San Juan County and Local 1849 (American Federation of State, county and municipal employees) have settled on a collective bargaining agreement for the years 2015-2017.   Union membership overwhelmingly ratified the contract on Friday, Feb. 27, and the county council promptly followed suit by accepting the contract at its March 2 meeting.

The contract, five months in the making, provides for the continuation of existing healthcare benefits for employees and their families along with a 2 percent cost of living adjustment per year of the contract.  In addition, a handful of revisions were made to clarify the calculation of overtime, bereavement leave, grievance procedure and safety wear allowance. It was the first time the parties used an interest-based bargaining model to reach agreement.

“The agreement took longer than I think either party would have guessed back in August, but the outcome is a fair agreement that supports the county’s employees while at the same time being fiscally responsible,” said Mike Thomas, county manager. Union president Colin Maycock said, “The member’s rejection of the first tentative agreement in November made it clear that more work needed to be done to craft an equitable agreement.”