County highway workers vote for union

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.marshallindependent.com/News/articles.asp?articleID=16425

By Rae Kruger

Lyon County Highway Maintenance employees will now be represented by the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees or AFSCME 65 of Minnesota.

Sixteen employees voted 9 to 6 to approve union affiliation. The Bureau of Mediation Services released the vote Friday morning. Sixteen employees were eligible to vote.

As new union members, employees will soon “begin the negotiation of their first contract,” said Steve Giorgi, the assistant director of AFSCME 65 in Nashwauk

Ryan Hanson, an AFSCME 65 official working with county employees, said employees were interested in joining a union because “a lot of discussion at the county level involves the lives and involves the livelihood of these employees...and they want a place at the table for contract negotiations.”

In a Sept. 18 story in the Independent, long-time county highway employee Bernard “Tosh” Doom said employees are worried about double-digit increases in health insurance premiums and want more input on those decisions as well a a voice on other issues.

Some steps need to be completed before contract negotiations can start.

FULL story at link.