Chicago, Illinois: Parking Workers End Four Day Strike With New Five Year Contract

Nearly 1,200 union parking workers across Chicagoland agreed to a new five year contract on Saturday, November 7, ending a four day strike one day before the Chicago Bears host the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Soldier Field.

The workers are members of Teamsters Local 727. They launched the strike on Tuesday after voting down a contract offer from the Chicago Parking Association, a group that represents 15 commercial parking operators in the region, according to the union.

What the strike covered

The walkout threatened parking at commercial garages and surface lots across the region, at airports, hospitals, hotels and downtown businesses. The workers staff the garages and lots that drivers use every day across Chicago and its suburbs, and the strike put that service at risk through the working week.

Negotiations ran from Thursday into Friday evening, the union said. By Saturday, the two sides had a deal.

"Despite claiming into the afternoon that the parking operators had no more movement, management eventually came to the table and bargained in good faith for a fair and equitable agreement for their 1,200 hardworking Teamsters," the union said in a statement.

Soldier Field was next

The timing mattered on the lakefront. The union said it was prepared and ready to extend the strike lines to Soldier Field, where SP+ Metropolis operates the parking garage. The Bears host Tampa Bay on Sunday, November 8, and a strike line at the stadium garage would have met fans on game day. The Saturday agreement cleared that risk away before kickoff.

What is in the deal

According to the union, the new contract offers workers wage and benefit increases, along with new job protections. The full terms of the contract were not immediately available to the public, FOX 32 reported.

The Chicago Parking Association speaks for the operators on the other side of the table. Its 15 member companies run many of the garages and lots the strikers staff, so a single contract covers a large share of the region's commercial parking in one step. That is why one agreement on Saturday settles parking from the airport lots to the downtown garages at the same time, rather than site by site.

For drivers, the result is simple. Garages and lots that faced picket lines this week go back to normal staffing, and parking for Sunday's game at Soldier Field runs on its usual plan. This article will be updated in place if the union or the operators publish the contract terms.