COOK COUNTY, IL — Union workers who maintain roads, equipment, trails and public facilities throughout the Forest Preserves of Cook County have voted overwhelmingly to authorize a strike amid a dispute over wages, overtime and other contract terms.
The vote by nearly 200 members of Teamsters Local 700 allows the union's bargaining committee to call a strike but does not mean workers will immediately walk off the job. Under Illinois law, the union must provide five days' notice before a lawful strike can begin.
Patch has reached out to the Forest Preserves of Cook County for this story.
The workers include truck drivers, laborers, mechanics and other employees responsible for clearing roads, maintaining vehicles, collecting trash, cleaning bathrooms, conducting prescribed burns and keeping preserves accessible to the public.
Local 700 said members rejected what the Forest Preserve District described as its "last, best and final" offer, presented July 23.
"The Forest Preserve District will tell you it values these workers, but its own pay scale says something different," Local 700 President Ramon Williams said in a statement.
"Our members voted to authorize a strike because they are done being told to wait their turn for a raise that never comes."
The union contends that employees advance through the district's wage scale much more slowly than nonunion workers.
According to Local 700, nonunion employees receive step increases of approximately 5 percent, while affected union employees receive increases of about one-half of 1 percent.
Teamsters for a Democratic Union, a rank-and-file labor organization, said workers are also seeking changes to overtime compensation when they work more than five consecutive days.
Members rejected a proposed two-year contract extension in December, according to the organization, which said the district's latest offer remained largely unchanged eight months later.
"This offer is a slap in the face," serviceman Bill Foley said in a statement distributed by Teamsters for a Democratic Union. "We have accepted contract extensions for the past several years. We have no more cheeks left to slap."
Foley said employees are seeking better pay and more time with their families.
Union members said a strike could affect day-to-day maintenance and public access across the preserve system.
"Without our work, many Forest Preserves spaces will become unsanitary and potentially dangerous," laborer David Yokley said. "We know that the public respects our work. Now it's time for management to show us some respect."
Senior resource technician Brannon Curtis-Wittenberg said members formed a Contract Action Team to keep workers informed and involved in bargaining efforts.
"If management refuses to make us a fair offer in the next five days, we will be ready to strike," Curtis-Wittenberg said.
The union has not announced a strike date.
The Forest Preserves of Cook County encompass more than 70,000 acres and record an estimated 62 million visits annually.
The district was established in 1914 to acquire, preserve and restore open space throughout Cook County. Its properties include forests, prairies, wetlands, rivers, trails and recreational facilities.
Forest Preserves land also hosts the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe and Brookfield Zoo Chicago.
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