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Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Lake County Treasurer's office employees move to unionize, with support by outgoing head; ‘God bless America'
The Lake County Treasurer employees are forming a union with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31, the second unit of Lake County employees to unionize this summer, receiving the blessing of outgoing Treasurer Holly Kim. 'The right of workers to organize and bargain collectively is an American right,' Kim said in a brief statement. 'God bless America.' According to a news release, earlier this week, the 13 employees filed a majority interest petition with the Illinois Labor Relations Board, which will certify the union. The employees are responsible for processing and accounting for county revenue and assisting the public in paying and assessing property tax bills. Back in June, about 600 employees of the Lake County Health Department joined AFSCME, which also represents employees of the Lake County chief judge, circuit clerk, and coroner. Anna Martinez, a collection specialist with the Treasurer's Office, said the move to unionize was driven in part by concerns over job security. With Kim deciding not to run for treasurer in the upcoming election and making a move to run for Illinois comptroller, they wanted to know they would not be replaced by the new treasurer. 'I know job security is super important with our current situation in the world,' Martinez said. 'I think this is a great opportunity for all of us. Having a voice really does matter to us.' In a statement, AFSCME Council 31 Executive Director Roberta Lynch praised the power of strong unions to protect and improve the jobs, wages, benefits, and services of public service workers. 'With the billionaires and anti-union extremists running amok in Washington, working people coming together has never been more important than it is right now,' Lynch said. Nadine Arssinous, also a collection specialist at the Treasurer's Office, said the union provides 'stability and security' in the press release. 'We also believe a union contract will help get us the pay increases and high-quality, affordable health and dental insurance we deserve,' Arssinous said. 'We make Lake County work, so we should be able to provide for our families with the same stability that everyone in Lake County deserves.'
Chicago Tribune
16-04-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
Mayor Brandon Johnson gets union backing, but aldermen stall housing loan fund plan
Mayor Brandon Johnson reached a buzzer beater union deal Wednesday morning to clear the way for his 'Green Social Housing' plan, only for aldermen to spurn his hopes for quick vote by sidelining the measure moments later. Johnson's team came to an agreement with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Council 31 to alter the ordinance just minutes before a committee vote was scheduled. The plan seeks to create a revolving loan fund to spur affordable housing construction, though the union feared it could privatize work. But despite winning an agreement in the marathon union negotiations, Johnson failed to win over enough aldermen. The Finance and Housing Committee voted 19 to 17 to delay consideration, a rejection of Johnson's goal to send it to the full City Council later Wednesday. Many in the joint committee argued the measure was moving too quickly, echoing concerns they shared in two prior hearings in the last week. 'We just got this substitute this morning. I'm not comfortable moving forward with this currently,' Ald. Nicole Lee, 11th, said before the vote. 'I'm not asking for six months, I'm asking for a few more weeks.' The ordinance would establish a nonprofit developer arm of the city's Department of Housing to control a $135 million fund offering developers low-cost loans during construction. At least 30% of the units would need to be affordable, and the city would own a majority stake in the environmentally-friendly buildings, a first-of-its-kind role for Chicago. The loan repayments would be recycled back into the fund for future housing projects. The Wednesday AFSCME deal added guarantees that the nonprofit structure created by the ordinance to administer the loan fund would use workers from the city's Department of Housing if it created jobs similar to ones that already exist in the department. Many aldermen had signaled they would not vote for the plan until AFSCME's concerns were addressed. Several said they were still left with lingering concerns before voting to table the ordinance. Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, said Johnson's administration had given him 'evasive answers' as it rushed to pass the measure. He cited issues with ethics oversight of the new nonprofit, saying Inspector General Deborah Witzburg should come to the committee to answer questions. 'This is an ordinance that can work if we put the proper time into it,' he said. 'I still to this day don't understand why we are in this sprint to get this done… Whenever this body rushes something, we get it wrong.' But Ald. Leni Manaa-Hoppenworth, 48th, argued an urgent housing affordability crisis in the city needs to be addressed. 'We can't wait. I am not here to wait. I came to get stuff done,' she said. 'This body has a responsibility to help where the market cannot fix our problems.' After the vote, Johnson administration officials said they plan to continue advocating for the ordinance.
