A rally and march was held on Tuesday in downtown Los Angeles by striking L.A. County employees.
The rally began at 9:30 a.m. outside the Hall of Administrators, which is where the Board of Supervisors usually meets.
More than 50,000 county employees kicked off the 48-hour strike Monday night over failed contract talks. Service Employees International Union Local 721, the union representing the workers, claimed that county officials are not bargaining in good faith and offered them a new contract with a zero percent cost-of-living increase.
One of the workers on strike told KNX News’ Jon Baird that enough is enough.
“When you are wasting all of our resources in time, workers being released to come and bargain, and then they come to the table and they're being told they have no authority to bargain - we're not playing this game anymore,” she said.
Another striking worker said the rally and march is about sending a message.
"The message, I believe, is that we're strong, we're united, and we believe that we need respect as far as our income and benefits," she said. "It should be a livable income."
In a statement, county officials said that they’ve made “fair and responsible counterproposals” despite the county’s financial situation.
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“We are committed to continuing constructive negotiations and to joining with labor on something we can all agree on -- which is the County's absolutely essential role in serving the people who rely on us not just for safety net services but to make their lives better,” the statement concluded.
County Supervisor Janice Hahn told Baird she supports the workers.
“These are the workers who are part of our family,” she said. “They're delivering the services that we must do. So I'm still hopeful that we'll be able to come to an agreement.”
Around midday, the group amassed near the intersection of Fifth and Figueroa streets, and about a dozen workers sat in the middle of Fifth Street in a coordinated display of civil disobedience. Fifth Street was closed from the Harbor (110) Freeway to Flower Street due to the demonstration.
Police eventually moved in and peacefully arrested the protesters one- by-one. The arrestees were quickly processed, cited and released at the scene.
By early afternoon, the group appeared to be dissipating, although thousands of people could still be seen roaming downtown streets, preventing them from reopening to traffic.
For information on services impacted by the strike, CLICK HERE.
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