Published: October 2, 2019

Our higher ed bargaining team which represents the over 4,500 classified staff at Oregon’s seven universities has come to a tentative agreement with management! This comes after months of hard fought negotiations where we moved management from a series of disrespectful offers to the best tentative agreement we have won in decades.

Management’s initial offers included:

  • Half a percent cost of living adjustments, continuing the recent history of adjustments that were far below actual increases in cost of living.
  • Step freezes and then spreading out the step schedule, so that employees would receive only a half step each year
  • A 10% increase in healthcare premium share that would cost families hundreds of dollars more a year.
  • Tripling the cost of shift meals for kitchen staff.

Together through our actions on campuses and highlighting how management was treating us compared to administrators, we stuck together and won:

  • The largest cost-of-living adjustment (COLA) in more than a decade, 3% retroactive to July 1, 2019 pending ratification and another 2.1% starting July 1, 2020.
  • No change in the healthcare premium share for workers, a significant improvement from the 10% increase originally proposed.
  • A 48-hour leave bank for workers over the 2 year contract to be used if campuses are shut down because of inclement weather. 
  • Regular steps in both years of the contract means that a worker who is not topped out will see a nearly 15% increase (Steps+COLAs) over the 2 years of the contract. Management’s initial proposal on steps was a complete freeze for the duration of the contract.
  •  All workers with 5 years of service who are “topped out” will get an ongoing 2.5% differential on 11/1/19.

Now it is time to ratify the contract! E-voting will begin on Friday, October 3rd, where emails will go out to members allowing them to vote. E-voting will close on October 14th, 5:00pm. Only members are able to vote on this contract, so now is a good time to update your membership to ensure it is current.

For people who are unable to vote electronically, ballots will go out by mail on Oct. 16th. Mail ballots will be due Friday, October 30th, by the end of the business day. Ballots will be counted the following day to ensure accuracy. We will be announcing worksite meetings shortly on every campus, which will give you the opportunity to ask questions and hear even more about the tentative agreement.

Below is the complete list of additions to the 2020-2022 Higher Ed contract, including all the details of each article and the Letters of Agreement.

Summary of the 2019-2021 CBA between SEIU Local 503 and the Oregon Public Universities

(Article not listed retain current contract language)

Article 2 – Recognition

  • Changes notice of position exclusion from personal delivery and fax to email which is the current practice

Article 4 – Term of Agreement

  • 2 Years (July 1, 2019 – June 30, 2021)

Article 10 – Union Rights

  • Improves New Employee Orientation language to allow for a 30 minute paid union orientation within 30 days of hire
  • Requires universities to notify the union of new hires within 10 days of hire
  • Clarifies that union officers and stewards may use accrued leaves for attending union meetings
  • Housekeeping changes for list exchanges (Adding associate members and monthly base pay)
  • Deletes all fairshare language

Article 16 – Personnel Records

  • Clarifies location of personnel files for member access (online or through the HR office)
  • Adds language for steward access of personnel files
  • Clarifies that supervisory files are accessible under the same terms as access to personnel files

Article 20 – Differential Pay

  • High Voltage Electrician Differential increase from 10% to 30% for all time performing the work
  • Veterinary Technician 2 Specialty Certification Differential $1.50 per hour for specialty certification holders
  • Allowing Co-Gen Engineers to receive differentials and deleting the accompanying letter of agreement 

 Article 21 – Salary

  • Retroactive raise of 3% on July 1, 2019
  • Raise of 2.1% on July 1, 2020
  • Longevity Premium of 2.5% above base salary for all employees with 5 years of university service and who have been topped out for at least 12 months starting 11/1/2019
  • Step Deletion. Delete the following steps on January 1, 2020; 
    • Salary Range 5 Steps 7 and 8
    • Salary Range 5B Steps 7 and 8
    • Salary Range 6 Steps 6 and 7
    • Salary Range 7 Steps 5 and 6
    • Salary Range 8 Steps 4 and 5
    • Salary Range 8B Step 5
    • Salary Range 9 Steps 3 and 4
    • Salary Range 10 Steps 2 and 3
    • Salary Range 11 Steps 1 and 2
    • Salary Range 12 Step 1
  • Salary Selective Adjustments. Effective November 1, 2019 the following classifications will see an increase in salary range as noted below;

Classification Class # Current Range New Range

  • Architectural Consultant 3615 27 30
  • Architectural Drafter 2 3151 18 23
  • Athletic Equipment Coordinator 0715 15B 19
  • Campus Public Safety Officers 5522 17 22
  • Construction Project Manager 1 4270 23 26
  • Construction Project Manager 2 4271 26 30
  • Electrical/Control System Technician 4248 27 30
  • Electrician 4213 26 28
  • HVAC Control Technician 4112 20B 25
  • Locksmith 4227 18B 22
  • Maintenance Electrician 4204 17T 19T
  • Plumber 4211 23B 27
  • Radiation Protection Tech 1 3450 19 24
  • Radiation Protection Tech 2 3451 24 27
  • Radiation Protection Tech 3 3452 29 30
  • Sr. Nuclear Reactor Operator 3751 24 27

 Article 22 – Salary Administration

  • Regular Step Increases through the term of agreement
  • Clarifying that promotional step increase shall be “at least” a one step increase

Article 24 – Insurance

  • Continues the current premium share of 5% or 3% for choosing a lower cost plan

Article 26 – Standby Duty/On-Call Duty

  • Deletes Article and moves to all language to Article 55

Article 27 – Travel Expenses

  • Combines Articles 27 and 29

 Article 29 – Moving Expenses

  • Combines Articles 27 and 29

Article 30 – Penalty Pay

  • Deletes Article and moves to all language to Article 55

Article 32 – Filling of Vacancies

  • Clarifies that a recall list shall be made available to union upon request
  • Clarifies that job posting shall be made available through HR and posted electronically
  • Deletes unnecessary language about disclosure of criminal records which was passed by the legislature in “Ban the Box” legislation

