AFSCME to Strike?

WorkdayMinnesota is reporting that AFSME may strike.

Who?

The six AFSCME locals representing workers at Hennepin County include: Local 34 (Social and Health Services), Local 552 (Probation and Parole), Local 1719 (Adult Corrections Officers), Local 2822 (Clerical and Related), Local 2864 (Professional Librarians) and Local 2938 (Legal Unit).

This means there will be no clerks or pretrial probation officers at the jail if they do strike.

Why? According to the WorkdayMinnesota article:

"It's take-backs, take-backs and more take-backs," Poehler said, updating the noon-hour rally on contract negotiations. Poehler told the crowd that Hennepin County negotiators are proposing several contract changes:

• making County employees pay more out-of-pocket for health care;

• threatening to cut full health coverage;

• converting some full-time jobs to part-time jobs with reduced health benefits;

• allowing supervisors to take on union work;

• denying some health benefits to future employees.

One interesting note is that hundreds of AFSCME workers picketed at the government center on the 18th and I saw no mention in the main stream press.