Bargaining Unit Updates
2023

Post April 13, 2023

— Master Table Updates —

Highlights From Master Table Bargaining. Wins from the master table: Pay raises, Hundreds of Special Salary Adjustments, Improved Health and Retirement Costs.

Early Saturday morning, the SEIU Local 1000 bargaining team reached an overall Tentative Agreement with the State. If ratified, the contract would significantly raise the wage floor for tens of thousands of state workers. It represents the largest three-year contract in Local 1000 history.

“This agreement reflects our best efforts to respond to the priorities our members identified in town halls and bargaining surveys,” said Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining. “In many ways, we’ve been able to achieve the respect, the protection, and the pay that we’ve been fighting for.”

Over the past four months, our team bargained at the master table on issues that impact all our represented employees. Our nine bargaining units also negotiated with the State at separate tables, focused on unit-specific issues.

This email summary shares highlights from the master table; we’ll also be emailing unit-specific recaps. During the ratification process, you’ll be able to read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

Here are some key contract provisions we achieved for our members:

Our new agreement impacts our represented employees in a number of ways: We negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, maintained the healthcare stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor into our state income. Our general salary increase, our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.

Our general salary increase is 10%.
All represented employees would receive a 3% pay raise, retroactive to July 1, 2023, on top of any other special salary adjustments (SSAs). An additional 3% increase will occur on July 1, 2024. And on July 1, 2025, all Local 1000 employees will receive a 4% increase as long as the Department of Finance determines they can fund the entire amount. Otherwise, it may be adjusted downward by 1%.

A 4% wage equity adjustment provides fair wages for low-wage workers.
More than 150 of our lowest-paid classifications will receive an immediate 4% salary adjustment on top of the general salary increase. The increase is retroactive to July 1, 2023, and is pensionable. Any classification with a starting wage of $20/hour or less is eligible. This new agreement ensures those working in those jobs stay ahead of the prevailing minimum wage. You may view a list of the eligible classifications for the Wage Equity Adjustment here. To read the entire list of the affected classifications, click here.

Special Salary Adjustments of 5% or more for 170 additional classifications.
These increases are on top of the general salary increases and affect each step of the salary range, not just the top step. SSAs are retroactive to July 1, 2023, and are pensionable. To view the unit-specific lists of eligible classifications for the Special Salary Adjustments, click here.

We won a 0.5% reduction of our pre-retirement (OPEB) contribution.
Now at 3%, reduced from 3.5%. This reduction mitigates the 0.5% increase in pension contributions that took effect on July 1, 2023. Prefunding of Post-Retirement Health Benefits (9.24) also includes new language that ensures future increases (or decreases) in OPEB are based on actuarially-determined costs.

The Supplemental Health Benefits Contribution maintains our health care stipend.
Primary enrollees in a CalPERS health care plan shall receive an extra $165 on top of the regular employer premium contribution as determined through the 80/80 health care formula. This direct payment will be added to the state’s monthly contribution to pay for our workers’ health plan. This maintains the effective monthly net benefit of the original $260 health care stipend ($165 after taxes) and offsets employees’ monthly health care costs directly by providing a supplement to the employer contribution. The benefit would take effect in December 2023, and importantly, has no expiration date.

The Health Care Facility Retention Payment will be paid at three levels to eligible employees who worked onsite or provided in-person services more than 50% of the time during the pandemic. $1450 for employees working at a correctional facility, correctional health facility, state hospital, veteran’s home, and/or developmental services facility; a $1000 payment for CDPH employees in nine classifications; and a $625 payment for state special schools employees.

Here are some more highlights from our Tentative Agreement:

The Uniform Replacement Allowance (12.11) increased to $650 from $450.

The new ASL Proficiency Bonus (11. XX) creates a new incentive (up to $1500) for achieving higher levels of sign language skills.

We improved the Out-of-State Supplemental Health Care Program (9.4) by increasing the overall amounts, with additional adjustments based on plan party code (i.e., single, dependent, and family plans).

Our Business and Travel Reimbursement Program (12.1) requires the State to use the federal standard rates for meals, lodging, and incidentals established by the General Services Administration, resulting in increased reimbursements for our members.

We’ve strengthened the language in our Dignity Clause (5.11) to include “human dignity, courtesy, and respect.” In a similar fashion, we improved the Workplace Violence and Bullying Prevention Program (10.21) to include the Government Code definition of “abusive conduct.”

We doubled the number of hours (from 8 to 16/month) available for the Personal Leave Program (PLP) – Voluntary (Excludes Unit 21).

Improvements made in Bereavement Leave (8.3) expand eligibility to more of our represented employees when they experience a loss in the family.

We won additional safety protocols for our represented employees by placing an approved receptacle for syringes, blades, and the like in state restrooms with 10.XX Sharps Disposal.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more details about the steps we’ll be taking.

Local 1000 Reaches Contract Agreement with the State. Tentative Contract Agreement Reached.

Early Saturday morning, the Local 1000 bargaining team reached an overall tentative agreement with the state.

“This agreement reflects our best efforts to respond to the priorities our members identified in town halls and bargaining surveys,” said Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President of Bargaining. “In many ways, we’ve been able to achieve the respect, the protection, and the pay that we’ve been fighting for.”

Details of the agreement—pay increases, changes in working conditions, and benefits—will be released as our bargaining team works to assemble literally hundreds of individual agreements and prepares for presenting the tentative agreement to the membership for ratification.

Look for bargaining updates over the next handful of days with details on economics and other key provisions of the new deal. You can also find them posted on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our tentative agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the state. We’ve described the process, below, but firm dates for these steps won’t be finalized for a few days.

Over the next few days, our bargaining team will assemble the hundreds of contract sections we’ve reached agreement on, and create a document for final review by the 60+ members of our Statewide Bargaining Advisory Council (SBAC).

Next, the SBAC will meet in an emergency session to review the tentative agreement and vote on their approval to send it to the membership for ratification.

Ratification voting will take place after SBAC’s approval. Immediately thereafter, votes are counted and, if the membership ratifies the tentative agreement, it moves to the California legislature, where it’s reviewed, voted on, and then sent to the Governor for his signature.

Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

Member protests, and arrests, drive State back to the bargaining table. Emergency rally shows the State we want a contract … now!

After State negotiators called a three-day “blackout” of bargaining activity earlier this week, a strong member protest in Sacramento Wednesday demonstrated our resolve to win a good contract and drove the State back to the table in just one day.

This is what it takes to win. The State has heard us loud and clear.

While hundreds of members were on hand to make our demands visible, we were joined by leaders from unions across California, as well as community leaders and elected officials, all allies in the fight for a livable wage.

Eight protestors were arrested for civil disobedience as they stood strong against the unfair treatment state workers have seen from the Governor’s bargaining team:

Lorena Gonzalez of the California Labor Council
Anica Walls, SEIU Local 1000 Vice President for Organizing / Representation
Francesca Wander, SEIU Local 1000 member at the Department of Housing and Community Development
Councilmember Katie Valenzuela, representing Sacramento’s District 4 on the City Council
Nina Schulman, SEIU Local 1000 Executive Director
Councilmember Caity Maple, representing Sacramento’s District 5 on the City Council
Jonah Paul, President of DLC 785, representing downtown Sacramento
Fabrizio Sasso, Executive Director of the Sacramento Central Labor Council

Television and print media covered the event, acting as a force multiplier to get our message of Respect Us! Protect Us! Pay Us! out to the people we serve. Click the links below to watch and read:

Yesterday’s coverage on TV: KCRA-TV and KTXL Fox40
Editorial coverage: KPBS.org (San Diego); Sacramento Bee; Fox40 TV; and KCRA-TV

Bargaining Update:

Our bargaining team was back at the table today, working on a range of issues that affect all our represented members, key among them, a general salary increase and the health care stipend. There’s more: We’re continuing to evaluate the State’s response to our requests for Special Salary Adjustments, for skill-based differentials, recruitment and retention pay, and other reimbursements and allowances.

We’re pressing the State to resolve our negotiations positively — and quickly. Toward that goal, we’re literally meeting throughout the day and night. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

News from the bargaining table: More economic progress. Negotiations sharply focused on economics.

Our bargaining team has, over two marathon sessions on Sunday and Monday, continued their work with State negotiators, primarily on economic issues.

We’re working on a range of issues that affect all our represented members, key among them, a general salary increase and the health care stipend. There’s more: we’re continuing to evaluate the State’s response to our requests for Special Salary Adjustments, skill-based differentials, recruitment and retention pay, and other reimbursements and allowances.

Remember, in order to reach an overall Tentative Agreement, each one of literally hundreds of contract sections have to be reviewed and agreed to by both parties. This includes what’s now become a long list of improvements to working conditions as well as improvements in our pay.

We’re pressing the State to resolve our negotiations positively – and quickly. Towards that goal, we’re literally meeting throughout the day and night, nearly around the clock. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

We provide the essential services that keep our state running. We are not backing down until we win the livable wages our families need. The State of California must act now to pay its essential state workers for the important work we do.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

REGISTER HERE.

Weekend bargaining news: more economics, more agreements. Saturday bargaining session brings more money talk, new agreements

Back at the table for a Saturday session, our bargaining team’s efforts focused largely on the State’s new willingness to discuss the economic aspects of our contract. We’re reporting today on key activity, but the teams are exchanging proposals and counterproposals and engaging in fruitful discussions in a mutual effort to bring home a good contract.

Today, the State provided a response to our request for Special Salary Adjustments, and now the big task of careful review and analysis falls to each of the nine bargaining unit teams as well as the overall bargaining team.

On Friday, we reported an agreement that reduces pre-retirement (OPEB) contribution by a half-percent, down to 3%. We received two offers that are being reviewed: an 8% general salary increase over three years, and a salary adjustment for close to 170 of the lowest-paid classifications that ensures those working in those jobs stay ahead of the current minimum wage.

We reached tentative agreement with the State on 4 contract sections:

5.6 – Supersession
9.4 – Out-of-State Supplemental Health Care Program
11.18 – Case Records Technician and Correctional Case Records Analyst: Recruitment and Retention Differential (Units 1 and 4)
14.2 – Out-of-Classification Grievances and Position Allocation Hearing Process

We’ll be back at the master table Sunday, August 13. Unit-specific bargaining sessions are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

It’s important that we all step up to support the efforts of the bargaining team. Across the state, we’re escalating our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid more visible – and more impactful.

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

It’s unacceptable that state employee wages are so low that we can’t afford to live in California.

We provide the essential services that keep our state running. We are not backing down until we win the livable wages our families need.

Time is running out. The State of California must act now to pay its essential state workers for the important work we do. Join union members and community allies to demand livable wages NOW.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

REGISTER HERE.

Can’t join us in Sacramento? Check here for other pickets and actions organized by members across California.

Bargaining update: State beginning to move on economics, OPEB reduced! OPEB contribution reduced as State shows movement on economics

We’re reporting a big win for our members tonight: a reduction of pre-retirement (OPEB) contribution to 3%, a half-point drop than was called for in our previous contract. The agreement breaks the logjam of unanswered proposals waiting for response.

The agreement came at the end of a nine-hour bargaining session. Our master table bargaining team also received two new offers – one on our general salary increase; the other, a special salary adjustment for our lowest-paid classifications.

The state’s new proposal: an 8% pay increase, paid 3% upon ratification, 2.5% in 2024, and another 2.5% in 2025.

“While this offer does not meet our goals, it fuels our optimism that we can work together to achieve an increase that respects us and the work we do,” said Irene Green, our Vice President for Bargaining. “We’re seeing the effects of our pressure at the table and the benefits of the collective action of members across the state.”

In our last contract, we won a minimum-salary guarantee of $15/hour for close to 170 of the lowest-paid classifications. Today’s offer from the State is a special salary adjustment that ensures those working in those jobs stay ahead of the prevailing minimum wage.

There was more progress today: We reached tentative agreement with the State on the following contract sections:

9.1 – Health Benefits (Excludes Units 3 and 17)
9.3 – Vision Benefit (Excludes Unit 17)
19.11 – Call Back Time
19.12 – Standby Time

We’ll be back at the master table this weekend, August 12 and 13. Unit-specific bargaining sessions are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

It’s important that we all step up to support the efforts of our bargaining team. Across the state, we’re escalating our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid more visible – and more impactful.

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

It’s unacceptable that state employee wages are so low that we can’t afford to live in California.

We provide the essential services that keep our state running. We are not backing down until we win the livable wages our families need.

Time is running out. The State of California must act now to pay its essential state workers for the important work we do. Join union members and community allies to demand livable wages NOW.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

Can’t join us in Sacramento? Check here for other pickets and actions organized by members across California.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 10, 2023

Thursday’s Master Table bargaining session was productive, as the State showed some signs of movement. We reached agreement on 11 different contract sections and side letters and will return to the table today (Friday) as well as this weekend.

There’s a theme to many of Thursday’s agreements that govern and protect our ability to do the work of the union in and out of the workplace. They are “core” rights that allow us to meet with, organize, and represent our members. These rollover agreements preserve our rights in this area.

2.1 – Union Representatives
2.5 – Use of State Facilities
2.6 – Steward Time Off
2.7 – Employee Time Off
2.8 – Union Steward Protection
2.9 – Union Information Packets
2.10 – Orientation
2.11 – Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee Member Time Off
3.2 – Release of Home Addresses: Non-Law Enforcement Employees
Side Letter #4 – Access Agreement
Side Letter #12 – Public Employee Communication

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

It’s unacceptable that state employee wages are so low that we can’t afford to live in California.

We provide the essential services that keep our state running. We are not backing down until we win the livable wages our families need.

Time is running out. The State of California must act now to pay its essential state workers for the important work we do. Join union members and community allies to demand livable wages NOW.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

REGISTER HERE.

Can’t join us in Sacramento? Check here for other pickets and actions organized by members across California.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 9, 2023

Our bargaining team met again with State negotiators today and continued their efforts to bring home a good contract. Today, with just one tentative agreement reached, our progress is slow. Our team is frustrated by unreasonable delays: we’re awaiting a response from the State on 36 different proposals.

“We are more than confused by the State’s behavior, by their refusal to respond in a reasonable time frame to our proposals,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Some of our proposals were made more than a month ago, and our team—and the members of Local 1000—are waiting.”

Without responses, we can’t bargain on those issues, can’t reach an agreement, can’t move closer towards reaching an overall tentative agreement and a contract that respects us, protects us, and pays us. Master table bargaining resumes again tomorrow.

Only one tentative agreement was reached today; it’s a rollover of 11.16 Geographic Pay Differential. We won GeoPay three years ago in our last contract campaign, and it continues an important differential for our represented employees in Orange, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, and San Luis Obispo. You can read more about this and all of our current contract sections in our online, mobile-friendly search tool.

We’re scheduled to return to the master table again on Thursday, August 10, and Friday, August 11. Unit-specific bargaining sessions are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid more visible – and more impactful.

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

It’s unacceptable that state employee wages are so low that we can’t afford to live in California.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

Can’t join us in Sacramento? Check here for other pickets and actions organized by members across California.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: Monday, August 7, 2023

Today, our bargaining team met with the State at the master table in their continuing effort to advance our represented employees and to bring home a good contract. Tentative agreement was reached on four different contract sections.

Four master table bargaining sessions are scheduled for this week. You’ll recall that, on Friday, August 4, we responded to the State’s lowball offer by standing firm with our proposal for an 18.75% general salary increase over the next three years. It’s now up to the state to respond.

Our bargaining team is feeling the support of our represented employees in the field, as they see and hear reports of informational pickets happening across the state. To do your part and make our demand for respect and pay, read on …

Here are the four agreements we reached with the State today; each of them is rollover language from previous contract wins that continue our rights for an additional three years.

9.12 – FlexElect Program
11.4 – Timely Payment of Wages
11.17 – Recruitment and Retention Differentials (Excludes Unit 17)
11.22- Institutional Worker Supervision Pay Differential (Excludes Unit 1)

While unit-specific bargaining sessions are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis, we’ll return to the master table again on Wednesday, August 9. On Tuesday, Units 17 and 20 return to the mandatory overtime side table. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid.

We’ve also launched the Local 1000 Hot Union Summer Pickets Campaign, with a target of 1,000 informational pickets at worksites across the state. They’re happening every day, and here’s how you can take part in the fight:

Join your fellow SEIU Local 1000 members to show support for bargaining by hosting or participating in an informational picket at your worksite! Help us win a good contract, and help us reach our goal of 1,000 Pickets by August 14. Click here for more information or to start your own informational picket. For a list of upcoming pickets throughout California, please click here.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 4, 2023

The SEIU Local 1000 bargaining team has been working tirelessly to negotiate a fair contract for our represented workers, and those efforts were directly reflected in their actions today. In our fourth master table bargaining session this week, our team heard the calls of our members and held firm by passing our demand for a general salary increase of 18.75% over three years back to the State.

The team also reached agreement on no less than 12 separate contract sections. This is of vital importance, as each of our hundreds of previous contract agreements must be reviewed and agreed upon once again, to ensure that our hard-earned rights remain strong.

Among the notable agreements settled today was 10.xx – Sharps Disposal. “The 10.xx – Sharps Disposal tentative agreement is a huge win for our workers and our fellow Californians,” said Eric Murray, Bargaining Unit 15 Chair. “We’ve been talking to the State for years about the need for this basic safety item to protect everyone that frequents state sites. This especially applies to our custodial workers, who often have to clean up dirty needles that have not been properly disposed. With the implementation of this article, the State will now be required to provide sharps containers in restrooms.”

The entire list of sections we reached agreement on today are as follows:

5.7 – Non-discrimination
5.8 – Sexual Harassment
8.17 – Mentoring Leave
9.6 – Pre-Tax of Health and Dental Premiums Costs
9.7 – Pre-Retirement Death Continuation of Benefits
9.9 – Presumptive Illness
10.xx – Sharps Disposal
11.4 – Timely Payment of Wages
11.5 – Scheduled Wage Increase Pursuant to Labor Code 1182.12
11.9 – Bilingual Differential Pay
19.27 – Special Schools Calendar
21.1 – Telecommute/Telework Program (Excludes Unit 17)

While unit-specific bargaining sessions are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis, we’ll return to the master table on Monday, August 7. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 3, 2023

In our third master table bargaining session this week, our team reached agreement on three contract sections. As we’ve reported, each of our many hundreds of our previous contract agreements must be reviewed and agreed upon once again, to ensure that our hard-earned rights remain strong. We return to the master table on Friday, August 4.

Here are the three sections we reached agreement on today:

8.11 – Release Time for State Personnel Board Hearings
8.12 – Leave Credits Upon Transfer in State Service
21.2 – Electronic Monitoring (Excludes Unit 14)

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. We’ll be at the master table Friday, August 4, and bargaining will resume again next week. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demands to be respected, protected, and paid.

We’ve launched the Local 1000 Hot Union Summer Pickets Campaign, with a target of 1,000 informational pickets at worksites across the state. They’re happening every day, and here’s how you can help:

Join your fellow SEIU Local 1000 members to show support for bargaining by hosting or participating in an informational picket at your worksite! Help us win a good contract, and help us reach our goal of 1,000 Pickets by August 14. Click here for more information, to start your own informational picket, or to join an already-planned event.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 2, 2023

Our bargaining team reports a productive day at the master table. Today, we reached ten different tentative agreements, each of which ensure that rights already in our contract are preserved. Today’s session was the second of four scheduled master table bargaining days this week.

Remember, in each contract bargaining cycle, every one of the nearly 700 contract sections have to be reviewed, discussed if necessary, and agreed upon by both parties. “Rollover” means your rights remain unchanged.

Of particular note: we reached agreement to roll over all of Article 17 – Retirement. This contract article has 11 different sections, each of which governs our hard-earned retirement benefits.

Here are the other ten sections we reached agreement on today:

8.16 – Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA)
8.33 – Time Off for Victims of Domestic Violence
9.13 – Long-Term Care Insurance Plan
9.14 – Temporarily Disabled Employees
9.15 – Industrial Disability Leave (IDL)
9.16 – Group Legal Service Plan
9.17 – State Disability Insurance (SDI)
9.22 – Health Benefits Advisory Committee
11.13 – Tax Deferral of Lump Sum Leave Cash-Out Upon Separation

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’re taking the fight to every worksite. Here’s how you can help:

On the heels of three successful days of informational pickets at CalHR headquarters last week, we’re launching the Local 1000 Hot Union Summer Pickets Campaign. It’s time for all of us to be visible with our demand for a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us!

Join SEIU Local 1000 members to show support for bargaining by hosting an informational picket at your worksite! Our goal is to organize 1,000 pickets by August 14. Click here for more information, to start your own informational picket, or to join an already-planned event.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. We’ll be at the master table Thursday and Friday, August 3 and 4. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 31, 2023

Our bargaining team returned to the master table today and reached seven tentative agreements with State negotiators. All are rollover language that preserves our previously hard-won rights from past contract campaigns:

5.12 – Upward Mobility Program
8.8 – Transfer of Leave Credits, Work and Family Program (Catastrophic Leave)
9.5 – Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
15.1 – Appeal of Involuntary Transfer
19.1 – Hours of Work (Excludes Units 3, 17, and 21)
19.4 – Meal Periods (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
19.8 – Flexible Work Hours (Excludes Units 17 and 21)

Tomorrow, Units 17 and 20 are bargaining at the Mandatory Overtime side table. The bargaining team will be at the master table Wednesday through Friday, August 2-4.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, can happen anytime and are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

Away from the table, our bargaining team, along with our strategic campaign department, is developing our response to the 7% pay raise proposal we received from the State last week, which included a clause for no retroactive pay when the contract is ratified.

We’re taking the fight to every worksite.

On the heels of three successful days of informational pickets at CalHR headquarters last week, we’re launching the Local 1000 Hot Union Summer Worksite Pickets Campaign. It’s time for all of us to be visible with our demand for a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us! Join SEIU Local 1000 members to show support for bargaining by hosting an informational picket at your worksite! Our goal is to organize 1,000 pickets by August 14. Click here for more information, to start your own informational picket, or to join an already-planned event.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. We will return to bargaining next week. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 26, 2023.
State’s Counteroffer: One Additional Percentage Point, Tons of Disrespect

Today’s master table bargaining underscored the State’s lack of respect for the vital work we do to keep California running … and their lack of concern about paying us a livable wage.

The State’s answer to our proposed 18.75% pay increase: 2.5% / 2% / 2.5% over three years. One additional percent. And, with an added insult: no retroactive pay.

“We recognize the State’s “movement,” but it’s not reasonable and not something our represented employees will accept,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining.

Our bargaining team is already working on their response, backed by the actions of represented employees up and down the state.

“It’s time to escalate our actions across the state, in every workplace,” added Vice President Green. “Tomorrow, we’re picketing CalHR headquarters in Sacramento, and that’s just the beginning.”

Join us on the picket line Thursday, July 27, in Sacramento.

We’re marching on CalHR, and this is how we make our demand. We win when we keep our focus on Union solidarity and make our strength visible by standing together. We will go on fighting for the best contract, but we all need to step up until working people are respected, protected, and paid.

What: Picket line at CalHR headquarters
When: Thursday, July 27, 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Where: 1810 16th Street, Sacramento, CA, 95811

Click here to register.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 19, 2023

The economic well-being of state employees we represent was the focus of today’s master table bargaining session with the State.

We proposed a general salary increase of 18.75% over three years. 6.25% in July 2023, 6.25% in July 2024, and 6.25% in July 2025.

We also proposed a monthly health care stipend of $260—without a sunset clause—in our efforts to make medical and dental care more affordable and nearly 100% paid for those we represent.

“Today, we continued our fight for a living wage for state workers, many of whom struggle to make ends meet,” said Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining. “Our demand for a reasonable pay increase reflects our workers’ commitment to serve California.”

Three Local 1000 members from across the state offered their stories in support of a living wage, representing the challenges facing thousands of the state workers we represent.

“Some of our employees live in sheds and in their cars. We have homeless teachers that are working at the school. Some of them live in homeless camps. The Fremont School for the Deaf has been recognized as the best school in the country and a model for the rest of the world. If we can’t have people afford to live here to work, then the whole school closes. 6% isn’t going to do it.”—Ty Kovacs, Unit 3, Fremont School for the Deaf.

“6% is shameful to offer to us. We work hard. We are skilled workers. A state job shouldn’t be this hard. I can’t get a second job as I am a single mom, and I can’t leave my daughter alone. I used to be able to help my community. Now, I’m in those lines to get necessities like food and items to go to school. I don’t want my daughter to feel the stress of getting by. I want to enjoy life with her.”— Tammy Rodriguez, Unit 4, DMV, San Luis Obispo

“I thought having a state job would allow me to provide for my child. I’m embarrassed and ashamed I can’t provide a better stable environment for her. We can’t live on our own; it feels like a dorm. The State cannot keep and attract new workers. People leave, so those that stay here are really stressed out and have more work.” — Maria Blaine, Unit 1, Public Utilities Commission, San Francisco

Other activities at the master table today included a number of counterproposals related to our leaves and paid holidays.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

We are fighting for the best contract we can get, but we need your help. This is not a short-term battle, and it will not end with this contract. We need to stick together, and we need to keep fighting because when we fight, we win. We will go on fighting until working people are respected, protected, and paid.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?

As the bargaining team works to achieve meaningful progress at the table, it’s important that we keep our focus on Union solidarity and strength building. In order for our demands to be heard, SEIU Local 1000-represented employees need to stand together. So, we encourage you to sign up for our next action on July 25, 26, and 27 when we picket CalHR in Sacramento. Click here to register.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 12, 2023

Today, our master table bargaining team recorded two tentative agreements that preserve previously-established rights from past contract campaigns.

Our tentative agreement on section 9.2 – Dental Benefit (Excludes Unit 17) continues to preserve the contributions the State makes towards our coverage for eligible employees and their dependents.

We also reached an agreement on 12.14 – Professional Dues (Excludes Units 17 and 21). This provides reimbursement for membership dues in professional societies or associations.

Also today, our master table bargaining team and the State exchanged a number of proposals and counterproposals. We will continue our work to advance our members and to resolve outstanding proposals, including those affecting our pay, our working conditions, and our benefits.

As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the State. Remember, our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Master Table Summary: June 29, 23

Our master table bargaining team met again with the State today to resolve outstanding contract issues, making some progress with tentative agreements. In addition, both sides spent time discussing concepts and conditions that go into the proposals we’re negotiating over, including our key economic issues, which are still in progress.

We meet again with the State tomorrow (Friday). For the past week, our 9 bargaining unit tables have been meeting on an “as-needed” basis. Some worked over the weekend, and many others did not meet on their “regular days” as they have the past two months.

In any case, when we negotiate at the master or unit tables, we have been and will continue to issue a bargaining recap, often on the same day. Those recaps are emailed and posted to the Contract Action Central web page.

Our contract has 14 “articles” comprised of hundreds of sections. Each of those is considered and must be agreed upon before we’re done—whether it’s new language, rollover, or in the rare case, deletion. Today at the master table, we reached four TAs – including two deletions of agreements where the agreed-upon work was completed.

Today’s tentative agreements were:

5.13- Joint Task Force on the Future of Work and Civil Service (delete because complete)
5.18- Budget Solutions Task Force (delete because complete)
9.10 – Employee Injury on the Job (rollover)
9.11 – Enhanced Industrial Disability Leave (EIDL) (rollover)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

We can win a contract when we take action. Today, more than 500 Local 1000 members, supported by our sisters and brothers at SEIU Local 99, marched together in silent protest for a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us! Keep purpling up in your workplace, and stay tuned for more actions to make our demands more visible.

Our bargaining efforts are happening daily. When we have news at the table, you’ll read it here first. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

State to Local 1000: “We Really Don’t Care”

Today, the State handed our bargaining team a resounding “we don’t care about state workers” as they rejected our proposed pay raise, diminished our health care stipend, and said ‘no’ to a Juneteenth holiday.

“The State is not moving on our key economic priority,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Our bargaining team is committed to not back down and to keep pressing the State for a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us.”

Bargaining will continue daily. Here are the details from the master table today:

Salary increase: The State rejected our 26%, 3-year proposal. Their offer remains 6% over 3 years.

Health care stipend: The $260 benefit ends on June 30, due to a sunset clause. Our proposal for $320/month was rejected. The State proposed a 3-tiered monthly stipend ($35, $70, $140) based upon the employee’s health care plan choice.

Juneteenth holiday: The State flatly rejected the addition of June 19 as a paid holiday.

We reached tentative agreements with the State on 11 contract sections today, all rollover language that preserves previously won contract rights.

