Minneapolis park workers announce strike beginning July 4

Park workers in Minneapolis have announced plans for a week-long strike as negotiations on a new contract have not significantly shifted since 94% of its union members voted to authorize industrial action on June 18.

LIUNA Local 363, which represents more than 200 full-time and seasonal Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board (MPRB) employees, announced on July 2 that their strike begins on July 4, a date with significant implications for the city and its parks.

"Despite our best efforts to negotiate in good faith, the Park Board has failed to offer a fair deal addressing worker safety, competitive wages, and affordable healthcare," AJ Lange, Business Manager of LIUNA Local 363, said on Tuesday. "Our members, who take immense pride in maintaining the nation's top-ranked park system , are forced to withdraw their labor to fight for fair treatment."

The timing is significant, and the union acknowledged that their strike could impact Fourth of July celebrations in Minneapolis. "This decision wasn't made lightly," Lange said. "We understand the inconvenience to the community, but we cannot accept unfair treatment that undermines the dignity of our work and the quality of our parks.”

A representative for the Minneapolis Park and Recreation Board tells Bring Me The News that it can't know what impacts the strike will have on Minneapolis residents until it sees how many "workers are walking off the job."

However, they added that the strike will not have an effect on Minneapolis' July 4 fireworks celebration.

The union says workers are fighting for safety protections, more affordable health insurance, and a streamlined grievance process. It is also looking for more competitive wages, asserting that park worker pay in Minneapolis hasn't kept up with inflation and is lower than what is paid for similar jobs at suburban parks.

Lange added at a Tuesday news conference that the union has agreed to eight of 10 proposals from the MPRB, but the board has not agreed to any of the union's proposals.

However, the MPRB pushed back against the way the union characterized negotiations and pay compared to surrounding communities. "After more than seven months of good faith negotiations, including 15 hours of negotiations on Monday, July 1, the [MPRB] extended a last, best, and final offer to Local 363 leadership that is competitive, fair, and equitable," it wrote. "The MPRB has asked Local 363 leadership to submit this offer to a vote by Local 363 membership."

The MPRB says that its final offer on Monday included a 10.25% wage increase over a three-year period, as well as two market adjustments for 13 positions.

The MPRB says that it has "plans to prioritize and adjust maintenance services to minimize impacts to park visitors" depending on how many members of the union participate in the work stoppage.

As park workers were voting to authorize a strike in June, workers at nine wastewater treatment plants around the Twin Cities voted to authorize a work stoppage as well. Those workers have not yet announced plans to strike.