Sonoma County Workers to Strike Over Contract Negotiations

About 2,000 Sonoma County employees represented by Service Employees International Union Local 1021 will strike Tuesday.

County workers voted with an overwhelmingly 98.8 percent earlier this month to authorize the strike, although no date for the strike had been given initially, as union members were hoping work with the Board of Supervisors to negotiate a new contract, according to SEIU.

County management and SEIU have met more than 20 times over the last three months and spent over four days in mediation in an effort to reach an agreement, county officials said.

“We have explored many options to try to reach an agreement with SEIU. Based on employee concerns, management has focused on addressing the health care costs that significantly impact our employees’ take-home pay,” County Administrator Veronica Ferguson said in a statement. “The offer balances the interests of the county to responsibly use taxpayer dollars with the business case for competitive wages and benefits. We want all of our employees and their families to have access to affordable health care.”

Both sides are set to resume negotiations on Wednesday, according to county officials.

--Bay City News Service, photo via Shutterstock