Park and Rec workers strike talks pick up on Tuesday after first day failed to reach an agreement

Talks aimed at ending the Minneapolis Parks and Recreation workers strike failed to reach a contract on Monday, with negotiators deciding to come back to the bargaining table on Tuesday.

The meeting at the Minnesota Bureau of Mediation office in Bandana Square comes after the two sides exchanged proposals over the weekend.

Since negotiations first began seven months ago, members of the Laborers' International Union of North America (LIUNA) Local 363 have been asking for improvements in wages, health insurance and on-the-job safety.

Even though this is a Minneapolis issue, several dozen union members picketed Monday morning outside the historic building that once housed construction and repair shops for Northern Pacific Railway.

This is the first round of bargaining for the two sides since the workers walked off the job on July 4.

In a statement emailed to WCCO radio on Sunday, the Park Board says the counterproposal presented by striking workers was more a rejection of the so-called last and best offer made earlier this month.

In the statement, Park Board said that they asked for a substantial and meaningful proposal from the union, noting that their counteroffer costs $1 million more in 2024 than their previous proposal and costs $800,000 more overall.

The Park Board statement was released hours after the union submitted their counterproposal.

"Sounds like they reached out to the media before us, which is disappointing they want to spend time on that as opposed to the bargaining table," said the union's AJ Lange, who was participating in picketing at Lake Harriet on Sunday.

Lange said the union moved toward the park board's offer, but the board's statement suggested the sides were father apart than ever.

"More of the same from the park board, they need to get serious, let's confirm a date," he said.

The park board did say they look forward to further negotiations.

"We like things to move forward but we would really like the membership to vote on our last offer," Park Board spokesperson Robin Smothers said on Friday, when Superintendent Al Bangoura called for talks to resume.

Lange said that in itself is a step in the right direction.

"We're hopeful," he said. "The mediator is available."

Some union members have gone back to work after the park board reversed its earlier plan to ban workers until there was a contract agreement.

That action prompted the union to file an unfair labor practices complaint.