URBANA — Champaign County employees are threatening to strike if county officials do not negotiate in good faith on a new contract.
More than 100 workers rallied Monday afternoon outside the Champaign County Courthouse in Urbana. The group, represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, claims administrators are not offering fair wages or affordable insurance.
“In this economy, everybody’s losing ground,” said local AFSCME president Cece Phillips. “We deserve to not worry about how to put food on the table. We work for the freaking county.”
Phillips said the county has offered a 2% raise — which she said isn’t enough, especially for employees earning $16 an hour.
“We’re not asking for things to be frivolous. We just want to live,” she said.
In May, the union took a vote in which 96% of its members voted to support a strike if necessary. The group’s last contract ran through the end of last year.
Champaign County administrators have not responded to a request for comment from IPM News.
But some officials say they think the county has the money to pay its employees better.
“I’ve been told we have over, like, $10 million or something that [is] already … saved up for, like, possible future [use],” said Brett Peugh, a Champaign County board member for District 11. “We need it now to keep our employees right here today. We need to keep them.”
He said the county’s management is stalling negotiations.
“They should not be the lowest paid government employees in the county,” said Peugh. “I want them well paid well. I want them to feel proud of the jobs they have. They can actually say ‘yes, I actually work at the county.'”