Funeral directors and drivers from the largest funeral home group in the country decided to go on strike Monday night.
Nearly 60 employees belonging to Teamsters Local 727 will hit the picket lines after failing to reach an agreement with Houston-based Service Corporation International, the company that operates Dignity Memorial funeral homes.
According to a news release from the union, SCI is seeking to eliminate the employees' pension, health and educational assistance benefits, instead offering a 6 percent increase in wages in the first year of a two-year contract, and a 3 percent increase in the second.
Union officials say their last rejected proposal included 3 percent wages increases in each year of the proposed 5-year contract, and the retention of employee benefits.
There are 10 Dignity Memorial funeral homes in the Chicago area.
SCI issued a news release Tuesday saying it hoped the situation would be "resolved soon," saying they offered a "fair contract with a generous wage increase."
SCI also says it's seeking to replace the current pension plan with an employer-matched 401K plan, because of a "history of serious underfunding" with the Teamster Pension Plan.
In terms of healthcare benefits, the company says it's asking the employees to contribute to their own healthcare, which they haven't done at this point, according to the news release.
