Unions representing state employees announced today that their members have voted to ratify new, two-year contracts with the state. The contracts call for across-the-board raises of 3-percent in each of the next two years, but require state workers to pay more for their health insurance.
The contracts cover 19,000 members of Council 5 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees and 13,000 members of the Minnesota Association of Professional Employees.
“Bargaining involves give and take between labor and management,” said Jo Pels, chief negotiator for AFSCME Council 5. “The employer didn’t get everything it wanted – and the union didn’t get everything we wanted. This is a fair agreement for hardworking state employees and the citizens of Minnesota.”
“We believe we negotiated a fair contract – and are delighted to see that our membership agreed with us,” said Mike Landers, co-chair of MAPE’s negotiations team.
Union negotiating teams bargained the new contracts with members of Gov. Mark Dayton’s administration, but the agreements must gain final approval from the Legislature before going into effect. The Subcommittee on Employee Relations (SER) has 30 days to take action regarding the contract before it goes into effect.
Union Advocate 