Schaumburg reaches deal on delayed 4-year public works contract

Schaumburg officials have reached an agreement with their public works employees union on a new four-year contract, nearly a year after it was to take effect.

But because the ratified contract is retroactive to May 1, 2019, there are no financial consequences from the delay, Village Manager Brian Townsend said.

He admitted that the prolonged negotiations with International Union of Operating Engineers Local 150 are unusual for the village, but various factors contributed to it throughout the year. Once the delay extended into the fall and winter, he said, it was more difficult to meet with the public works employees because of their workloads.

The issues that took the longest to resolve involved changes to the village's safety program and wellness initiative, he added.

In the case of the former, the changes affected the way employees could qualify for the program's incentives.

As for the wellness program, participation by public works employees had not been as robust as administration would have liked, Townsend said. But the suggested changes caused some confidentiality concerns from employees as to how assessment data would be used by the village. Such data will be available to the village only in aggregate, without identifying individuals, Townsend said.

The new labor agreement affects 59 of the 96 employees in the village's combined Engineering and Public Works Department, officials said.

The retroactive contract calls for salary increases of 2.5% effective May 1, 2019, 2020 and 2021, and of 2.25% on May 1, 2022.

Employees with more than five years with the village also will receive annual longevity pay in late November. Those with at least five years will receive $450. That figure increases to $600 for a 10-year tenure, $900 for 15 years, $1,200 for 20 years, and $1,500 for 25 years and longer.

The contract also promises those with a minimum of 720 hours of unused sick time upon retirement a certain payout at their last salary. It's 240 hours of pay after 20 years, 360 hours after 25 years, and 480 hours after 30 years.

Townend said the village's relationship with the union has long been cordial and the protracted negotiations didn't change that.

Mayor Tom Dailly agreed.

"This was an amenable agreement," Dailly said. "It just took some time to get there."

Representatives of Local 150 could not be reached for comment Tuesday.