A hearing over the fight to close several Illinois correctional facilities is scheduled for Cook County Circuit Court this week.
The Quinn Administration has filed suit in Cook County seeking to vacate an arbitrator's order on which a temporary restraining order is based blocking the state from closing facilities throughout the state including Tamms, Murphysboro and Carbondale. The arbitrator directed the administration and AFSCME to continue negotiations for up to 30 days to resolve the outstanding issues—especially those related to the impact of the closures on employee health and safety throughout the corrections system. The Administration has also filed a motion in Cook County seeking an emergency stay of the arbitrator's order. If the stay is granted, then the union says the state would not be obligated to bargain and could go forward with the closures while the state's motion to vacate the arbitrator's ruling is pending before the court. AFSCME has filed counter motions. An initial hearing in Cook County Circuit Court is set for Wednesday morning.
