SEIU Employees Ratify 2-Year Contract with County

Solano County government employees ratified an agreement with the county on a new 2-year contract Tuesday night, a spokeswoman for the Service Employees International Union Local 1021 said.

The new contract includes 3 percent wage increases each year, a supplemental employer contribution for family healthcare and the county’s payment of its full pension obligation starting in 2017, SEIU spokeswoman Cecille Isidro said.

The contract also includes provisions that encourage additional training and continuing education for workers and equity adjustments, Isidro said.

The Solano County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to ratify the contract Dec. 8, Isidro said.

“We believe it’s fair and begins to address workers’ concerns,” said Akbar Bibb, a Solano County social worker and president of the SEIU’s Solano County Chapter.

The contract between the county and 1,800 SEIU workers expired Sept. 28. Employees went on strike on Oct. 14 and 15 and on Nov. 17 and 18 to protest what the union said were unfair labor practices.

County officials announced a tentative agreement with the union on Friday, and said details will be released at the Board of Supervisors meeting.

Solano County Human Resources Director Marc Fox said a session with a mediator on Friday was productive and the tentative agreement would be recommended to the Board of Supervisors. Solano County Administrator Birgitta E. Corsello thanked the union leadership and the mediator for their efforts.

“My hope is that we will have a labor contract before the December holiday,” Corsello said before the union ratified the contract.

The Solano County SEIU Local 1021 includes social workers, mental health specialists, public health nurses, librarians, child support specialists, public safety dispatchers, benefits eligibility specialists and veterans’ services workers.

--Bay City News Service, photo courtesy of the SEIU Local 1021