Your bargaining team met with the State on Tuesday, and this meeting was different. When we sat down at the table we were joined by the more than 1,900 SEIU 503 members who took time last week to send a message to DHS, demanding better pay, holiday pay, PTO and more. 

To everyone who supported us by taking action, thank you. We know it will make a difference. 

In other news the State gave us a counter proposal on automatic pay increases (also called a “step” system) and late pay. These are two important issues for homecare and personal support workers. We deserve to be paid more as we gain experience on the job, which is what the step system would accomplish. We also refuse to put up with any more late paychecks—a persistent problem that impacts many members of our union. 

Let’s start with the bad news. The State rejected our offer to fix the late pay system. We proposed a few common-sense solutions, such as moving paydays that fall on a holiday to before the holiday and allowing people who miss a payday get another check quickly, instead of waiting for the next payday. We’re disappointed to see the State fail to agree to either. 

We have a plan to get the State to come around on this. On Labor Day, we are launching a Facebook pressure campaign to publicly demand that the Oregon Home Care Commission pay their workers on time. If you have Facebook and you’d like to be a part of this campaign on Monday, September 6, please click here to let us know. 

The good news this week is that the State agreed with us that we need to create an automatic step system that increases wages as a worker gains experience on the job. We still have a lot of details to work out, but we are making progress on that issue. 

Visit our bargaining page to stay up to date on the latest news and events related to bargaining. 

We go back to the table next week, and knowing you have our backs makes all the difference.

In Unity, 

Homecare Bargaining Team 

SEIU 503