19.3 – Rest Periods (Excludes Units 14, 15, 17 and 21)
8.5 – Adoption Leave
8.7 – Unpaid Leave of Absence
8.9 – Catastrophic Leave – Natural Disaster
8.13 – Court Appearance and/or Subpoenas (Excludes Unit 17)
8.14 – Jury Duty
11.7 – Merit Salary Adjustments (MSA)
15.3 – Hardship Transfer
19.5 – Set Up/Shut Down Time
19.10 – Work in Multiple Time Zones
21.3 – Class A and Class B Commercial Driver’s License (Excludes Units 17 and 21)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

If the State won’t move at the table … then let’s move them! Stand Up with State Workers in a Silent Protest at the State Capitol on Thursday, June 29, 10:00 a.m., by joining a silent protest march. You can sign up here to make our demands visible.

Master Table Summary: June 25, 23

With our current contract expires Friday, June 30, our master table bargaining team worked throughout the weekend to secure a contract we can be proud of.

We pushed back hard on the State’s shameful lowball offer of a 6% pay raise. Local 1000’s proposal: 26% raise over three years; 10% in 2023, 8% in 2024, and 8% in 2025. It’s time for all of us to stand up and press the state to respect us. See below for what you can do.

Also, this weekend, more than 20 proposals and counterproposals were presented, and discussed, and we were able to reach agreement on the following:

Three agreements feature stronger language added to extend our rights and benefits:

8.15 – PLP Program – Voluntary
Adds the additional choice of 16 hours/month of VPLP from the original 8.
12.4 – Commute Program
Increases reimbursement for commuting on public transit from 75% to 100%
18.1 – Permanent Intermittents (PI)
Drops the number of hours needed to accrue leaves from 960 hours to just 160 hours.

Six agreements are rollover language that preserves our rights from previous contracts.

12.2 – Moving and Relocation Expenses
12.3 – Parking Rates
10.30 – Health and Safety Grievances
10.33 – Temperature Controls (Excluding Unit 3 and 15)
6.5 – Presentation
6.6 – Informal Discussion

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Here’s what you can do now, to make our demand for respect and pay be heard:

Send a message to CalHR now. Tell them we deserve a respectful pay increase. Here is the information you will need to make these calls a success:

DEPUTY DIRECTOR of LABOR RELATIONS – Paul Starkey
Paul.Starkey@calhr.ca.gov
916-215-8579

ASSISTANT DEPUTY DIRECTOR of LABOR RELATIONS – Kristine Rodrigues
Kristine.Rodrigues@calhr.ca.gov
916-862-0140

CHIEF, LABOR RELATIONS BRANCH – Steven Gonzalez-Lederer
Steven.Gonzalez-Lederer@calhr.ca.gov
916-862-0018

SENIOR LABOR RELATIONS OFFICER – Brian Lin Walsh
Brian.LinWalsh@calhr.ca.gov
916-926-2528

Tweet CalHR at https://twitter.com/CalHR_gov

Voicemail will fill up quickly. If the voicemail is full, please send an email, text, or tweet.

Your message should say: “My name is______. I’m a member of SEIU Local 1000. CalHR’s counteroffer of 6% is shameful and doesn’t come close to what we need to survive in CA. As dedicated and hardworking state employees, we ask that CalHR agrees to a raise that allows us to provide for ourselves and our family”.

Then, Stand Up for State Workers in Sacramento on Thursday, June 29, 10:00 a.m., at the State Capitol by joining a silent protest march. You can sign up here to make our demands visible.

Our bargaining efforts are happening daily. When we have news at the table, you’ll read it here first.

To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Our bargaining efforts are happening daily. When we have news at the table, you’ll read it here first.

To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining team stands strong with 26% counter - Master Table Summary 6.25.23

Our bargaining team is pushing back hard after receiving a shameful 6% pay raise offer from the State. During a weekend-long negotiating session, our team proposed a general salary increase that respects us:

Local 1000’s proposal: 26% raise over three years; 10% in 2023, 8% in 2024, and 8% in 2025.

Our contract expires in five days, and we’re putting pressure on the State to bring home a contract we can be proud of. Here’s what you can do – NOW - to make our demand heard:

Send a message to CalHR today. Tell them we deserve a respectful pay increase.

Here is the information you will need to make these contacts a success:

DEPUTY DIRECTOR of LABOR RELATIONS - Paul Starkey
Paul.Starkey@calhr.ca.gov
916-215-8579

ASSISTANT DEPUTY DIRECTOR of LABOR RELATIONS - Kristine Rodrigues
Kristine.Rodrigues@calhr.ca.gov
916-862-0140

CHIEF, LABOR RELATIONS BRANCH - Steven Gonzalez-Lederer
Steven.GonzalezLederer@calhr.ca.gov
916-862-0018

SENIOR LABOR RELATIONS OFFICER - Brian Lin Walsh
Brian.LinWalsh@calhr.ca.gov
916-926-2528

Tweet CalHR at https://twitter.com/CalHR_gov

Voicemail will fill up quickly. If the voicemail is full, please send an email, text, or tweet.

Your message should say: “My name is______. I’m a member of SEIU Local 1000. CalHR’s counteroffer of 6% is shameful and doesn’t come close to what we need to survive in CA. As dedicated and hardworking state employees, we ask that CalHR agrees to a raise that allows us to provide for ourselves and our family”.

Our bargaining efforts are happening daily. When we have news at the table, you’ll read it here first.

To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

There’s real truth to the Local 1000 slogan, Stronger Together. We only win a great contract with a strong Local 1000 membership. So, if you’re not already a member, we encourage you to join us today.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: June 21, 2023

On Wednesday, the state told us how they feel about the people who provide vital services to all Californians. What they think about crushing workloads and a 25% vacancy rate, and what their concerns are about a workforce that by all measure isn’t making a living wage.

They don’t care.

Nine weeks after we proposed a general salary increase that respects us, and nine days before our contract expires, the State’s counteroffer is 6%. Total. 2% each year, effective in 2023.

“Our bargaining team is in shock at the State’s unwillingness to recognize our value,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Our job ahead is to underscore the merit of our represented employees and to make the State understand the huge gap between a 6% raise and making ends meet.”

Our bargaining team will continue to negotiate on a near-daily basis at the master table and at unit-specific tables as well.

“We’ll be calling on our represented employees to turn the heat up even more,” added Vice President Green. “The demand for simple respect and a living wage must get louder. This contract belongs to all of us and we all need to take action to win.”

As we negotiate through the weekend, be ready to respond to a call for action. Sign up for bargaining alerts, watch our social media channels, and visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

We reached tentative agreement with the State to “roll over” six contract sections that preserve our rights won during previous contract campaigns:

12.15 – Reimbursement of Fees
21.4 – Call Centers
13.6 – Performance Appraisal of Permanent Employees (Excludes Unit 3, 17, and 21)
6.2 – Definitions
8.1 – Vacation/Annual Leave
8.2 – Sick Leave

We also reached agreement on stronger, more inclusive language for contract section 8.4 — Parental Leave — by making eligibility for this leave gender-neutral.

On Wednesday, we proposed stronger language for five contract sections, and presented one new proposal for teleworkers:

11.2 – Improving Affordability and Access to Healthcare
Increases our healthcare stipend from $260 to $320 and eliminates the sunset clause
9.24 – Prefunding of Post-Retirement Health Benefits
Reduces OPEB contributions by .5%
11.3 – Salary Definitions (Excludes Unit 17)
Stronger language defining types of salary ranges
12. 11 – Uniform Replacement Allowance (Excludes Unit 15 and 20)
Doubles reimbursement from $500 to $1000
21.XX – Telework Stipend Programs
Moves side letter language to the main contract; maintains current $25 and $50 payments
11.20 Recruitment and Retention (various prisons)
Adds Sierra Conservation Center to a list of 8 prisons eligible for this bonus

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our bargaining efforts will increase to near-daily sessions. When we have news at the table, you’ll read it here first.

To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: June 14, 2023

While the State remains silent on our key economic proposals, our Master Table bargaining team pressed ahead by presenting nine proposals with stronger language improving our leaves, our working conditions, and the addition of a new holiday for Local 1000-represented employees.

Our current contract expires on June 30—in sixteen days—and our team is ramping up their efforts to bring home a contract we can all be proud of. Our actions on the work site, at rallies, and on social media are critical to our success. It’s time for all of us to stand up and stand together!

Today, we proposed that Juneteenth (June 19) become a state holiday. Nearly a year ago, Governor Newsom established this date as a holiday in California, but the law requires state employees to use our accrued leave to celebrate Juneteenth rather than receiving eight hours of personal holiday credit.

“We believe that the liberation from captivity and the end of slavery is something that every Californian should be able to celebrate, including those in the state’s civil service,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Juneteenth should not be relegated to a personal holiday. It is an opportunity for all Californians to celebrate freedom as a shared value.”

Also today, our team was proud to present two proposals that reflect Local 1000’s commitment to embracing diversity and fostering inclusivity. It’s even more rewarding to have those values commemorated in our contract. We’re calling on the State to make parental leave gender-neutral and to make gender-neutral restrooms available in the workplace.

Here are the proposals presented to the State negotiators today.

7.1 – Holidays

Adds June 19 (Juneteenth) as a new holiday

8.1 – Vacation/Annual Leave

Sweeping increases in all types of monthly leave accrual, annual leave carry-over, and annual cash-out of accrued leave

8.2 – Sick Leave

Increases the monthly sick leave accrual for full-time employees from 8 to 16 hours

8.4 – Parental Leave

Ensures the eligibility for parental leave is gender-neutral for any qualified employee

8.10 – Release Time for State Civil Service Examinations

Adds the ability to use leave credits for those seeking lateral transfer opportunities

8.15 – Personal Leave Program (PLP) – Voluntary

Increases the number of hours an employee may opt to use from 8 hours to 16 or 24 hours monthly; removes the upper limit of accruable hours and removal from the program

10.33 – Temperature Controls (Excluding Units 3 and 15)

Reinforces the use of state guidelines for temperature and humidity standards

11.12 – Deferred Compensation Plans and Tax-Advantaged Retirement Savings (Unit 21)

Rolls over existing language maintaining participation in certain retirement programs

We presented one additional proposal and reached a tentative agreement with the State on the same day:

10.12 – Employee Restroom Facilities

Calls for the provision of single-occupancy, gender-neutral restrooms as well as facilities separate from those provided to inmates

Also today, the State returned five counterproposals on a range of contract sections. Our master table bargaining team will review those and deliberate the next steps.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Want more bargaining information? Be sure to join us tonight, Thursday, June 15, 2023 at 6:30 p.m., for an important bargaining update call with Vice President for Bargaining Irene Green. Please register here to receive the Zoom link.

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for June 21. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: June 7, 2023

At today’s Master Table bargaining session, the State’s negotiators showed signs of life and offered some responses to Local 1000 proposals, including some we presented nearly a month ago. Four of our economic proposals were rejected.

Our demands for a 30% pay raise, 100% paid health care premiums, and Special Salary Adjustments remain unanswered.

“The State’s rejections today underscore the need to escalate our actions and to project our power,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Starting with our rally at the State Capitol tomorrow, and beyond, we need to increase our visibility and raise our voices to demonstrate that Respect Us! Protect Us! Pay Us! is more than a slogan; it’s a call for the State to act.”

Here are the economic proposals the State rejected today:

The State flatly rejected our 11.XXXXX Overtime Check proposal saying they are not interested in adding a penalty payment of interest when departments fail to timely pay overtime checks to our members.

The State flatly rejected our 11.XXX Longevity Pay proposal says they are not interested in a “blanket longevity payment” across all SEIU-represented employees.

The State flatly rejected 11.XXXX – $30/hr. Minimum Wage, saying they are not interested in adding this language to the contract at this time and that other economic proposals may impact this proposal.

The State rejected our proposal on 21.4 – Call Centers and wants to maintain the current contract language. We proposed differential pay across all units and departments that meet the definition of a call center. The State says to deal with it in each unit, department by department.

Two Local 1000 members, acting as Subject Matter Experts, provided insight on two new proposals we made today:

Unit 1, CDTFA member David Aguinaldo, who works at CDTFA in Chicago, spoke on the skyrocketing costs of out-of-state health care. Our proposal (see below) calls for an increase in the payment available to offset costs when a PERS-sponsored plan isn’t available.

Katherine Stockton, a member of the Unit 1 bargaining team, presented a proposal (see below) that solidifies the State’s efforts in creating a culture of inclusion for workers with disabilities. Our goal is to use the power of our contract to ensure the State’s commitment to being an employer of choice and providing further solutions to the challenges faced by the disabled workers we represent.

Our bargaining team presented four proposals today centered around our health care benefits and reasonable accommodation; two presented stronger language, and two are new proposals.

9.2 Dental Benefit (Excludes Unit 17)

Reduces share of cost from 25% to 20%, eliminates the 24-month waiting period

9.4 Out-Of-State Supplemental Health Care Program

Raises annual payment for those unable to enroll in a CalPERS-sponsored HMO from $1200 to $2400

9.X – Reasonable Accommodation

New language creates a culture of inclusion for disabled employees, and promotes reasonable accommodation, and sensitivity training.

9.XX – In-State Supplemental Health Care Program

Provides employees in California that cannot enroll in a CalPERS-sponsored HMO a $2400 annual payment

We reached tentative agreement with the State on two proposals that impact our travel to and from work.

12.28 – Pre-Tax Commuting Expense
12.29 – Bike or Walk To Work Program

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for June 14. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s Mansion here.

Master Table Bargaining Summary: May 31, 2023

Our contract expires in 30 days, and today, State negotiators did little to prove their intent to bargain over our key issues: a 30% pay raise and 100% paid health care premiums.

The Master Table bargaining team continues to press the State, and some incremental progress was made. Still, many proposals remain unanswered by the State.

“This lack of progress at the table draws into sharp focus our need to escalate our actions and to project our power,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “We can make our demand highly visible to all California at rallies scheduled at the State Capitol June 8 and in Los Angeles on June 22. If we want the state to Respect Us! Protect Us! and Pay Us! we must stand up and stand together.”

At the Master Table, we presented four proposals with new or stronger language:

2.3 – Use of State Equipment
Expands the list of state-owned communications tech available to stewards for representational purposes
2.10 – Orientation
Increases the time allotted to Local 1000 for new employee orientation from 20 to 30 minutes.
2.X – Electronic Device Access
Allows certain DLC leaders and stewards to bring approved cell phones into security areas of worksites, institutions, and facilities
11.XXXXX – Overtime Checks
Supports timelier issuance of overtime checks and a penalty for late payment

We reached tentative agreement with the State on four contract sections, winning stronger language governing evacuation procedures and bullying while preserving previous contract protections in workstations and personnel file management.

10.6 – Emergency Evacuation Procedures
10.21 – Workplace Violence and Bullying Prevention Program
10.22 – Computer Work Stations
13.1 – Performance and Evaluation Materials

Negotiations continue with the State on four proposals:

8.10 – Release time for State Civil Exams
10.12 – Employee Restroom Facilities
10.33 – Temperature Controls (Excluding Unit 3 and 15)
11.3 – Salary Definition

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for June 7. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

There’s real truth to the Local 1000 slogan, Stronger Together. We only win a great contract with a strong Local 1000 membership. So, if you’re not already a member, we encourage you to join us today.

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here

Master Table Bargaining Summary: May 24, 2023

At today’s Master Table bargaining, we received the first substantive counter proposals from the State. There were only three, but it breaks the logjam of nearly 60 proposals we’ve made that we are awaiting response on.

Today, our bargaining team proposed new or stronger language in five different contract sections; we are working to advance our pay and reimbursements, expand access to breaks and leaves, and to more deeply understand the teleworkers we represent.

11.XX ASL Proficiency Incentive for State Special Schools
Provides a stepped differential for ASL certifications as well as bilingual pay
12.8 Overtime Meal Benefits and Allowances – CDCR (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
Increases dollar amount, access to, and reimbursement of overtime meals
18.1 Permanent Intermittents PI
Reduces the minimum qualifying hours for certain personal leaves from 960 to 160 hours
19.3 Rest Periods (Excludes Units 14, 15, 17 and 21)
Ensures greater access to rest periods and their use
21.X Telework Data
Compels the state to provide Local 1000 with a summary of all active telework agreements

Our Master Table bargaining team also proposed to “rollover” these sections, which confirm and continue a range of previously-won contract protections.

24.3 Continuous Appropriations
Side Letter #1 Golden Handshake
Side Letter #2 Domestic Partner
Side Letter #3 Retired Annuitants
Side Letter #4 Access Agreement
Side Letter #5 Student Assistants
Side Letter #7 Gender Neutral Pronouns
Side Letter #12 Public Employee Communication
Side Letter #17 Employee Work Locations

And, today, we reached tentative agreement with the State on these sections, including four “same day” proposals*.

8.34 – Organ Donation
14.4 – Duty Statements, Post Orders, and Work Instructions (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
13.5 – Individual Development Plan
13.2 – Personal Performance Session (Excludes Unit 17)
10.28 – Pest Control
*Side Letter 17 – Employee Work Locations
*Side Letter 7 – Gender Neutral Pronouns
*Side Letter 5 – Student Assistants
*Side Letter 3 – Retired Annuitants

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Special notice: Join Vice President for Bargaining Irene Green and others tomorrow evening, May 25 at 6:00 p.m., to discuss the current state of bargaining at Local 1000.

What is our assessment of the temperature of the State bargaining team? Where do we go from here? How can you help secure a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us? Join us to get your questions answered.

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for May 31. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Master Table Summary: Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Solving the economic challenges facing our represented employees was the clear, top priority we learned in our bargaining town halls and from thousands of surveys. We have, and will, continue to respond with proposals that advance us. And yet, the State remains largely unresponsive.

“The State isn’t engaging, they’re not answering our demand for solutions to our most pressing contract issue: an increase in wages that respects the commitment and contribution of state workers,” said Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining. “Our team is beyond frustrated because the State isn’t giving us anything to work with or respond to.”

And yet, our team keeps pressing the State for answers. Just weeks after proposing a 30% pay raise over three years and 100%paid health care premiums, we today presented 11 different proposals covering a wide range of pay issues. Chief among them: a $30/hour wage minimum for all represented employees; an increase in travel and business reimbursement; an expansion of GeoPay to most California counties; a longevity differential of up to 12% that rewards time in state service, and a new differential for weekend work.

11.8 – Night Shift Differential (Excludes Units 14, 15, 17, and 21)
(increased the amount now calculated as a percentage of wages)
11.11 – Union Management Committee on State Payroll System
(continues and strengthens a JLMC to advise Controller on payroll system changes. This JLMC will be important given the State’s intention of overhauling its payroll system over the next few years.)
11.15 – State Special Schools Ten-Month Compensation Agreement (Units 4, 15, 17, and 20) (changes and additions to a number of pay and scheduling issues)
11.16 – Geographic Pay Differential
(expands GeoPay to most CA counties by aligning with federal guidelines)
11.X - Weekend Differential
(adds 5% to base pay for regularly scheduled weekend hours)
11.XXX – Longevity Pay
(establishes a 5%-12% differential based on years in state service)
11.XXXX – $30/hr Minimum Wage
(sets a minimum wage for all represented employees)
12.1 – Business and Travel Expenses
(increases reimbursement rates to match federal guidelines)
12.4 – Commute Program
(increases reimbursement rate to 100%)
12.14 – Professional Dues (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
(doubles reimbursement to $100)
21.4 – Call Centers
(adds a $150 differential per pay period for all employees engaged in call center duties as defined)

Our Master Table bargaining team also proposed to “rollover” these thirteen contract sections, which additionally illustrate our commitment to Pay Us! and Respect Us! These confirm and continue a range of previously-won economic protections as well as four sections governing our career development and performance.

12.2 – Moving and Relocation Expenses
12.3 – Parking Rates
12.5 – Transportation Incentives
12.7 – State Owned Housing
12.10 – Damaged or Destroyed Personal Property (Excludes Unit 17)
12.13 – Tools, Business Equipment, Materials and Supplies (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
12.15 – Reimbursement of Fees (Excludes Units 17)
12.28 – Pre-Tax Commuting Expense
12.29 – Bike or Walk to Work Program
13.2 – Personal Performance Session (Excludes Unit 17)
13.3 – Joint Apprenticeship Committee (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
13.5 – Individual Development Plan
13.6 – Performance Appraisal of Permanent Employees (Excludes Units 3, 17, and 21)

Today’s meeting was largely one-way: none of our 24 different proposals today elicited a response, and dozens more await an answer from the State. Tentative agreement was reached on a single contract section, 10.11 – Hazardous Materials (Excludes Unit 17).

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for May 24, as we continue the fight to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Master Table Summary: Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Our fight for a contract we can all be proud of is being waged on many fronts, and this morning (May 10) we told our stories at the Capitol at a hearing held by the Assembly’s Public Employment and Retirement Committee.

The topic was Strengthening California through the Public Sector and its Workforce, and legislators heard from a number of employee groups in the public sector, including the state workers represented by SEIU Local 1000.

Vice President for Bargaining Irene Green—backed by scores of Local 1000 members—testified about the importance of investing in state workers; about the 25% vacancy rate across our nine bargaining units that cause workload stress and threaten recruitment and retention of skilled employees.

It’s these same themes our Master Table bargaining team has been using to drive negotiations with the State. The respect, the protection, the pay we’re demanding is to ensure the quality of life for our 96,000 represented members as well as the quality of service we provide California.

In today’s session, we proposed new or stronger language in three contract sections that govern our personnel file. We are seeking the ability to purge materials of a negative nature after one year, and to ensure that letters of instruction, work improvement discussions, and disciplinary investigations are handled in a timely fashion.

13.1 – Performance and Evaluation Materials
13.X – Letters of Instruction (LOI)/Work Improvement Discussion (WID)
13.XX – Investigation Timeline

Today, we proposed to “rollover” the following contract sections—all from Article 14-Classification—and secured tentative agreement with the State in the same day. By doing so, we preserved our previous contract rights on this important article.

14.1 – Classification Changes
14.3 – Classification/Pay Data
14.5 – Automation and New Technology
14.6 – Job Announcements
14.7 – Assignment of Duties Normally Performed by Bargaining Unit Employees (Excludes Unit 14)
14.8 – Contracting Out

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Of note, section 14.8-Contracting Out, is a powerful tool Local 1000 has used to protect the jobs of our members by preventing the State from wasteful outsourcing. Over the years, we’ve worked to turn back millions of dollars in illegal third-party contracts and to keep state workers doing state jobs.

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for May 17, as we continue the fight to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Master Table Bargaining Recap: Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Negotiations at the Master Table focused today on “Protect Us!” – contract provisions that ensure the health and safety of the 96,000 state employees we represent.

“Two weeks ago, we responded to your demands that the State “Pay Us!” with a proposal for a 30% pay increase and 100% paid health care premiums,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Today, May 3, our proposals call for better working conditions.”

Two new proposals were presented:

On the heels of the pandemic, we’re calling for a Declared State of Emergency Taskforce (10.XX) to ensure Local 1000 has a voice at the table as the State develops public information and response plans to state- or county-wide emergencies.

Unit 15 Chair Eric Murray led the team in proposing a new contract section (10.X – Sharps Disposal) that would make a sharps container available in all restrooms in state office buildings—extending the protections of a 2008 state law preventing the disposal of sharps in household trash or recycling containers.

“Readily-available, proper disposal of sharps is a health and safety issue for all our represented employees,” said Murray. “Decreasing the number of sharps disposed of in standard trash receptacles will help prevent potential health risks to custodial staff and other waste and recycling workers.”

We proposed stronger language in the following five contract sections:

10.6 Emergency Evacuation Procedures – ensuring updated procedures and proper training events including active shooter, bomb threats, riots, earthquakes, floods and fires.
10.12 Employee Restroom Facilities – calls for gender-neutral restroom facilities to be provided to the extent possible.
10.22 Computer Work Stations – added language to extend these important ergonomic protections to state employees who telework.
10.33 Temperature Controls (Excluding Units 3 and 15) – added language to include the actual acceptable minimum and maximum temperature and humidity limits in worksites.

Unit 1 BUNC member Harry Price was a subject matter expert in the presentation of a revised section 10.21 Workplace Violence and Bullying Prevention Program. An early victim of worksite bullying, Harry has received extensive education and training in the topic and recently worked with State Senator Richard Pan and his staff on the issue.

“The State’s policies on prevention haven’t been touched in 23 years, and doesn’t include bullying,” said Price. This new language calls for a task force that updates the model for the prevention of this abusive behavior through the creation of a Joint Labor-Management Committee (JLMC)to develop best practices. “Bullying and violence can be reduced with a more diligent approach,” Price added. “At the same time, we reduce the devastating physical and emotional consequences, as well as lost productivity.”

At today’s Master Table, we reached a tentative agreement with the State on 16 different contract sections; all but one govern health and safety and working conditions.

3.1 Union Security
10.1 Health and Safety Commitment
10.2 Health and Safety Committees
10.3 Occupational Hazards
10.4 Injury and Illness Prevention Programs
10.7 Protective Clothing (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
10.9 Safety Equipment (Excludes Units 15, 17, and 21)
10.10 Medical Monitoring (Excludes Units 14, 17, and 21)
10.13 Access to Work Areas 24 Hours (Excludes Units 17 and 21)
10.14 Personal Alarms (Excludes Units 15, 17, and 21)
10.18 Referral of Assault/Battery
10.19 Assaultive Behavior (Excludes Units 3 and 17)
10.23 Independent Medical Examinations
10.25 Infectious Disease Control (Excludes Units 15, 17, 20, and 21)
10.26 Precautions Against Exposure to Bloodborne Pathogens
10.27 Remodeling/Renovations and Repairs
10.29 Smoking Cessation

And, we submitted another three “roll over” sections to the State, proposing that we preserve and maintain existing language from previous contract wins. “Remember that none of our contract language is guaranteed until we reach tentative agreement,” Green added. “We fight to ensure all these rights, hundreds of contract sections, every time we bargain with the State.”

10.11 Hazardous Materials (Excludes Unit 17)
10.28 Pest Control
10.30 Health and Safety Grievances

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our next Master Table session is scheduled for May 10, as we continue the fight to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

No Master Table Bargaining Session for Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Recap
for Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Our Master Table bargaining team returned for their second session with the State and presented two key proposals—among others—that make a strong demand for a new contract that responds to the top priorities identified by our members:

The first was a proposal for a 30% general salary increase for all represented workers; 12% in the fist year, and 9% in each of the succeeding two years, along with a proposal that would provide our represented employees with 100% paid health care coverage.

“Local 1000 represented workers are done sacrificing,” said Irene Green, Vice President for Bargaining. “Too often, civil service workers are considered a burden, a liability, when discussions turn to the state budget or California’s fiscal health. And those civil service workers—who continue to provide vital services to all Californians—are losing ground.”

“Wages that don’t keep up are a measure of disrespect,” added Green. “The State can’t recruit or retain employees, resulting in a nearly 25% vacancy rate across the nine bargaining units we represent—creating unreasonable workloads.”

Our proposal for a general salary increase came much earlier in the process than in past contract campaigns, signaling to the state our commitment to win the #1 bargaining priority for our members.

In addition, we proposed stronger language in five different articles, expanding the rights we’ve already achieved in these areas:

5.11 – Dignity Clause – changed “supervisors and managers” to include all workers, including contractors
8.3 – Bereavement Leave – added language to include all spouses and domestic partners
8.10 – Release Time for State Civil Service Examinations – added lateral transfers to the list of approved activities
8.32 – Personal Leave Program (PLP) 2010 and 2012 – included PLP 2020 under this article, ensuring like treatment for all PLPs, including the ability to cash out
9.1 Health Benefits – proposes 100% paid health care benefits for eligible employees

Our team secured a “tentative agreement” on five different “rollover” articles, preserving hard-won contract rights achieved in previous negotiations. (“Rollover” is language contained in the previous contract that both parties agree not to change and maintain in the new contract.)

5.3 – Individual Agreements Prohibited
5.4 – Savings Clause
5.5. – Reprisals
8.20 – Blood Donation Programs
16.1, 16.2, 16.3, 16.4, 16.5 – Layoff

On Monday, April 24, four bargaining units (11, 15, 20, and 21) will go to the table for a second time to address unit-specific issues that were brought forth during the bargaining town halls and from the bargaining surveys. On Tuesday, April 25, five units (1,3, 4, 14, and 17) will hold their second bargaining session.

The Bargaining Team will meet again at the Master Table on May 3, as we continue the fight to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us. To read about what happened in all our bargaining sessions to date, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Master Table Bargaining Recap for
Wednesday, April 12, 2023

Launching the union-wide effort to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us, our member-elected Bargaining Team met with the State for the first time today to negotiate. Today’s session was at the “master table,” where issues that impact all of our 96,000 represented employees are negotiated.

In her opening remarks, Vice President for Bargaining and Chief Negotiator Irene Green underscored the top priority for our members: a pay increase that brings much-needed financial stability and dignity to state workers, one that reflects the real value of the services that our members provide to the residents of California.

