Commissioners OK new three-year Children Services union contract

A year after the last union contract expired, Lorain County commissioners approved a new pact Friday with the union representing workers at Lorain County Children Services. The three-year contract is retroactive to Jan. 1 and ends March 31, 2028. Children Services workers, who investigate child abuse and neglect and are represented by United Auto Workers Local 2192, voted Monday to ratify the deal, the union said. UAW Region 2B Director David Green said in a news release that the contract "is a victory that demonstrates what workers can achieve when they stand strong at the bargaining table." Wage increases are front-loaded, with 4.5 percent retroactive to Jan. 1, another 5.5 percent starting with the first pay period this month, and a 2 percent increase in April 2027, according to the contract. Workers also negotiated an extra personal day off — five now instead of four — as well as $400 in reimbursement for any damage to their personal vehicles when used for work purposes. Support staff with 10 or more years' service also will get an additional 2 percent retention supplement, the union said. The UAW said workers negotiated wage increases to help overcome increased county healthcare premium costs. The county had offered increases of 4.5 percent, 3.5 percent, then 4 percent over the three years. What the union got was "a better deal that puts more money in workers' pockets now when they need it most," UAW said in the news release. Messages seeking comment on the new contract were left for county commissioners David Moore, Jeff Riddell and Marty Gallagher. Negotiations between the parties have been ongoing. JFS strike continues A two-month-old strike by county Job and Family Services workers also represented by UAW Local 2192 continues over wage increases, healthcare costs and staffing. The UAW said Friday that commissioners have offered "no parallel deal" to JFS workers. County officials have said an ongoing budget crisis has left them with less money to pay JFS workers' demands and that they have given the union their last, best and final offer. In other business, commissioners voted to ask the county Auditor's Office how much money would be raised by an additional 0.3-mill, five-year levy for Children Services and how much a 0.5-mill, five-year renewal levy for the county Health District would raise if both were placed on the Nov. 3 ballot. Executive Director Kristen Fox Berki said an existing levy makes up 52 percent of her agency's budget, with the rest coming from federal and state funding. She said the cost of placing at-risk children in safe homes or care rose 185 percent between 2021 and 2025. "This is not just a Lorain County issue, this is across the state, all of the public children services agencies in the state of Ohio are experiencing this hardship," she told commissioners on Friday. "We have children in our care and we want to make sure they are receiving the best care we are able to provide for them." Microtransit transfer hub County officials also announced that a new ViaLC microtransit "transfer hub" is open at the OhioMeansJobs Lorain County center at 42495 North Ridge Road in Elyria Township. ViaLC vans operate in two zones, Lorain and Elyria, and it previously wasn't possible to make trips between the two using the service alone. Now riders in one zone can book a ride to OhioMeansJobs and transfer to the other zone, Deputy County Administrator Karen Perkins said. OhioMeansJobs Lorain County center Director David Blevins said the transfer hub will help move Lorain County workers around. "Reliable and affordable transportation between Lorain County's two largest cities will remove a major barrier and help job seekers connect to opportunities more efficiently and consistently," he said in a news release. Contact Dave O'Brien at (440) 329-7129 or dobrien@chroniclet.com.