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Oct. 15, 2005
By JOHN CHARLES ROBBINS
Staff writer
The 98 unionized employees of the Ottawa County Road Commission have been working without a new contract for a year
and a half and they are not happy.
About 40 of the disgruntled workers brought their frustrations directly to the three-member road commission Thursday
at the agency's headquarters in Grand Haven Township.
Many of the truck drivers and mechanics addressed the road commission. A few brought their wives and children to the
meeting.
"When you think about me, you think about them, too," one man told the commission.
The uncommon gathering was the result of a letter from the union leader to the road commission, asking the three commissioners
to meet with employees at the North Holland garage on Ransom Street.
Commissioners said they didn't want it to appear it was favoring employees of one garage over another, so they adjusted
their usual meeting time from morning to afternoon and invited the employees to attend at 4 p.m. Thursday.
The nearly 100 employees are represented by Local 1063 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.
The last contract, a four-year pact, expired April 26, 2004. The two sides started the negotiating process in February
2004.
A state mediator entered the prolonged contract talks, and this summer a fact-finder was appointed to help resolve
the situation.
It appears the two major issues that remain unresolved involve wages and health insurance.
"A lot of us are getting part-time jobs now. I have no choice, unless I want to live in a tent at the state park,"
said Roger Olthof, a light equipment operator with the commission, and president of Local 1063.
There are no incentives to do a good job, he said, "and it doesn't seem like anybody cares."
Olthof continued, "A year and a half to settle a stinkin' agreement? Why?"
He characterized the contract talks as unfair, and was critical of what he called the take-it-or-leave-it approach
taken by the road commission's negotiating team.
The three commissioners David Vander Kooi, Larry Bruursema and Russ V. Brown Jr. were reluctant to respond to specific
questions and comments from the workers. They took notes and promised they would respond in writing
To engage in an open dialogue or debate wouldn't be productive, and would only amount to hard feelings, said Bruursema.
"Don't think we don't appreciate you people we do," Bruursema said to the crowded room.
Employee Trent Ter Haar picked up on that comment.
"You said you appreciate us. I've been here seven years and that's the first time I've ever heard that,"
Ter Haar said.
Scott Goddard, a nine-year employee of the road commission, works out of the North Holland garage. He's upset about
the money being spent to build a new salt storage facility there, while the commission continues to "penny pinch"
over health insurance.
Seeing the $600,000 salt storage building going up every day is getting to Goddard.
"Every day I come in it eats at me. Why are we spending that?" he said.
Pressured for when they would respond to the workers, chairman Vander Kooi said it would be a couple of weeks.
"Our next meeting is Oct. 27 ... we'll work to get it out before that," said Vander Kooi.
Contact John Charles Robbins at (616) 546-4269 or john.robbins@hollandsentinel.com.
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