“Too many state workers are struggling to make ends meet,” Green said. “When 35 percent of our represented employees don’t earn enough to support a family of four when 70% can’t support themselves and one child, and when nearly 5,000 civil service workers don’t make enough to provide for their own basic needs … it’s a crisis that we must work together to address.”

In today’s session, our team presented a number of contract articles for “rollover,” a term you’ll hear used to describe parts of the contract that don’t require negotiation this cycle. Today’s rollover articles govern the relationship between Local 1000 and the State, grievance and arbitration procedures, and the layoff process.

On Monday, April 17, four bargaining units (11, 15, 20, and 21) will go to the table for the first time in 2023. They will begin their work to address unit-specific issues that were brought forth during the bargaining town halls and from the bargaining surveys. On Tuesday, April 18, five units (1,3, 4, 14, and 17) will hold their first sessions at the table. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, April 19.

Each day following bargaining, we’ll email summaries and post them online to our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Thousands of members—in hundreds of worksites across the state—purpled up and stood up to demonstrate their solidarity and support for the bargaining team and a great contract. We hope you’ll join them every Wednesday to echo our demand to the state to Respect Us … Protect Us … and Pay Us!

There’s real truth to the Local 1000 slogan, Stronger Together. We only win a great contract with a strong Local 1000 membership. If you’re not a member, join us today.

Highlights from Unit 1 Tentative Agreement

At the master table, we negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications across all units, maintained the health care stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor in to our state income. Our general salary increase, our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.

Here are the highlights from the Unit 1 (Professional, Administrative, Financial and Staff Services) bargaining table:

82 different classifications in Unit 1 received pay increases ranging from 2.5% and more (11.1.1 Special Salary Increases) and 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

We added additional levels of differential pay for eligible Personnel Specialists, up to $4800 in new language found in 11.25.1 – Personnel and Payroll Specialist: Recruitment & Retention Differential (Unit 1). The breakdown is as follows: 12 or more months- $2400; 24 or more months- $3,000: 36 or more- $3,600 and 48 or more months- $4800.

The Lottery sales incentive bonus (11.27.1) has been increased for the first time in decades and now includes stronger language defining the parameters of how the bonus is achieved. The bonus dollar amounts were increased by 12% at each level.

Unit 1 members who work at the California Department of Insurance (CDI) and hold an Accredited Financial Examiner (AFE) or Certified Fraud Examiner (CFE) certification issued by the Society of Financial Examiners who may be required by their job duties to conduct financial examinations of foreign insurers or act as the examiner in charge of a multi-state insurer will receive a $3600 bonus, subject to eligibility.

We’ve added the Health Program Specialist II classification to the pay differential (CalHR differential 412) to contract section 11.32.1

A 5% Educational Pay Differential (11.M1.1) will be paid to Management Services Technicians, working at the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR’s) Division of Workers’ Compensation and Workers’ Compensation Appeal Board, who obtain a certification of completion or proficiency from a California-recognized court reporting school.

Unit 1 employees who are FLSA-exempt, working at CAL FIRE are eligible for Pay Differential 63 – Incident Command Assignment (ICA) differential pay. (11.M2.1)

We won a Recruitment and Retention differential at the California Department of Education (CDE) ranging from 5-10%. 11.M3.1 – California Department of Education Local Assistant Budget Development Pay Differential (Unit 1) offers the differential to Staff Services Analysts and Associate Government Program analysts who are directly involved in local assistance cost and caseload estimate, and estimate methodologies submitted as part of the May budget revision, final budget, and all subsequent budget actions.

Five different classifications working at California Department of Social Services (CDSS) Disability Determination Services Division (DDSD) are eligible for a new Recruitment and Retention differential ranging from $2000-$3000 annually. 11.M4.1 offers the pay to Disability Evaluation Analyst I, II, or III, Staff Services Analyst, or Associate Governmental Program Analyst classifications.

We maintained our rights regarding the Information Technology Joint Apprenticeship Committee (5.20.1), pushing back against the State’s efforts to change the process and diminish Local 1000’s role. We also preserved a related section, 13.4.1 Information Technology (IT) Apprenticeship Agency Linkage Agreement (Unit 1).

We were able to preserve the IT Reclassification Committee language in 5.21.1.

For the Television Specialists (14.10.1), the State has agreed to conduct a classification and specification review during the term of this contract

At the master table, we were able to preserve 11.8 – Correctional Case Records Analyst Recruitment and Retention Differential of $2400.

“These are just highlights and economic gains. There are many other contract rights that were preserved, and nearly all Unit 1 language was left intact,” said Susan Rodriguez, Unit 1 Bargaining Chair. “Our Unit 1 team was diligent and thorough, and every issue got our full effort. We work to advance Unit 1 in every bargaining cycle, and we will continue that effort.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 1 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Bargaining Unit 1 Update: Friday, August 4, 2023

Your Unit 1 bargaining team is still awaiting a response from the State regarding our proposed Special Salary Adjustments. Our team has been putting pressure on the State to continue this conversation, and we are hopeful to see some movement or response in the coming bargaining sessions. Our Unit 1 table has approximately 10 outstanding items — with most outstanding items awaiting State responses — and the team remains ready to meet on these Unit issues at a moment’s notice.

The Unit 1 bargaining team is excited to see all of our fellow members actively participating in worksite pickets and events. Please keep up the great work and take part in all events near you. Our POWER lies with you.

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Monday, July 19, 2023

Your Unit 1 bargaining team met with the State on Tuesday, July 18. Our discussions focused on demanding greater respect for our represented employees at EDD and on preserving their hard-earned rights.

We’re pressing the State to retain the Permanent Intermittent conversion language as is. At the same time, we’re pushing the State for additional responses and movement on our key economic proposals.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?

Unit 1 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Your Unit 1 bargaining team is reaching out to give you an update on our negotiations on behalf of the Professional, Administrative, Financial, and Staff Services we represent.

Our last Unit 1 bargaining session with the State was on June 27. A number of Unit 1 proposals are still outstanding, and another group of Unit 1-related proposals—largely economic—are being negotiated at the master table. “A number of key issues for Unit 1, such as Article 12.1 Business and Travel, are master table issues, and we are focusing on those at this time,” said Susan Rodriguez, Unit 1 chair. We continue to make sure that we are moving Unit 1 forward.

If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to unit1@seiu1000.org. We will respond and answer your questions as quickly as possible as much as our bargaining schedule will allow.

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?

Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

What is the status of our contract?

As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the State. Our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30. Please remember that the $260 health care stipend had a June 30 sunset clause, and will not be included in your August paycheck. That issue is part of our current negotiations.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?

As the bargaining team works to achieve meaningful progress at the table, it’s important that we keep our focus on Union solidarity and strength building. It’s true, that in order for our demands to be heard, Local 1000-represented employees need to stand together. More than ever, taking action in the workplace is an important show of strength. More actions will follow, but stand up now for a contract that Respects Us! Protects Us! and Pays Us!

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Our Unit 1 team—pressing to advance the pay and working conditions of our represented employees—met with the State on Saturday and again on Monday. While several tentative agreements were reached, we’re still awaiting answers on our economic proposals as we continue our fight for a number of Unit 1 classifications.

In several areas, we felt the State’s repeated resistance to recognize the commitment and contribution of Unit 1 employees, and the battles are heated and lacking a reasonable outcome, in some cases.

In one example, we were unable to reach agreement on a performance incentive for the Actuary classes. It’s troubling that the plan was created by a joint State/Union task force and recommended for new contract language by the State. It’s a frustrating conclusion after a long-time effort and multiple counteroffers.

Our efforts to update the 30-year California State Lottery Sales Incentive Bonus (affecting both Units 1 and 4) are still unresolved. Like the Actuary program, the results of a two-year effort by a joint State/Union work group are still being ironed out in the bargaining arena. We’re additionally frustrated by the State’s recent presentation of a counterproposal that left out any mention of economics. Our efforts on this issue continue.

EDD continues to use and abuse Permanent Intermittents without any effort to convert those workers to full-time status. What’s clear is that the State wants to create a “ghost workforce” that they can grow and shrink according to their needs, so much so that they’d like to take away our hard-won contract section 18.2.1 EDD PI’s Conversion and Ratio, altogether, or “hold it in abeyance” for three years.

By not observing previously-negotiated PI ratios and having a portion of EDD’s employee roster as “at will” employees, they’re creating real economic uncertainty for those workers. We continue the fight on this issue as our current contract comes to an end.

While Unit 1 is still waiting for responses on a range of economic proposals, including Special Salary Adjustments, we did reach tentative agreement on rollover language that preserves our current rights:

21.5.1 – Work Space Allocation
13.7.1 – Performance Standards

With just a few days remaining before our contract expires, Unit 1 is on standby to meet once again with the State to resolve outstanding issues. When we meet, you’ll read it here first!

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Our Unit 1 bargaining team reports a big day. The team reached ten different tentative agreements with the State, seven of which were economic proposals. We’re building some momentum as we face the June 30 expiration of our current contract, due in large part to the pressure we’re applying weekly to bring home a good contract for our members.

Today’s success was clouded by more frustrating behavior by State negotiators. The team saw numerous examples where the State appeared disinterested, unprepared, or lacked the authority for substantive bargaining.

“We’re getting a request to ‘discuss concepts,’ rather than the typical back-and-forth bargaining methodology,” said Susan Rodriguez. The State seems to be asking to see our cards before we play them instead of showing us their position through written responses. “We can’t make real progress until we see actual, written responses to our proposals, especially to our economic proposals.

We’re fighting to continue the reclass efforts for nearly 9,000 Information Technology workers by rolling over language from the last contract that would allow our Union and the State to review the impacts of their salary structure after a comprehensive change in IT classifications. Even though the State agrees this part of the reclass hasn’t been completed, they initially pushed back by proposing to delete the language that would allow discussions between our Union and the State to continue. But ultimately we prevailed and will be able to address this in the coming months after we win our contract.

“While we’ve trained and prepared as a bargaining team with the goal of advancing our members, we feel like CalHR (State negotiators) doesn’t know how to make progress in bargaining,” said Vincent Green, Unit 1 team member.

We experienced similar issues with the State’s behavior over our long-ignored demand to update the CA Lottery’s Scratchers sales bonus. “This bonus hasn’t been changed in 25 years, while the Lottery’s revenue has grown to $9 billion,” said team member and District Sales Representative Mike Ramos. “We talk concepts, but we still haven’t seen a formal counter-proposal.”

Our fight continues for a solution to the EDD Permanent Intermittent ratios and fair treatment for our members. We are pushing to continue the current ratios of permanent intermittent employees, so the State continues to hire enough permanent full-time Unit 1 employees to complete the work.

Our Unit 1 team reached tentative agreement on ten different contract sections today. Of those, nine were roll-over language, wins from previous contract cycles, while one had a language change. Seven of those TAs were economic proposals.

5.21.1 – IT Reclassification Committee
11.22.1 – Institutional Worker Supervision Pay
11.23.1 – Out of State Pay Differential
11.24.1 – Bay Area Recruitment and Retention Pay Differential
11.26.1 – Arduous Duty Differential for FLSA employees
11.29.1 – Investment Officer I, II and III, Incentive Award Program
11.31.1 – Chartered Financial Analyst Pay Differential
11.33.1 – Hearing Reporters, PUC, Pay Differential
13.15.1 – EDD Determinations Schedule (language change)
Side Letter 12.1 – CalEPA Agreement

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 27. However, with just ten days remaining until our contract expires, bargaining sessions could happen at any time.

To keep updated, and to see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you are a member, help support the bargaining team by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

While the Unit 1 bargaining team has worked each week to advance the wages and working conditions of its represented employees, the State has been largely unresponsive, and the team’s frustration is growing.

Today, some incremental progress was made, reaching four tentative agreements on rollover language that preserve previous contract rights. But today, the State flatly rejected four proposals (three economic and one governing working conditions), and our team’s frustration grew.

“Not interested” was the State’s repeated answer when pressed hard for reasons behind these rejections. Our interpretation: the State’s not interested in showing Unit 1 employees respect.

Two of the rejections were proposals that were made after a joint (state-union) task force made recommendations to help with recruitment and retention for the Actuary classes. “Not interested,” said the State.

“Apparently the State isn’t committed to following its own recommendations,” said Stuart Bennett, Unit 1 team member and CalPERS actuary.

Another example: Our effort to protect FLSA-exempt workers from crushing workloads and unreasonable work-hour expectations was also met with “not interested.” “They’re ‘not interested’ in improving working conditions or the well-being of Unit 1 employees,” added team member Joyce Wheeler Owens.

The Unit 1 team is reviewing the State’s responses and contemplating the next steps. We are still waiting to receive responses on 16 outstanding proposals.

Here are the four contract sections we reached an agreement with the State on today.

21.10.1 – Incompatible Activities
12.17.1 – PERS Auditor Affiliation
14.9.1 – Classification Study: Investigative Auditor Work Classification Study
14.12.1 – Personnel and Payroll Joint Management Workload Committee

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1 is scheduled to return to the table next week, on June 20. To see updates on other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you are a member, help support the bargaining team by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

One of the goals of the Unit 1 bargaining team is to improve and protect working conditions, contained in those contract sections that govern how and where we do our work. Those hard-earned rights are often as important as economic issues.

Today, we continued our back-and-forth discussions about, literally, employee workspaces. Article 21.5.1—Work Space Allocation sets standards for desk and office assignments based on job classification and other criteria. It’s your home for, often, 40 hours or more each week and we want to ensure the standards are clear and enforced.

Unit 1 team members Beth Bartel, Frank Askin, and Vincent Green led the discussion and supported the notion that current contract guidance has standards that the State hopes to remove. Negotiations continue …

We reached a tentative agreement on four “rollover” provisions that maintain previous contract wins; three of them govern working conditions while a fourth continues reimbursement for job-related license fees.

14.13.1 – Lead Responsibilities
19.9.1 – Exchange of Time Off (Multi-shift Operations)
19.13.1 – Overtime Assignments for Work Week Group 2 (WWG2) Employees
12.18.1 – Professional License Fees

We also reached tentative agreement on contract section 1.2.1 – Designation of Confidential Positions, which contains stronger language governing your working conditions rights.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Today, Bargaining Chair Susan Rodriguez pressed the State for responses, inquiring about the status of more than 20 proposals that remain unanswered by the State, including some that were presented more than a month ago. “Many key issues remain, and with just over three weeks left before the contract expires, it’s time for the State to engage now,” said Rodriguez.

Unit 1 is scheduled to return to the table next week, on June 13. To see updates on other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s Mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Frustration reigned at today’s Unit 1 bargaining table.

One of Local 1000’s long-fought battles to improve our service to California through EDD—a battle lasting more than 15 years—was again rejected by State negotiators. Contract section 13.15.1 was yet another effort to change and improve the UI determination schedule.

After more than a decade of discussion, education, conversation, and relationship building, the State once again refused to consider any changes. The State’s reply indicated the program is too complicated to change and with current projects in place it would have an upstream impact.

Meanwhile, a post-pandemic backlog remains. Claims responses are taking from 20-40 days, when the system should be providing an answer in 7-10 days.

“I was hopeful that both EDD and the state could recognize that it’s not the best fit and to hear that EDD has other priorities and this [the people we serve] is not the priority,” said Unit 1 Chair Susan Rodriguez.

“I’m very disappointed that after so many years EDD doesn’t want to reflect and consider changes. EDD staff will be extremely disappointed. We have proposed reasonable improvements to management that they won’t consider because of their own priorities,” added Joyce Wheeler-Owens of the bargaining team. “EDD is ignoring the need to allot sufficient time to provide quality service to EDD clients.”

Unit 1 also proposed a new section that reflects the professional and FLSA-exempt status of its represented employees. It’s an effort to improve the working conditions we faced and to ensure the opportunity for a reasonable work-life balance.

Unit 1 team member Vincent Green works in IT at DVA. “We understand work has to be done and sometimes it will be long hours. When the state shut down, it was people like me who were told ‘we need to have everyone work from home; servers have to be accessed’. Fast forward 3 years people are now coming in 1-2 days a week, so now more work needs to be done. We understand operational needs. But what is a pain point for us is we cannot have work-life balance.”

Our Unit 1 team continues to press the State to advance the workers we represent, but a lack of response to our proposals (now a total of 22) is an ongoing theme. “The State’s not demonstrating interest in our efforts, and they’re not acting like they’re interested in becoming a better employer,” added Green.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for June 6. To read about what happened in our other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Unit 1 is a diverse group of professional classifications who are committed to providing vital state services, taking pride in their work.

Today, the Unit 1 team focused its efforts on stronger language governing our performance reviews (contract section 13.7.1 – Performance Standards). Our goal was to ensure that the State acknowledges that neither duty statements, expectations memos, nor performance standards require error free work.

“We are not machines, and we want to make sure the departments understand that,” said Susan Rodriguez, Unit 1 Chair. “At the worksite level, there has not been a lot of grace surrounding something as simple as a typographical error.”

“Error-free standards slow down productivity, and this is why we have checks and balances to help develop and cultivate employees,” said Beth Bartel of the Unit 1 team.

After our presentation, the State caucused and came back with a flat rejection of our changes, proposing to “roll over” the existing language. Why? The State’s team claimed the language change would diminish their ability to “write employees up” and claimed they weren’t using references to “error-free” in their job communications.

We fought back. Several team members read currently-issued department communications that proved the State wrong, including one expectations memo from DMV that said, in part, “free from typographical errors…”

Shelia Byars, a DMV employee on the Unit 1 team said, “We would like to understand how that is possible. As someone that has been writing hearing decisions for years, I do my best, but I don’t know how I can guarantee there will be no typos. This has never been in an expectations memo before.”

Myriad examples of the State’s frustrating behavior surfaced; team member Karen Devoll shared instances where CCRAs precisely followed department orders in calculating release dates, then were written up for errors those instructions caused. “I take pride in what I do,” said Karen. “I’m also a human being, not a machine.”

We will continue to demand that the State Respect Us!

Today’s other key bargaining theme was the State’s continued lack of response to our proposals. While Unit 1 continues the effort to advance our represented employees, the State’s lead negotiator says he’s “not authorized” and “doesn’t have the direction to move forward.” Still, the June 30 deadline looms large, and Unit 1 Chair Susan Rodriguez continues to press the State for responses to 20 unanswered proposals.

“Unit 1 comes to the table prepared to bargain in a professional and productive manner, and we are deeply disappointed by the State’s response,” said Joyce Wheeler Owens of Unit 1’s team.

We did reach agreement on three earlier proposals, all rollovers of previous contract wins:

12.16.1 – Aviation Safety Officer (Unit 1)
12.24.1 – Extended Travel, Department of Insurance (Unit 1)
13.10.1 – Education and Training (Unit 1)

Unit 1 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, May 30. To see updates on other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

In a day marked by highs and lows, our Unit 1 bargaining team— Professional Administrative, Financial, and Staff Services—returned to the table with State negotiators, continuing the fight to demand recognition and respect for the Unit 1 employees we represent.

Facing untenable workloads because of a unit-wide vacancy rate of 1 in 4 jobs, we are pleased at reaching tentative agreement on contract section 5.17.1 – Recruitment and Retention Committee (Unit 1).

“This R and R committee is an important tool for Unit 1, and retaining the committee in our contract empowers us to talk about solutions before the situation gets worse,” said Susan Rodriguez, Unit 1 Chair. You’ll recall that just last week, we used the work of the committee established by 5.17.1 to inform a range of economic proposals presented.

On the other side of the day’s ledger, we were shocked by a State-originated proposal to delete contract section 18.2.1- EDD PI’s Conversion and Ratio (Unit 1).

The battle over the use (and numbers) of Permanent Intermittent employees is a long one, stretching back more than a decade. The State claims the deletion of the entire section allows the department to respond to unexpected workload demand brought on by recession or pandemic. Here’s the challenge: across the long fight and many “economic challenges,” EDD has struggled to comply with the conversion and ratios spelled out in the contract.

“This an unacceptable affront to our demand for respect,” said Carolyn Alluis, Unit 1 bargaining team member. “It’s another example of ignoring the full-time staff, already overworked, without new full-time hires. Who will do the work when qualified employees leave due to a lack of respect?”

In addition, we gave the State a counter proposal on Section 13.15.1 – EDD Determination Scheduling Standard. “We will continue the fight to achieve reasonable workloads and the respect the EDD workforce deserves for their commitment and service,” added Unit 1 Chair Susan Rodriguez.

We reached tentative agreement on four additional contract sections, “rollovers” that keep our hard-earned rights intact.

13.16.1 – Employee Recognition and Morale Program – Franchise Tax Board (FTB), Board of Equalization (BOE), California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) and Office of Tax Appeals (OTA) (Unit 1)
13.17.1 – Independent Research/Professional Papers (Unit 1)
Side Letter 8.1 – EDD Tax Tools October 19, 2000
Side Letter 9.1 – EDD Quality Assurance Review (QAR)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 23. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Unit 1 is our Union’s largest and most diverse bargaining unit, representing classifications in Professional Administrative, Financial, and Staff Services … and today, one in four Unit 1 positions are vacant. Workloads are untenable, driving the loss of qualified employees and diminishing our service to the state.

Today, we proposed a series of pay adjustments intended to reward the value of our Unit 1 employees, and we did it with presentations made by four members of our bargaining team and five additional Unit 1 subject matter experts from across the state.

We believe that our path to respect is to tell the real story of state workers and to prevent the State from considering us as line items on a spreadsheet.

“I’m proud to serve the public with these people,” said Susan Rodriguez, Unit 1 Chair. “Today they will tell you (the State) about the work they do and how they serve our communities and our constituents.”

We proposed Special Salary Adjustments (SSA) for 56 classifications in 27 different series. Members of the Unit 1 Bargaining Team who made presentations were:

Carolyn Alluis, Management Services Technician, DIR
Delores Bonner, Staff Services Analyst, DOT
Jean Colyer, Right of Way Agent, DOT
Gina Crawford, Research Data Specialist II, CalPERS

They were joined by five additional Unit 1 subject matter experts:

David Aguinaldo, Business Tax Specialist I, CDTFA
Cloria “CJ” Barnes, Personnel Specialist, CDCR
Dan Gargas, Aviation Safety Officer II, DOT
Michelle Levy, Senior Legal Analyst, DOJ Attorney General’s Office
Tommy Rico, Television Specialist, CDCR

“I’m advocating for a change in a classification that hasn’t been touched by the state since 1990, the year I was born.” – Tommy Rico

“I’m stressed by the changes over many years that have made my classification more demanding, and more in demand.” – Michelle Levy

“We’re demanding Respect for our contribution, to Pay Us for our commitment, and to Protect Us to keep the quality of our life from slipping further behind in this economy.” – Jean Colyer

“One machine can do the work 50 ordinary men, but no machine can do the work of an extraordinary Personnel Specialist.” – Cloria Barnes

Another new proposal addresses Recruitment and Retention adjustments in 10 different series and a total of 29 classifications. These were identified in a report jointly created by a team from Local 1000 and CalHR. You can read the report here on the Unit 1 website. Of note: This committee and the report was itself the result of Article 5.17.1, a win from our 2020 contract, addressing this important issue.

We presented one additional proposal, Article 11.XXXX.1 – Operational Availability Incentive Program, DWR (Unit 1). This mirrors an existing program in Unit 11. And, keeping our negotiations moving forward, we reached a tentative agreement with the State on Article 21.6.1, Hearst Castle Night Tours.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 16. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Back at the table with the State today, our Unit 1 Bargaining Team continued to present contract proposals that reinforce our demand to be Respected, Protected, and Paid.

Overall, the State has been slow to respond to proposals our Unit 1 team has been presenting over the last three weeks. One response was received today, on the language we proposed that would enable EPRs working at EDD the ability to manage their workload, do their job better, and improve the quality of the service EDD provides.

The State pushed back on Article 13.15.1 – EDD Determinations Scheduling Standard—with a counteroffer, and worse, without clear justification for their pushback.

“The State continues to disrespect our EPRs demand for a change in working conditions by saying ‘no’ while failing to make any effort to bring an idea of any kind,” said Joyce Wheeler Owens, a long-standing member of the bargaining team who works at EDD/San Diego.

Bargaining Chair Susan Rodriguez, added, “This critical issue has been on the table for more than a decade, and the State, once again, fails to understand how their ignorance of the issue and their failure to act impacts us.”

Today, we presented two new proposals with origins in a hard-fought, two-year reclassification campaign for members working in six different Actuary classifications. You can read more about the reclass campaign here.

One new proposal calls for a five percent pay differential for a range of professional credentials and certifications held and maintained by an Actuary, along with the costs of education, testing, and certification.

Another new proposal calls for the establishment of an Incentive Award Program for employees in the various Actuary Classifications.

“Our goal has been for the employer to reward our professional expertise and the quality of the work we do,” said Stuart Bennett, an Actuary at CalPERS who also worked on the reclass campaign. “These articles are an extension of the reclass agreement that recognizes our skills and places additional value on the goal of recruitment and retention.”

In today’s session, the Unit 1 team also proposed the rollover of eight different articles from our current contract which would preserve hard-won economic rights won in previous contract campaigns:

Article 11 – Salaries

11.29.1 Investment Officer III and II, Incentive Award Program (Unit 1)
11.30.1 Professional Certification Pay (Unit 1)
11.31.1 Chartered Financial Analyst Pay Differential (Unit 1)
11.32.1 Research Data Specialist III Pay Differential (Unit 1)
11.33.1 Hearing Reporters – California Public Utilities Commission (PUC) (Unit 1)

Article 12 – Allowances and Reimbursements

12.16.1 Aviation Safety Officer (Unit 1)
12.17.1 PERS Auditor Affiliation (Unit 1)
12.18.1 Professional License Fees (Unit 1)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 9. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Our Unit 1 Bargaining Team returned to the table with the State on Tuesday, April 25. It’s our largest bargaining unit, representing a diverse group of professionals, and today’s session focused on parts of our contract that affect the represented employees at EDD.

“The working conditions at EDD have been a Local 1000 focus for some time,” says Unit 1 Chair Susan Rodriguez. “We’ve had an ongoing discussion with the department at every bargaining cycle and numerous times in between.”

“Workloads at EDD are an issue we worked to correct today,” Rodriguez added. “We proposed language that would allow EPRs the ability to do their job better and to improve the quality of the service they provide.”

The new language in Article 13.15.1 – EDD Determinations Scheduling Standard – increases the time allotted for determination interviews.

Unit 1 made additional progress today, reaching tentative agreement on a number of articles that were either “rolled over” (leaving existing hard-won rights unchanged) or “cleaned up” (making changes to improve the accuracy or clarity of the existing language without modifying the article’s intent or impact).

Two of the articles agreed upon today preserved Joint Labor Management Committees, which are powerful tools Unit 1 uses to continue the effort to improve working conditions between contract cycles.

5.15.1 – Joint Labor Management Committee
8.23.1 – Employment Development Department (EDD) Vacation Leave Policy
21.8.1 – EDD America’s Job Center of California
5.14.1 – Guide, Historical Monument Joint Labor Management Committee
12.19.1 – Actuary Dues-Department of Insurance

One additional article is still pending, 20.1.1, which governs EDD’s Post and Bid Agreement.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 1’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 2. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1—representing a diverse group of classifications in Professional Administrative, Financial, and Staff Services—went to the bargaining table with State negotiators on April 19 and hit the ground running with five tentative agreements on their first day of negotiation.

“Our Unit 1 team has worked diligently since the last contract negotiations in 2019 to prepare for this,” said Susan Rodriguez, Unit 1 Bargaining Chair. “A number of taskforces, joint labor-management committees (JLMCs), and workgroups were established during that time to open up the dialogue surrounding key issues for Unit 1. We will present contract proposals that address the joint recommendation of those groups.”

“With such a diverse bargaining unit, representing many different skill sets, we’ve found the workgroups, taskforces, and JLMCs to be powerful tools to continue negotiating for better working conditions,” Susan said. “In fact, two of our agreements today keep those groups in place.”

Unit 1 presented five contract articles to the state for “rollover,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The State agreed, and thus, a “tentative agreement” was reached on these five articles:

11.28.1 –         California State Lottery (CSL) Business Building Incentive (BBI) Program
5.13.1 –            Correctional Case Records Analyst Workload Committee
5.16.1 –            Disability Determination Services Division (DDSD) Joint Labor Management Committee
21.7.1 –            Organizational Development
21.9.1 –            Business Cards

Of particular note: in reaching an agreement on 5.13.1, the State recognized the importance of the need for continued effort in solving workload and other issues in the Correctional Case Records Analyst classification.

Unit 1’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for April 25. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 3 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 3 Tentative Agreement

At the master table, we negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, maintained the health care stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor into our state income. Our general salary increase, our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.

Here are the highlights from the Unit 3 (Professional Educators and Librarians) bargaining table:

7 different classifications in Unit 3 received pay increases of 5% (11.1.3 Special Salary Increases). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

We won a new language that pays a $500 differential to 3 teaching classifications at the Porterville Developmental Center (XX.XX.3).

