After working without a contract for eight months, union members who work for Armstrong County Children, Youth and Family services and the county Assessor’s Office reached an agreement with the county that increases the starting wage to $20 an hour.
That was a main sticking point during negotiations between the county and employees represented by the Service Employees International Union.
The workers’ new contract also includes an immediate wage increase of $3.25 an hour for all workers, with an additional 6.5% increase over the next three years starting July 1.
The four-year contract is retroactive to last July, when the last contract expired.
Negotiations focused on the workers’ salaries, which had a starting rate of $16 an hour for county caseworkers.
The Union staged a one-day strike Jan. 31 after the union’s negotiation team said wages were not keeping up with the demand of their jobs, and were no longer competitive enough to attract new hires.
“We never wanted to go on strike and the purpose of it being a one-day strike was to show how serious workers took (their demands),” said Steve Cantanese, president of SEIU Local 668. “We hoped it would help us reach a deal the workers would be happy with and that met their goals, and thankfully we were able to go back to bargaining.”
Cantanese said the department has been unable to fill 30% of caseworkers’ positions since 2023. There are 12 caseworkers currently employed at the agency.
About a week after the strike, commissioners and union negotiators had another bargaining session, said county Commissioner Pat Fabian.
Commissioners ratified the contract during their Feb. 20 meeting.
“Nobody’s rich after this contract agreement,” Cantonese said. “But that type of raise means a lot for those workers.”
Cantonese said that while the new rate might not be the top rate among the 24 Sixth Class counties, Armstrong is no longer offering the lowest starting rate. He believes it will help fill empty positions.
“This has been a long fight, and we are very proud of what we’ve accomplished with this contract. When we went on strike last month, the community support and the solidarity from fellow workers inspired us with the energy we needed,” Brianna Bailey, caseworker and negotiating team member, said in a statement. “We sent a message to the County Commissioners and demanded that we were worth more, and we won.”
The contract expires June 30, 2028.
Fabian said commissioners are hoping the higher starting wage will help fill vacant positions.
“The contract, which I said at our public meeting, was fair to our hardworking CYS workers, but it was also fair to our taxpayers,” Fabian said.