Politics & Government
Will County Workers Flood Board Meeting as Strike Continues
No new negotiating sessions have been called, and conflicting reports say anywhere from 10 to 30 percent of employees have crossed the picket line.
The following article was written by Patch Editor Karen Sorensen:
Quickly, here's an overview of what's been happening with the AFSCME Local 1028 strike against Will County, which started Monday:
Quickly, here's an overview of what's been happening with the AFSCME Local 1028 strike against Will County, which started Monday:
- Dozens of striking workers gathered at the Will County Building in downtown Joliet Thursday morning and chanted, “Two, four, six, eight, the county should negotiate,” as county board members arrived to attend today's full board meeting. (Watch CBS 2 video by clicking here.)
- The Illinois Labor Relations Board ruled that about 30 of the 1,000-plus employees eligible to strike were "essential" and were ordered back to work. They include 911 dispatchers, deputy coroners, communicable disease investigators, health department sanitarians, and a jail electrician and locksmith.
- There are conflicting reports on how many workers are rejecting the strike and crossing the picket line to work. A statement issued by Local 1028 spokesman Anders Lindall said 90 percent of eligible strikers were walking the picket line at more than 20 sites, but Bruce Tidwell, the county’s human resources director, told the Joliet Herald News that 30 percent reported for work.
- No new bargaining sessions have been requested by either side or by the federal mediator involved in the negotiations.
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