Coaches and assistant coaches at our Special Schools, in four different groups, will receive an increased Coaching Differential (22.10.3) of approximately 10%

We preserved the Bargaining Unit 3 Classification and Compensation Committee (5.19.3). It’s an avenue to discuss compensation, credentialing, and the broader issues impacting recruitment and retention.

We maintained the employer’s health benefit contribution (9.1.3) for each employee for an updated amount equal to 80%, depending on Party Code.

Unit 3 employees will now enjoy the greater latitude to schedule medical appointments during the work day with an updated Hours of Work section (19.1.3)

Contract section 21.12.3 Student Discipline continues to engage the Union and the State together in the development of a written discipline program.

Stronger language in 21.25.3- Work Assignment Notification firms up management timeliness and ensures a more legitimate written explanation is provided to employees when change happens. A similar contract section 22.3.3 also has stronger language to ensure that Unit 3 members in Special Schools are getting noticed of work assignment change as soon possible.

Expanded language in 22.1.3 – Discipline and Discharge-Special Schools allows employees to have a support person and, if needed, reasonable accommodations during a disciplinary meeting with their employer as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act.

Employees at the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR)/Office of Correctional Education (OCE) are now granted greater input into the creation of the 220 Day Academic Year calendar. (25.1.3)

We expanded language to allow Unit 3 employees greater planning and control of their individual development programs and career improvement. (25.7.3)

We won substantially new and improved salary schedule placement language for vocational instructors. The contract section (25.13.3) recognizes their professional skills and places them on the salary schedule accordingly.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 3 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Our Unit 3 bargaining team continues to work collaboratively with the State to advance the interests of those Professional Educators and Librarians we represent. And, collaboration is a central theme to our negotiations: our proposals are crafted to foster a better working relationship with management.

Our goal in many cases is incremental change. In some cases, we’ve gone back and forth four or five times in an effort to improve working conditions and collaboration. We want our final negotiations to be more easily interpreted, more widely executed, and if necessary, easy to enforce. Words matter!

Negotiations will continue on an irregular schedule; we’re ready to continue bargaining anytime, but we’re slowed because the State doesn’t share our sense of urgency.

Still at issue: proposals for class size, work assignments, academic year modification, and credits for salary advancement, plus those economic proposals that have been moved to the master table.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?

Unit 3 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Your Unit 3 bargaining team is reaching out to give you an update on our negotiations on behalf of the Professional Educators we represent. Our last Unit 3 bargaining session with the State was on June 27. A number of Unit 3 proposals are still outstanding, and another group of Unit 3-related proposals—largely economic—are being negotiated at the master table.

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?
Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

What is the status of our contract?
As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the State. Our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30. Please remember that the $260 health care stipend had a June 30 sunset clause, and will not be included in your August paycheck. That issue is part of our current negotiations.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?
As the bargaining team works to achieve meaningful progress at the table, it’s important that we keep our focus on Union solidarity and strength building. It’s true, that in order for our demands to be heard, Local 1000-represented employees need to stand together. More than ever, taking action in the workplace is an important show of strength. More actions will follow, but stand up now for a contract that Respects Us! Protects Us! and Pays Us!

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Having discretionary leave time for Unit 3 teachers, who work a rigid schedule, is important to maintain a work/life balance. Towards that goal, our team pushed hard for contract language that would grant that leave to our Professional Educators and Librarians.

Earlier today, the plight of Local 1000-represented employees was captured in a Sacramento Bee news report. Click here to read this compelling story, which includes one of our Unit 3 employees.

Today we worked on five different contract sections, and the State was unwilling to make any changes. We discussed a scheduling flexibility that’s reasonable and available to other units, and despite our efforts to find some latitude, our proposals were rejected. Ironically, our Unit 3 team has been bargaining this week during their contract-mandated vacation time.

Through a rollover agreement, we were able to preserve contract section 22.4.3, Personal Leave. In addition, other sections regarding leaves remained unchanged.

In all, we reached agreement on 21 different contract sections, all rollover language that maintains our previous contract wins:

8.21.3 9-12, 10-12, and 11-12 Leave (Unit 3)
8.28.3 Educational Leave (Unit 3)
25.3.3 Educational Leave (Unit 3)
25.5.3 Vacation/Annual Leave (Unit 3)
22.4.3 Personal Leave Days – Special Schools (Unit 3)
16.6.3 Special School Teacher Layoff (Unit 3)
17.12.3 Retirement Systems: State Teachers’ Retirement System (STRS) and Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS) (Unit 3)
22.5.3 Extra Duty Assignment – Special Schools (Unit 3)
23.1.3 Purpose (Unit 3)
23.2.3 Academic Work Year (Unit 3)
23.3.3 CDCR-DJJ Academic Calendar Annual Modification (Unit 3)
23.4.3 Additional Instructional Assignments (Unit 3)
23.5.3 Thirty (30) Day Summer Session Leave (Unit 3)
23.6.3 Education Leave (Unit 3)
23.7.3 Holidays (DJJ/CEA) (Unit 3)
23.8.3 Vacation (Unit 3)
23.9.3 Personal Necessity Leave (Unit 3)
23.10.3 CDCR, DJJ, Academic Teacher/Vocational Instructor Salary Schedule (Unit 3)
23.11.3 Credits for Salary Advancement (Unit 3)
23.12.3 INTENTIONALLY EXCLUDED
23.13.3 Bargaining Unit 3 Teacher Service Credit (Unit 3)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Still outstanding: A number of proposals that affect our working conditions and our pay. Our contract expires Friday, and Unit 3 is on call to meet again on short notice. When there’s a bargaining session, you’ll read about it here first!

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Saturday, June 24, 2023

SEIU Local 1000 bargaining team members are among our most committed Union activists; lots of prep, including a review of every town hall comment and bargaining summary. Your Unit 3 team continued those efforts with a rare Saturday bargaining session and is reporting additional progress with just a week to go before our contract expires.

In today’s session, we reached tentative agreement to roll over five contract sections from previous contract wins:

11.19.3 – Recruitment and Retention Differential
22.8.3 – State Special Schools Family Crisis Leave
25.6.3 – Personal Necessity Leave
25.8.3 – 220 Day Academic Work Year
25.10.3 – CDCR, OCE, 220 Day Academic Work Year – 4/10/40

The last two of these five agreements govern key parts of our work: the length of the school year, along with the length of time we work during that school year.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Still at issue: Our academic calendar (identified by our members as one of their key priorities). Our negotiations are nearly complete on this, and we hope to report progress next week.

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State is Tuesday, June 27. To read about what happened in our other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 29 Silent Protest March at the Capitol in Sacramento here.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Our Unit 3 team is making thoughtful progress for the Professional Educators and Librarians we represent, as we work to improve their economic status and the working conditions they face.

“We have more than a dozen proposals we’re close to reaching agreement with the State on,” said Bob Holtz, Unit 3 Bargaining Chair. “Our team is being thorough and rigorous in our approach to move us closer to achieving a good contract.”

Today, we received five counterproposals from the State and presented five counterproposals of our own. In addition, we presented a proposal to continue contract section 5.19.3, the Bargaining Unit 3 Classification and Compensation Committee, which allows us to keep working on pay parity and equity for a variety of classifications. And, we presented a proposal for several Special Salary Adjustments (SSA).

Still at issue: the academic calendar. This important contract section defines work schedules and leaves opportunities for the entire school year for our teachers. Over time, Unit 3 has lost its voice in developing the calendar, and it’s now unilaterally implemented by the Office of Correctional Education (OCE).

“The simple fact is that OCE needs teachers to implement and run their programs,” said Barbara Wheeler, Unit 3 bargaining team member. “They are either given the time off that they need, or they will take the time that they need. Educational programs would suffer and more importantly, the students will suffer.” Negotiations on this issue are still underway.

Here’s an example: Starting Monday, this year’s calendar has a two-week vacation break scheduled. Without a union voice in creating it, it’s inflexible and difficult to create exceptions.

But our Unit 3 bargaining team is committed and will be bargaining through this vacation to ensure a good contract for those they represent.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 27. However, with just ten days remaining until our contract expires, bargaining sessions could happen at any time.

To keep updated, and to see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

Our Unit 3 bargaining team has experienced six frustrating weeks where its intention to work collaboratively to advance the interests of our represented employees has been frustrating. We’ve made a number of proposals and had numerous discussions with little progress and very few answers.

Today, the logjam broke wide open, and our Unit 3 team is still frustrated.

“The State dumped more than 20 responses on us today, including some rejections, some counterproposals, and some proposed agreements, “said Bob Holtz, Unit 3 bargaining chair. “It’s a lot to process and deliberate about, and we’re unclear as to why the State’s doing this.”

“Typically, bargaining is a back-and-forth process every week. We need time to be thoughtful and to protect the rights of our members,” added Holtz.

A number of Unit 3’s economic proposals have been moved to the master table for negotiations. In the coming week, our team will parse out the State’s responses, and we’ll report our progress in upcoming summaries.

Unit 3’s next meeting with the state is Tuesday, June 20. To read about what happened in our other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

We’re reporting some good progress today at the Unit 3 bargaining table. Our Professional Educators and Librarians will benefit from the agreements we reached today, and we hope to continue those advances with some new proposals.

“In every case, we’re focused on the working conditions of our represented employees and their professional status,” said Unit 3 Chair Bob Holtz. “We are working collaboratively with the State to ensure situations that provide good outcomes for both parties.”

We reached tentative agreement with the State on three contract sections:

We rolled over section 21.16.3 – Professional Responsibility, protecting existing rights.

We added new language to 19.1.3 – Hours of Work. It’s a big win for Unit 3 because it adds language that allows the possibility of time off during student contact hours. This is an opportunity to achieve a greater work/life balance that the contract didn’t afford us before.

We also added new protections for our represented employees at the State Special Schools. We agreed on 22.1.3 – Discipline and Discharge. New language compels management to provide reasonable accommodations during representational discussions. The current contract ensures members who have needs for communications assistance—ASL interpreters for example—will receive that support during potential disciplinary discussions.

In addition, Unit 3 presented stronger language in two current contract articles:

We’re proposing that section 21.14.3 – Non-Instructional/Teacher Preparation Time – would specify a one-hour block of uninterrupted prep time for Unit 3.

New language in section 21.11.3 – Class Size – calls for an advisory committee to develop appropriate class sizes for all students served by our Unit 3 workers. As always, our goal is to ensure best practices to better serve students in a diverse population and create the best possible outcomes.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State is Tuesday, June 13. To read about what happened in our other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s Mansion here

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Unit 3—representing Professional Educators and Librarians—continued its efforts today to demand the respect and the pay that’s due to our members. It’s a key theme we’re using to guide our negotiations with the State to raise the principles and practices that govern our work to the level enjoyed by the broader educational system across California.

“We are providing quality educational services and deserve the recognition that’s accorded other members of our profession,” said Bob Holtz, Unit 3 Bargaining Chair.

Our focus today was to provide a more appropriate salary for the Teacher Specialists we represent, who work in the state’s diagnostic centers providing services for some of the most under-served kids in the system who face the most significant educational and developmental challenges. We’re also asking for a salary schedule that offers a greater incentive for career longevity.

Today’s Subject Matter Expert (SME) was Heather DeFelice, a Teacher Specialist in the SoCal diagnostic center, who spoke about why a more competitive salary was reasonable to solve recruitment and retention issues for a job that demands five years of experience and two advanced degrees.

“The gap between the salary of Diagnostic Center Teacher Specialists and school district specialists has widened. In general, we make less than the educators we support. Many of us have stayed because we believe in the mission, but we are paid more similarly to new graduates and now more of our teacher specialists are thinking about returning to neighboring school districts,” said Heather in her presentation to the State.

Heather’s testimony was in support of Article 22 and our efforts to increase pay at Special Schools, and we’ve had a number of SMEs in to speak on the topic.

We continue to focus on reaching agreement on sections relating to our Unit 3 members’ hours of work and work assignments. Those discussions are moving forward, incrementally. We also received some counter proposals from the State on several additional proposals, which we’ll review.

Finally, we reached tentative agreement with the State on section 22.2.2 – Academic Year-Special Schools, which we proposed as a roll over to continue previous contract protections.

You can review each of our current contract articles online at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State is scheduled for Tuesday, June 6. To read about what happened in all of our bargaining efforts, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Unit 3’s bargaining team launched its efforts to secure recognition for the professionalism and commitment of its represented employees five weeks ago, promising a collaborative and responsive environment; today, the State responded and Unit 3 enjoyed one of its most productive sessions.

The State returned six counter-offers to proposals we’ve presented in previous bargaining sessions, and we had a robust discussion to ascertain the State’s concerns while keeping the focus on our intent to protect our members.

At the core of the discussion were three key contract sections that speak to the heart of professional recognition of our Unit 3 workers:

19.1.3 – Hours of Work
21.25.3 – Work Assignment Notification
25.1.3 – CDCR, OCE 220 Day Academic Year Annual Modification

“Language and intent are important in these negotiations; too often, the lack of clear language finds different and often incorrect interpretations of our contract that create unnecessary stress and effort to fix, which takes us away from the job,” said Unit 3 Chair Bob Holtz.

The State tells us that “it’s being handled well,” yet we know differently. The State often uses confusing language to their advantage, and they resist our efforts to involve stakeholders in finding solutions.

“They don’t treat us as professionals; they don’t respect our FLSA-exempt status,” said Unit 3 team member Barbara Guzman. “We’re serious about every section of the contract, even rollover language, because words and their interpretation matter.”

“A busy day at the table is a good sign,” said Holtz. “When we’re talking with the State, we’re making progress, incremental change.”

And, additional progress today: We reached tentative agreement with the State on two rollover sections, preserving two of our previous contract wins:

22.6.3 – Tenure, Special Schools
22.9.3 – Salary Schedule (State Special Schools and Diagnostic Centers) (Unit 3)

Unit 3 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, May 30. To see updates on other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

It was a busy day at the Unit 3 bargaining table as we continue our work, demanding recognition for the quality of work and commitment of our Professional Educators and Librarians.

Local 1000’s represented employees provide vital service to many Californians, and today’s work at the table focused on lifting up our sisters and brothers at the California Special Schools. Put simply, their dedicated work changes the lives of those they serve in remarkable ways.

We utilize Subject Matter Experts to lift our represented employees off the page. Today, the State team was provided a deep look into the culture and climate of the Deaf community and the challenges they face.

Landen Gonzalez is a senior at the Fremont School for the Deaf and spoke about how his experience as a student is allowing him an opportunity to thrive, flourish, and develop as a whole person.

Ty Kovacs is a teacher in Fremont and spoke to the State about the gap between Deaf children who are able to experience the dual culture of hearing and hearing impaired. “I was able to live and learn American Sign Language and English at the same time, but I had peers who weren’t similarly exposed and suffered an isolating and often traumatic experience.”

“Lack of immersion in both cultures affects the social and emotional intelligence of students and parents alike,” added Kovacs. “Without a Deaf school, there’s no community, and we all lose.”

With that passionately delivered background, Unit 3 proposed a big economic package of contract sections from Article 22 – State Special Schools.

We’re demanding respect for our represented workers there. Teachers at Special Schools are paid $100 less, per day, than similar educators in state service. We identified the huge disparity of cost of living between Fremont, Riverside, and other Diagnostic Centers, and proposed a solution. Here’s a more detailed examination:

We proposed new contract language in two sections, recognizing the contributions of our represented employees at the state’s Special Schools:

X.X.3 State Special Schools Recruitment and Retention Differentials (Unit 3)
XX.XX.3 Fremont School for the Deaf, Blind and Albany Rehabilitative Center Housing Allowance (Unit 3)

We proposed stronger contract language in the following contract sections:

22.1.3 Discipline and Discharge – Special Schools (Unit 3)
22.2.3 Academic Year – Special Schools (Unit 3)
22.3.3 Work Assignment Notification – Special Schools (Unit 3)
22.5.3 Extra Duty Assignment – Special Schools (Unit 3)
22.10.3 Coaching Advisor Differential (Unit 3)
Unit 3 Teachers Salary Schedule California Schools for the Deaf and Blind Fremont and Riverside (Unit 3)

We proposed the following contract sections as “rollover,” preserving existing rights:

22.6.3 Tenure – Special Schools (Unit 3)
- 22.9.3 Salary Schedule (State Special Schools and Diagnostic Centers) (Unit 3) with robust changes, an enhanced salary schedule that expands steps and ranges and respects time in service.

In other business, we reached tentative agreement with the State on three sections that continue our contract rights:

13.10.3 Education and Training (Unit 3)
21.12.3 Student Discipline (Unit 3)
21.13.3 Student Class Assignment (Unit 3)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 23. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

It’s Teacher Appreciation Week across the nation, and in today’s Unit 3 bargaining session, our Professional Educators and Librarians took a moment of privilege to celebrate by sharing personal stories of how teachers impacted their lives and encourage State negotiators to do the same.

Unit 3’s Sue Knapp is the daughter of a teacher who encouraged her students to explore and enjoy the power of curiosity. Bargaining Unit 3 Chair Bob Holtz built a home in high school and turned it into a career, and team member John Richards talked about how being an educator demands a mix of art and science and that’s how they all make a positive impact on their students.

Our bargaining team continued to press the State for advances in our contract that respect the professional experience and expertise our represented teachers and librarians bring to state service.

We reached agreement on four contract sections – each a step towards our demand for the state to Respect Us! These are “rollover” sections from previous contract wins, preserving our rights.

Article 9.19.3 – Light/Limited Duty Assignments
Article 10.19.3 – Positive Behavioral Support Training
Article 19.19.3 – Work Week Group E or SE
Article 21.15.3 – Off-Site Teacher Preparation Time

The seven contract articles listed below were proposed as “rollover” language; the State is reviewing them. Here, too, we’re working to preserve contract language already in existence.

Article 11.19.3 Recruitment and Retention Differentials (Unit 3)
Article 13.10.3 Education and Training (Unit 3)
Article 25.10.3 CDCR OCE 220 Day Academic Work Year 4/10/40
Article 21.12.3 Student Discipline (Unit 3)
Article 21.13.3 Student Class Assignment (Unit 3)
Article 25.6.3 Personal Necessity Leave (Unit 3)
Article 25.8.3 220 Day Academic Year (Unit 3)

You can review each of our current contract articles online at contract.seiu1000.org

A number of proposals are in play—our team and the State are going back and forth on a number of outstanding provisions. As with all our negotiations, we’re working collaboratively to find agreement that achieves the contract priorities of our members.

We look forward to an appearance next week by our Unit 3 brother Ty Kovacs, who works at the Fremont School for the Deaf, who will represent the state special schools as we discuss Article 22 with the State.

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 16. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Our Unit 3 Bargaining Team completed its third week of unit-specific negotiations on behalf of our Professional Educators and Librarians, making what the team is calling “one-sided progress.”

“Each week, we’re coming to the table ready to move the relationship between employee and employer forward, to secure both recognition and reward for Unit 3 … but the State isn’t fully engaging with us,” said Unit 3 Chair Bob Holtz. “It seems like there are no decision-makers present at our sessions.”

Only one tentative agreement was reached today, article 13.6.3, which governs performance appraisals. Our team has a backlog of proposals already presented which the State hasn’t responded to.

Forging ahead, our team proposed to “rollover” (preserve current contract language) the following four articles:

9.19.13 Light Limited Duty
10.19.3 Positive Behavior Support Unit 3
19.19.3 Work Week Group E or SE (Unit 3)
21.15.3 Off-Site Teacher Preparation Time (Unit 3)

We proposed language changes for the following articles:

8.28.3 Education Leave (Unit 3) – expands eligibility for educational leave to all Unit 3 represented employees
21.25.3 Work Assignment Notification (Unit 3) – provides for more consistent communication in line with best practices of the educational community
25.7.3 Credits for Salary Advancement (Unit 3) – allows employees greater planning and control of their individual development programs and career improvement

You can review each of our current contract articles online at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 9. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

In their second week of unit-specific negotiations, the Unit 3 Bargaining Team met with the State today to move items that demand additional respect for the professional status of the Professional Educators and Librarians we represent, along with economic improvements.

Key among today’s proposals was a modification of Article 25.13.3 – which governs salaries of Academic Teachers and Vocational Instructors at CDCR. Our proposed changes include a single salary schedule that doesn’t differentiate between institutions in the “north” and “south” of the state; and inclusion of prison librarians on the same schedule.

“These changes are our demand for professional respect,” said Bob Holtz, Unit 3 Chair. “Whether it’s lifting up librarians, having the vocational instructors recognized for their experience, or paying a classification the same wage regardless of where the work is performed. This, too, will help to alleviate the recruitment and retention problems we face.”

Proposed changes in two more contract articles further respect and reinforce the professional status of the Unit 3 employees:

Article 25.2.3 – CDCR, OCE Additional Instructional Assignments
Article 19.1.3 – Hours of Work

“Here, our demand is that we are recognized as exempt employees; that our 8-hour days/40-hour weeks, and our job descriptions are our ‘work product’ and that managers and supervisors can’t make additional assignments without additional pay for that work,” explained Holtz.

The team also worked to strengthen and streamline the language in two articles that govern the review process (Articles 21.16.3 and 13.6.3).

Unit 3’s team reached tentative agreement with the State on three existing contract articles that preserve our hard-earned rights.

Article 15.4.3 – Employee Opportunity Transfer
Article 25.9.3 – Teacher Service Credit
Article 21.17.3 -Recognition of Authorship

You can review each of our current contract articles online at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 2. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Our Unit 3 Bargaining Team—representing Professional Educators and Librarians—met with the State today in their first, unit-specific negotiations.

“Today, we set the table for a contract campaign that is responsive to what our members told us in Town Halls and through bargaining surveys,” said Bob Holtz, Unit 3 Bargaining Chair. “We are working to build consensus on what’s good for us and the State, and we’ll do that through collaboration and collegiality throughout the process.”

“We have a mutual goal of a well-prepared, well-trained, and dedicated workforce,” Holtz added. “Now it’s time for the State to recognize us with improvements in pay and in working conditions.”

Key among the day’s efforts was a presentation for a new language that strengthens our ability to model our academic calendar after “best practices” seen in other parts of the educational community—the top priority reported by our Unit 3 members.

We also “rolled over” (maintained current language) on the article that governs the operation of a Joint Labor Management Committee, ensuring that Unit 3 has a seat at the table to improve working conditions in between contract bargaining cycles.

In all, three contract articles were proposed as rollovers, maintaining our hard-fought rights won in previous negotiations:

Article 5.19.3 – Bargaining Unit 3 Classification and Compensation Committee
Article 15.4.3 – Employee Opportunity Transfer
Article 25.9.3 – Teacher Service Credit

Five contract articles presented today contained proposed changes in language to provide greater health and well-being for our members by providing better access to and use of leaves.

Article 8.21.3 – 9-12, 10-12, and 11-12 Leave
Article 25.1.3 – DCR, OCE 220 Day Academic Year Annual Modification
Article 25.3.3 – Educational Leave
Article 25.4.3 – Holidays (CDCR/OCE)
Article 25.5.3 – Vacation/Annual Leave

You can review each of our current contract articles online at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 3’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for April 25. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 4 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 4 Tentative Agreement

Here are the highlights from the Unit 4 (Office and Allied workers) bargaining table:

23 different classifications in Unit 4 received pay increases of 5% (11.1.4 Special Salary Increases). Another 41 classifications received 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

We increased the Lottery Sales Scratcher Bonus (11.27.4) by 12%. It was the first adjustment in this incentive program in more than 20 years, and stronger language ensures that the bonus structure is consistent year-to-year. These improvements were recommended by a Joint Labor Management Committee and won at the bargaining table.

New language (11.XXX.4) expands the geographic reach of the Recruitment and Retention Differential paid to Legal Secretaries and Sr. Legal Typists to now include Fresno and Sacramento Counties. (Pay Differential 141)

Office Technicians and Sr. Legal Typists working at the Department of Industrial Relations (DIR’s) Division of Worker’s Compensation Appeals Board, who have a court reporting certificate or equivalency, now qualify for a 5% pay differential.

Another new contract section (5.XX.4) creates a new statewide Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) for Unit 4 DMV employees to address statewide issues, not just local or regional concerns. This powerful too allows our Union the opportunity to make changes in the workplace in between contract bargaining.

We also preserved an important contract provision: the Unit 4 Upward Mobility Task Force (5.13.4). This group will continue meeting to update recommendations and best practices for upward mobility programs providing career development for Unit 4 employees.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 4 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Unit 4 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Your Unit 4 Bargaining Team is reaching out to give you an update on our negotiations on behalf of the Office and Allied Workers we represent. Our last Unit 4 bargaining session with the State was on June 27. A number of Unit 4 proposals are still outstanding, and another group of Unit 4-related proposals—largely economic—are being negotiated at the master table.

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?
Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Unit 4 has been negotiating through the weekend to make the needs of members heard. After the State’s unreasonable 6% general salary increase offer, Unit 4 brought these issues to the State this week as they fight for a contract that addresses the ongoing needs of state workers, defending and expanding their rights in the workplace.

Over the weekend, Unit 4 negotiators passed the following rollover article sections to the State:

11.27.4 – California State Lottery (CSL) Scratcher Sales Bonus (Unit 4)
11.31.4 – California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
11.32.4 – California State Lottery (CSL) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
11.33.4 – Employment Development Department (EDD) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
11.35.4 – California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) Call Center
Differential (Unit 4)
11.36.4 – State Teachers’ Retirement System (STRS) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
11.66.4 – Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
11.67.4 – Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Toll Collectors’ Night Shift (Unit 4)
11.68.4 – Health Benefit Exchange Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
11.69.4 – Department of Managed Health Care Call Center Differential (Unit 4)

“This situation looks promising for Unit 4, although we are working with the same Chief Negotiator as the master table,” said Bargaining Unit 4 Chair Karen Jefferies. “The pace has been going slowly with both tables being very demanding. We haven’t allowed their concerns to rush conversations about our member’s needs.”

Today, Bargaining Unit 4 Representatives reached a tentative agreement on the following article:

5.XX.4 – DMV Joint Labor Management Committee

After weeks of negotiation, the State came back to the table with a counterproposal to create a JLMC, which represents a hard-fought win for Unit 4.

“This JLMC language is a big win for our represented members,” said Tom Krieger, Vice Chair, Bargaining Unit 4. “The State recognized that we needed a statewide JLMC to address the issues that are plaguing DMV across the state.”

Previously, ongoing negotiations about working conditions at DMV would be addressed workplace-to-workplace, creating no consistent standard and limiting employee’s abilities to engage with their employer on issues.

“We passed it across the table three times,” said Terry Gray, BUNC Member, Bargaining Unit 4. “It’s very good to see this important win at the table that will impact workload, the changes in technology in the workplace, and our health and safety. Our members will have a voice at the table to discuss their working conditions across the state on an ongoing basis.”

As negotiations continue, our member’s voices are crucial bargaining tools at the table, both as member impact stories, which provided much-needed personal perspectives at the table, as well as by directly contacting the State’s representatives to show them the impact their decisions will have on the public.

“We emailed Steven Gonzalez-Lederer, CalHR’s Unit 4 LRO, and he didn’t know if he’d gotten it because his email was so full,” said Freda Legree, BUNC Member, Bargaining Unit 4. “We think this is because our members have been emailing him so much, bombarding their emails and telephones with demands for respect at the table.”

To help with bargaining, the team is asking for member impact stories, focusing on our demands for a general salary increase from the State at the master table.

”The State needs to hear the truth about our member’s struggles at home and on the job,” said Nikia Brisco, BUNC Member, Bargaining Unit 4, who delivered her own statement to the State today. “I didn’t need to write down my impact statement. It’s my reality. We’re renters, and our landlords ask for more and more every year. We’re paying more than half of our checks towards rent, and we are worried about feeding our families. We’re a paycheck away from sleeping in our cars, and some already are.”

Unit 4 plans to return to the table next week. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

There were mixed results today at the Unit 4 bargaining table, and our team continues to be frustrated by the lack of respect shown by the State as we work to advance the wages and working conditions for the Office and Allied workers we represent.

“The State’s problematic behavior is slowing progress,” said Karen Jefferies, Chair, Bargaining Unit 4. “They are responding to our proposals slowly, and it appears that they’re not prepared to have substantive conversations on our issues.”

In one example, the State didn’t want to even recognize or respect the hard work of a Joint Labor-Management Committee (JLMC) regarding the Scratcher Sales Bonus for CA Lottery employees. Rather than following the recommendations of this JLMC, State negotiators are instead proposing takeaways. What’s worse, this is a JLMC that was formed at the suggestion of the State to solve a hotly-contested economic issue that hasn’t been updated in more than two decades.

