Tentative agreement reached with Cook County

After bargaining for more than 24 hours straight through the night—interrupted, believe it or not, by a fire at 69 W Washington that forced the proceedings to move to the county building—the AFSCME Cook County bargaining committee on the morning of June 23 reached a tentative agreement on a new union contract for our 4,000 members in Cook County government.

The bargaining committee is unanimously recommending this settlement for ratification. Details will follow soon.

The intense final day capped more than eight months of negotiations in which the union firmly resisted management’s takeaway demands—a fight that culminated June 10 when hundreds of AFSCME members took to informational picket lines at the county hospital and criminal and juvenile courts buildings (see photo), drawing media attention and making plain to management that we wouldn’t back down.

The lesson is clear: When we stand and fight together in solidarity, we can make real progress for both union members and the people we serve.