Employees of Ventura County to Walk Out

About 4,000 Ventura County government employees are scheduled to strike Tuesday after a failure this week to reach an agreement with county representatives, union officials said Thursday.

However, county officials said employees of the Fire Department and Sheriff’s Department, who are not enrolled in the Public Employees Assn. of Ventura County, and certain health-care workers would not go out on strike and that “some degree” of other county services would be maintained during a strike.

Union officials said that during the contract talks Wednesday, county negotiators made no new concessions on previous offers of a 4.25% salary increase over two years. The union has sought a 9.5% salary increase over two years, although a 5.25% increase was discussed in the negotiations.

“There has been no change in the county’s last and final offer, which doesn’t begin to address the fundamental issues of fairness and equity for our people,” union spokesman Bob Lawrence said.

County negotiator Ed McLain said further talks are unlikely before the scheduled strike. “We put our last offer out,” he said.

McLain said that union representatives agreed to accept the 5.25% increase over the two-year period but that the union’s demand that all county employees be required to pay monthly union fees, a stipulation the county opposes, stalled a settlement.

‘Wage Not Key Issue’

“Our position is that wage is not the key issue,” McLain said.

County officials have said the county cannot afford to pay more than the 4.25% increase over two years.

Barry Hammitt, union executive director, said he would be willing to accept the 5.25% increase if the county agrees to raise the salaries of county workers paid less than their counterparts in other counties. He estimated that 70% of the county’s workers receive lower pay than those performing similar jobs in other California counties.

Hammitt denied that the issue of mandatory union fees has separated county and union negotiators.

“The county is in a desperate situation when it has to lash out and say that the issue is a greedy union trying to feather its own nest,” Hammitt said.

The county workers represented by the union range from health-care and social-service employees to courthouse workers, animal-control officers and librarians.

A strike by Ventura County workers would be the first since a 1985 California Supreme Court decision gave public employees the right to strike.

Workers at the Ventura County Medical Center’s emergency room and infant-care facility would continue to work despite a strike, union officials said. County officials said department managers plan to continue providing some other services during a strike.

“We are optimistic that we can maintain some degree of service,” McLain said. “But we have no way of knowing how many employees will actually go out.”

Meanwhile, Lawrence said, the union has been collecting canned goods and cash donations to help employees during the planned strike.

“We basically left the last negotiation session saying, ‘If you want to get in touch with us, you know the phone number,’ ” Lawrence said.

The current employee contract expired June 30.