Unit 4 has proposed the formation of another JLMC, to focus and solve a range of issues at DMV. After research and a thoughtful presentation—made weeks ago—the State still isn’t been willing to negotiate.

“They’re giving us a number of excuses, many of which we’ve heard before,” said Tom Krieger Vice Chair of Bargaining Unit 4. “They’re either unprepared or don’t have the authority to bargain.”

There are a number of outstanding proposals from both sides of the table that are still unresolved. “Our team is committed to bringing home a contract, but the State has to step up,” added Jefferies.

Today, we reached tentative agreement with the State on these contract sections, preserving our rights from previous contract wins:

11.23.4 – Out Of State Pay Differential
11.37.4 – Dictaphone Differential
13.36.4 – Library Technical Assistant (Safety) Upward Mobility

After a number of back-and-forth offers, we proposed contract section 1.2.4 – Designation of Confidential Positions – as rollover language, and several of our economic proposals were moved to the master table for further negotiations.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 4 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 27. However, with just ten days remaining until our contract expires, bargaining sessions could happen at any time.

To keep updated, and to see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

Unit 4 continues to negotiate with representatives from the State this week, as they fight for a contract that addresses the critical needs of workers across the state and defends their existing rights in the workplace.

Today, the State rejected two of our new language proposals listed here:

10.XXX.4 – Wellness and Recovery
11.XX.4 – DWR Incentive Program

The negotiating team also agreed to move several proposals from the unit table to the master table for further negotiations.

Unit 4 reached a Tentative Agreement on the following rollover article:

13.31.4 – 20/20 Program

Negotiation continues on the following two articles

1.2.4 – Designation of Confidential Positions (Unit 4)
11.27.4 – California State Lottery (CSL) Scratcher Sales Bonus (to be negotiated next Tuesday, June 20^th)

The issues that are being rejected are safety issues, without major financial implications for the State. The State is responsible for all of its employees when they’re on the job, and Unit 4 employees are not receiving the protection and respect that we are owed.

“Our members have made their demands clear, and the State is ignoring them,” said Unit 4 Chair Karen Jefferies. “We can’t go another three years without a definite end to these issues, and we will not accept our members’ needs being ignored.”

“The State does not share our priorities here,” said Alternate Vice Chair Jose Eric Alcaraz.

While Unit 4 received a single rollover today, this is not addressing the issues proposed by our members. Our member’s basic concerns and needs regarding health and safety need to be answered.

“Unit 4 workers put our lives on the line for the state,” said Bargaining Team Member Terry Gray “At the table, we’re discussing issues of safety, of work-life balance, of overwork and taking on multiple jobs in our workplaces. These are not economic issues; they are making it clear they will not prioritize our safety.”

Conflict within the departments on implementation, standardization, and fairness have been an ongoing issue the State is forced to manage. By not taking the necessary steps here and now, this will be kicked down the road while not providing for the needs of the people impacted.

“State workers should be mad as hell that they are in this position due to the State’s inaction and unwillingness to lead,” said Gray. “Some departments are interested in doing better, but when the State sets an example like this, they are failing their workforce and the public we serve.”

Our bargaining team is interested in change, not more of the same. Three more years without concrete protections for the workers that kept California afloat during the pandemic is not in the best interest of the State, our members, or the people of California.

“There are consequences for having Unit 4 employees taking on unsafe work assignments and being mandated to work on their regular days off,” said Jefferies. “The State needs to be accountable for these issues and stop skirting that responsibility.”

Unit 4 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 20. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you are a member, help support the bargaining team by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Unit 4 continues to negotiate with representatives from the State this week, as they fight for a contract that provides real solutions to ongoing issues in workplaces across the state while respecting, protecting, and paying every state worker what they’re worth.

This week, the State countered one proposal made by the Unit 4 negotiating team:

Article 1.2.4 - Designation of Confidential Positions (Unit 4)

In addition, one new language section was proposed by Unit 4:

Article 10.XXX.4 – Wellness and Recovery Time

“Our new language articles today were focused on health and safety, which are priorities for our members, who have been struggling with these issues for far too long in their workplaces,” said Unit 4 Chair Karen Jefferies.

“Our wellness and recovery proposal, addressing mandatory overtime, is a problem that needs to be handled,” said Jefferies. “This has been an ongoing issue for years, and it must be addressed now, not in some hypothetical future.”

However, the State rejected our proposals without providing concrete answers as to why our proposal was not worth countering. These are issues of safety in the workplace, which we and our members take extremely seriously, and we expect the State to do the same.

“We provided a thorough proposal with language that was straight to the point,” said Jefferies. “It seems that the State’s negotiators expect Unit 4 members to do whatever is asked of them, without addressing the safety concerns that have plagued these departments.”

The State has consistently rejected proposals without providing satisfactory explanations, failed to address issues that are common knowledge in workplaces across the State, and ignored the demands of our members to work toward a solution to resolve these issues.

While negotiations are still continuing, the disappointing lack of substantive proposals and counterproposals is delaying serious action on things that members have identified as desperately needed change.

“They talk about the problems they’re seeing at the bargaining table, not problems we’re living within our workplaces,” said Nickia Brisco, bargaining team member. “The whole reason we are here at the table is because these issues haven’t been resolved. We need to solve them together, and that takes effort on the State’s part.”

Unit 4 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 13. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s Mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Unit 4 continues to negotiate with representatives from the State this week, with a focus on the need for more involved discussions at the table to get represented employees a contract that respects, protects, and pays every state worker.

“The process has been moving forward compared to previous weeks, so we’re hopeful that the State will recognize the protections our workers need and deserve,” said Karen Jefferies, Unit 4 Chair. “We are fighting to get this work done in a timely manner and without losing any of the gains we have already made.”

However, without more tentative agreements or counter proposals offered by the State to our new language, negotiations have slowed. Apparently, lack of preparation and delays by State negotiators interfere with getting state workers the pay, protection, and respect they deserve on the job.

Permanent Intermittent (PI) workers are often seasoned employees with years of experience, but they often lack the opportunity to advance in state service. While the state suffers from an understaffing crisis, these workers need to be supported in their careers to help solve this problem.

“We were able to keep existing protections for PI workers which allows them to convert to a full-time position as soon as a position becomes available,” said Tom Krieger, Unit 4 Vice Chair.

Unit 4 reached Tentative Agreements with the State on three sections:

20.13.4 – Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) – Motor Vehicle Representative PI (Unit 4)
19.9.4 – Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations (Unit 4)
19.13.4 – Overtime Assignments for Work Week Group 2 (WWG 2) Employees (Unit 4)

Additionally, the following rollover sections were proposed:

1.2.4 – Designation of Confidential Positions (Unit 4)
13.31.4 – 20/20 Program (Unit 4)

While there is progress being made and more Tentative Agreements reached, there still remain many critical issues we want to be addressed at the table.

“They have not countered on some of the new languages we have proposed, and many of our rollover sections still are awaiting the State response,” said Jose “Eric” Alcaraz, Unit 4 Alternate Vice Chair.

These outstanding rollovers do not carry a financial cost to the State and relate to existing protections enjoyed by state workers. The team is waiting to hear back on these issues as bargaining continues.

“It’s important that our negotiations with the State conform to past practices, and one of those practices is getting articles across in a timely manner, sharing information, and really negotiating,” said Terry Gray, bargaining team member.

As our contract expiration date approaches, it’s important for the State to come to the table prepared to discuss the issues that matter to our represented workers.

“True dialog over these protections is important,” said Jefferies. “We want the State to recognize this and come to the table ready to discuss and counter our new language and rollover articles.”

Unit 4 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 6. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 continued to negotiate with representatives from the State this week, with a focus on the need for consistent and fair treatment for workers across the state.

“We are disappointed with the lack of movement on the State’s part, but we’re pushing ahead and addressing their questions and trying to make our member’s needs heard,” said Karen Jefferies, Unit 4 Chair. “Our members have made very specific demands, which need to be respected.”

The State faces a lot of inefficiencies in its workforce, especially without strong universal standards across workplaces. The State can solve these issues at the table through negotiations with Unit 4 when they come to the table with solutions in mind.

“We took time to explain and go into detail on our members needs on the issues at the table today,” said Jose Eric Alcarez, Unit 4 Alt-Vice Chair. “We are focused on the changes our members have called for, and we’re demonstrating in detail the importance of these issues while we’re at the table.

BU 4 passed the following new language proposal to the State:

5.XX.4 – JLMC DMV (Unit 4)

We are looking for consistency statewide within DMV to maintain fairness for all of our members. This impacts our workers and the public they serve. We need to send a consistent message to Californians, not regional variations that confuse the public and frustrate employees.

“We’ve had this JLMC for well over eight years informally, and we have stated this over the table several times,” said Tom Krieger Unit 4 Vice Chair. “The State is willing to include this provision, so we hope to see a tentative agreement reached on this issue soon. It benefits both workers and the state.”

Additionally, the bargaining team proposed the following rollover sections to the State:

11.67.4 – Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Toll Collectors’ Night Shift
19.9.4 – Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations
19.13.4 – Overtime Assignments for Work Week Group 2 (WWG 2) Employees
20.13.4 – Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) – Motor Vehicle Representative Permanent Intermittent

This rollover language includes language that protects Permanent Intermittent employees and provides opportunities for them to become permanent employees. This established a path for a strong retirement for workers and increasing employee retention, a long-standing issue, for the State.

11 sections remain where we have made a proposal and are waiting for a response. With our contract expiration date approaching, the State knows that time is running out. We have not received any TAs this session.

“What we’re asking for, especially with the JLMC, is not unreasonable,” said Jefferies. “We’re asking the State to come to the table with DMV decision makers prepared to address these issues.”

Unit 4 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, May 30^th. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Unit 4 continued to negotiate with representatives from the State this week, with a focus on the need for consistent and fair treatment for workers across the state.

“We took time to explain and go into detail on our members needs on the issues at the table today,” said Jose Eric Alvarez, Unit 4 bargaining team member. “We are focused on the changes our members have called for, and we’re demonstrating in detail the importance of these issues while we’re at the table.

In order to make up all these differences in compensations across these three classifications, Bargaining unit 4 delivered the following new language proposal to the State:

5.xx.4 – DMV JLMC (Unit 4)

“We’ve had this JLMC for well over eight years informally, and we have stated this over the table several times,” said Alvarez. “The State is willing to include this provision, so we hope to see a tentative agreement reached on this issue soon. It benefits both workers and the state.”

Additionally, the bargaining team proposed the following rollover sections to the State:

11.67.4 – Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Toll Collectors’ Night Shift
19.9.4 – Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations
19.13.4 – Overtime Assignments for Work Week Group 2 (WWG 2) Employees
20.13.4 – Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) – Motor Vehicle Representative Permanent Intermittent

“What we’re asking for, especially with the JLMC, is not unreasonable,” said Jefferies. “We’re asking DMV to come to the table with decision makers prepared to address these issues.”

Unit 4 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, May 30. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

We are entering our fourth week of bargaining with the State for a contract that respects, protects, and pays the workers who have kept California running. The bargaining team for Office and Allied Workers represented by Local 1000, Bargaining Unit 4, went to the table on May 16 to reiterate to the State that the needs of their workers should be the priority at the table.

The sections we sent over for rollover included the following:

11.21.4 – Recruitment and Retention Differential for Accounting Clerk Series
11.23.4 – Out of State Pay Differential
11.37.4 – Dictaphone Differential
11.38.4 – Calendaring Differential (CUIAB)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

After rollovers were sent, the team discussed our items that have not been responded to, and the State had nothing to offer. The State has taken a long time returning any articles, even those that would create new protections for our state workers. “The articles that have not been addressed by the State are infuriating,” said Chair Karen Jefferies. “For example, section 10.XX.4, Transportation and Disposal of Bodily Fluids, and 10.XXX.4, Wellness and Recovery Time, are two important sections that address our core issue of protection in the workplace. Bargaining Unit 4 employees across departments are being asked to do tasks that are outside their job specs and beyond their work capacity, which creates risks of danger for employees.” Our members need protection,” said Jefferies

“We take a lot of time with our language and make sure that it’s complete and in compliance with our member’s needs,” said bargaining team member Terry Gray. “We expect the State to either counter or TA the proposal, and the State is not doing the work.”

The bargaining team will continue to negotiate with the State to ensure that their unit’s needs are met by their employer.

Unit 4’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 23. To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

We are entering our fourth week of bargaining with the State for a contract that respects, protects, and pays the workers who have kept California running. The Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) for Office and Allied Workers represented by Local 1000, Bargaining Unit 4, went to the table on May 9 to bring focus to the financials and their impact on state workers.

The BUNC proposed two articles as “rollovers,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The rollover articles are the following:

Article 13.12.4 – Auditor and/or Accountant Upward Mobility Program (Unit 4)
Article 13.36.4 – Library Technical Assistant (Safety) Upward Mobility (Unit 4)

In addition to these rollovers, the team proposed the following two articles with language changes at the table today:

Article 11.1.4 – Special Salary Adjustments for Unit 4
Article 11.XX.4 – Operational Availability Incentive Program – DWR (Unit 4)

The State agreed to two rollover articles presented previously, as well as one article proposed by Unit 4 at the table beforehand. These three articles reached a Tentative Agreement with the State:

Article 5.13.4 – Upward Mobility Task Force
Article 13.12.4 – Auditor and/or Accountant Upward Mobility Program (Unit 4) (rollover language)
Article 13.7.4 – Performance Standards (rollover language)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our members made it clear that they were dissatisfied with the current pay for their classification. “We were talking about financials today,” said BUNC Chair Karen Jefferies. “The BUNC and Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) presented on a variety of classifications. The experts felt heard. They came with personal stories, and many of them became very emotional while telling them.”

In addition to their expert insights, SMEs highlighted the personal impacts that make living paycheck to paycheck an unacceptable situation for any state worker. “Several of our SMEs work two jobs, and they come home tired, sometimes not eating before going to sleep so they can rest and work again the next day,” said Jefferies.

One of the subject matter experts presenting today described their situation working for the state in an underpaid classification. “I am a single parent with a special needs child and based on the demands of my job and the high cost of living in the State of California sometimes my choices are life-changing decisions meaning, should I put $20 worth of gas in my car or should I use that money for groceries.”

The paycheck that Unit 4 workers bring home is lacking, in many cases not even covering their basic needs. “We brought up the UC Berkeley Labor Center report several times,” said Jefferies. “The majority of our unit falls within the impacted categories from that report. The paycheck that state workers receive doesn’t cover rent in certain areas.”

According to the findings of the UC Berkeley Labor Center report, 35% of state workers cannot afford to support a family of 4, even with a working partner earning the same wage. More than 69% of state workers would not be able to support themselves and one child on their own. 5% of state workers lack sufficient income to provide for just their own basic needs.

The State is waiting to get back to Unit 4 on their proposed salary adjustment after consulting with the Dept. of Finance. SEIU Local 1000 members stepped up as Subject Matter Experts along with the BUNC to demand a long-overdue increase in their wages.

“They always underestimate Unit 4,” said BUNC member Terry Gray, “but we’re the front line.”

Unit 4’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 16. To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

We are entering our third week of bargaining with the State for a contract that respects, protects, and pays the workers who have kept California running. The Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) for Office and Allied Workers represented by Local 1000, Bargaining Unit 4, went to the table on May 2 to bring a focus on the dangerous situations that state workers have faced and to demonstrate the protections that we need on the job.

The Team proposed one article as a “rollover,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The rollover article is the following:

13.11.4 – Upward Mobility and Training

Additionally, they proposed two new articles. These articles are intended to address issues not covered in our current Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).

New Language – 10.XX.4 – Transport of Bodily Fluids/Specimens (Prohibits management from mandating Unit 4 to collect, handle, or transport bodily fluid/specimen)

New Language – 10.XXX.4 – Wellness and Recovery Time (Creates a mandatory 48-hour “off work/recovery” time when employees work 8 consecutive days or more than 200 hours in a pay period)

The first new language proposal on the Transport of Bodily Fluids/Specimens addresses the longstanding issue of Unit 4 employees being told to perform tasks outside their roles as Office & Allied Workers.

Unit 4 members are not trained in handling bodily fluids and cleaning up biohazards. “Our training is an overview of what an airborne or bloodborne pathogen is, not how to handle these samples,” said BUNC member Nicole Crist. “Our members are support staff. It’s not in our job scope to take vitals or patient history.”

Our proposal surrounding the wellness and recovery time is a response to ongoing calls from our members to address workload issues. “This came about because there is an increase in Unit 4 employees being mandated to do overtime work,” said BUNC Chair Karen Jefferies. “We wanted to make sure that our employees’ work-life balance could be respected.”

“Mandatory overtime creates burnout,” said Crist. “It’s long past time that this issue was addressed.”

A Tentative Agreement was reached on five (5) rollover articles:

13.11.4 – Upward Mobility and Training
13.35.4 – Employee Recognition and Morale Program – Franchise Tax Board (FTB), Board of Equalization (BOE), California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA), and Office of Tax Appeals (OTA)
14.16.4 – Program Technician Classification Series
14.25.4 – Dispatcher Clerk/Dispatcher Clerk, Caltrans Classification Task Force Study
20.14.4 – Post and Bid Program for Department of Transportation (Caltrans) District 4 (S.F. Bay Area)

Of these proposals, 13.11.4 – Upward Mobility was presented by the BUNC and accepted by the State in the same session, which shows the critical need for this language, and the ability of the BUNC team to push aggressively to ensure that important protections for Unit 4 employees are maintained.

“Upward mobility has been a long-time coming, and it’s something we needed to thoroughly address,” said Crist. “Karen and her commitment to this issue made sure that it was heard.”

“We want things to move on our table, and the State is on the same page with us on this,” said Jefferies. “We’re trying to make sure that we’re putting the things that our members are asking for across the table.”

Members will continue to lead the direction of negotiations with the State through worksite actions and member statements. “We want to bring our member’s voices into the room by bringing their statements and evidence to the table,” said BUNC Alternate Vice Chair Jose Eric Alcaraz.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 4’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 9. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 4 – Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

The Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) for Office and Allied Workers represented by Local 1000 Bargaining Unit 4 went to the table with the State April 25^th for the second week of negotiations on unit-specific issues.

Unit 4 presented three articles as “rollovers,” proposing that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The rollover articles are the following:

13.7.4 – Performance Standards
13.35.4 – Employee Recognition and Morale Program (FTB, BOE, CDTFA, OTA)
20.14.4 – Post and Bid Unit 4 Caltrans in District 4 (San Francisco)

Additionally, we proposed two articles for language changes. The changes are intended to address issues previously identified as needing revision.

During our last bargaining negotiations, a Joint Labor Management Committee was agreed upon. The Lottery Scratcher Sales Bonus language has not been updated since the 1990s. Now, with the input of our Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) at the State Lottery, we were able to bring new recommendations to the table. With the recommendations of both parties at the JLMC about these changes, so the bargaining team is hopeful that the State recognizes this as a common-sense change. said Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) Chair Karen Jefferies.

Finally, the State agreed to one of our rollover articles, and thus, a “Tentative Agreement” was reached on one of our proposed articles:

9.18.4 – Caltrans Life Insurance

This article, maintaining the existing protections of CalTrans’s life insurance policy, is important to BU4 members and is a part of the essential safety net for workers across the state.

The State’s slow pace to return proposed articles and proposals to “clean up” articles has caused some concern for the Bargaining team. “It seems like the state is haste to make changes to our articles,” said BUNC Alternate Vice-Chair Jose Eric Alcaraz. In spite of these issues, the team is able to respond. By sending proposals as rapidly or slowly as the State is considering them, the team is able to make sure the state addresses these language changes, rather than letting them linger in limbo during this process. “We don’t want to sit back and wait for them to work through a ton of proposals.”

However, some of the proposed “cleanup” language creates an unbalanced agreement that does not help our members. “The state wants to change this language to something that would be more beneficial for management than our members, said BUNC member Terry Gray. “We are looking for an equal distribution of power with these language changes, and fair language that benefits both parties.

Proposed “cleanup” language from the State creates issues not only with the fairness of our contract, but affects the timing of bargaining. “The languages we passed over last week was easy for the State to agree to, but they decided they wanted to hold onto the proposals,” said Jefferies. “It’s only week two, but we’re sending over proposals with minor language changes. Their attempts to ‘clean up’ this language, reworded and chipped away at the intent and strength of the language. We continue to push back on this.”

Unit 4’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 2^nd. To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Monday, April 18, 2023

The Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) for Office and Allied workers represented by Local 1000 Bargaining Unit 4 went to the table with the State on April 18 for the first day of negotiations on unit-specific issues.

The bargaining team knew that they were in for a fight. Karen Jefferies, Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) Chair for Unit 4 says “Right now, I see us as defending years of contract legacy, the protections that we’ve secured over the years. It’s important that the language we get reflects the spirit of the membership’s original demands.”

This bargaining session focused on six non-economic articles that covered language pertaining to upward mobility, Joint Labor Management Committees (JLMCs), task forces, and classification studies. These are crucial tools for state workers to take advantage of their training and expertise to develop their careers and maximize their time in state service.

The State’s negotiators were surprised when the BUNC pushed back against what they called “clean up” changes to the article language. “The State came in trying to clean up language that they didn’t understand and hadn’t studied,” said Jose Eric Alcaraz, BUNC Alternate Vice Chair. “These are hard-won protections, and our language wasn’t chosen lightly. We were able to make them understand why we’re fighting to defend it.”

The experience of SEIU Local 1000’s negotiators was clear. “I was 19 when I started with the state; I’m 43 now,” said Nickia Brisco, a BUNC member, and employee at the Department of Consumer Affairs. “Our experience working for the state exceeds theirs. That’s why we value that language. While we’re making progress toward a stronger contract, we need to remember nothing in our contract is there by default. We have to fight for all of it.”

The bargaining team presented a number of contract articles for “rollover,” a term used to describe parts of the contract that don’t require negotiation this cycle. The State agreed to roll over Article 5.16.4, which continues the Disability Determination Services Division JLMC. “We had good discussion and dialog,” said Alcaraz. “The chief negotiator listened and gave thoughtful responses. There’s an understanding that we both want Unit 4 to have progressive language, but it’s early, and in the end, it comes down to the language we agree on.”

Members of Unit 4 have made it clear that pay is our priority. “We’re going to have a battle over pay,” said Jefferies. “Unit 4 is the face and the backbone of the state. When the public utilizes state services their first contact with a state employee, it’s a Unit 4 classification, be it face-to-face or over the phone. There are only eight of us at the table, but we need to have all of our represented workers and the people they serve standing behind us.”

Unit 4’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for April 25. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s Bargaining Unit 1, 3, and 17 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 11 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 11 Tentative Agreement

At the master table, we negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, maintained the health care stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor in to our state income. Our general salary increase (GSI), our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.

Here are the highlights from the Unit 11 (Engineering and Scientific Technicians) bargaining table:

25 different classifications in Unit 11 received pay increases of 5% (11.1.11 Special Salary Increases). Another 31 classifications received 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

Transportation Engineering Technicians (TETs):

TETs will receive a 5% Special Salary Adjustment (SSA) in addition to the 3% GSI in the first year of the contract for a total of an 8% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023.
TETs will also receive an increase to the Transportation Engineering Technician (11.48.11) pay differential. We’ve won $50 increases to each of the four different differential pay opportunities, based on eligibility.
We’ve also negotiated a substantial increase in Diving Pay (11.43.11) for incumbents currently eligible for this differential – raising the rate from $12/hour to $25/hour.

Laboratory Assistants:

Lab Assistants will receive a 4% SSA in addition to the 3% GSI in the first year of the contract for a total of a 7% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023.
Five different Unit 11 classifications who are certified Phlebotomy Technician I or II will now receive a $200 differential, a $75 increase from the previous amount.
Unit 11 won a new classification review of the Laboratory Assistant Series (14.X.11) that will examine five different laboratory assistant positions in an attempt to remedy historical classification issues and to align with current and projected workforce needs.

Water Resources Technician:

WRTs will receive a 5% SSA in addition to the 3% GSI in the first year of the contract for a total of an 8% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023.
Additionally, WRTs will receive an increase to the Water Resources Technician II (11.48.11) pay differential. We’ve won $50 increases to each of the four different differential pay opportunities, based on eligibility.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 11 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, July 3, 2023

There was no meeting held between Unit 11 and the State on Monday. We still have a number of our proposals awaiting the State’s response, including key economic proposals.

Since June 23, Unit 11 and our 8 other bargaining units have been meeting on an “as-needed” basis. In addition, during this time a few of our bargaining teams have met on “normally scheduled” days as they have in previous weeks.

In any case, when Unit 11 meets with the State, we will continue to issue a bargaining recap, often on the same day. These recaps are emailed and posted to the Contract Action Central web page.

On Friday, Vice President for Bargaining Irene Green reported that we have not yet reached a Tentative Agreement with the State for a new contract. We’ve negotiated fairly and openly, and the State hasn’t given us a response that respects us.

It’s important for you to know that our current contract remains in effect, with all your protections in place. We will continue to bargain with the State while exploring every option available to win a new contract. Take the time to watch this video update from Irene.

We’ll be escalating our actions to win a new contract in the coming days, and we hope you’ll join the fight.

You’ll find the latest information about upcoming actions at our Contract Action Center.

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, June 19, 2023

Unit 11’s bargaining team reports incremental progress with the State’s negotiation team on economic proposals, reached several agreements, and presented one new proposal to advance the interests of the Engineering and Scientific Technicians we represent across the state.

“We experienced a more cooperative attitude from the State today, an improvement from prior bargaining sessions,” said Brad Willis, Unit 11 bargaining chair. “We were pleased to get some more meaningful responses.” Three of our economic proposals were moved to the master table.

We presented a powerful new proposal to directly address the economic issues our members face. It’s a proactive effort that opens the door to making progress during the three-year duration of our contract.

“We’re hoping to continue to press the State to review Unit 11 classifications and to address vacancy issues that exceed 30% across the unit,” added Willis. “By reaching agreement on this proposal, we’ll work to find solutions to recruitment and retention issues that ensure good state service without crushing workloads.”

Today, we reached tentative agreement on three contract sections, each of which maintains our hard-earned rights that were negotiated in previous bargaining cycles:

5.15.11 – Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC)
11.42.11 – Water Treatment Plant Differential
11.47.11 – Climbing Pay

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 11 returns to the table next week, on Monday, June 26. However, with just ten days remaining until our contract expires, bargaining sessions could happen at any time. To keep updated, and to see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you are, help support bargaining teams by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, June 12, 2023

With 18 days remaining until our current contract expires, our Unit 11 bargaining team is deeply frustrated by the State’s purposeful avoidance of the business of bargaining. Today’s session, one of the shortest on record since we began, was beset with more delays and unanswered questions.

“In more than a decade of negotiating contracts, I’ve never experienced this lack of engagement by the State,” said Brad Willis, Unit 11 Chair. “We present proposals, but the State isn’t asking questions or seeking additional information. There’s no back-and-forth.”

At a time when our bargaining teams should be wrapping things up, we’ve hardly started. Today, 14 proposals remain unanswered by the State. Those proposals reflect the top priorities identified by the Engineering and Scientific Technicians we represent who participated in town halls and completed bargaining surveys.

Still, our team continues to press the State. Today, we proposed to roll over two contract sections that preserve hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns:

11.23.11 Out-of-State Pay Differential
11.51.11 Special Duty Pay

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 11 is currently set to return to the table next week, on Monday, June 19. An additional “make-up” bargaining session has tentatively been scheduled for Tuesday, June 20—solely dependent upon whether the State has anything to present or respond to.

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, June 5, 2023

Our Unit 11 Bargaining Team—representing our Scientific and Engineering Technicians—came to the table and continued their work to advance the wages and working conditions of our represented employees.

And still, the work is largely one-sided. Unit 11 presented six proposals that, as before, are received by State negotiators with little comment and no substantive response.

“We’ve presented a number of significant proposals and the State is stonewalling us,” said Unit 11 Chair Brad Willis. “We don’t feel this is a bilateral effort, that the State is just going through the motions.”

16 proposals—some stretching back six weeks—remain unanswered. And we’ve reminded the State on numerous occasions of our interest in reaching agreements.

“Today we told the State we’re ready and available to meet at any time, but we need the State to engage,” Willis added. “We need engagement; we need responses to our proposals.”

We’re keeping our part of the deal: today, Unit 11 presented six proposals, several of which were economic. This includes contract section 11.44.11 significantly increases a “long-term differential” paid to Unit 11 to cover lodging and meal expenses incurred when working off-site for extended periods of time. It’s a differential that hasn’t been updated in 20+ years.

We’re presenting stronger language (impacting TETs and Water Resource Technician 2s) that increases differential pay and broadens the degree and certification qualifications that would allow our represented employees to earn these differentials. The current language has not been updated since 2002.

