunday afternoon working to inform the city’s future direction.

Close to a dozen more forums will be held before Friday. For a full schedule visit vibrantdenver.com.

Upcoming events will cover topics spanning community development, neighborhood safety, parks and recreation, human services, children’s affairs, transportation, housing and homelessness.