In late 2018, workers at the Oregon Department of Geology and Mineral Industries (DOGAMI) reached out to SEIU 503 about joining our union. DOGAMI is small, employing just 36 workers when fully staffed. But we are all familiar with their work. The tsunami evacuation routes that are posted all throughout the coast? Those are created and maintained by workers at DOGAMI. In fact, DOGAMI workers monitor and report all geological hazards facing Oregon, including not just tsunamis, but also earthquakes, landslides, floods, coastal erosion and more.

However, like so many of us, workers at DOGAMI continually found themselves struggling for respect and dignity in the workplace. As highly specialized positions remain unfilled, the current small, but statewide workforce repeatedly found themselves being asked to do less with more without being provided a voice in how the work is performed. Rather than prioritizing a full staff, the workers at DOGAMI are regularly pushed into working out of class without the resources or tools necessary to complete the job.

In September of last year, staff had reached a breaking point. Recent changes at DOGAMI gave workers a need to have more say in the direction of their agency and to speak their minds without fear of retaliation. Workers contacted SEIU 503 about joining our union, and 85 percent of the workforce elected to join, gaining recognition just in time for five new DOGAMI members to attend our 2019 bargaining kick-off event on January 26. These new members of the ODOT Coalition are ready to advocate for their coworkers and the geological safety of the entire state of Oregon.