Member action wins big wage increases at DMH, DDS, and DVA

Ratification meetings to be announced

The Local 1000 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Teams for Units 4, 17 and 20 have jointly bargained Tentative Agreements that address wage parity for Plata and Perez-classified employees in DMH, DVA and DDS.  The agreement was reached Thursday night, December 19, after four days of intense negotiations.

The Tentative Agreements are worth approximately $40 million. It brings our salary ranges within the affected classifications to 10% below CDCR equivalent classifications effective January 1 2008, and to 5 percent below CDCR effective January 1 2009. The only employees in the affected classifications who will not get a raise are those whose wages are already within 5 percent of their CDCR equivalents, or those who receive pay differentials that bring their pay above the new ranges for the affected classes.

We won this agreement because of the strength of the members. Beginning in the spring of 2007, hundreds of members in all institutions filled out petitions demonstrating their claim to parity. We held scores of informational picket lines and rallies. Delegations of members met with their managers, with their legislators, and with the highest departmental officials. We won good media coverage. We stuck together in bargaining. Without all these actions, DPA would never have abandoned their unacceptable demand to set our wages at 18 percent below CDCR.

“Now we need to keep pushing,” said Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining Yvonne Walker, who headed the negotiating teams. “We need to ratify the tentative agreements. We need to push them through the Legislature and across the governor’s desk. Then we need to get ready for our 2008 contract campaign to win a new three-year contract that protects our health care and retirement benefits, and win improvements in other areas.”

SUMMARY OF THE TENTATIVE AGREEMENT

1. The affected Plata and Perez Classifications in Department of Mental Health, Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Department of Developmental Services are:

• Bargaining Unit 4: Health Records Tech 1 and Health Records Tech 2.
  
  
• Bargaining Unit 17: Registered Nurse, Registered Nurse (Safety), Surgical Nurse, Surgical Nurse 2, Nurse Instructor, Nurse Consultant 1, Nurse Consultant 2, Nurse Consultant 3,  Nurse-Practitioner, Nurse Practitioner (Safety), Health Services Specialist, Health Services Specialist (Safety), Public Health Nurse, Public Health Nurse 1, Public Health Nurse 2, Nurse Anesthetist.
  
  
• Bargaining Unit 20: Licensed Vocational Nurse, Licensed Vocational Nurse (Safety), Licensed Vocational Nurse (DM H, DDS) Rad Tech, Rad Tech (Safety), Senior Rad Tech, Senior Rad Tech (Safety), Pharmacy Tech, Pharmacy Tech (DDS, DMH).
  
  
• Bargaining Unit 20: (Perez Classifications): Dental Assistant, Dental Hygienist.
  

2. Wage Increases:

• January 1: 2008: The salary range for affected classifications will be adjusted to 10 percent below the wages of equivalent classifications at CDCR on January 1, 2008. There will be no changes for those whose total gross wages are already 10 percent or less below their CDCR equivalents. No employee’s wages will be cut.
  
  
• January 1, 2009:  The salary range for all affected classifications will be adjusted to 5 percent below equivalent classifications at CDCR on January 1, 2009. There will be no changes for those whose total gross wages are already 5 percent or less below their CDCR equivalents. No employee’s wages will be cut.
  
  
• All recruitment and retention and geographical pay differentials will be folded into the salary range. 
  
  
• There will no be no further increases if CDCR wages are increased by the federal Receiver during the duration of this agreement, or if CDCR wages are increased during the course of negotiations for a new contract between SEIU Local 1000 and the state. The Plata classifications already within 5 percent of CDCR salary ranges will not be covered by this exemption. These classifications are Medical Transcribers, Certified Nursing Assistants, Clinical Lab Techs and Senior Clinical Lab Techs. Wage increases for these classifications will be on the table during 2008 negotiations.
  
  
• Members in Plata classifications not currently at their maximum step will keep their yearly merit salary increase anniversary date. Members of Perez classifications will have a new anniversary date of January.
  

3. Duration

• January 1, 2008-June 30, 2010.  Neither general wage increases negotiated by Local 1000 during the term of this agreement, nor increases ordered by the federal Receiver at CDCR which take effect during this period will apply to classifications receiving increases under this Tentative Agreement.

4.  Ratification.

• Each tentative agreement is subject to a ratification vote by the affected members.
  
• Ratification votes will be held at your facility in the first few weeks of January. Dates will be announced shortly by e-mail and by fliers at each facility.
  
• You will receive copies of the tentative agreement early in January.
  
• Members will be released on state time to attend ratification meetings and cast their votes. 
• Only SEIU Local 1000 members can vote. If you are not a member at this time, you have the opportunity to join up until the day of the vote. 
• The Unit 4, 17 and 30 Bargaining Teams unanimously recommend ratification of the Tentative Agreement.
  

KEEP THE PRESSURE ON!

With a projected state budget deficit of $14 billion, passage of this agreement will require intense lobbying of legislators in their home districts and in Sacramento, as well as the governor.

Without this follow-through, the Tentative Agreement will be in jeopardy. Please sign up as a Local 1000 lobbyist at your ratification meeting.