Engineer’s office responds to union’s strike threat

YOUNGSTOWN — The Mahoning County Engineer’s office has responded to a notice of intent to strike issued by Teamsters Local 377 which represents 44 of the engineer’s employees.

“These employees are among the highest paid regional county engineer’s offices in the state, and based on this it is important that the services delivered to the citizens of Mahoning County reflect that fact,” reads the statement sent to the media by County Engineer Pat Ginnetti.

It goes on to say a number of impediments in the current labor contract prevent the delivery of public services efficiently and effectively and stand in the way of holding employees accountable when they fail to do their jobs.

The Teamsters voted Wednesday to issue the strike notice. A potential strike could begin as soon as April 9.

The union employees perform road maintenance for the engineer’s office that includes plowing snow and filling potholes. They have been without a contract since April 2017.

The strike notice follows a decision last week by the Mahoning County Commissioners to reject a fact-finding report at Ginnetti’s advice.