Two unions discuss first-time contracts in Rolling Meadows

Two labor unions representing Rolling Meadows public works employees and other office workers are negotiating first-time contracts with Rolling Meadows city officials.

The city council is set to discuss union negotiations Tuesday night during a committee of the whole closed session. City officials and representatives from International Union of Operating Engineers, Local 150, and American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Council 31, have been negotiating since late 2015.

That's when the Illinois Labor Relations Board certified city employee memberships in the unions.

Local 150 could represent as many as 27 public works department employees, including foremen, maintenance workers and mechanics. Council 31 could cover as many as 25 employees in various city departments, including secretaries, clerks, accountants, building inspectors, meter readers and police assistants.

That would represent nearly 30 percent of Rolling Meadows' 178-person workforce, though city officials say the exact number of employees who would be covered under the two contracts is still being finalized.

Currently, there's only two employee groups with labor agreements: 38 sworn police and 39 sworn fire personnel.

The city council inked new three-year contracts with those unions in October, in which each group received raises of 2.35 percent retroactive to Jan. 1, 2016, 2.4 percent in 2017, and 2.65 percent in 2018. Both agreements run through 2018.