Over 400 teamsters are now on strike in Orange County amid stalled negotiations for a new contract, leaving hundreds of county employees picketing outside the local landfills instead of working at them.
The strike comes after months of stalled negotiations on a new contract according to Eric Jimenez, secretary treasurer of the Local 952 Teamsters that represent workers across a host of county departments, but with most of their workers focused on the county landfills.
“Our members were forced to go down this path because the county officials chose not to bargain in good faith. Up until today the county has made no movement to try to settle this dispute,” Jimenez wrote in a Tuesday statement to Voice of OC.
Staff from the California Public Employee Relations Board, a state agency within the Labor and Workforce Development Agency that oversees public labor negotiations, stated the county “refused to meet in good faith,” along with a host of other charges in a letter last week.
“Respondent engaged in the following conduct: failing to vest negotiators with sufficient authority to conduct meaningful negotiations; failing to provide counterproposals; engaging in dilatory and evasive tactics; failing to prepare adequately for negotiations; and threatening that wage increases for the bargaining unit would result in layoffs,” reads the Oct. 6 letter from Joseph Eckhart, interim general counsel for the relations board, to the county government.
Jimenez said they told the county they’d agree to further mediation if the negotiators had the power to negotiate.
“The county negotiators came back and said they have no authority to make any movement. This only proves that the county is doing nothing to resolve this matter,” Jimenez wrote. “The county can end the strike today by providing a fair contract.”
In a Thursday statement, county spokesperson Molly Nichelson said the county “respect the rights,” of striking workers.
“Our priority remains ensuring the continuity of essential public services for our residents. We have contingency plans in place to minimize service disruptions,” Nichelson wrote.
When asked for an updated comment on Tuesday, Nichelson referred reporters to the previous statement.
Most of the county’s other unions are working under a one year contract with a 3% raise, which came after county leaders first refused to offer any raises to employees.
The teamsters are one of three county employee unions that opted not to take the deal, along with the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs and local American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union.
Picket lines are set to be up at the county hall of administration and all three of the county’s landfills today according to Jimenez.
Noah Biesiada is a Voice of OC reporter. Contact him at nbiesiada@voiceofoc.org.
