Children services workers get raise

WARREN -- The 38 unionized workers at Trumbull County Children Services will get a 50-cent per hour raise this year under a contract approved Wednesday by the county commissioners.
The same raise has also been given to the roughly 130 nonunion workers at the agency, primarily caseworkers, said director Robert Kubiak.
The labor agreement, covering clerical and maintenance workers, account clerks and transportation aides in Teamsters Local 377, calls for a new wage table to go into effect the second year of the three-year contract.
Wage range: The pay table allows for median wages ranging from $9.33 per hour for a custodian to $12.84 for a computer operator.
The agreement also introduces new systems for longevity pay and bereavement leave and calls for workers to begin paying a portion of their health-care premiums in 2004.
The union membership approved the contract last week. They have been working without a contract since Dec. 31.
Nonunion workers will also be put onto a new wage scale next year, Kubiak said. Effective in January, the annual base pay for caseworkers will range from $26,500 to $39,800.