Orange County Teamsters strike over 3% offer tied to countywide raises

More than 465 County of Orange workers represented by Teamsters Local 952 walked off the job on Oct. 13 after rejecting a one-year 3% raise with no retroactive pay. The immediate fight is over one unit's contract, but the county says the cost of moving higher would not stay small.

Third District Supervisor Don Wagner told the Orange County Register that the 3% deal is the one the county has reached with many other bargaining units. Those contracts stipulate that if one union receives more than 3%, every union retroactively receives the same increase. "The problem quite frankly is that a more than 3% raise ripples across the entire county workforce and county budget, and the financial circumstances makes that difficult to swallow," Wagner said.

The arithmetic of a 465-person unit is therefore tied to the county's entire payroll. 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, according to Voice of OC. The Teamsters are one of three unions that declined that deal. The other two are the Association of Orange County Deputy Sheriffs and the local American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees union.

The strikers work in OC Public Works, OC Waste & Recycling, OC Community Resources and other county operations, according to the union. They include heavy equipment operators, mechanics, waste workers, custodial staff and animal care workers, the Register reported. Members voted down the county's offer in August.

Local 952 said it asked the county to begin bargaining in December and began submitting proposals in March, but the county made no meaningful movement until August. The union said the county is still refusing to include retroactive pay in a new agreement. Because of those months of delay, it said in an earlier statement, workers have lost wages "they will not recover."

The state's public-sector labor regulator has given the union a first-stage win. Local 952 filed an unfair practice charge with the California Public Employment Relations Board in late September, the Register reported. An Oct. 6 letter from the board's interim general counsel, Joseph Eckhart, published by Voice of OC, lists the alleged 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." The Register described the board as ruling in the union's favor. It cited a filing signed by Regional Attorney Gabriel Orea saying the county "interfered with employee rights guaranteed by the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act."

The first item on that list matches the union's account of the final days before the walkout. Secretary-Treasurer Eric Jimenez told Voice of OC that Local 952 offered further mediation if the county's negotiators had the power to negotiate. "The county negotiators came back and said they have no authority to make any movement," he wrote.

County spokesperson Molly Nichelson said the county respects lawful strike activity and has contingency plans to minimize service disruptions while maintaining essential public services.

County supervisors sounded less united. Wagner said he expects disruptions to be "minimal to non-existent" and urged the Teamsters to look at other contracts. Second District Supervisor Vicente Sarmiento said county leaders "do not anticipate immediate impacts to resident services." He noted that several units had accepted contracts and added: "Consistent treatment and dignity should apply across all departments." Fifth District Supervisor Katrina Foley said the workers "deserve to feel valued and earn a living that supports their families" and that she was "ready to work with my colleagues to reach a fair agreement."

The union has repeatedly cited the supervisors' own pay. The board voted itself a 25% raise last year, an increase of about $49,000 per supervisor that took annual pay above $244,000, according to the union. The decision drew a rebuke from the Orange County Grand Jury, the Register reported, and some supervisors said they have donated their raises to charity.

The first day of the strike showed some effects. Roughly 30 picketers at the Frank R. Bowerman Landfill in Irvine left nearly two dozen semi-trucks queued at the entrance, the Register reported. OC Waste & Recycling said the Prima Deshecha Landfill would have no public self-haul access "due to picketing activity," while Olinda Alpha in Brea stayed open. Union representative Christian Castro said Teamsters in other sectors, including delivery drivers, were honoring the picket line and disrupting shipments of vehicle parts and office supplies. He said the strike has also pulled heavy equipment crews off emergency preparation ahead of El Niño storms.

Betty Lopez, an animal care attendant at the county shelter for 18 years, told the Register she has watched experienced coworkers leave for better-paying jobs in nearby cities. "Sometimes, there simply aren't enough of us to get everything done," she said.

Castro said there had been no further negotiations as of late Tuesday afternoon. He said pickets would return Wednesday with Teamsters from across Southern California joining them. "We're ready to go until it's over."