Dear Local 88 Members,
We made meaningful progress in bargaining on Wednesday, 10/25, and tentatively agreed to contract language changes improving job security and addressing equity issues in the work place! At the end of this update is a brief description of those changes.
There is More Work to be Done:
While we are pleased that we made progress on 10/25, there is more work that needs to be done before we can reach a Tentative Agreement on a new contract. Specifically we need:
1.) COLA retro to July 1 that addresses the rising costs of rent and housing in Multnomah County as well as premium compensation for essential employees and acknowledgement of employees working in a jail side setting.
2.) The County to back away from its health insurance proposal that would put more costs on workers.
3.) Movement from management on our equity proposal for fairness and transparency in the hiring and promotion process. We are very concerned about how the current hiring process impacts all of our members, especially our members who are People of Color.
4.) A better process regarding alternative work schedule and telework agreements that will make these more achievable for our members.
What YOU can do to Help Us Win a Fair and Equitable Contract:
Our union will be holding a week of action to demand progress on our contract beginning Wednesday, November 1, and continuing through our bargaining session the following week. We will have centrally located actions at the Lincoln Building on 11/1, Multnomah East County on 11/3, and the Multnomah Building on Hawthorne on 11/7 – all actions start at Noon. To view a list of actions, times, and locations, please visit this link. If you’d like to plan an action at your workplace, please get together with other members at your site, utilize the resources on Local 88’s website, plan it out, and post the details here. Staff can help provide signs and materials and coordinate with the bargaining team to arrange for a bargaining update.
We’ve been bargaining for months, and it’s time to send a clear message that we’re ready for a fair and equitable contract!
Remember to wear green every Wednesday and sign our support Petition.
Summary of tentative agreed changes from 10/25/2017
Article 7 – Holidays: Workers on a 4-9-4 schedule will receive 9 hours of holiday pay rather than 8. Additionally, you’ll be able to carry over one saved holiday to the next fiscal year rather than having to forfeit the time.
Article 19 – Contracting: We have memorialized ORS 279B.030 to 279B.040 into our contract which requires for a procurement for services over $250,000 that the County conduct a feasibility study before contracting out and that cost savings achieved by contracting out should not come from paying non-County employees lower wages and benefits.
Article 21 – Seniority and Layoff: We have eliminated a provision that allows non-bargaining unit employees (management and workers in other unions) from being able to bump a current Local 88 member out of a job during a layoff. Additionally the County must have a KSA on a position by March 1 for layoffs effective at the end of the fiscal year if they intend to require a bumping employee to meet special knowledge, skills and abilities for that position. There are limited circumstances that a KSA can be implemented after March 1.
Article 24 – General Provisions:
Micro-aggressions – We have reached a major accomplishment: Local 88 members should not be subject to micro-aggressions at work and we have built the foundation for addressing with complaints from members about these problems.
Members exposed to bed bugs at work – if a worker is exposed to bed bugs at work the County will reimburse up to $500 for the cost of eradication and up to 3 paid leave days to deal with the issue.
Additionally the County has begun to move toward us in adopting a broader definition of family for the purposes of Sick Leave and Bereavement Leave, which is major part of our campaign for equity during these contract negotiations. A description of our current position on all open contract articles compared to the county’s position as well as a brief description on the tentatively agreed to language changes listed above is available on the Local 88 web site or you get that information by clicking on this link: union/county side by side.
In Unity,
The Local 88 Bargaining Team