Orange County waste and public works employees ratified a new two-year contract this weekend, ending a nearly month-long strike.
Members voted on the new deal from the county Saturday, with 94% of the membership approving the contract, according to Eric Jimenez, principal officer of Teamsters Local 952.
“They decided to stand up to this county and ask for a contract that would take care of themselves and their families. We are pleased to announce today that the (workers) took on Goliath, and came out victorious,” Jimenez said Sunday.
On Thursday, the union and county came together in state mediation, leading to a special meeting of the Orange County Board of Supervisors on Friday.
More than 450 workers began the strike on Oct. 13. At one point, county and union officials got into a back-and-forth over the Teamsters’ picketing tactics. The county filed a complaint with the Public Employment Relations Board alleging the picketers were breaking the law with “human chains” and blocking traffic while also falsely telling customers the landfills were closed.
Teamsters officials countered that the allegations were untrue and accused county officials of violating labor law themselves.
Workers are scheduled to go back to work on Monday.