Arete Workers Win Big in Tentative Agreement!

WAGES AND BENEFITS

• Compensation
  • On October 1^st, 2026, a new tenth step will be added to the wage table for all job classifications.
  • January 1^st 2027, January 1^st, 2028, January 1^st, 2029 and January 1^st, 2030 all employees move up one step of the wage scale (a 3% pay increase) PLUS the every step of the wage scale for every job classification will increase by 3%, for a total of a 6% wage increase. Employees earning above the tenth step on January 1^st of each year will receive a 3% wage increase.
  • Caregivers who are promoted to Med Techs will no longer have their pay cut. Instead, the employee will be placed on the Med Tech step scale one step lower than their current caregiver step as long as it results in an increase in pay.
  • EVE differential of .25c per hour (2pm to 10pm)
  • NOC differential of .50c per hour (10:01pm to 6am)
• PTO conversion to Paid Sick Leave and Paid Vacation Leave
  • On January 1^st, 2027, the PTO program will end. Up to 40 hours of accrued PTO will be converted into Paid Sick Leave. Workers have much greater protections for Paid Sick Leave under Oregon’s Paid Sick Leave law (examples, mental health, public-safety disruptions and government ordered closures, personal safety like domestic violence incidents, bereavement leave, bonding with a new child, both biological and foster care). Employees may not be disciplined/written up for attendance for sick leave use.
  • Going forward, all workers will earn 1 hour of sick leave for 30 hours worked, up to 40 hours. Sick leave rolls over for year to year. Sick leave cannot be cashed out.
• New and improved Paid Vacation Leave
  • On January 1^st, 2027, PTO ends in exchange for an improved Paid Vacation Leave benefit.
  • After 12 months of employment, workers earn both more vacation and at a faster rate than the old PTO program. Under the old contract, workers had to wait 61 months (instead of 12 months in the new contract) to earn time off faster.
  • New Paid Vacation Leave Accrual Chart.

• Guaranteed continued access to excellent health insurance, provided by the Essential Worker Healthcare Trust.
• Won new right for bargaining teams to be released from work without loss of pay or benefits to attend bargaining sessions in the future.
• Won new clothing benefit. Each year, full-time staff will receive 4 uniform tops, part-time staff will receive 2 uniform tops. Chestnut Lane Support Service Providers will be provided business professional attire. 

UNION RIGHTS

•  Strengthened labor-management committees to address potential new technologies like Artificial Intelligence.
• Preserved the right to have one Union and one Contract across all existing ARETE facilities represented by SEIU Local 503.
• Strengthened seniority rights.
• Updated and improved immigration protections.
• New organizing rights for non-union ARETE properties were removed from the Agreement in exchange for an end to both the prohibition on Union informational picketing and disparagement of the Employer in public communications.
• Improved our Successorship protections to explicitly allow Union workers to strike if a new employer purchases an ARETE facility and tries to force employees into a new contract with reduced wages, benefits and union rights.