Article 34 – Trial Service

  • Adds Article 35 language
  • Deletes language in section 7 about “position pools” 
  • When reassigned to another position during trial service the employee would have the service time credited to the trial service for the new position

Article 35 – Transfer During Trial Service

  • Article is deleted and language is moved into Article 34

Article 36 – Limited Duration Appointment

  • Allows for project Limited Duration appointments to continue past 2 years

Article 38 – Voluntary Demotion

  • Clarifies that salary will on demotion is covered in Article 22

Article 39 – Personal Leave Days

  • Clarifies that personal leave can be taken in any increment
  • Allows for use of personal leave without prior approval if the employee is unable to obtain advance agreement

Article 40 – Sick Leave

  • Updates language to comply with statute on the definition of “family member”

Article 41 – Bereavement Leave

  • Updates language to comply with OFLA which allows for up to 14 days of protected leave

Article 43 – Leaves With Pay

  • Requires documentation of attendance for jury duty

Article 44 – Leaves of Absence Without Pay

  • Creates Educational Leave opportunity for employees with 5 years of service
  • Updates headers for each section so the article is easier to navigate

Article 45 – Pre-retirement Counseling Leave

  • Deletes age requirement to utilize the paid leave

Article 46 – Search and Rescue

  • Expands Article to include other types of participation in emergency operations
  • Increase from 5 to 10 work days

Article 48 – Layoff

  • Moves layoff language around in the article to make it easier to interpret 
  • Requires a layoff notice to include the MRC contact info
  • Allows for employee to move into a vacant classification in a lower salary range prior to bumping
  • Deletes references to cross bumping in Section 4

Article 49 – Seasonal and Intermittent Employees

  • Allows work unit to set minimum number of hours for intermittent positions

Article 54 – Position Descriptions and Performance Evaluations

  • Deletes redundant language (Section 3)
  • Moves language throughout the article to improve article’s flow 

Article 55 – Work Schedules

  • Provides definition of ‘Alternate Work Schedule’
  • Allow for an employee to request in writing the reason for a denial of a request to telecommute

Article 57 – Joint Communication/Consultation Committees

  • Updates the name of the committee to be called Joint Labor Management Committee

 Article 59 – Computer Workstations

  • Allows for employees to request an ergonomic assessment of their workstation and to receive the results

Article 60 – Special Provisions Sailing Complement (OSU)

  • Increase shore leave accrual to 2 hours
  • Allows access to paid leaves earlier for new employees
  • Incorporates the letter of agreement on Shore leave

Article 61 – Education, Training and Development

  • Clarifies that online training is one of the development opportunities
  • Requires that a supervisor written term to an employee about leave for the course prior to the employee enrolling
  • Moves part of Section 6 into Article 44

 Article 63 – Inclement Weather

  • Makes updates to the current language to move notification and pay language into separate sections
  • Creates a 48 hour paid leave bank (per biennium) for closures or delays due to inclement weather or hazardous work conditions
  • Premium pay for essential personnel who must report to work during a campus closure increases to double time-and-one half 

Article 66 – Information Technology Compensation Plan

  • Continues regular compensation increases under the IT compensation plan
  • Clarifying that promotional increase shall be “at least” a 5% increase

Article 68 – Represented Temporary Employees

  • Makes slight update to comply with Oregon Sick Leave law

Article 69 – Mutual Respect 

  • Updates the definition to specify the types of behaviors that constitute bullying or abuse

Letters of Agreement (LOA)

13 – Contracting Out

  • Outlines regulations on how management can contract out bargaining unit work
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

15 – Parking

  • Temporary parking agreements
  • Sunsets LOA

20 – Differential Pay

  • Temporarily addresses shift differential for Co-Generation Engineer classification
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

 21 – Salary

  • Recruitment and retention bonuses for certain Portland State University positions
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

24 – Insurance / Part-time Employees

  • Updates plan years and continues LOA through term of agreement

24 – Insurance / Premium Tier Ratios

  • PEBB adjustments of tier ratios
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

 25 – Overtime

  • Regarding overtime eligibility
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

52 – Change in Classification Specifications

  • Use of advisory committee on changes in classification details
  • Sunsets LOA

Drug and Alcohol Testing for OSU Ship Operations Personnel

  • Ship Operations’ staff rules for drug and alcohol testing
  • Sunset’s LOA and moves language to Article 60

Reduced Meal Cost of Food Service Employees – OSU/UO

  • Shift meals are subsidized for kitchen staff
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

PSU/DHS Child Welfare Partnership

  • Program partnership between the DHS CW department and the PSU training center
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement and increases Training Specialist Salary Range from 27 to 28

Human Resources Information System

  • HR solutions for part time employees
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

Optional Retirement Plan

  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

 Accounting Series

  • Regarding specifications for accounting classifications
  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

Criminal Background Checks Policy Implementation

  • Continues LOA through term of agreement

 Peer Mediation

  • Sunsets LOA

University of Oregon Career Track Program (Co-Generation Engineers)

  • Move the LOA into the collective bargaining agreementA and continues through term of agreement

NEW Memorandum of Understanding on Gender Neutral Language

  • Parties agree to update all language in the collective bargaining agreement to be gender neutral

NEW LOA on Article 52 – Class/Comp Review of Administrative Support Positions (OA, OS1, OS2, APA, APS, ESS, etc) as well as the Accounting Tech and Payroll Tech classifications.

  • Positions held by 1200 bargaining unit members will be reviewed by a joint committee