Mitchell Kaminski
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
After months of wage negotiations, the city of Columbia has reached a deal with local union LiUNA 955 to implement new pay adjustments. However, the union says it still has concerns about the agreement.
The deal includes a 3.5% raise for the roughly 300 city workers LiUNA represents. All eligible members will receive a 2% increase at the start of the 2026 fiscal year, followed by an additional 1.5% increase on Jan. 18, 2026. The agreement was authorized by the city during Tuesday night’s city council meeting.
LiUNA 955 union representative, Andrew Hutchinson, says that members voted to ratify the deal by a “massive margin.” However, they still have several concerns that were not addressed.
“I think there are still some significant concerns about a significant amount of our members making under $19 an hour, under a living wage,” Hutchinson said. “We’re hopeful that we can get that addressed later this year or next year. But for where we are right now, this is a step in the right direction.”
Negotiations began back in April. Hutchinson claims that the city entered the first of six bargaining sessions offering a 0% cost-of-living adjustment. In July, union members later criticized the city for responding with a 1% cost-of-living adjustment, citing low pay and the city’s heavy reliance on outsourcing.
“We as Missourians in our Constitution have the right to collective bargaining, and when one side of the table says zero and you have six negotiation sessions, and they continue to say zero, it’s a lot of wasted time for both sides,” Hutchinson told ABC 17 News. “It’s upsetting that we had to sit and waste taxpayers’ time, waste our union members’ dues and time on getting to where we should have been from the beginning, a 3.5% percent raise.”
The two sides also had discussions about trying to reduce the level of outsourcing. According to city records, Columbia spent a combined $8 million on outsourced fleet maintenance during the last two fiscal years.
Hutchinson also pointed to the city’s temporary labor contracts, over $1.25 million combined for 22nd Century Technologies Inc. and PeopleReady Inc. during 2023 and 2024, as evidence of misplaced priorities.
“When the city says ‘we don’t have money for raises’, I think the big argument that we were making was when we don’t get work done, when our members don’t get work done because we don’t have enough staff to do it, that work doesn’t go away, it still has to get done,” Hutchinson said. “What ends up happening is that we have outsourced, and it’s a low estimate, but we think conservatively we’re spending about $5 million a year on outsourced work, and that’s removing all the capital improvement projects, even the small ones that we think we could handle.”
Columbia City Manager De’Carlon Seewood previously defended the city’s use of outsourcing, citing both cost efficiency and the challenge of maintaining services with current staffing levels. He also emphasized that outsourcing has not been used to cut city jobs.
Under the new agreement, no additional steps were added, meaning that employees who have topped out on pay will not get full raises this year. Under a step-rate compensation structure, pay raises are associated with each position and increase incrementally over time.
“It is a concern. I mean, we’re not happy about it, but that’s where we ended up,” Hutchinson said. “The city was trying to scrimp and save, and again, you know, when you start from 0%, we know that we didn’t get everything that we wanted, but we went up until we knew that our raises would be delayed after the fiscal year.”
ABC 17 News reached out to the city of Columbia for comment.
Other Updates From City Council
Columbia Council Passes Utility Fee Increases
The Columbia City Council approved a 2% utility rate increase, a move that will affect both energy and demand charges for customers. City officials estimate the adjustment will generate an additional $300,000 in revenue.
Parking Fees Under Review
The council also revisited the issue of downtown parking fees, which have seen little change since 2013. The only adjustment in the past decade came in 2015, when rates increased by just $0.10.
Currently, downtown drivers pay $0.60 per hour plus a $0.55 transaction fee. On the University of Missouri campus, the rate is $1.00 per hour with the same $0.55 fee. Some city staff expressed concern that the added charge may be pushing more students to park downtown instead of on campus.
To address the issue, the city is proposing to set both downtown and campus parking at $1.00 per hour with no additional fees. While campus rates would remain unchanged aside from dropping the $0.55 surcharge, downtown parking would see a clear increase.
Nickie Davis, executive director of The District Downtown, urged the council to postpone the decision, explaining that her board had not been informed of the proposal and wanted time to consult with other community leaders. The council unanimously agreed to table the vote until its Sept. 15 meeting.
The delay raises questions for city budget planners, as projected revenue from the parking changes is already factored into the proposed budget.
Looking ahead, officials are also weighing a shift away from traditional parking meters. Under consideration is a system of block-based kiosks for cash payments, paired with expanded reliance on the ParkMobile app, which requires less maintenance than individual meters.
Bus Fares Suspended For Sixth Straight Year
GoCOMO bus riders will be token-free for another year after the Columbia City Council approved another year of suspended bus fares at Tuesday’s City Council meeting.
GoComo Transit has operated fare-free since 2020.
Transportation operation costs that were adopted for fiscal year 2025 were over $7.8 million in the City of Columbia’s budget. Both the council memo and the city’s Public Works Public Information Specialist, John Ogan, report that the city is able to manage expenses through federal and state grants, sales tax funds, and other sources like the University of Missouri.
However, Columbia is planning on adding fares as soon as next year.
The city wants to make new fare boxes so it can reinstate fares in 2027. City staff estimated that installing the fare boxes will cost $250,000.
New Ordinance for long-term parking at Columbia Regional Airport
The city council also passed an ordinance that would require travelers who plan to leave their vehicles at the Columbia Regional Airport for 30 days or more to complete a form before traveling.
The form would include the vehicle’s make and model, where it will be parked, and the expected time the traveler plans to be gone.
Airport officials say this will help them monitor long-term parking and ensure vehicles parked at the COU airport are associated with travelers and travelers only.
The parking lot at COU holds 1,100 parking spaces and is free for travelers.
United Airlines is joining COU with three additional flights, after a four-year hiatus. The airline will offer two flights to Chicago and one flight to Denver. The first flight will take off on Sept. 25.
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