SEIU 503 members and community supporters rallied at PSU on Friday, December 1st
After hearing over and over from management that they want to reach an agreement on our new contract before Christmas, we were hopeful that our bargaining session at Portland State University would lead to significant progress. However, after management presented us with their final proposal of the session, it was clear there is a mismatch between what they are saying and what they are communicating with their proposals.
The universities continue to present us with economic offers that are much lower than the inflation we’ve seen since we ratified our last contract. (Between January 2021 and July 2023, inflation went up more than 17%!) Management’s most recent COLA offer is for 5% after we ratify our contract, 3.5% in 2025, and 1.5% in 2026. We have coworkers who can’t pay rent and others who need to visit food pantries to feed their families right now. This is why our bargaining team is asking our classified coworkers to take the next step in our campaign to win a fair contract: signing our strike pledge.
This is a pledge to vote “yes” if our bargaining team decides to ask members to vote to authorize a strike. We are asking our coworkers to sign the pledge because management needs to understand that classified workers are serious about not agreeing to a contract that doesn’t address our four priorities for these negotiations: respect for classified workers, safe and healthy workplaces, keeping our union strong, and raises that keep up with inflation.
We are making progress in other areas. Management agreed to withdraw their proposal to reduce the vacation accrual rates of long-term employees. We also had wins on sick leave and bereavement, coming to a tentative agreement on a proposal to expand the definition of family members so we can use these leaves for more types of situations. We reached a tentative agreement on several additional articles: leave without pay, safety and health, and overtime. Unfortunately, management is still not agreeing to our simple, common-sense proposals to help strengthen our union and are also continuing to propose taking away one of our personal days each year.
We continue to fight for floating holidays that can be used at the worker’s discretion and for classified workers to have both Veterans Day and Christmas Eve as holidays. See a summary of our proposals here.
Our campaign to win a great contract continues to build power and momentum. More than 150 members and community supporters gathered for our rally at PSU on Friday. We chanted, we yelled, we marched, and we signed the strike pledge. It’s critical to get as many signatures as possible on the strike pledge before our next bargaining session so management knows we are prepared to do whatever it takes to get a fair contract. Have you signed yet?
Here’s what you can do to help today:
Sign the Strike Pledge
Our top priority right now is getting as many signatures as possible before our next bargaining session. Make sure you sign and get as many coworkers as you can to join in solidarity and strength. Sign here.
Help Boost Membership
Solid membership is our greatest source of strength in bargaining. We all have at least one coworker who has not yet taken the step to join our union. Talk to your coworkers about the importance of membership and ask them to join us to help win a better contract for everyone. Here’s the link to become a member.
Purple Up Tuesday
Classified workers at Oregon’s seven public universities are wearing purple every Tuesday until we win the contract we deserve. Make sure to wear purple every Tuesday and send a photo of you and your coworkers to photos@seiu503.org.
WOU Rally
Our next bargaining session will be at Western Oregon University. We’re holding a rally on Friday, December 15, at noon to continue showing management our strength and determination. Join us if you can. If you can’t make it to Monmouth, join us via Zoom! Links will be sent before the session begins.