The union representing Illinois government workers released an ad this week calling on Gov. Bruce Rauner to return to the negotiating table. AFSCME alleges that Rauner has failed to engage in contract talks with the union since January.
“Public service workers in state government protect kids, care for veterans, keep us safe and more,” AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Roberta Lynch said. “State workers have always been willing to do their part. We’re prepared to compromise. But we can only do that if Governor Rauner puts the public good ahead of his personal demands and returns to bargaining ready to negotiate.”
Here’s a look at the ad, which will air statewide and run on digital mediums:
In January, the administration asked the state labor board to determine whether contract talks with AFSCME were at an impasse, which would allow the state to impose its own terms in a contract with state workers. Earlier this month, an administrative law judge recommended that the two sides resume negotiations on wages and health care benefits.
“If the Rauner Administration is truly concerned about a timely resolution of this dispute, it should not have squandered the past six months by refusing to meet with the union bargaining committee,” Roberta Lynch, executive director of AFSCME Council 31, said back in July. “We have been and remain ready to return to the bargaining table, to do the hard work of compromise, and to reach an agreement that is fair to all.”
Stay tuned.