Strike's On: Will County Employees to Strike at 20 Worksites

AFSCME Local 1028 representative Anders Lindall issued a statement Sunday confirming that Will County workers plan to begin their strike Monday morning.

“I have said throughout these negotiations that a strike is not good for anyone; no one wins with a strike,” County Executive Larry Walsh said in a statement Friday. “I was very disappointed to learn that AFSCME employees who claim to want to avoid a strike wore red stickers throughout all of our recent negotiation sessions proudly proclaiming 'Ready to Strike.'"

The union represents more than 1,200 workers; however, don't expect to see all of them on the picket lines. On Friday, a Will County judge ruled that 9-1-1 dispatchers must remain on the job and cannot strike.

Lindall issued the following statement Sunday night:

More than 1,000 frontline employees of Will County are prepared to strike tomorrow (Monday) morning to achieve a fair union contract.

Their union, AFSCME Local 1028, has done everything possible to avert a strike, but county executive Larry Walsh and the county board have refused to compromise.

"County workers want the same thing every working person wants, fair pay and health care we can afford," AFSCME Local 1028 president Dave Delrose said.

County management is trying to force county employees to pay sharply higher costs for health insurance -- twice what they now pay, with the lowest-paid employees saddled with the largest percentage hikes under the county's plan.

Those costs are unaffordable for county employees, 40% of who earn less than $30,000 a year. They sacrificed to help the county through tough times by foregoing any cost-of-living pay increase for the past four years.

But the county has refused to add a single penny to its cost-of-living proposal for nearly a month. Although Larry Walsh stated publicly on Saturday morning that he would contact the mediator and ask to return to negotiations today (Sunday), the union received no communication from the mediator, indicating Walsh failed to do so. 

"Our union did everything possible to avoid this strike, but county politicians have failed to meet us halfway," Delrose said. "Striking is tough for us personally and will disrupt the services we provide, but there comes a time when everyone has to stand up for what's right. We ask the public's continued support."

Employees are set to picket at more than 20 worksites throughout Will County starting early Monday.