Kane, court security officers reach contract deal

GENEVA – Kane County’s courthouse security officers have approved a new contract proposal, likely averting a strike.

Friday, the security officers voted 21-7 to approve the proposed collective bargaining agreement, Kane County Sheriff Pat Perez said.

Terms of the deal were not released Monday because the proposal has not yet advanced to the full Kane County Board for consideration, Pere said.

However, he said the contract was a five-year deal, retroactive to the expiration of the officer’s last contract in 2008. The new deal is scheduled to expire in November, setting the stage for further negotiations later this year.

“I’m glad to have this done and behind us,” Perez said. “But we’ll be back at this again pretty soon.”

To date, the only Kane County Board members to see the contract proposal were the five members of the board’s Labor Management Committee.

The full County Board was scheduled to meet at 9:45 a.m. today, but it was unclear whether the agreement would be considered by the board then or would wait until the next meeting in April.

A lawyer for the Policemen’s Benevolent Labor Committee, the union representing the security officers, did not immediately return a message Monday.

The officers had voted on a proposal earlier last week, but that vote had ended in a tie.

Perez said the proposal approved Friday was the same contract proposal over which the officers had deadlocked earlier in the week.

The officers and the county government have been locked in contentious talks for years, resulting in arguments before state labor officials and in court. The officers have worked without a contract since 2008.

The union contended its members should be paid more because they earn thousands of dollars less than any other county courthouse security officers in the Chicago area. Kane’s officers earn annual wages ranging from $25,000 to $34,000.

The union’s lawyer last week said the offer that was voted on Friday would increase the officers’ base pay.