Unit 11 is in the back-and-forth process of three previous presentations. We’re working to refine the language and reach an agreement with the State on 5.15.11 (JLMC); 12.20.11 (pest control license differential); and 13.31.11 (20/20 program). Each is important to our represented employees, as identified through input gained from town halls and bargaining surveys, and the fight continues.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 11 will return to the table on Monday, June 12, and stands ready to meet with the State’s team at any time. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s Mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, May 22, 2023

Recognition of the working conditions and pay gaps facing the Scientific and Engineering Technicians continues to be a priority for our Unit 11 bargaining team, and today, we made a number of proposals that underscore our commitment to rewarding our represented employees in the face of a growing vacancy rate and the resultant workload pressures.

Today, we proposed Special Salary Adjustments (Article 11.1.11) for numerous classifications, notable among them: Transportation Engineering Technicians (TETs), Laboratory Assistants, the Water Resource Technician series, and Plant Quarantine Inspectors.

Fair treatment of our Unit 11 Water Resource Technician series and our TETs are two of our longest-standing battles, a priority in every contract campaign since 2002.

A cadre of Unit 11 members were on hand at today’s session to act as Subject Matter Experts in support of the significant pay raises we’re demanding: Greg Dixon, Arvin Lau, Mitch Miller, Albert Manfredini, Anne Hudson, Tammy Howze, and Aruna Abeygooneskera.

“The State is ignoring a growing problem in many key classifications,” said team member Albert Manfredini. “We’re losing employees who are changing jobs for better pay and more reasonable workloads.”

We proposed stronger language to increase the diving pay differential for TET workers who work underwater in often dangerous conditions.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Ten different Unit 11 proposals remain unanswered by the state. “CalHR isn’t doing their share to move our negotiation forward,” said Unit 11 Chair Brad Willis. “Worse still, they’re not forthcoming why the delays continue.”

No bargaining is scheduled for next Monday, May 29 (Memorial Day). Unit 11 will return to the table in two weeks, on Monday, June 5. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, May 15, 2023

The Engineering and Scientific Technicians across the state—Unit 11—are facing high vacancy rates, overbearing workloads, and a lack of professional recognition. These are the key priorities our bargaining team has heard at town halls and in thousands of bargaining surveys.

Recruitment and retention of our professional members is paramount, particularly given a vacancy rate across Unit 11 that approaches 30%, with some classifications even higher.

And we continue to press the State negotiators for advancements that respect us, protect us, and pay us as well. Towards that end, many of our proposals are focused on changes and improvements in contract language, including increased education and training opportunities, review of a number of classifications, and more focus on recruitment and retention.

Todays’ bargaining session saw three contract sections presented to the State that focused on protection and pay. All three were “rollovers”—preserved rights granted by previous contract wins. We reached tentative agreement on two of those three sections today (indicated in bold type, below)

10.31.11 – Health and Safety Inspections
10.34.11 – Health and Safety Incentive Award Program – DWR
11.42.11 – Water Treatment Plant Differential

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Ten different proposals are still outstanding, and we are pushing the State to respond more quickly.

During today’s session, the State shared a brief announcement regarding its current efforts to create a new pay schedule for 300,000 state employees. This was a “for your information” reference only, and the State shared this website for additional information: California State Payroll System (CSPS) Project

Unit 11 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 22. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, May 8, 2023

Bargaining Unit 11—Engineering and Scientific Technicians—returned to the table today with the State to reinforce the high level of technical expertise and experience our job classifications demand.

Our focus was on differential pay that recognizes a wide range of required job expectations and unusual working conditions,” said Brad Willis, Unit 11 Chair. “These are just a few of the efforts we’re making in this contract cycle to recognize and reward our employees for their unique skills and certifications.

Unit 11 proposed revised language in Article 12.20.11 – Pest Control License -expanding it to include a $75 monthly differential for those whose job requirements demand a current license. This brings Unit 11 into parity with other bargaining units in the state whose represented employees already receive this differential.

In addition, we proposed to “rollover” three additional contract articles that provide differential pay. “Rollovers” are articles that remain unchanged from current language. These agreements keep in place hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns.

Article 11.45.1 – DNA Pay Differential – Department of Justice
Article 11.46.1 – Pile Load Testing Differential
Article 11.47.1 – Climbing Pay

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Other proposals from previous sessions are still in play; we did have a productive table discussion about our proposal to strengthen language about the 20/20 program. The State is showing signs of interest in our hopes to provide a reliable opportunity for Unit 11 members to integrate education into their individual development program and to facilitate their upward mobility.

Unit 11 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 15. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: Monday, May 1, 2023

Our Bargaining Unit 11’s efforts today included proposals that would strengthen language governing our labor management committee, upward mobility for Unit 11 members, and two additional proposals affecting the laboratory assistants we represent.

A new contract proposal presented today would solve some long-standing classification and job description issues for four different Laboratory Assistants, who do distinct types of work in prisons, at Fish and Wildlife, and for the public health system. They have different job duties, yet their job specs are 40+ years old and need updating.

“We’ve been talking about this much-needed boost for Lab Assistants since the 2016 contract cycle, and the State’s team responded, agreeing it was time to fix this,” said Brad Willis, Unit 11 Chair. “We want a joint effort between Local 1000 and the State to respect their work with proper classification and compensation.”

Today, we also proposed an increase in the differential for those laboratory assistants who perform phlebotomy as part of their job description. The $125 monthly amount hasn’t changed in 18 years, while wages have nearly doubled. Thus, we’re asking for an increase to $250, which represents approximately 5% of current wages.

Joint labor management committees are powerful tools we use to continue the effort to improve wages and working conditions between contract cycles; today we proposed language to strengthen article 5.15.11, which governs the JLMC for Unit 11.

“Our goal is to re-focus the JLMC to address some much needed and thorough review of classifications and compensation,” said Unit Chair Willis. “We can’t solve a rampant vacancy problem without the improvements in recruitment and retention that come from these reviews.”

We’re pressing for stronger language in Article 13.31.11, which governs the 20/20 program. Many of our Unit 11 members hope to advance their contributions to their job. We’re seeing too many requests for this program denied by the state; we hope a re-write will make this available to more Unit 11 employees.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 11 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 8. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: April 24, 2023

Our Unit 11 bargaining team—representing Engineering and Scientific Technicians across the state—met with State negotiators for the second time, continuing to lay an important foundation that will result in better recognition for Unit 11’s represented employees.

“We’re driving home the demand for competitive wages and benefits for Unit 11,” said Brad Willis, Unit 11 Bargaining Chair. “We’re proud of the vital services we provide, but a high vacancy rate creates workloads that affect our ability to do our job.”

At today’s session, our team presented a proposal increasing the differential paid to the hundreds of Unit 11 members who hold a commercial driver’s license and use it as part of their job requirements. Article 11.41.11—the Commercial Driver’s License Differential—has not been changed since 1999. Currently, at $155, the new language calls for an increase to $300.

Five different “rollover” contract articles were also presented, representing language that remains unchanged from previous contracts. Our team and the State reached a tentative agreement on four of them:

11.40.11 – Operational Availability Incentive Program – DWR
13.13.11 – Professional Certification or Registration
13.14.11 – Special Certification Requirements – Caltrans
13.15.11 – Technician Rotation – Caltrans

One additional article (13.10.11, Education and Training) was also submitted as a rollover, but no agreement was reached today because of the length of that article.

Unit 11 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 1. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 11 Recap: April 17, 2023

In the first day of bargaining unit-specific negotiations, the Unit 11 team—representing Engineering and Scientific Technicians— met with State representatives, propelled by a real focus on the demand for greater respect and increased pay that’s commensurate for the work they do.

Laying the groundwork for a successful contract for Unit 11 employees, Bargaining Unit 11 Chair Brad Willis described the unique work they perform for all Californians and the critical role they play. “We design, build and maintain the state’s major thoroughfares, we move the state’s water from north to south, provide medical testing support for public health, and much more.”

“Unit 11 is at a critical juncture,” added Willis. “Our job demands great technical expertise, but the State’s failure to recognize us with competitive wages and benefits finds us at extreme vacancy rates, causing unreasonable workloads.” With that as a prelude, the Unit 11 team will focus on the retention as well as recruitment of the skilled professionals necessary to provide these vital services.

On April 17, our team reached a tentative agreement on three rollover articles: one that provides a substantial life insurance benefit for a range of Unit 11 employees (Article 9.18.11); one that provides ongoing Health and Safety education and training for Unit 11 (Article 10.5.11); and one that compels the State to report all cases to law enforcement involving assault and/or battery of Unit 11 prison employees or those performing inspections for the ARB or CDFA (Article 10.18.11).

“Rollovers” are articles that remain unchanged from the current language, and these agreements keep in place hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns.

Unit 11 returns to the table next week, on Monday, April 24. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 14 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 14 Tentative Agreement

Here are the highlights from the Unit 14 (Printing and Allied Trades) bargaining table:

13 different classifications in Unit 14 received pay increases of 5% (11.1.14 Special Salary Increases). Another 5 classifications received 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

14.7.14 Assignment of Duties Normally Performed by Bargaining Unit Employees. This agreement (with an important language change) brings Unit 14 job protections into parity with other Local 1000-represented bargaining units. It adds an important meet-and-confer provision that enables the Union to better preserve our work and our jobs.

A new contract section (14.X.14) launches a classification review for the Printing Trades Specialist Trainee series. Upon completion of that review, the State and our Union will jointly identify recommendations for changes to the Digital Print Operator Series, a right granted to Unit 14 through another new contract section (14.XX.14).

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 14 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able to read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Unit 14 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Your Unit 14 bargaining team is reaching out to give you an update on our negotiations on behalf of the Printing and Allied Trades workers we represent. Our last Unit 14 bargaining session with the State was on June 27. A number of Unit 14 proposals are still outstanding,

and another group of Unit 14-related proposals—largely economic—are being negotiated at the master table.

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?
Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

As we push hard to complete our efforts to win a contract we can be proud of, our Unit 14 bargaining team recorded three significant tentative agreements with the State, all economic proposals that reward the skills of the Printing and Allied Trade workers we represent.

“We’re responding to the priorities our members identified in town halls and bargaining surveys,” said Unit 14 Bargaining Chair Robert Vega. “It’s a big win for Unit 14.”

Three different contract sections with differential pay, all of which roll over previously-won contract language, were sections that the State negotiators attempted to modify or take away. We prevailed!

11.52.14 – M1000 Skill Pay Differential
11.53.14 – HP 10000 Skill Pay Differential
11.55.14 – Pay Differential – Sheetfed Press Operator (SOPO) II

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Our contract expires Friday, June 30. Our Unit 14 team is well on its way to completing its work, but still at issue are a number of economic issues—SSAs, among them—that have been moved to master table bargaining. Unit 14 is on standby to meet once again with the State to resolve these outstanding issues. When we meet, you’ll read it here first!

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

We experienced some incremental progress at the Unit 14 bargaining table today, recording three tentative agreements with State negotiators that govern our working conditions and protect our previously hard-earned contract rights.

Still, there’s frustration and a growing sense of concern among our Unit 14 team members. With just a few weeks remaining before our contract expires, and the State’s failure to respond to a number of our key bargaining proposals, there’s much work to do.

The tentative agreements we reached are:

19.3.14 – Rest Periods. This “core” working conditions provision in our contract, is important to maintain.
14.20.14 – Multimedia Specialist. We preserved this language from our last contract, and it keeps the discussion going about a possible new job classification that reflects the evolution of technology in the printing world.
14.7.14 Assignment of Duties Normally Performed by Bargaining Unit Employees. This agreement (with an important language change) brings Unit 14 job protections into parity with other Local 1000-represented bargaining units. It adds an important meet-and-confer provision that enables the union to better preserve our work and our jobs.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 14 will return to the table on Tuesday, June 20. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

While State negotiators remain unresponsive to our proposals, our Unit 14 bargaining team pressed forward today to advance career mobility and improve working conditions for the Printing and Allied Trades employees we represent.

“The State’s not being an active partner in bargaining our new contract,” said Robert Vega, Unit 14 Chair. “We’re frustrated because we have a number of proposals, some presented a month ago, which remain unanswered.”

The Unit 14 team has repeatedly committed to being available at any time to negotiate. Our current contract expires in a little over three weeks.

Some incremental progress was made today. “Our members have told us that job protections and job opportunities are important, along with a pay increase” added Vega.

We proposed a new language that keeps the graphic design work within our bargaining unit by ensuring their exclusive use of Adobe Creative Suite software. Our goal is to stem the persistent and pervasive use of this Adobe software by non-bargaining unit personnel.

In addition to this proposal, we’re seeking greater transparency and accountability from the State by filing an information request to ascertain how widespread usage of this program is.

Also today, we reached tentative agreement with the State on two contract sections governing career growth. They are “rollovers” that preserve the previous contract wins:

13.11.14 – Upward Mobility
13.12.14 – Posting of Vacancies and Job Openings

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 4 will return to the table on Tuesday, June 13. In addition, we’ve made it clear to State negotiators we’re ready to meet at any time to foster progress. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s Mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

After a short holiday break, the Unit 14 team returned to the bargaining table today to represent our print tradespeople in the fight for a fair contract that respects, protects, and pays all SEIU Local 1000 workers a fair wage.

We presented three proposals today, two of which were rollover proposals featuring hard-earned rights won in previous contracts:

19.9.14 Exchange of Time Off – Multi Shift Operations (Unit 14)
19.13.14 Overtime Assignment for Workweek Group II (WWG2) Employees (Unit 14)

“Section 19.13.14 is significant because in previous negotiations, the State actually proposed to take this away from our Unit 14 workers,” said Unit 14 Chair and Printing Process and Operations Planner Robert Vega. “We’ve had problems in the past when equipment operators were asked to put in overtime. Managers would often assign lower classification employees to perform the work in order to save money. This strong union language allows us to maintain this benefit for WWG2 employees and ensure the distribution of overtime continues to be based on seniority. That would be a big win for us.”

Unit 14 also proposed one section of new language today:

14.7.14 Assignment of Duties Normally Performed by Bargaining Unit Employees (Unit 14)

The benefit of section 14.7.14 begins with the fact that Unit 14 is specifically excluded from the Master Table language, so the team proposed to strengthen it by adding in some additional requirements for notification to the Union within this section. Specifically, the team asked that the State provide the basic information that the Union would have to request within an information request after receiving the notice.

In essence, that means the State would be required to tell us that they intend to do something that may negatively impact our workers. In addition, they would be required to do the research prior to noticing us regarding who is impacted, how they are impacted, what is causing the impact, and how that work will change—and for all of this to be contained in the notice. These measures would allow us to minimize response times to our employees so that they can quickly provide us with their opinion on any decision we might make in turn.

But the best news of the day might have been that the State presented four rollover articles to the team. “That’s reason itself for us to be excited,” said Ed Page, a Print Processing and Operations Planner at OSP. “However, we’re disappointed that the State has still not responded to many of our outstanding proposals.”

Unit 14 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 6. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

We presented three proposals today, two of which were rollover proposals featuring hard-earned rights won in previous contracts:

19.9.14 Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations (Unit 14)
19.13.14 Overtime Assignment for Workweek Group II (WWG2) Employees (Unit 14)

Unit 14 also proposed one section of new language today:

14.7.14 Assignment of Duties Normally Performed by Bargaining Unit Employees (Unit 14)

Unit 14 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 6. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

The Unit 14 team continued their efforts to advance the needs of their print tradespeople by presenting four rollover proposals on sections 11.51.14, 11.55.14, 14.17.14, and 14.18.14

The team also reached tentative agreement on four contract sections, including 14.17.14 and 14.18.14, along with two new language proposals — “Classification Review of Printing Trade Specialist Trainee” and “Classification Review of Digital Print Operator.”

“The two new language proposals that the State agreed to are a significant victory for the Unit 14 team and the print tradespeople we represent,” said Unit 4 Chair and Printing Process and Operations Planner Robert Vega. “We’ve had long-standing issues with each of these classifications, especially the Printing Trade Specialist Trainee. It’s a very low paid, entry level classification, and the State has begun to use it as a utility position within the DGS and OSP printing floor operation.”

“They’re over-utilizing these people to do an increasing large number of tasks, essentially using them as a stop gap to fill vacancies rather than hiring other classifications,” added Howard Hall, Webfed Offset Press Operator III. “We need to ensure that our workers are only doing the work they’re hired to do and have the ability to move up as they increase their skills.”

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

It’s also important to note that all four of the TAs that the team reached today were classification reviews of different classifications. That means the State agreed that all four classifications are in need of additional attention and require joint review; the language we added allows us to create individual committees to do so. The committees will include four members of Local 1000 and four members from the State, who will work together to resolve long-standing issues within these classifications.

While the team is working hard to make it clear to the State why we need — and merit — special salary adjustments, it’s equally important that all printing trade specialist trainees understand that the team has heard and is working hard to address the challenges you’re having at work.

“The discussion we had today relieves a lot of anxiety and anxiousness surrounding the delays we’re facing with the State,” said Ed Page, a Print Processing and Operations Planner at OSP. “But there are more challenges ahead.”

To read about what happened in Tuesday’s Bargaining Unit 1, 3, 4, and 17 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

The Unit 14 bargaining team took a different approach to their contract negotiation with the State by meeting on-site at the Office of State Publishing (OSP) with representatives from CalHR and the Department of Finance along with several other individuals from the State team.

The team proceeded to lead the group on a tour of the facility, explaining the equipment utilized at the OSP, the classification and individuals operating the equipment—what they do, how it fits together, and how the team is instrumental in creating the finished product. Unit 14 members who participated in the tour include:

Robert Vega, Printing Process and Operations Planner
Howard Hall, Webfed Offset Press Operator III
Edward Page, Printing Process and Operations Planner
Sam Rice, Senior Union Representative

The State’s team was appreciative of the tour and responsive to the conditions unit 14 members work in and the product they produce. The state representatives were able to see items come off the press as well as folded and bound finished pamphlets and informational guides and followed up with numerous questions. Later in the afternoon, Unit 14 chair Robert Vega and the team met with the State and submitted one proposal:=

11.1.14 – Special Salary Adjustment (Unit 14)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

The Unit 14 team was joined by five subject matter experts who are not currently members of the Unit 14 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC), and together the team submitted a proposal for a 5% across-the-board raise for all classifications in Unit 14. This would be in addition to any general salary increase Local 1000 workers hope to receive as a whole. The Bargaining Unit Subject Matter Experts for this contract are:

Jeff Fowler, Graphic Designer III
Britton Sarmento, Digital Composition Specialist III
Ramone Romero, Book Binder IV
Jean Pierre Correa, Sheetfed Offset Press Operator V
Howard Hall, Webfed Offset Press Operator III
Jason Hettrick, Printing Plant Machinist
Mitchel Gamez, Printing Trade Specialist Trainee
Edward Page, Printing Process and Operations Planner

The rationale behind the proposal is based on the fact that Unit 14 personnel were required to work in-person throughout the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, recruitment and retention continue to be problematic due to low wages, leading to high vacancy rates. Several members of the team also shared their experiences, from having to work overtime to make up the difference for unfilled staff positions to having to work second jobs to pay their rent.

“We want to thank the OSP personnel who stepped up to make the facility presentation such a success,” said Unit 14 chair Vega. “The tour set the stage for our subject matter experts. Afterward, the state was able to directly correlate between what we do and what we’re asking for.”

“The value, dedication, and loyalty that we provide to the state was on full display today,” added Ed Page, a Print Processing and Operations Planner at OSP. “The people who work here are because they want to be here. We take pride in our jobs, the work we perform, and our ability to rise above the unforeseen obstacles that have stood in our way. But we also feel like we deserve to be paid for that loyalty and the hardships we’ve overcome.”

To read about what happened in Tuesday’s Bargaining Unit 1, 3, 4, and 17 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Led by Bargaining Chair Robert Vega, the Unit 14 Bargaining team met with the State again on Tuesday, May 9, to negotiate a contract that respects, protects, and pays our print trades workers a fair wage.

In today’s negotiating session, Vega and his colleagues presented four proposals along with two rollover proposals to the state. “Rollovers” are articles that remain unchanged from the current language. These agreements keep in place hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. Today’s Unit 14 rollover articles included:

Article 11.52.14 – M1000 Skill Pay Differential (Unit 14)
Article 11.53.14 – HP10,000 Skill Pay Differential (Unit 14)

The BU 14 team also presented two new language proposals to the State, each a request for a special classification review and each unique in their own right; one is for a Printing Trade Specialist Trainee series (PTSTs) and the other a proposal for a Digital Print Operator series (DPOs).

The Printing Trade Specialist Trainee series has been a low-paid position within Unit 14 that has been utilized to a large degree as a utility position. The State currently pays them a lower wage in order to gain more efficiency, to the detriment of the facility and the individuals. With this proposal, Unit 14 is seeking to outline pathways for those individuals to achieve greater upward mobility.

The work for the Digital Print Operator series has changed dramatically, and these workers are now asked to do significantly more work. Not surprisingly, this has caused a correspondingly large 30% vacancy rate.

With the four additional Tentative Agreements (TAs) on rollover language proposed today and four from the prior meeting, BU 14 has now signed 8 TAs total.

The bargaining team is looking forward to next week when they will host the State of California negotiating team on a site visit at DGS OSP, where the State will see what we do and what our working conditions are like in person.

Following the tour, the teams will meet in the afternoon to present substantive economic proposals to the State.

“The leaders of our bargaining team deserve a lot of credit for how they presented the new proposals,” added Ed Page, a Print Processing and Operations Planner at OSP. “They were very well received, and we’re looking forward to this translating into better outcomes for all of our workers.”

To read about what happened in Tuesday’s Bargaining Unit 1, 3, 4, and 17 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 14 Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

The Unit 14 Bargaining team met with the State for their first 2023 contract negotiation session on Tuesday, April 25, as part of SEIU Local 1000’s effort to win a good contract for our 96,000 workers.

Led by Chair Robert Vega, this marked BU 14’s first bargaining session with the State in 2023, as their initial session was canceled by CalHR due to a scheduling conflict. In recognition, the team began the session with short individual introductions and explanations of their various job duties.

The team then presented eight (8) proposals. These included:

5.14.14 – BU 14 Upward Mobility Joint Labor Management Committee (Unit 14)
8.22.14 – Vacation Calendar (Unit 14)
9.19.14 – Light/Limited Duty Assignments (Unit 14)
10.8.14 – Protective Clothing Program at Office of State Publishing (OSP) (Unit 14)

Of the eight, the two sides agreed to sign Tentative Agreements (rollover existing contract language with no changes) on the following four (4):

2.4.14 – Distribution of Literature (Unit 14)
3.3.14 – Union Label (Unit 14)
5.13.14 – INTENTIONALLY EXCLUDED
5.18.14 – Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) – Office of State Publishing (OSP) (Unit 14)

The most significant of these is the Printing Trades Union Label, which serves as a physical representation of the service Unit 14 workers provide.

As the session came to a close, the Unit 14 team tried a different tactic by inviting the CalHR team to a worksite visit for the next negotiating session on May 9. The CalHR team accepted the invitation, an important gesture in itself, and agreed to hold the next meeting at the DGS OSP worksite.

“We feel like we might have started something that could be good for other negotiating units to utilize,” said Ed Page, a Print Processing and Operations Planners at OSP. “They don’t actually know what we do, so seeing it in person could lend greater context to our upcoming conversations.”

Plans call for Vega to give a brief tour of the floor to familiarize the State with our working conditions. Following the tour, the teams will meet in the afternoon to discuss additional proposals.

To read about what happened in Tuesday’s Bargaining Unit 1, 3, 4, and 17 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 15 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 15 Tentative Agreement

Here are the highlights from the Unit 15 (Allied Service Workers) bargaining table:

5 different classifications in Unit 15 received pay increases ranging from 4% – 6.61% (11.1.15 Special Salary Increases). Another 21 classifications received 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

Nine different classifications will be eligible for a Staged Pay Differential. There are three levels: 2% after passing probation, 2% after 12 months in the classification, and another 1.5% after 24 months.

The State will establish an alternative range—Increasing the minimum and maximum of the salary ranges by 10%—for employees in the Custodian I and Custodian II classifications who are employed by CCHCS, CDCR, CalVet, CalPIA, DDS, DSH (11.XX.15)

Our uniform allowance has increased to $650. The safety footwear allowance for custodians has increased to $165 and is now assured to be included directly in the employee’s paycheck each year. (12.11.15)

New language creates an opportunity to negotiate a yearly vacation bidding process at each institution in CDCR and CCHCS. (8.X.15)

Three Joint Labor Management Committees (JLMC) (Custodians, Food Service Workers, Upward Mobility and Career Development) will all have additional departments participating, moving forward. In addition, we’ve split CDCR & CCHCS into its own JLMC, while maintaining the existing Food Service Workers JLMC. (5.16.15, 5.18.15, 13.11.15)

We’ve expanded the number of departments that will now offer training on how to properly handle infectious diseases and how to keep Unit 15 employees safe. (10.25.15)

12.9.15 Overtime Meal Allowance (Excluding CDCR and CCHCS) (Unit 15). This language now excludes CDCR and CCHCS as these departments are now covered under 12.9 for overtime meal allowances.

We secured a voluntary overtime seniority process for all non-CDCR worksites and strengthened language to protect employees’ RDOs. (19.13.15). Similarly, we strengthened language to protect employee RDOs at CDCR, Adult Programs, and CCHCS (19.14.15)

In 21.26.15-Custodial Routes (Unit 15), we added language to modify work duties when short-staffed.

Protecting our existing hard-won rights from previous campaigns, we kept the same language and protections in more than two dozen Unit 15-specific contract sections.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 15 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able to read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Unit 15 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Your Unit 15 bargaining team is reaching out to give you an update on our negotiations on behalf of the Allied Services Workers we represent. Our last Unit 15 bargaining session with the State was on June 25. A number of Unit 15 proposals are still outstanding, and another group of Unit 15-related proposals—largely economic—are being negotiated at the master table.

Want a more detailed Unit 15 bargaining update? Join us on one of two Zoom calls on Monday, July 24. Use the link below to sign on. **Please note: no registration is necessary.

Monday, July 24, 2023, 9:00 a.m. OR Monday, July 24, 2023, 6:00 p.m.
https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/j/5349952562

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?
Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, June 19, 2023

With a short ten days remaining until our current contract expires, our Unit 15 team reports some additional engagement by the State’s negotiating team—but not enough, and no real progress on the key economic issues identified by the Allied Service workers we represent.

Three of our money proposals have been moved to master table negotiations, covering SSAs and a boost in uniform allowance. We’re frustrated that the State hasn’t been forthcoming with explanations as we seek to understand the other side’s position after almost 9 weeks of bargaining. We received no other proposals from the State today.

In many cases, our working conditions are priorities for our Unit 15 members, and in Monday’s session, we focused our energy on reaching solutions on two issues: overtime distribution and re-directed assignments.

Too often, our represented employees don’t get offered an opportunity to work overtime shifts, and our bargaining team and Unit 15 leaders have long been fighting for contract language that supports equitable access to OT shifts.

“We’re demanding that the State apply simple fairness to a wholly unfair process,” said Brent Andrews of the Unit 15 bargaining team. “We’ve shared a number of compelling stories that illustrate the lost economic opportunity for our members.”

The fight for positive change in access to overtime assignments continues, and we’re not finished. At the same time, the State is resistant to our demand for stronger language to protect our members from being redirected to or “cross-covering” working assignments outside their normal duties. Here, too, the process continues, and our team is planning the next steps.

We reached agreement to update the language on one provision with the State, which will increase the number of departments committing to provide proper training on infectious diseases and blood-borne pathogens:10.25.15 – Infectious Disease Control

We reached agreement with the State on three additional existing provisions that preserve the rights we won in previous contract campaigns:

10.33.15 – Laundry and Kitchen Temperature and Visibility
15.2.15 – Joint Labor Management Appeal of Voluntary Transfer
11.16.15 -Cook’s Classification

Unit 15 will return to the table on Monday, June 26. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you are, help support bargaining teams by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, June 12, 2023

There was some movement at the Unit 15 bargaining table today as the State negotiators broke their own logjam and provided some incremental responses to our proposals.

“We think the State heard our frustration, and while we didn’t reach any agreements today, we are encouraged by the State’s movement,” said Eric Murray, Unit 15 hair. “We can begin having some dialog about issues of importance to the Allied Service workers we represent.”

Today, the State returned counter proposals on five different contract sections. Our Unit 15 team is diligently reviewing the changes and evaluating the impacts any changes will have on our members.

“We’re working on contract sections that protect our working conditions, like overtime distribution and infectious disease control,” said Eric Murray. “These are key issues identified by Unit 15 at town halls and in bargaining surveys.”

Still, much work to achieve a good contract remains. Six proposals remain unanswered by the state.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 15 will return to the table on Monday, June 19. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, June 5, 2023

Unit 15 continues to press the State to advance the economics and working conditions of our Allied Service workers. While we made some important progress today, there remain more than 10 proposals still awaiting any kind of response from the State.

