Illinois - State Employees Ratify Contract

Springfield, Illinois

Following months of tough negotiations, some 37,000 state employees represented by Council 31 won an impressive new contract in Sep-tember that raises wages by 15.25 percent over four years and maintains affordable health care coverage for workers and their families.

Employees covered by the agreement work throughout state government and include clerical workers, corrections officers, social workers and direct care workers. It was ratified in September by an overwhelming majority.

Tony Ferranto, a corrections officer at Menard Correctional Center in Chester and president of Local 1175, says negotiators “spent nine months at the table and fought a lot of concessions the state wanted to inflict upon us, such as drastic cuts in our benefits and a large increase in the cost of affordable health insurance. We were able to beat back those cuts and takeaways while providing a wage package that allows our members to prosper in these tough economic times.”