The union representing more than 1,400 service workers across the University of Minnesota’s five campuses is considering the employer's last, best and final offer, which it presented earlier this week.
The IBT constitution requires Local 320 to conduct a secret ballot vote because it is a Final Offer, the union said in a statement on Facebook. Members will vote in person and via mail depending on which campus they work at.
"Regardless of our movement, it wasn’t until the last hours that the university made any substantive changes in their proposal. While your negotiating committee was able to address many of your priorities, over all the final offer falls short of our goals," the union said. "To be clear, this Final Offer does not meet the negotiation committee’s standards. The negotiating committee has voted unanimously to recommend a ‘No’ vote on this Last, Best and Final Offer."
The union had filed an intent to strike earlier this month as negotiations stalled over wages and health care costs. The strike could have begun as early as Aug. 20, when students returned to campuses, including the University of Minnesota-Duluth, for the fall semester.
The union represents cooks, groundskeepers, truck drivers, custodians and other unionized service workers at the five campuses.
Check back for updates on this ongoing story.
