Solvang City Workers Strike Extends Into Three Weeks
By Hadleigh Bolton
On Sept. 15, over 30 Solvang city workers went on strike—the first of its kind in the city’s history—to protest the preceding month’s negotiations. After two weeks, the protesters have gained traction but no resolution.
The workers, represented by Teamsters 986, demanded a 28% pay increase over three years. Solvang City Council leaders offered a 4% increase in year one and equity adjustments that were unanimously rejected by the union. Jeff Lee, a Teamsters’ representative, told Noozhawk, “[Represented employees] are simply trying to maintain the cost of living that has kind of been eroded to them over the years, and continue to work in Solvang and raise their families in the area…”
At the Sept. 14 Solvang City Council meeting, City Manager Randy Murphy disagreed with the union’s claims and called the raises “fiscally unsustainable.” The city leaders cited a commissioned wage and compensation study by Regional Government Services (RGS), which found that union workers were being paid fairly and that the City of Solvang also had a generous benefit package. Lee has accused city management of misrepresenting the findings of the study.
The strike began just before Solvang’s annual Danish Days Festival, which draws thousands of visitors to the town each year. The city pulled off the festival with only a quarter of its usual staff.
Unionized workers used the Danish Days parade as a platform for their message. Their float called out each council member by name, and one employee’s child held a sign reading “My dad works harder than 4 percent.”
Congressman Salud Carbajal showed his support by picketing with striking workers in Solvang Park on Sept. 23. Carbajal said he was there “in search of a win-win-win,” calling on city leaders and the union to come together to reach a solution.
At the Solvang City Council meeting on Sept. 28, the council announced that it had offered to meet with the union, but that the union refused their offer. Lee countered, noting that the union did not receive a request for a meeting. However, he told KEYT he was “optimistic that this means we will get to set some dates with them.”
The strike has entered its third week with no negotiations currently underway.
