More than 500 Hennepin County employees rallied Monday as negotiations inched forward under the guidance of a state mediator. Nearly 5,000 AFSCME Council 5 members are affected by the contract talks. They have not had a wage increase for three years.
Council 5 Treasurer Cliff Poehler, a Hennepin County public defender and member of the AFSCME negotiations team, exhorted the crowd to "Let the county commissioners hear it up on the 24th floor!" Poehler said the union wanted management to have no doubt, "We are solidarity here today!"
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| Over 500 people attended the noon rally. A second rally was scheduled for later in the afternoon on the Hennepin County Government Center plaza. |
Rhonda Bode, a Hennepin County felony supervision probation officer and member of the negotiations team, updated members on the process. "Things are not as good as we hoped. We thought we could be done by noon today, with a good contract with fair wages, and unfortunately, we're not at that point."
Management, she said, was giving them "same old, same old, and more same old." The crowd roared its disapproval.
Bode leads the Hennepin County employees strike committee, and she said members are ready to walk out; including her local union?s probation and parole officers. "We need to stay strong. We need to stay firm. We need to stay together. And we need to get the pay raises we deserve!"
Members chanted loudly so there could be no doubt, "We will strike! We will strike!"
"This workforce is dedicated to delivering world-class services to the citizens of Hennepin County," said Eliot Seide, Executive Director of AFSCME Council 5. "These quality services are delivered by quality employees who deserve quality compensation."
Most local governments gave their employees a raise during the past three years while Hennepin County gave its employees zeros. County employees have not had a raise since January 2003. Since that time, the U.S. Consumer Price Index has increased 9.4 percent.
AFSCME Council 5 provides one strong united voice for 40,000 public and non-profit employees in Minnesota.
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| Council 5 Treasurer and Hennepin County public defender Cliff Poehler (above) told the crowd, "They say you won't strike. What do you say?" The members roared back, "We will strike! We will Strike!" Below, AFSCME negotiations team member and felony supervisory parole officer Rhonda Bode briefed the crowd on the lack of progress at the bargaining table. |
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Reporting and photos by Don Dinndorf, AFSCME Council 5.
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More than 500 Hennepin County employees rallied Monday as negotiations inched forward under the guidance of a state mediator. Nearly 5,000 AFSCME Council 5 members are affected by the contract talks. They have not had a wage increase for three years.
Council 5 Treasurer Cliff Poehler, a Hennepin County public defender and member of the AFSCME negotiations team, exhorted the crowd to “Let the county commissioners hear it up on the 24th floor!” Poehler said the union wanted management to have no doubt, “We are solidarity here today!”
|
| Over 500 people attended the noon rally. A second rally was scheduled for later in the afternoon on the Hennepin County Government Center plaza. |
Rhonda Bode, a Hennepin County felony supervision probation officer and member of the negotiations team, updated members on the process. “Things are not as good as we hoped. We thought we could be done by noon today, with a good contract with fair wages, and unfortunately, we’re not at that point.”
Management, she said, was giving them “same old, same old, and more same old.” The crowd roared its disapproval.
Bode leads the Hennepin County employees strike committee, and she said members are ready to walk out; including her local union?s probation and parole officers. “We need to stay strong. We need to stay firm. We need to stay together. And we need to get the pay raises we deserve!”
Members chanted loudly so there could be no doubt, “We will strike! We will strike!”
“This workforce is dedicated to delivering world-class services to the citizens of Hennepin County,” said Eliot Seide, Executive Director of AFSCME Council 5. “These quality services are delivered by quality employees who deserve quality compensation.”
Most local governments gave their employees a raise during the past three years while Hennepin County gave its employees zeros. County employees have not had a raise since January 2003. Since that time, the U.S. Consumer Price Index has increased 9.4 percent.
AFSCME Council 5 provides one strong united voice for 40,000 public and non-profit employees in Minnesota.
|
| Council 5 Treasurer and Hennepin County public defender Cliff Poehler (above) told the crowd, “They say you won’t strike. What do you say?” The members roared back, “We will strike! We will Strike!” Below, AFSCME negotiations team member and felony supervisory parole officer Rhonda Bode briefed the crowd on the lack of progress at the bargaining table. |
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Reporting and photos by Don Dinndorf, AFSCME Council 5.