Higher Ed Contract Ratified!

The votes have been counted.

And we are excited to announce that Higher Ed members of SEIU 503 have overwhelmingly voted to ratify the tentative agreement (TA) reached by the Bargaining Team and management at Oregon’s seven public universities! Most members cast their ballots, and 96% voted in favor of ratifying this contract, which includes cost-of-living (COLA) increases through the end of 2025.

Now that this contract is approved by members, classified university staff will get:

• 6.5% COLA April 1, 2024
• 2% COLA November 1, 2024
• 3.5% COLA June 1, 2025
• 3% COLA November 1, 2025
• A $1500 onetime payment, prorated by FTE payment, paid out with the April 2024 paycheck (treated as wages)

This was a big win – and YOUR efforts – attending practice pickets, rallies, purpling up at work, signing strike pledges and more – helped management see that our universities work because we do. We will continue to fight to win during the next contract cycle.

We win because we have power in union; in union, we have political power.

Elections matter. The people we elect to public office oversee the state budget where pay increases come from and we need to make sure the people we elect prioritize workers.

We can and do have a say in who is elected to office this year. Members like you contributing $5 or $10 a month to CAPE, our political action program, help elect pro-worker champions. Legislators we endorsed allocated $1.1 billion to universities to fund this great contract. Join CAPE today and keep the wins coming!