Labor in Illinois

Weekly Labor Report
May 8, 2008

Retiree Benefits for State Workers in Collective Bargaining

The state of Illinois has promised retired and former employees health, dental, vision and life insurance benefits, but has not consistently put aside money to pay for these “other post employment benefits,” or OPEB. Illinois’ top fiscal officer John Filan has argued that the state’s $43 billion liability will be settled through labor negotiations with the state’s unions. “This is a combined liability [for both employer and employee],” he said, “and we will work on it in collective bargaining.” Filan has pushed for the auctioning of 50 year terms to the state lottery to corporations as a way to raise at least $10 billion quickly. The state would retain a 20% investment in the lottery over the lease term. – Bond Buyer (22 April 2008)
Southern Illinois University-Carbondale Proposes New Contract for Civil Service Employees
The Association of Civil Service Employees, which includes about 400 people, has been trying to secure a fair, four year contract for nine months. Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (SUIC) initially offered to increase wages of all employees by three percent and increase those of some senior workers by about five percent. Association president Cathy Lilley has argued that increases ought to happen every year, not only the first year of a four year contract. The Association finally secured a contract for a 3.5 percent raise over the next two years. – The Southern (24 April 2008; 6 May 2008)

State Unemployment Deceptively Unchanged in 2008

For the last five months, Illinois’ job market and unemployment rate of 5.5% has been more stable than the national average. As employers cut 80,000 jobs nationwide in March, state payrolls only declined .03 percent with 1600 cuts. Mitch Daniels, a labor market economist with the Illinois Department of Labor Security, said, “Given the national economic picture, steady is good.” However, what seems like a stable picture overall may hide the differences among Illinois’ economic sectors. While the state has seen growth in professional, educational, health service sectors and especially the agricultural sector, construction and manufacturing sectors have taken a dramatic hit. Daniels expects job growth in Illinois in 2008 to be between one and two percent, especially concentrated in the professional health service sector. – Medill Reports-Northwestern University (17 April 2008)

Latino Union in Chicago Struggles with Falling Pay

In the wake of the construction industry shortfall throughout the nation and especially in Illinois, day laborers in Chicago have seen wages drop from $12 an hour to $10 an hour and even down to $8 an hour for those hungry enough for work. Furthermore, reports the Latino Union, a labor organization and employment agency for day laborers in Chicago, workers continue to get hurt on risky jobs. Jessica Aranda, the executive director of the organization, calls the laborers international businessmen, and looks forward to helping workers attain more skills, especially in language and technology. – Chicago Tribune (26 April 2008)

AFL-CIO in Alliance with Enlace, Mexican Labor Rights Group

The AFL-CIO announced April 17 that it formally allied with Enlace, a coalition that represents 300, 000 low wage workers in Mexico. The AFL-CIO has no formal relationship with Mexico’s official union federation, which is essentially controlled by the country’s Industrial Revolutionary Party. – People’s World Weekly (22 April 2008)

Unions Exceptionally Successful in Healthcare Industry

While the overall number of union petitions and elections declined in 2007, health-care related unions have fared better than most. According to recent statistics from the National Labor Relations Board, while unions in non-healthcare related industries won 62 percent of the time, they have won 72 percent of the time in health associated fields. The Service Employees’ International Union and California Nurses Association/ National Nurses Organizing Committee won 79, 80 and 83 percent of the time. The SEIU and UNITE-HERE celebrate great success over the past year in beginning to organize Aramark, Cintas and ServiceMaster employees. – Reuters (18 Mar 2008) http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRelease/idUS140744+18-Mar-2008+PRN20080318

Rockford Police Lieutenants Want Membership in Union, but City Rejects Request

Currently only patrol officers and sergeants, officers who are officially not managers, are represented by the Police Benevolent and Protective Agency, Unit 6 (of Rockford, Illinois). Five of the six of the city’s lieutenants want membership in the union because they say they are fearful of losing their jobs. They have petitioned the Illinois Labor Board to determine whether Rockford’s lieutenants are managers, while city leaders contend that they will fight the lieutenants’ request. Said Rockford’s Legal Director Patrick Hayes, “Management ought to stay management and with regard to our employees, if they want to organize that’s fine and works very well, but there needs to be a division and a clear delineation between management and labor.” – News 23 (5 May 2008)

Fraternal Order of Police Secures New Contract with SUIC

The Fraternal Order of Police Labor Council recently ratified a three year contract with Southern Illinois University-Carbondale for dispatchers and parking service employees. Bob Behrtens, a FOP field representative, was very happy about the contract. “This is unprecedented for dispatchers and parking service agents to get fixed raises into the future like this. The university is not too keen on pay raises. But, with all the new emergency and medical response systems, dispatchers are becoming more and more important.” Pay will increase by approximately 12.5 percent over the next three years. – The Southern (6 May 2008)

Key Chicago Unions Take No Position on Children’s Museum

Opponents of the proposed Children’s Museum in Chicago’s Grant Park argue that park has always been public property set aside for the people of Chicago. A coalition of environmental, consumer and labor groups have argued that in 1836 the park was declared “forever open, clear and free.” When the Citizen Action Illinois’ board recently took a vote, neither the Chicago Federation of Labor president Dennis Gannon nor the Service Employee International Union’s Illinois Council president Tom Balanoff were in attendance. They have declared that they are not taking a position on the plan. The final vote before the City Council is expected in June. – Chicago Tribune (22 April 2008)

Keith Kelleher of SEIU Chicago Demands Apology from United Healthcare Workers-West

Keith Kelleher, president of SEIU Local 880 of Illinois, has joined with a few other SEIU presidents to demand an apology from United Health Care Workers-West president Dan Martin for excluding rank and file members from delegate elections to the next SEIU convention. The UHW-W had rationalized that they wanted to hand-pick delegates to the convention who “know the most about the Union and are most actively involved in it.” However, the SEIU Local presidents demand that this attitude expresses “contempt…for your own rank-and-file membership…These hardly sound like the deliberations of a ‘bottom up’ organization.” – www.prsnewswire.com (17 April 2008)