“Incremental progress is cause for optimism, but we can’t move forward on key Unit 15 issues without some kind of answer,” said Unit 15 Chair Eric Murray. “Negotiations are a two-way street, and it’s incumbent on the State to do their share.”

We’re working to address the State’s lack of reasonable timing when scheduling required training. Some supervisors are ignoring current contract language governing required training, and so our proposal for section 13.22.15 strengthens language to allow our represented workers to not only do their jobs well but to reasonably and reliably schedule their personal commitments without interruption.

A similar, new proposal – 8.X.15 Vacation Scheduling Bid (CDCR/CCHCS) – offers a new procedure that will also improve our work/life balance. We heard our members when they said that management often ignores reasonable and common practices when scheduling time off, explaining “We don’t have it in writing.” We aim to improve this.

Today: Unit 15 reached tentative agreement with the State on three contract sections:

13.19.15 – State Required Training
13.22.15 – CDCR (Adult Programs) Training
13.23.15 – CDCR Training (Juvenile Programs)

Of particular note: We pushed hard to win agreement on the training at DJJ. Our members will be among the last workers as the state closes the juvenile facilities. This ensures their training will be kept current for future work situations.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 15 will return to the table on Monday, June 12. In addition, we’ve made it clear to State negotiators we’re ready to meet at any time to foster progress. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, May 22, 2023

After consulting with their Master Table bargaining team colleagues last week, the Bargaining Unit 15 team met with the State for the fifth time to work on pass backs and hear counter offers on proposals the team has brought to the State in previous sessions.

The team presented one new proposal and three rollover proposals. The new proposal is:

13.11.15 Joint Labor Management Committee on Upward Mobility and Career Development (Unit 15)

This proposal retains all the old language for this committee while adding several departments to make it more inclusive, bring more people to the table, and increase worker access to upward mobility. To do so, we are adding the following departments: the California Highway Patrol (CHP), the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV), and the California Conservation Corps (CCC)

We also reached Tentative Agreement on three rollover proposals, including:

14.12.15 Custodian Equipment (Unit 15)
15.4.15 Employee Opportunity Transfer (Unit 15)
13.23.15 CDCR Training (Juvenile Programs) (Unit 15)

Local 1000 and the State have gone back and forth about proposing to eliminate the language in 13.23.15. The juvenile programs have as yet not been eliminated, and until those programs are officially removed, the Unit 15 Team is insistent that the language will remain.

“We need to have economic discussions at the unit table in order to know what to propose for Tentative Agreement at the master table,” said Eric Murray, Bargaining Unit 15 Chair. As Murray pointed out, bargaining ground rules allow the State to deliver counter proposals on economics at the unit tables. However, only tentative agreements on economics need to be elevated and reached at the Master table. So, while it is important for economic discussions to take place at the unit tables to narrow down the issues sent to the master table, rejections of economics may take place at the unit table.

If the State is claiming any economic proposal, even a rollover—the hard-earned rights we’ve won in previous campaigns—it is considered a “new cost.” When this occurs, the State needs to be costing the unit proposals and bringing Department of Finance to the unit table to discuss.

If the State is looking to make changes to any of our current differential language in relation to the Public Employees’ Pension Reform Act (PEPRA), the State needs to provide this counter as well.

The State has had eighteen months from the date when we were notified to conduct the research that demonstrates there is a legal necessity to change the status of any specific differential. Unless the State can prove changes are legally necessary, Local 1000 and the Unit 15 team has no intention of changing this language. “We are willing to meet as long as it takes to make movement with the Unit 15 proposals,” reiterated Murray. “It’s on the State to make the counter for us to be able to respond.”

“We need to get some of these financial proposals back from the State,” said Garth Underwood, BU 15 Vice Chair and a CDCR Correctional Supervising Cook at Ironwood State Prison. “We can’t move anything much further until we start to see their counter offers. Unit 15 workers are the lowest paid employees in Local 1000, so the most important thing for allied service workers like us is money. The members have spoken. We need to see a significant raise.”

Unit 15’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for June 5 due to the Memorial Day holiday. On Tuesday, May 23, bargaining units 1, 3, 4, 14, and 17 will once again meet with the State. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, May 24.

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, May 15, 2023

Bargaining Unit 15, representing allied service workers from across the state, returned to the table today with the State to reiterate the importance of maintaining a high level of health and safety for our incarcerated population as well as the state employees serving them.

The Unit 15 team reached a tentative agreement on rollover language for the section 13.31.15 20/20 programs (Unit 15).

Redirects (BU 15)
The second proposal Unit 15 made to the State involves section XX.XX.XX – Redirects (Unit 15). The intent speaks to an issue that has arisen in Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) meetings regarding what has become an expectation for cooks to oversee food preparation and cooking while simultaneously maintaining quality control standards in multiple kitchens. The issue has arisen primarily due to chronic staff shortages, with what staff we do have being asked to do double duty.

“It’s not only a health and safety issue,” said unit chair Eric Murray. “It’s a food integrity issue as well. Asking our cooks to cover two or more groups of inmates at the same time unnecessarily puts all inmates at risk of food illness or injury. It’s difficult to supervise a meal for 500-1000 inmates. It’s impossible to be redirected—and held accountable to state standards—for twice that number.”

The rationale is simple. Unit 15 employees that work in a CDCR or CCHCS institution that have successfully bid for a position shall not be redirected from that position. If it becomes necessary to redirect under extreme emergencies, management shall fill the position with a 1^st line supervisor first. However, if this is not possible, the post shall be filled by an employee who is working in a management-owned position. If it becomes necessary to redirect a BU 15 employee from their union post, management will follow the inverse seniority rotation.

Unit 15’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 22. On Tuesday, May 16, bargaining units 1, 3, 4, 14, and 17 will once again meet with the State. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, May 17.

To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, May 8, 2023

The Bargaining Unit 15 Negotiating Committee returned to the bargaining table on Monday, May 8, 2023, to demand the State of California respect, protect, and pay our allied service workers.

The debate was lively—and productive—as the team proposed and reached Tentative Agreement (TA) on several items and presented several additional important proposals to the State. The TAs included:

Article 10.9.15 – Safety Equipment and Safety Glasses/Goggles (Unit 15)
Article 21.26.15 – Custodial Routes (Unit 15)

The Tentative Agreement on Article 10.9.15 in particular represents a huge win for our 4,500+ SEIU Local 1000 civil service custodians, laundry workers, supervising cooks, and food service workers in California prisons and other state institutions.

The team was able to “rollover” the language with the stipulation that BU 15 employees can ask for additional safety equipment such as freezer gear coats. This means the higher authorities are recognizing that these are reasonable requests, and they will respond to them in a timely manner. Plus, if our Unit 15 workers are at a facility that holds safety meetings, our workers can address the issue directly with the Labor Relations Advocate (LRA) on site.

BU 15 Chair Eric Murray and the team also proposed new language for Article 21.26.15 that covered Section B. The State responded that when feasible, in the event of unanticipated staff shortages where staff are covering shortages in addition to those normally assigned, departments may initiate a modified cleaning program. “When feasible” is critically important because up to this point, the State has been utilizing our custodians to cover multiple routes, and now this new language opens up overtime to cover the routes or it becomes a modified route to cover minimal needs. This will relieve a significant burden for the worker in question.

Unit 15 made three additional proposals to the State, including:

Article 19.14.15 – Overtime Distribution for Employees (CDCR – Adult Programs) (Unit 15)
Article XX.XX.XX In Service Training Overtime (Unit 15)
Article 10.25.15 – Infectious Disease Control (Unit 15)
Article 11.16.15 – Cooks Classification (Unit 15) – rollover agreement proposal
Article 13.19.15 – State-Required Training (Unit 15) – rollover agreement proposal

“19.14.15 is an example of the important language we are implementing for our CSC’s working in the correction environment,” said Garth Underwood, BU 15 Vice Chair and a CDCR Correctional Supervising Cook at Ironwood State Prison. “It always has and always will be an issue. This proposal will correctly address a majority of the correction issues for our supervising cooks, and it shows that seniority matters.”

While fairly simple, 19.14.15 includes important clarifying language, including but not limited to the following changes:

In Section A, we remove “will endeavor to” and replace with “shall” reduce the amount of mandatory overtime.
In Section B, we recommend replacing “will” with “shall” be considered.
In Section C, we clarify and define the beginning and end of an employee’s RDO.
In Section D, we again remove “will” and replace with “shall” be required. We are moving two (2) “double” replacing with overtime shifts of any length within the employee’s scheduled workweek. No changes to Sections E, F, or G.
In Section H, we remove “will endeavor to” and replace with “shall” afford overtime…

You can read further details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

XX.XX.XX IST Overtime is a completely new concept for BU 15 that has been used by other units working within the California Department of Corrections (CDCR). As is generally acknowledged, Unit 15 classifications that work and attend IST in CDCR institutions post and bid for their spots. This process guarantees the employee their RDOs, shifts, and yard they work on. However, some management teams randomly remove their employees from their shifts and adjust employee RDOs to ensure IST attendance. While employee training may be conducted during regular work hours or during the employee’s off-duty hours, we strongly believe employees should be compensated for their time, and no adjustments should be made unless the employee is requesting this change.

The team made an additional proposal for overtime checks that was rejected. The reason given by the State is as follows:

Due to the fact that we are transitioning to bi-weekly pay, the State does not want to add contract language that references the new system and thus potentially affects our overtime language. Per the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), there is no requirement that an overtime check has to be delivered by the 15th of the month. However, the California State Payroll (CSP) system will strive to do so.

Unit 15’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 15. On Tuesday, May 9, bargaining units 1, 3, 4, 14, and 17 will return to the table. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, May 10.

To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, May 1, 2023

On Monday, May 1, 2023, the Unit 15 Bargaining team once again met with the State in an effort to get the 4,500+ hard-working SEIU Local 1000 allied service workers across California the respect, workplace protection, and pay they deserve.

The team proposed and reached Tentative Agreement (TA) on the following two rollover language items:

9.19.15 – Light/Limited Duty Assignments (Unit 15)
10.34.15 – Building Temperature During Night Shift (Unit 15)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 15 made one additional proposal to the State:

19.13.15 Overtime Distribution for Employees (Excluding CDCR-Adult Programs) (Unit 15)

The team began by explaining the importance of this proposal, a point not lost on BU 15 members. “It’s not an exaggeration to say that this proposal is every bit as important as money to our allied service workers,” said BU 15 Chair Eric Murray.

The proposal itself is fairly simple, with the team working to keep the original intent of this language while clarifying and making the language more definitive, including:

Adding new language in Section A stating that management shall utilize the voluntary system before resorting to the involuntary system.
Removing “endeavor to” from the language in Section C, which states the department shall refrain from assigning employees mandatory overtime on the employee’s Regular Day Off (RDO). In this same section, the team detailed the beginning and end of an employee’s RDO.
Changing the language in Section D from “(2) double shifts” to “overtime shifts of any length” within the employee’s scheduled workweek.

Sections E, F, and G remain unchanged.

While the conversation between the State and BU 15 has been professional and productive, Murray was quick to share the credit. “While we’ve given some impactful statements, the work our members and leadership team has done is responsible for getting us to this point. We’ve had these conversations in our Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) meetings, so discussing mandatory overtime and overtime distribution is not something new. The State knows what we’re talking about and they know it’s a problem. There’s only so much overtime our employees can work,” added Murray, a sentiment the State seemed to take to heart.

Unit 15’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 8. On Tuesday, May 2, bargaining units 1, 3, 4, 14, and 17 will return to the table. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, May 3.

To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, April 24, 2023

The Unit 15 Bargaining team, led by Chair Eric Murray, once again met with the State on Monday, April 24. It was a difficult but productive day for the team, which signed seven Tentative Agreements (TAs) and presented numerous high priority proposals demanding that the State show the 4,500+ SEIU Local 1000 allied service workers across the state the monetary respect they deserve.

Joseph Kochetta, a custodian who has worked for the California Department of General Services (DGS) for seven (7) years and now works in the crime lab, spelled out his value loud and clear while discussing the hardships he faces on a daily basis. “We’re not unskilled labor,” said Kochetta. “We have a multitude of training processes that we go through, including Covid-related, in order to keep the labs clean and safe for the technicians. We deal with blood and air-borne pathogens, and if we don’t do things the right way, evidence gets thrown out.”

“We supervise inmate workers by guiding and training them,” added Murray. “We prepare them for their future outside of prison by giving them a solid job skill to be productive members of society.”

The team presented several proposals, including:

12.11.15 Uniform replacement Allowance (Unit 15)
- Moved $1,000 uniform allowance
- $200 tax-free shoe allowance
- Allocates $1,500 for CSC’s
- California Prison Industry Authority (PIA) Custodians to receive a set amount of uniforms
21.26.15 Custodial Routes (Unit 15)
- The team added a new paragraph that addresses staff shortages to ensure departments include a modified cleaning program when short of staff to prevent multiple duties during their scheduled shifts. Custodial staff is currently asked to cover other areas, leading to back-to-back eight (8) hour shifts in one day.
11.XX.15 Special Salary Adjustments (Custodial Alternative Range for Medical Cleaning (Unit 15)
- This proposal features new language that eliminates the requirements of supervisors to add paperwork to time cards to prove inmates are wards, thus streamlining the process. The proposal also adds $110 to inmate supervision pay.
11.1.15 Special Salary Adjustments (Unit 15)
- For custodians who work in 24-hour facilities, our position is that this work is more technical and complex than more traditional office-based custodial duties and merits higher pay. Our 24- hour custodians do a higher-level cleaning and require a higher level of skill due to the deeper hospital-level cleaning their job calls for.
  
  The team proposed that the whole unit be uplifted 30% beginning on July 1, 2023. This reflects the difficulty in attracting and retaining employees because of the low pay in our classes.

The team also presented several rollover agreements, signaling our desire to leave the existing language unchanged and thus retain the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. These agreements include:

8.24.15 DDS Vacation Scheduling System for Common Level of Care (LOC) Nursing Staff in Bargaining Unit 15
11.22.15 INTENTIONALLY EXCLUDED
10.14.15 Personal Alarms-CDCR (Unit 15)
10.16.15 Alarm System: DDS and DSH (Unit 15)
10.20.15 Active Treatment Crisis Management, Therapeutic Strategies and Interventions Training or Nonviolent Crisis Intervention, (CPI) (Unit 15)
13.18.15 Employee Group Meeting (Unit 15)
19.33.15 Call-in Procedures (Unit 15)

The team also reported back to the State on the severity of their plight as a whole. “There is something horribly wrong with this picture,” said Susanna Redfearn, a Correctional Supervising Cook at Avenal State Prison. “How can an employee of the fourth largest economy in the world be threatened with homelessness? But the sobering truth is a lot of state employees face this threat every day. Making decisions on whether they put food on their table, pay a utility bill, or go to the doctor and pay for their medications. How is this even acceptable by those who have the power to change it, yet haven’t?”

“We took a 10% cut in pay while private sector grocery workers received a 10% raise during Covid,“ added Pete Garza, a Correctional Supervising Cook at Valley State Prison who has worked for the state for 19 years and never seen a significant raise.

Unit 15’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 1. On Tuesday, April 25, bargaining units 1, 3, 4, 14, and 17 will hold their second sessions at the table. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, May 3.

To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 15 Recap: Monday, April 17, 2023

On Monday, April 17, Bargaining Unit 15 met with State for the first time in 2023 to lift up the concerns of over 4,500 allied service workers across the state. The inaugural session was led by Bargaining Unit 15 Chair Eric Murray, who opened by making a heartfelt plea to the State concerning the value Unit 15 brings.

“All of our proposals that we will be presenting to you over the next several weeks are very meaningful and important to our membership and my team. Some may seem strange or exotic to your team, but they are very meaningful for our workers.” Murray’s words seemed to resonate well, and the State responded that they will seek to understand our unit issues, will ask for clarification if they don’t understand, and will consider all of the proposals we present.

The session featured two Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) Tentative Agreements (TA) that were not rollover language:

JLMC TA 5.16.15 applies to custodians and features clean-up language that adds new groups to the negotiating table for the first time, including custodians working for:
- CA Highway Patrol
- Employment Development Department
- CA State Lottery
- CA Dept. of Education
- Dept. of Motor Vehicles
- Dept. of Developmental Services
JLMC TA 5.18.15 applies to food service workers. Within our contract, we have two separate languages – one for the California Department of Corrections (CDCR) and one for everyone else. This TA adds the following departments to the latter group:
- CalVet
- CA Department of Education
- CA Conservation Corps
- CA Highway Patrol
- Department of Developmental Services
- Department of State Hospitals
This TA is also more inclusive in nature due to the fact that it adds one more representative seat to the non-service food workers

In addition to the Tentative Agreements, several subject matter experts came to the table to tell their stories to the State in person.

Karen Maddox-Long, who works for the Departmental of General Services (DGS) as a custodian within the LA metro area, told a poignant story that left listeners in tears. “The hiring process is so hard, it’s impossible to hire people. That means I end up cross-covering multiple jobs. We’re the backbone of the state. If we didn’t do what we do, the state — you — wouldn’t be sitting in a clean office.”

“My parking costs alone come to $880 a month, which is nearly half of my paycheck,” added Bill Suhar, who works for the DGS in Riverside.

Unit 15’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for April 24. On Tuesday, April 18, Bargaining units 1,3, 4, 14, and 17 will hold their first sessions at the table. Master table negotiations resume on Wednesday, April 19.

To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 17 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 17 Tentative Agreement

At the master table, we negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, maintained the health care stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor in to our state income. Our general salary increase, our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.

Here are the highlights from the Unit 17 (Registered Nurses) bargaining table:

14 different classifications in Unit 17 received pay increases of 5% (11.1.17 Special Salary Increases). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

The educational differential for RNclassifications increased $25, which means it went from $50 up to $75. (11.57.17)

The CDPH Health Facilities Evaluator Nurses LA County Travel Incentive went from 80hrs/10 days down to 40hrs/5 days with a travel incentive that went from $167 up to $250. (11.59.17)

Seniority differential! Effective July 1, 2024 through July 1, 2026, multiple RN classifications will receive a seniority differential as follows: 17-19 years of state service will receive 2% of their total salary; 20-22 years will receive 3% of their total salary, effective July 1, 2024. Effective
July 1, 2025 – July 1, 2026 RNs with 23-24 years of state service will receive 4% of total salary. Effective July 1, 2026 RNs with 25yrs or more of state service will receive 5% of their total salary. All of these payments will be pensionable. (11.XXX.17)

We’ve made steps to standardize vacation scheduling at DVA and CDCR/CCHCS. (8.26.17, 8.27.17)

With stronger language, we’re ensuring that safety orientation in 24-hour facilities happens within 45 days of hire and provided a process to solve issues quickly, by meeting with management in a Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC). (10.5.17)

We’ve extended the availability of training in the prevention and management of assaultive behavior or therapeutic strategies and interventions to include CDCR/CCHCS. (10.19.17)

Overtime meals are now governed by stronger, expanded language that offers more flexibility in usage and reimbursement for DVA and CDCR/CCHCS. (12.9.17)

In ten different contract sections, we made great advances in mandatory and voluntary overtime:

Greater transparency with a standardized mandate list. Each facility will maintain a universally-available list of impacted employees with dates of last mandated shift. This system will provide a fair and open process, to ensure that credit for working a mandated shift is duly recorded.
Better protection for days off. We’ve safeguarded against mandated shifts the day before any pre-approved day off. You can’t be mandated to work overtime on the last day of your regularly scheduled week, nor can you be mandated to work the day before any pre-approved day off.
Stronger task force, early negotiations. This is our biggest win – new language that creates a Joint Labor-Management Task Force to create solutions for MOT, along with implementation plans for those solutions. The task force will meet every other month and issue a joint report to CalHR, Department of Finance (DOF), and the department heads. Here’s the kicker: this new agreement allows Local 1000 to re-open all MOT-related contract article sections on or after July 1, 2025, well before our next traditional round of contract bargaining. It’s an unheard-of accomplishment by SEIU and gives us optimism for future improvements.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 17 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the state. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

New MOT deal reached after State said “no” a week ago

Tentative agreements add transparency, accountability, and a path to improvement

One week after hearing from the State that they had “no interest” in bargaining over mandatory overtime (MOT), our team pushed back, and after a marathon 17-hour bargaining session, won three big tentative agreements: fair scheduling, better protection of days off, and a unique path to future negotiations.

“We ‘mandated’ this long bargaining session to underscore the issues our members face,” said Vanessa Seastrong, Unit 17 Bargaining Chair. “Our team pressed the State for positive change, and we won.”

Our tentative agreements, listed below, do not include a reduction in mandated shifts. Here are highlights of the important changes we achieved:

Greater transparency with a standardized mandate list. Each facility will maintain a universally-available list of impacted employees with dates of last mandated shift. This system will help employees visualize a fair and open approach to the MOT process. The new process will allow members to ensure they receive credit for their MOT shift and know where they are actually on the list.

Better protection for days off. We’ve safeguarded against mandated shifts the day before any pre-approved day off. The day before your pre-approved day off is now considered your Friday because our contract states an employee can’t be mandated on their RDO.

Stronger task force, early negotiations. This is our biggest win – new language that creates a Joint Labor Management Task Force to create solutions to MOT, along with implementation plans for those solutions. The task force will meet every other month and issue a joint report to CalHR and the department heads with strategies to reduce MOT across all affected departments. Here’s the kicker: this new agreement allows Local 1000 to re-open all MOT-related contract articles on or after July 1, 2025, well before our next traditional round of contract bargaining. It’s an unheard-of accommodation by the State and gives us optimism for future improvements.

Here are the contract sections we reached agreement on (with changes as summarized above):

19.13.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20)
19.14.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
19.14.17 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17)
19.15.17 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17)
19.15.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)
19.34 Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) – Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) and California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS) Joint Labor Management Task Force for the Strategic Reduction of Mandatory Overtime for RNs, LVNs, CNAs, and MAs (Units 17 and 20)
19.36 Department of State Hospitals (DSH) Joint Labor Management Task Force for the Strategic Reduction of Mandatory Overtime for RNs and LVNs (Units 17 and 20)
19.37 California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) Joint Labor Management Task Force for the Strategic Reduction of Mandatory Overtime for RNs, LVNs, and CNAs (Units 17 and 20)
19.38 Mandatory Overtime

Earlier this week, we also secured tentative agreement on these two sections governing voluntary overtime.

19.22.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
19.23.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)

Unit-specific bargaining sessions are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. We’re scheduled to return to the master table again on Thursday, August 10, and Friday, August 11. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Click here to read all the recaps of bargaining activity.

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid more visible – and more impactful.

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

It’s unacceptable that state employee wages are so low that we can’t afford to live in California.

We provide the essential services that keep our state running. We are not backing down until we win the livable wages our families need.

Time is running out. The State of California must act now to pay its essential state workers for the important work we do. Join union members and community allies to demand livable wages NOW.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

Can’t join us in Sacramento? Check here for other pickets and actions organized by members across California.

Mandatory Overtime (MOT) Side Table Summary 8.1.23. State negotiators signal MOT is a preferred staffing tool, reject improvements, and disrespect medical staff

Today, State negotiators told us in the clearest possible terms that they don’t care about the health care professionals we represent; that the personal safety and work/life balance of the LVNs, CNAs, and RNs isn’t a priority, nor is the quality of the patient care they provide.

They told us that they have no interest in bargaining over mandatory overtime, no interest in reducing the number of mandated shifts, and no interest in finding real solutions to this dangerous practice.

Why? Because, as the State’s lead negotiator said today, state agencies like CDCR/CCHCS and DVA don’t want to make a change and prefer to use mandatory overtime as a staffing tool. What’s worse, that same lead negotiator claimed having the authority to implement a reduction in MOT, and that it wasn’t a financial decision. The departments believe reducing MOT to be too difficult.

Eliminating MOT has been a hard-fought, six-year battle. We reached agreement in 2019 negotiations for a joint task force to find solutions, which included triggers that forced a reduction in the number of mandated shifts management could impose.

Local 1000 did their share, creating solutions, participating in pilot programs, and more. At every turn, our ideas were answered with excuses or unwillingness. Our current contract called for the participation of CalHR and the State’s Department of Finance, which did not happen.

We entered this bargaining cycle with the goal of creating a pathway to eliminating MOT. Today’s session was the third we’ve had with the State on this subject. We’ve presented scores of subject matter experts backed with compelling data. All to no avail.

The State has rejected our every effort to reduce the number of mandated shifts. The State is willing to keep the task force, but as many times as Local 1000 has brought recommendations to the table, the State has failed to implement them or bring recommendations of their own.

It’s time for the nurses represented by Local 1000 to take action. If the State won’t move, we can stand together and make our demands to move them.

Here’s how you can take action:

We all know how dangerous mandatory overtime is for patients and staff, but it’s important that management hears it from all of us! Take 2 minutes and please call/email your Department Head and urge them to support our proposal because we all benefit from a safe working environment.

Use the list below to find who you should contact based on your department worksite:

Department of State Hospitals- Executive Director
Department of Veteran Affairs- Director of Nursing
Department of Developmental Services- Executive Director
California Correctional Health Care Services/CDCR- Your facility Chief Nurse Executive

***In order to make sure our message is heard, please remember to be courteous and respectful!

Below is a simple script to use when making your calls or emails:

“My name is _____, and I have been a nurse with the State of California for ___ years. I love my job and take great pride in quality patient care. My coworkers and I sacrificed our health and the health of our families during the pandemic because we knew our work was essential. However, we are now at a breaking point. The high vacancy rate of nurses is putting us ALL at risk once again. The shortage in nurses means we are regularly being expected to work mandatory overtime. Mandatory overtime is unsafe for patients and nurses. Please do the right thing and urge CalHR to accept our proposal to reduce mandatory overtime for nurses that work for the State of California.”

What’s next:

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Today’s Unit 17 bargaining session was both brief and productive. We reached a tentative agreement that protects previous hard-fought language and exchanged and discussed two other counterproposals.

With today’s tentative agreement on contract section 19.9.17, our Registered Nurses maintain their rights to exchange hours of work with other employees of the same classification at the workplace. It’s a quality-of-life opportunity that our represented employees will continue to enjoy.

Two other issues were discussed today: discussions are back-and-forth on post-and-bid language for vacant positions at DDS and DSH. And, we’re still pressing the State for agreement on a new proposal to offer a seniority-based pay differential for Unit 17 employees with significant tenure with the state.

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?

Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

What is the status of our contract?

As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the State. Our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30. Please remember that the $260 health care stipend had a June 30 sunset clauseand will not be included in your August paycheck. That issue is part of our current negotiations.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, July 11, 2023

Unit 17’s bargaining session today was marked by productive discussion on a number of issues, capped by two tentative agreements that ensure greater safety for our represented nurses.

Working in prisons with inmate patients always presents the risk of dangerous interaction. These secure facilities require thorough indoctrination and training, so much so that our contract protects our right to receive such training.

Our wins featured added language to ensure the opportunity to collaborate collectively with management regarding the resolution of issues pertaining to employee orientations. We reached an agreement on sections 10.5.17 – Safety Orientation and 13.24.17 – Orientation. Now, if management isn’t offering proper training, the issue can be referred to a Joint Labor Management Committee for solutions.

Also, today, Unit 17 and the State exchanged a number of proposals and counterproposals. We will continue our work to advance our members and resolve outstanding proposals, including those affecting our pay, our working conditions, and our benefits.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Thursday, July 6, 2023

The State returned to the table with Unit 17 on Thursday, July 6 to negotiate our contract. SEIU Local 1000’s bargaining team is once again facing the same issue as in previous weeks: the State’s position does not prioritize or consider the needs of nurses who have worked through COVID and remain in incredibly difficult situations.

SEIU Local 1000 presented the following proposals to the State’s negotiating team today –

10.19.17 Prevention and Management of Assaultive Behavior or Therapeutic Strategies and Interventions Training (Unit 17) – SEIU offered a counter proposal for this article section to strengthen the language for department equivalent training and for Joint Labor Management Committees to help resolve training issues at the departmental level
11.XXX.17 Seniority Differential (Unit 17) – SEIU presented this new proposal to benefit BU 17 employees with a seniority pay differential for their hard-earned years of state service
12.9.17 Overtime Meals Allowance (Unit 17) – SEIU presented this article section with new language that mirrors the Master table language that was passed to increase the meal allowance and for automatic payment as opposed to using the CalATERS system

The State offered counterproposals for the following articles today –

13.24.17 Orientation (Unit 17) – the state rejected the Union’s language and proposed new language of their own, which the team will review and respond to accordingly
21.23.17 Recruitment and Retention (R&R) Committee (Unit 17) – the state proposed rollover for this article section
Appendix 2.17 – FLSA Exempt Employee Differential (Unit 17) – the state proposed a minor language change to this contract appendix, which the team will review and respond to accordingly
Side Letter 16.17 – the state proposed that this Side Letter go to the Master table, but then pulled it back for further review after being educated on this Side letter by the BU 17 Chair

“Today seemed very rushed by the State,” said Unit 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong. “We only received three article sections, and the State even retracted one from negotiations because they believed it didn’t involve Unit 17 and wanted to send it to the Master table.” The BU 17 Chair, Vanessa Seastrong, had to educate the State’s chief negotiator that Side Letter 16.17 is a Unit 17 specific Side Letter.

