The American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees is partway through negotiating with Peoria employers, with two contracts settled, and others still being bargained.
PEORIA COUNTY
When AFSCME Local 3586 has a rally at the County Courthouse on March 22, state and local union officials will go public with issues that remain unresolved in negotiations, said Council 31 union rep Tim Lavelle.
“A labor shortage is a factor affecting the public sector as well as private employers,” Lavelle told the Labor Paper. “We show some 8,000 vacancies statewide, and here in Peoria, half of our bargaining unit is new since 2018.”
AFSCME County bargaining unit of 121 workers faces wages that “are no longer competitive,” said Lavelle, who said recruiting and retaining workers is vital. “Pay has stagnated. Looking at our pay stubs since 2019, a lot of our members are making less now with inflation and everything else. Insurance is killing us.”
Early in contract talks, Lavelle praised the County and the climate of discussions.
“We’ve always come to good terms,” he said. “We’re just starting, really, so at this point it’s still a little back-and-forth.”
Contacted for a comment, Peoria County Administrator Scott Sorrel said, “It’s the board’s policy to not negotiate collective bargaining agreements in the media.”
PEORIA PUBLIC LIBRARY
A few blocks away, members of the library unit of AFSCME Local 3464 continue to negotiate privately and publicly, such at a February meeting where about 50 workers and supporters appealed directly to board members at an open meeting.
Library workers are now in the third month without a contract after multiple bargaining sessions; at press time the next session was set for March 14.
Catching up on wages also is a focus there, according to Local Vice President Anthony Wallraven, improving on the previous agreement and reaching some parity with nearby library employees.
“Peoria library workers aren’t even paid to the scale that librarians make in other towns in central Illinois like Bloomington or Champaign,” he said. “We have a large number of our members that are making minimum wage or close to minimum wage – and a lot of them have post-secondary education. This is not teenagers working in the summers, or part-time. These are adults trying to raise families or support themselves.”
A survey of its membership of some 60 workers showed that about 90% live “paycheck to paycheck, and more than 44% feel insecure about their housing.
In a prepared statement, Library Executive Director Randall Yelverton said, “The library and AFSCME have enjoyed a long history of respectful and productive negotiations and will continue to do so as the parties bargain this contract. The library and its employees, like many businesses, entities and individuals, have felt the strain of inflation and the rising cost of living in a post-pandemic world. While the library cannot comment on the status of ongoing negotiations, it looks forward to reaching a mutually beneficial agreement that will allow the Library to continue to offer all the same excellent services and programming that our community has come to expect and enjoy.”
Wallraven commented, “If the library wishes to continue serving the public, they must do what is right and come to the bargaining table to negotiate in good faith.
“The whole point of negotiations is to come up with a number that’s acceptable for both sides,” he continued. “That’s what we’re trying to do. The status quo is unacceptable.”
PEORIA PARK DISTRICT
Elsewhere in Peoria, 37 workers at the Peoria Park District last month overwhelmingly ratified a new three-year contract after about a dozen bargaining sessions, according to AFSCME union rep Tod Williams.
“Talks were not too contentious,” he told the Labor Paper. “Our main concerns was getting starting wages up. Some were being paid at or barely above minimum wage: $13 or $16 an hour. Zookeepers – required to have college degrees – were really underpaid. That caught me off guard.”
The new agreement includes a 4.5% wage hike in year one, followed by a 3.75% in year two, and a 3.25% in 2025. Workers will get the higher pay between those raises and new minimum annual pay scales for seven job categories, which range from $34,008 to $40,815, which could mean a 10% improvement for some workers.
CITY OF PEORIA
About 90 members of Local 3464’s unit representing City of Peoria workers in January ratified its agreement reached after six rounds of talks in November and December. Bargaining-team members said they’re pleased with restoring wage increases based on years of service, and resisting any concessions in the pact.
AFSCME Local 3464 also represents 12 workers at the Peoria Housing Authority and 10 workers at the Peoria Civic Center.
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