Workers at IDOT, DHS, IDES, and CMS in Cook County to Vote on New Contract
SPRINGFIELD - After several productive rounds of good faith negotiations, the Illinois Governor's Office and Teamsters Local 700 have agreed to terms on a new four-year collective bargaining agreement. The current agreement expired June 30, 2015.
The new contract covers nearly 350 workers at IDOT, CMS, IDES, and DHS in Cook County. The employees work as highway maintainers, heavy equipment operators, and building service and maintenance workers. Negotiations are ongoing for employees represented by Teamsters locals at locations covering the rest of Illinois.
The terms of the tentative agreement include :
- Maintenance of the current level of health care benefits for employees and their dependents as part of the State's continued contributions to the independent Teamsters Local 727 Health & Welfare Fund.
- A four-year wage freeze, continuing the 75% in-hire rate.
- Continuation of a 40-hour work week.
- A new performance incentive program to reward employees with bonuses for cost-saving measures and meeting or exceeding performance metrics.
- A collaborative program that allows management and the Teamsters to work together to provide low-cost alternatives to outsourcing.
- A reduction in the payout for accumulated unused vacation from 75 to 45 days for employees hired after January 1, 2016.
The tentative agreement will be submitted to the membership of Teamsters Local 700 for a ratification vote.
As a continuation of the productive negotiating sessions, the Teamsters and the Governor's Office also pledged to form a long-term relationship to improve employer-labor relations in state government.
###
