Skip to content

Commonly asked Questions around the Layoff Extension

How do I delay or rescind my request with PERS to retire? 

To delay or rescind your request to retire from the Oregon Public Service Retirement Plan (PERS), you must submit a written request to PERS before your first benefit payment is issued. This request can be made through the PERS Online Member Services (OMS) or by submitting an Information Change Request form. NOTE: It must be submitted before the first benefit payment is issued to ensure that your retirement request is processed accordingly. You can reach out to PERS at 1-888-320-7377 for questions. 

I have submitted a resignation, with my last day being July 31 (or August 14th if using leave for September Insurance). How should I rescind that resignation and will my employer accept it?  

In this instance, work with your manager to rescind your resignation if you would like. If you run into issues with your manager, reach out to HR and let us know.   

If I do resign before September 15th, will I still be on the recall list? 

No, unfortunately you must work through September 15th and receive an official layoff in order to be placed on a recall list. However, you can reapply for future vacancies if you want to return to ODOT. And, if done so within 2 years, your seniority and sick leave will be restored. 

I have requested Leave through TAMS to extend my insurance through September? 

Go to the TAMS portal and sign in using your state credentials. Look for the leave request for August, click “Withdraw” or “Cancel”, confirm cancellation and then notify your manager.   

What happens if a Transportation Package is not funded? 

If the Special Session doesn’t happen, or if lawmakers fail to pass and fund a transportation package, then the layoffs will still go forward after the pause ends and layoff dates will be September 15th. That means impacted workers would still lose their jobs, just on the new delayed timeline.  

We pushed for this delay to buy time for workers to determine their next steps on some potential life changing decisions and extend healthcare through October (without having to use leave). This also gives lawmakers a chance to step up and do the right thing. It also gives workers, along with their union, and the public, more time to ramp up pressure and fight back. 

It’s not a guarantee, but it’s a window of opportunity. That’s why we’re not backing down. We need every voice pushing for a solution, because without real funding, these layoffs will become permanent.  

If the Legislature fails to pass a package, will this mean further layoffs/cuts? 

That’s very possible. What we’re seeing now is 932 positions eliminated, including nearly 300 SEIU-represented frontline workers, this is just the first wave.  

Without new revenue, ODOT has signaled that more cuts could be on the table (that was before any discussion of a pause). The agency is already bracing for ongoing budget shortfalls, and if funding isn’t secured, additional layoffs, closures, or reductions in service could follow in the coming months or years.  

As a part of our ask to delay, we made sure the Legislature understood that if they don’t pass a transportation package, they need to help ODOT with backfilling the cost of extending the layoffs. So, while we don’t know if there will be future layoffs until there is a special session, we also made sure this delay does not make anything worse. 

That’s why this moment is so important. We’re not just fighting to stop the current layoffs, we’re fighting to prevent a long-term dismantling of Oregon’s transportation workforce and public safety infrastructure.  

If we settle the current contract with COLAs, will this further impact the budget crisis, as current service level doesn’t include these? 

No. The budget crisis at ODOT is not being caused by frontline worker wages; it’s being driven by a structural funding failure at the state level, mainly a collapse in gas tax revenues and lack of modernized, sustainable funding sources.  

While COLAs aren’t built into the current service level budget, they are a normal part of bargaining and have been in every contract cycle. Agencies are expected to work with the Legislature to adjust budgets accordingly. Cutting COLAs won’t fix the funding shortfall, it would just push the crisis onto the backs of workers, who are already being asked to do more with less. We will not accept the idea that frontline workers should bear the brunt of budget problems they didn’t create. Our wages are not the problem, underinvestment is.  

If the Layoffs do occur on September 15th, will we still be able to use our Leave in the subsequent month to extend our insurance? 

No. In order to qualify for health insurance coverage in a given month, you must work (or use paid leave) for at least 80 hours within that month. 

With the layoff date pushed to September 15, you’ll have already met the 80-hour threshold through your regular work schedule to qualify for October insurance automatically, without needing to use any additional leave. 

If layoffs occur September 15th, when will the first day be in a new position if we are bumping? 

September 16th will be the first day in the new position if you are bumping into a different position than your current position. 

What should I do if I’ve been planning to be laid off on July 31, and have been using my sick leave to burn through it? 

The date on my official layoff is July 31st, will I get an updated notice? 

HR is working to determine if amending the notices is necessary, or if the email notification that the layoff dates have been extended to September 15th is sufficient, given that anyone that is laid off will be receiving a final confirmation letter of layoff for their records with the September 15th date on it. 

Should I still attend the Rapid Response Sessions and other information sessions around the layoffs given the extension?  

Yes, we can’t guarantee the Legislature will pass a funding package, while we do hope they will and will continue to push for this. It is always best to be as prepared as possible, and now you will have more time for that preparation. 

What happens if a Transportation Funding Package is passed?  

Layoff notices will be revoked and back to business as usual, as much as possible. 

What if the package is not sufficient or only funds certain or partial # of positions? 

If the package isn’t sufficient or only covers some positions, layoffs could still happen. That’s why we’re doing everything possible to make sure lawmakers understand this isn’t about belt-tightening  current funds, it’s about securing new, sustainable funding. The gas tax is outdated and no longer meets Oregon’s needs. With your help, we’re pushing the Legislature to act now to fully fund transportation and prevent these and future cuts. 

What can I do to help push for funding and a special session? 

You have more power than you think. The only way we stop these layoffs and prevent deeper cuts is by pressuring the people who can fix this: Oregon’s lawmakers.  

They need to do two things:  

If they don’t, these layoffs will happen in September, and even more cuts could follow.  

Lawmakers need to hear from the people actually doing the work: the ones plowing roads, responding to emergencies, and keeping Oregon moving.  

Here’s what you can do right now:  

This is your job, your community, and your future on the line. Lawmakers need to feel the pressure, and it starts with you. 

Now that we know there are issues with the current Layoff language, will there be any changes in the Collective Bargaining Agreement? 

We are currently bargaining a Letter of Agreement that forms a committee of labor and management to look at the current language, determine what isn’t working, and what should be changed to improve this language.  

home_url(): https://seiu503.org
site_url(): https://seiu503.org
network_home_url(): https://seiu503.org
Privacy
Purple Store