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Trumbull County Children’s Services reaches tentative labor agreement with CWA; pension and wage changes included
Summary
County children’s services staff and the Communication Workers of America reached a tentative agreement that changes pension contributions, adjusts wages with three annual 3.5% increases and makes other clarifications; the board was asked to approve the agreement at a future meeting.
Trumbull County Children's Services officials told the Board of Commissioners they have negotiated a tentative collective-bargaining agreement with the Communication Workers of America (CWA) that county staff described as largely language clarifications with key financial changes.
Rebecca Smerali, director of fiscal and planning at Trumbull County Children's Services, summarized changes including clarification of job-posting and grievance language, mutual selection of arbitration panels, and an update to vacation and personal-day language to align this bargaining unit with county policy. She said the larger substantive changes were in wages, longevity and pension contributions.
Under the tentative agreement the agency will adjust pay steps for six employees who were not on the correct step and will implement a 3.5% wage increase in each year of the agreement (2025, 2026 and 2027), plus a one-time lump-sum payment for employees in specified steps. Smerali said the contract modifies pension contributions: previously the county had paid 9% of the employees' 10% PRS (public retirement system) contribution; the tentative agreement requires employees to pay the full employee share (10%), while the agency continues to pay the 14% employer share.
Smerali asked the commissioners to place the tentative agreement on the next meeting agenda for formal approval. County officials present stressed that Children's Services operates under its own board and funds; the changes would not be paid from the county general fund, the presenter said.
No formal approval was taken at the meeting. County staff said they will bring the formal agreement back to the commissioners for approval at a subsequent board meeting and that the contract would run through Feb. 28, 2028 if ratified.
