Sixteen NAPE/AFSCME union members who work for the Richardson County Roads Department have not seen a pay raise in nearly four years. The Richardson County Commissioners have refused to reach an agreement to replace the contract that expired on July 1, 2023. Despite the efforts of the County Commissioners to break our union, our members have stayed united in the fight for a fair contract.
The fight came to a head in Lincoln on March 16 & 17 with the conclusion of a trial before the Nebraska Commission of Industrial Relations (CIR). Under state law, the CIR has the authority to order wage increases based on a comparability analysis of other counties. At trial, we presented evidence from our expert witness that our members are entitled to a $6.40/hour pay raise with retroactive raises for the period of this dispute.
The County Commissioners did not show up to the trial in Lincoln. Their attorney and expert witness only presented evidence regarding wage and benefit data for 2023-2024. While the Commissioners didn’t show up, our union members did. Dozens of NAPE/AFSCME members turned out at the Nebraska State Office Building to show support for our Richardson County members.
“We want to thank everyone for supporting us. It’s been a long time to get to this point and we really appreciate it,” said Bryan Dettmann, local chapter president. Attorneys for our union and the county will submit closing briefs and arguments in late May, and the CIR expects to make a final decision in late summer.