Union wins delay in Kane County Health Dept. cuts

More than 40 AFSCME members employed by the Kane County Department of Public Health will not be receiving layoff notices thanks to the union's efforts, which included lobbying the County Board, mobilizing support from state legislators, grabbing the attention of local media, staging an informational picket and presenting testimony from public health workers and clients.

 

The health department, understandably frustrated by the state’s failure to pay the $1.5 million owed to Kane County, sought County Board approval to terminate its contracts and layoff AFSCME members. But the coordinated efforts the union, launched when layoffs were announced, succeeded in gaining from the County Board at least a one-month delay.

 

The union was also able to help the county get a $500,000 emergency partial payment from the state.

 

The health department has announced its intention to reject $1 million in health-related grants offered by the state, and says it plans to terminate any programs not included in the core services that are required for the department to meet national public health accreditation standards.

 

That would eliminate 62 jobs and nine programs, including Family Case Management, which serves 6,000 pregnant women. Other programs being cut: WIC, Peer Breastfeeding Promotion, Teen Parent Services, Health Works, Dental Sealants, vision and hearing screenings and immunization and pandemic flu response.

 

The Family Case Management program assists 6,000 low-income pregnant women, and WIC or the Women Infants and Children nutrition program assists 1,700 women and children.

 

"This will be the straw that breaks the camel's back for many families," state Rep. Linda Chapa LaVia, D-Aurora, said during an AFSCME-organized press conference.