This Side Letter (16.17) is an important piece of technical language that maintains the rights we have in our contract in the event of an oversight at the table. The language in this Side Letter covers all the elements that may be left over after bargaining. This is a routine piece of bargaining that we have as a technicality to ensure that language remains in place even if it’s not specifically bargained over either by oversight or any other reason. “All bargaining units have shared language in Side Letters,” said team member Shelia Coonan. “Every bargaining unit has this language. Still, the State’s chief negotiator said it didn’t pertain to us exclusively, which is untrue.”

“I don’t understand how they think this didn’t apply to us,” said Coonan. “This shows a lack of care with how they’re approaching our contract. They didn’t think they were meeting with us today, resulting in a hurried, unprepared, and unfocused meeting that does not reflect our member’s priorities or a serious approach to negotiations.”

This is not bargaining as usual, but a reflection of a problem created by the State’s bargaining team. After months of working at a snail’s pace, ignoring our demands for the care and attention our contract deserves, they are now surprised to discover there is still a lot of work to do.

Of the three article sections that were discussed today, Unit 17 pushed the State’s team to consider the reality of the workplaces under discussion. One article section under discussion, 10.19.17, deals with assaultive training for departments.

“We need training for our departments to provide workplace protections from assault. Our members need to be involved in developing these programs because members are getting hurt in their workplaces and need to be trained on the issues they actually face,” said Bob Mutebi, Alternate Vice Chair.

The current trainings provided by the State are not sufficient to address the existing problems. We need safer workplaces, and we need every worker to go back to their families safe at the end of their workday.

“What we have right now is a situation where the State finds or invents a training which is not equivalent to the dangers we face in the workplace,” said Seastrong. “Members have consistently found these trainings inadequate.” Additionally, while on the job, the State needs to ensure that during critical moments, their workforce is provided the essentials they need to do their job.

Article section 12.9.17, discussed at the table today, addresses meal tickets for members working overtime. “Our members need automatic meal tickets for overtime,” added Mutebi. “Currently, there is a long process of application, which discourages nurses and leads to them losing money while working. We also want to increase the amount from $8 to $10, to better serve the nurses who need to use these programs.”

Major issues that the State has long been aware of also need to be addressed. Experienced nurses are leaving state service faster than they can be replaced, creating critical shortages of workers for many departments across the State. Article section 11.XXX.17 would help address these issues. “We are asking for longevity pay for nurses who have worked over 16 years,” said Seastrong. “Retaining nurses is absolutely crucial for maintaining the quality of the services we provide.”

Retention is extremely challenging due to the difficult conditions and poor support and low wages provided by the State. This has led to overwork and degraded services across California.

“The current vacancy rates mean we need to have incentives in place to keep experienced nurses on the floor,” said Mutebi. “Other nurses will benefit from their experience, and patients as well, since they maintain continuity of care.”

These proposals all reflect serious issues faced by nurses across California. Without a dedicated partner at the table who will confront these problems seriously, negotiations will continue to reflect the scattered and unfocused approach of the State’s bargaining team.

“A serious point of concern for me as the Vice Chair is that the State negotiating team assigned to us has shown very little or no commitment to adequately addressing the widely and deeply felt concerns of RN’s,” said Unit 17 Vice Chair Mary Naidoo. “Poor responses to issues we have brought forward are evidence of poor research into issues raised. The State’s lack of information to substantiate their rejections of our proposals is a clear demonstration of how little the State values our health and safety and how their lack of planning to address our unsustainable workloads.”

As bargaining continues, nurses’ voices must be heard by the State’s negotiating team. Members are creating mobilizing actions across California, and Unit 17’s nurses demands must be taken seriously.

“We need the State to work with us in achieving a contract which will benefit all,” said Naidoo, “not only in our work environment but to help nurses attain the work-life balance that we as dedicated state workers deserve.”

Unit 17 will return to the table as needed to complete negotiations on this contract for our members. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

There’s real truth to the Local 1000 slogan, Stronger Together. We only win a great contract with a strong Local 1000 membership. So, if you’re not already a member, we encourage you to join us today.

If you have questions about actions planed at your worksite, contact the Member Resource Center (MRC) at 866.471.SEIU (7348), Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Wednesday, July 5, 2023

The State returned to the table with SEIU Local 1000 on Tuesday, June 27^th to negotiate the contract that will impact the lives of nurses across California. Once again, the State’s bargaining team has failed to either negotiate or appreciate the work done by the nurses who have kept California running for the last 3 years.

The State returned the following proposals to the SEIU Local 1000 bargaining team:

8.28.17 Paid Education Leave (Unit 17) – the state proposed new language specific to asking employees to provide proof of dates of attendance for continuing education upon completion of licensure coursework
8.29.17 Non-Paid Educational or Research Leave (Unit 17) – the state proposed rollover
10.5.17 Safety Orientation (Unit 17) – the state proposed rollover
11.3.17 Salary Definition (Unit 17) – the state proposed updated language that the team will look into further with the Research Dept. before responding with a counteroffer.
19.8.17 Flexible Work Hours and Alternate Work Schedules (Unit 17) – the state proposed rollover
19.18.17 Rescinding Approved Time Off (Unit 17) – the state proposed rollover

In response, we returned the following to the State:

20.7.17 Post and Bid Procedure for Vacant Positions – DDS & DSH (Unit 17) – SEIU proposed new language for a 100% Post & Bid process for Unit 17 employees to give them greater power and opportunity in their schedules
20.9.17 Post and Bid Assignments by Seniority – CDCR (Unit 17) – SEIU proposed new language for a Continuous vacancy bid process to allow for greater flexibility in assignment scheduling

The State’s proposal on Paid Education Leave was followed by an insult directed at the nurses. “A State team member called our nurses untrustworthy during negotiations. They claimed that nurses are dishonest, and we took it as an insult,” said Unit 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong. “We got very upset and vocal about this in negotiations due to the unreasonable and unprofessional remark. DSH wants to blame everybody within our unit for problems they have no part in. They want to put limitations on nurses and deny us this educational leave. It was very disturbing what she said to us.”

The State makes it difficult for nurses to obtain Continuing Educational Units (CEUs), which must be renewed by a board of nursing every two years, by repeatedly denying requests for this basic workplace requirement.

“The fundamental requirement of our job is licensure,” said Unit 17 Vice Chair Mary Naidoo. In an already difficult environment, it is challenging to schedule time off. The State is trying to put more barriers in place toward granting time off requests by restricting how education leave is requested and used for obtaining the required CEUs.”

“We proposed that the State automatically approve nurses to take these educational courses after their third attempt,” said Seastrong. “We need to keep our licenses to work in our workplaces. We cannot be unreasonably and endlessly denied. All nurses in the state of California — and across the nation — are required to take continuing education classes. The state knows this and yet they still put roadblocks between workers.”

These proposals represent a deepening of an existing issue in the workplace that has created major complications for state nurses to remain in their careers while faced by the rising costs of living and being overworked.

While the State also countered us on several article sections, offering rollovers of existing language and rejecting our proposals, this bargaining session did not see any negotiation from the State.

The State has continued to demand responses from the SEIU Local 1000 negotiating team but has consistently refused to discuss in depth or seriously consider any proposal we make. This ongoing empty promise to consider more material has led to a situation where nurses voices are being shut down by the State. “The State thus far has not come to the table to negotiate like they have in the past,” said Seastrong.

“I’m very disappointed in the State’s constant rejections, and I do not expect their position to change,” said Seastrong. “We have proposed reasonable changes, but have seen no movement on the salary and other major economic issues.”

If the state continues to be fixed in their positions, nurses will need to express their rights in the workplace and amplify their demands directly to the State in actions and events across the state.

“Please continue to purple up on Tuesday and Wednesdays to show your support for your bargaining team, because we’re fighting for a contract that the State does not want to give us,” said team member Sheila Coonan.

“We need to escalate our actions, and we need every nurse involved,” said Seastrong. “If you’re unsure of what’s going on in your workplace or what actions to take, call the Member Resource Center, and they’ll direct you to the right place.”

Unit 17 does not have a scheduled time as to when they will return to the table. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you have questions about actions planned at your worksite, contact the Member Resource Center (MRC) at 866.471.SEIU (7348), Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Our Unit 17 bargaining team recorded progress on a number of fronts for the Registered Nurses we represent; our session today was fraught with disappointment as well.

“Overall, it was very disappointing,” said Vanessa Seastrong, Unit 17 bargaining Chair. “The State’s not respecting us and acts like it doesn’t want to pay us or to improve some critical areas of our working conditions.”

In a number of contract sections we’ve presented, the State’s pushing back on our attempt to strengthen language, instead offering simple rollovers or, in some cases, takeaways in the form of weaker provisions.

“We’ve done our homework, we’ve made thorough and thoughtful presentations based on rigorous research, yet the State’s not showing us the same care and collaboration in return,” said team member Sheila Coonan. “It’s disrespectful.”

We’re still fighting for solutions to a long-standing problem with mandatory overtime. Today, the State continued to kick the can down the road by offering no movement, remaining passive on a dangerous practice that’s unsafe and ignoring our work/life balance.

“Every time, it’s like we’re explaining the problem for the first time,” said Vice Chair Mary Naidoo. “The State’s talking in circles, and it’s unclear what their priorities are. It’s not our members, and it’s disgraceful behavior.”

Still on the table: economic proposals, which have been moved to the master table, and Post and Bid proposals, which the State keeps pushing back on.

On a positive note, we reached tentative agreement on the following contract sections:

10.11.17 Hazardous Materials (Unit 17) – language changes from both the Union and the State that were agreed upon
13.7.17 Performance Appraisal of Nursing Practices (Unit 17) – rollover
13.11.17 Nursing and Upward Mobility Joint Labor Management Committee (Unit 17) – rollover
11.2.17 School for the Deaf and Blind Pay Differential (Unit 17) – rollover

Here are the proposals we received from the State today:

11.6.17 Overtime Checks (Unit 17) – The State rejected SEIU Local 1000’s language changes and proposed rollover
19.14.17 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17) – counterproposal from State, which our team will review and follow up with the State after a determination is made from team
19.15.17 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17) – counterproposal from State, which the team will review and follow up with the State after a determination is made from team
19.22.17 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17) – State proposed rollover language but wanted to use SEIU Local 1000’s number sequence (19.22.17)
19.23.17 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17) – State proposed rollover language but wanted to use SEIU Local 1000’s number sequence (19.23.17)
20.9.17 Post and Bid Assignments by Seniority – CDCR (Unit 17) – State proposed rollover

The Unit 17 team made the following proposals to the State:

13.7.17 Performance Appraisal of Nursing Practices (Unit 17) – presented as rollover
13.11.17 Nursing and Upward Mobility Joint Labor Management Committee (Unit 17) – presented as rollover
11.8.17 Night Shift and Weekend Differential (Unit 17) – added new language to this proposal to afford nurses more pay incentives to work nights and weekends
19.8.17 Flexible Work Hours and Alternate Work Schedules (Unit 17) – added new language to this proposal for nurses to take an annual survey to gage interest in working an alternate work schedule to reduce mandatory overtime

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

“We still have a lot of ground to cover in a short time, and we need our members to stand up and stand together to press the State for progress,” added Chair Vanessa Seastrong. “Talk with your coworkers, and your managers, and take part in the activities organized by Local 1000’s Regional Organizing Committee. We can’t win without everybody taking responsibility and taking action.”

A bargaining session is planned for Thursday, June 22, to continue work on mandatory overtime and other issues. Unit 17 also returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 27. However, with just ten days remaining until our contract expires, bargaining sessions could happen at any time.

To keep updated, and to see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

The Unit 17 team returned to the table this week to continue negotiations with the State’s bargaining team over the critical issues that must be addressed in our next contract as we fight for respect, protection, and pay for all.

With only two more days of regularly scheduled bargaining before our contract expires, there are a number of article sections that are being worked on currently.

In spite of the volume of article sections considered at the table today, this does not solve the longstanding issues Unit 17 has with the State’s proposals during negotiations.

“We have 34 article sections still left open, and only two more bargaining sessions to handle them in,” said Unit 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong. “We have not had any opportunity to negotiate, discuss new language, or dig into any counterproposals. It feels more like a delaying tactic rather than a negotiation strategy.”

These delays and lack of time to engage in negotiations while at the table has created a backlog of articles that are crucial to our members needs. Our team has highlighted these issues to the State and continues to make these demands central at the table.

“The responses we received from our members at town halls and surveys were clear,” said Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi. “Our members are asking to receive their pay in a timely manner, to get rid of reimbursement, and to receive direct pay for the work they do. The State has rejected two of our proposals (direct payment of license renewal and NP furnishing renewal fees), which we feel is disrespectful to our members. Their bureaucracy has failed to address these needs already, and this failed system should not be preserved by the State.”

In addition to language surrounding reimbursement, member concerns on how the State will handle pandemic recovery are not being addressed. “When they reject articles that would compensate Unit 17 members for working during the pandemic,” said Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi., “it’s hard for us to see how we are being respected at the table or in the workplace.”

“The State showed us complete disregard and disrespect with reference to the article on safety orientation. They did not seem to be concerned about the safety of nurses, patients, or staff,” said Vice Chair Mary Naidoo”.

“Every nurse who walks into a workplace should be oriented into their new position,” said Seastrong. “For them to reject this outright shows they’re waiting for a catastrophic issue or a lawsuit before they make the changes that keep us safe,” said Sheila Coonan.

These issues are not just concerns to our members, but to the communities they serve and the state itself, which is still dealing with the ongoing vacancy crisis caused and exacerbated by these policies.

“What will the State do when these nurses leave? This will make our vacancy rates even worse and degrade services even further,” said Seastrong. “Their biggest complaint is that they don’t have enough staff. It’s no wonder they have these problems when they consistently show their unwillingness to negotiate solutions that respect and retain nurses.”

With so little time left before the contract expires, our bargaining teams are holding strong and pushing for the State to step up to its responsibilities, both to our members and the people who depend on them.

“We are running out of time,” said Seastrong. “We’ve received nothing but rollovers and rejections. They want to take more time on the weekend, but they’re not using the allocated time for negotiating a strong contract for our members.”

Below are the article sections referenced in more detail from the bargaining recap above:

Today, the State reached a tentative agreement on the following article sections:

8.24.17 DDS Vacation Scheduling: Three Vacation Period Scheduling Method (Unit 17)
10.37.17 Wellness Programs (Unit 17) – rollover, no language changes
19.26.17 Workweek Correctional Institutions (Unit 17)
20.6.17 Post and Bid Procedure for Vacant Registered Nurse Positions – Veteran’s Homes (Unit 17)
20.8.17 Post and Bid Procedure CDCR/DJJ (Unit 17)

Additionally, Unit 17 made the following proposals to the State today:

20.6.17 Post and Bid Procedure for Vacant Registered Nurse Positions – Veteran’s Homes (Unit 17) – rollover, no language changes
20.8.17 Post and Bid Procedure CDCR/DJJ (Unit 17) – rollover, no language changes
8.27.17 CDCR – CCHCS Vacation Scheduling – Registered Nurses (Unit 17) – new language to benefit nurses
20.7.17 Post and Bid Procedure for Vacant Positions – DDS & DSH (Unit 17) – new language to benefit nurses
20.9.17 Post and Bid Assignments by Seniority – CDCR (Unit 17) – new language to benefit nurses
10.11.17 Hazardous Materials (Unit 17) – minor language changes to keep up with current state policy
11.6.17 Overtime Checks (Unit 17) – counterproposal to strengthen language
10.37.17 Wellness Programs (Unit 17) – rollover, no language changes
8.26.17 Department of Veterans Affairs Vacation Scheduling (Unit 17) – new language to mirror current department procedure

Finally, the State proposed the following responses to the bargaining team:

11.6.17 Overtime Checks (Unit 17) – counterproposal to strengthen language – State rejected language changes
13.11.17 Nursing and Upward Mobility Joint Labor Management Committee (Unit 17) – State rejected language changes
8.25.17 DSH Vacation Scheduling (Unit 17) – countered with new language to our rollover language
19.24.17 Floating (Unit 17) – countered with new language to our rollover language
13.24.17 Orientation (Unit 17) – counter with rollover language and rejected new language
19.1.17 Hours of Work (Unit 17) – submitted to SEIU Local 1000 as rollover
10.19.17 Prevention and Management of Assaultive Behavior or Therapeutic Strategies and Interventions Training (Unit 17) – rejected some language changes, accepted some language changes, and added some new language
12.18.17 License Renewal Fees (Unit 17) – submitted to SEIU Local 1000 as rollover
12.21.17 Nurse Practitioner Furnishing Number Renewal Fees (Unit 17) – submitted to SEIU Local 1000 as rollover
11.XX.17 Mental Health and Wellness Stipend 2023 (Unit 17) – State rejected this proposal
12.X.17 Professional Clothing Allowance – State rejected this proposal

Unit 17 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 20. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

As Unit 17 returned to the table once again to negotiate with the State, our bargaining team is fighting to make nurses’ needs a priority. We have addressed the issues that our members have identified to get a contract that ensures the State respects us, protects us, and pays us.

The State offered a counterproposal for the following contract section:

8.26.17 Department of Veterans Affairs Vacation Scheduling (Unit 17) – The State offered a counter with some additional language which the team will review prior to offering a counter.

Additionally, the Unit 17 team reached a tentative agreement with the State regarding the following rollover sections:

19.7.17 Report Preparation Time (Unit 17)
16.7.17 Continuation of Benefits (Unit 17)

Unit 17 offered the following proposals to the State today:

8.28.17 Paid Education Leave (Unit 17) – rollover language
12.21.17 Nurse Practitioner Furnishing Number Renewal Fees (Unit 17) – new language

Unit 17 presented two proposals today that were financial in nature, which specifically address direct payment for Nurse Practitioners (NP) furnishing number renewal, and paid education leave.

While we reached tentative agreements on two rollover sections today, this does not represent real progress at the table.

“The State is not taking our proposals seriously, and this shows when they come to the table unprepared to discuss the contract issues vital to our members,” said Vanessa Seastrong, Unit 17 Chair.

Bargaining requires a dialog at the table. When the State fails to address the sections sent by the bargaining team, this prevents dialog from being possible. While the team received one counterproposal today, on DVA Vacation Scheduling, this does not represent significant movement at the table.

“We feel disappointed and disrespected when we provide an enormous amount of material for them to work with and consistently receive very little in return,” said team member Shelia Coonan.

Likewise, the two article sections TA’ed at the table today are a fraction of what would be expected this late into the bargaining cycle, with as much material as the State has been sent for consideration already.

“We have already submitted 90% of the articles we want to discuss at the table,” said Bob Mutebi, BU 17 Alternate Vice Chair. “We want them to respect our member’s needs and, at minimum, move these articles along. Things cannot continue at a snail’s pace.”

“With only three bargaining sessions remaining, time is of the essence. The bargaining team is concerned that further delay will prevent us from finishing all the work required by June 30th. They think that these article sections can be handed to us all at once to be taken or left at the table,” said Shelia Coonan, Unit 17 bargaining team member. This doesn’t allow for serious, substantive discussion of our nurses’ issues.

“Even though California claims to be a progressive state, the Unit 17 team is not observing this at the negotiating table due to the very minimal response from the State team to our proposals. This lack of response seriously affects the work/life balance of our members,” said Vice Chair Mary Naidoo. The current pace of negotiations is not sustainable for our nurses.

Unit 17 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 13. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

As Unit 17 returns to the table once again to negotiate with the State, our bargaining team is fighting to solve the urgent problems faced by Registered Nurses and make their needs a priority at the table.

Unit 17’s bargaining session opened with a presentation from a subject matter expert, Dr. Taffany Hwang, who presented the troubling situation facing nurses in state service. Rising separation rates, which have led to high vacancy rates are crippling nurse’s ability to provide high-standard quality care to California’s vulnerable population. Overworked, underpaid, and undervalued, nurses are burnt out and need solutions now.

“Our focus today was upward mobility and compensation, and we have proposed major reforms,” said Vanessa Seastrong, Unit 17 Chair. “These issues have plagued nurses throughout the last three years leading to separation rates above the national average and crisis-level vacancy rates.”

The new language sections proposed today address some of the most critical issues facing nurses.

Unit 17 proposed the following three sections of the new language today:

11.X.17 Salary Adjustments (Unit 17)
11.17.17 Recruitment and Retention Differential (R&R) (Unit 17)
13.11.17 Nursing and Upward Mobility Joint Labor Management Committee (Unit 17)

Responding to the State’s concerns voiced at Mandatory Overtime Committees last year, Unit 17 proposed language to automatically implement a recruitment and retention differential of $800 for any department that has a vacancy rate of 20% or greater.

“We believe this will help departments that are understaffed by improving retention and compensating overworked nurses,” said team member Sheila Coonan.

Unit 17 also proposed an article today that recognizes and addresses the cost-of-living crisis impacting nurses.

“Nursing should be seen as an attractive position in state service,” said Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi. “We want the state to show the value of these positions by raising salaries to compete with private sector wages. Fair pay is vital to nurses, leading to safer staffing and patient care.”

Unit 17 proposed a 15% salary adjustment, in addition to whatever GSI is ultimately reached at the Master Table. The bargaining team is continuing to focus on raising the wages of nurses who have been underpaid and undervalued for far too long.

Implementing an upward mobility ladder would help retain experienced nurses by giving them opportunities to advance within Unit 17 and to mentor coworkers.

“Dr. Hwang did a very good job identifying the issues in upward mobility in her classification, as a Nurse Consultant III,” said team member Felicia Barbato. “In general, it’s hard for a lot of nurses to have opportunities to advance in their classifications without having to go into management or leave the state.”

While our Unit 17 bargaining team continues to negotiate with the State, we continue to prioritize the demands voiced by registered nurses at the table.

Today, the State reached a tentative agreement on the following sections:

9.21.17 Reasonable Accommodation (Unit 17)
10.7.17 Protective Clothing and Equipment (Unit 17)
10.38.17 Rest Areas (Unit 17)
13.25.17 Mandatory Training (Unit 17)
19.6.17 Show Up Time (Unit 17)
19.16.17 Change in Shift Assignment (Unit 17)
19.17.17 Mixed Shift Work Weeks (Unit 17)
19.19.17 Work Week Group (WWG) Definitions (Unit 17)
21.19.17 Nursing Policy and Procedures Manual (Unit 17)

Additionally, Unit 17 received the State’s counter proposal on the following section:

10.11.17 Hazardous Materials (Unit 17)

The State proposed one rollover section to the union at today’s bargaining session:

10.37.17 Wellness Programs (Unit 17)

“In the next four sessions of bargaining, we hope to see counterproposals offered and tentative agreements reached on our outstanding article sections,” said Seastrong.

Unit 17 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, June 6. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

While Unit 17 continues to negotiate with the State, our bargaining team is making sure that the voices and needs of Registered Nurses are a priority at the table.

Today’s bargaining session began with our Subject Matter Experts (SMEs). Two nurse practitioners joined the bargaining team to present the justification for their proposed 30-40% pay increase.

In addition, four rank-and-file Health Facilities Evaluator Nurses (HFENs) from across the state provided background on the work they do to serve the most vulnerable members of the public, sharing heartfelt stories from their work experiences. They spoke on the issues they face in their work environment, including a 23% vacancy rate, ongoing backlogs, and low salaries.

“Our members are passionate about these issues,” said bargaining team member Sheila Coonan. “We want to voice their demands at the bargaining table.”

The State needs to provide its Registered Nurses a livable wage. Our proposals today address the financial gap experienced by HFENs. HFENs from across the state are sent to Los Angeles to help relieve the backlog. While there, they work alongside LA County nurses in the same classification while making 30% less.

“Very rarely are HFENs in Los Angeles long enough to take advantage of the travel incentive,” said bargaining team member Felicia Barbato. “We have proposed expanding the verbiage so all HFENs sent to LA will reap the benefits they’ve earned.”

Additionally, nurses required to wear professional attire have never had a clothing allowance in spite of the financial difficulties they have incurred.

“We are representing the state in our work environment, and we need to be professionally dressed,” said Barbato. “The state needs to provide a reasonable allowance for RNs to be prepared for work.”

Nurse practitioners have not had a special salary adjustment since 2006. Because of this, their wages are not comparable to the private sector.

In order to make up all these differences in compensations across these three classifications, BU 17 passed three financial proposals today to the State:

11.1.17 – Special Salary Adjustments (Unit 17) – 30%
11.59.17 – Health Facilities Evaluator Nurse LA County Travel Incentive –

California Department of Public Health (Unit 17) – $167 per day

12.X.17 – Professional Clothing Allowance (Unit 17) – $450 per year

The state offered Tentative Agreements for the following rollover sections:

2.4.17 - Distribution of Union Information (Unit 17)
5.17.17 – Classification Recruitment and Retention Committee (Unit 17)
14.20.17 – Classification Reviews (Unit 17)

Our team has made it very clear to the State that movement at the table is crucial. “We are waiting for responses to a remaining 60 proposed article sections,” said Vanessa Seastrong, Unit 17 Chair. “These need to be addressed in the next 4 weeks of bargaining.”

Unit 17 returns to the table next week, on Tuesday, May 30. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

As we enter another week of bargaining with the State for a contract that respects, protects, and pays the workers who have kept California running, our Bargaining Unit 17 team returned to the table on May 16.

In spite of the number of articles that were considered today, the pace of negotiations still must remain high to address all sections that must be approved. “We will see movement forward if the State will provide counter proposals for article sections we have submitted, allowing negotiations to actually begin,” said BU 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong.

Unit 17 proposed the following remaining rollover article sections:

·         8.25.17 – DSH Vacation Scheduling
·         13.18.17 – Professional Practice Groups
·         21.19.17 – Nursing Policy and Procedures Manual
·         21.20.17 – Labor Management Committee – Nurse Utilization
·         21.21.17 – Contract Violation Waiver
·         21.22.17 – Licensure
·        Appendix N –

1.17 – Departmental Approved Courses and Application Procedures for Educational Differential

2.17 – FLSA Exempt Employee Differential

7.17 – Activation of Correctional Treatment Centers (CTCs)

16.17 – Side Letter

Unit 17 proposed new language for the following article sections:

· 8.26.17 – Department of Veterans Affairs Vacation Scheduling
· 10.19.17 – Prevention and Management of Assaultive Behavior or Therapeutic Strategies and Interventions Training (PMAB/TSI)

DVA Vacation Scheduling is a section the Union and the State worked on together back in 2021. During bargaining, the team wants to make sure that the policy implemented last year for vacation schedules is standardized throughout the department by ensuring it becomes part of the contract.

“The problem we had with DVA was there was no standardized process for vacation time,” said Sheila Coonan, DVA Redding. “We met with the State and took the ideas we liked and collaborated to build this policy that we implemented. Across the board, everyone at my facility loved it. Nurses knew exactly what vacation time they had when they walked out the door. It helped solve issues of preferential treatment and confusion, creating a fair and equitable standard for all DVA members across the state.”

The bargaining team proposed new language to strengthen section 10.19.17 noted above so that our members can be trained and educated in how to protect themselves from assaultive behaviors which can happen in state facilities. “The PMAB training is part of DVA and DDS where we are supposed to receive training every two years. Prior to Covid, the last time it was offered in my workplace was in 2018. We pushed on how important it is to add DVA because this training must be introduced across the board for any workers who face these situations”, said Sheila.

“Our new language proposal includes TSI training that should be provided upon hire, as this secures the worksites of CDCR/CCHCS and the safety of the nurses,” said BU 17 Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi. “We all expect to come back from our jobs in one piece. But when the state neglects to provide us with this training, it puts us all at risk.”

Finally, we reached tentative agreement with the State on the following sections:

·         9.19.17 – Light/Limited Duty Assignments
·         10.24.17 – Immunization Against Diseases
·         10.25.17 – Infectious Disease Control
·         10.35.17 – Employee Self-Protection
·         13.18.17 – Professional Practice Groups
·         13.26.17 – Non-Mandatory Training
·         13.27.17 – In-Service Training
·         21.20.17 – Labor Management Committee – Nurse Utilization
·         21.21.17 – Contract Violation Waiver
·         21.22.17 – Licensure

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

The team has made headway today with the State, reaching tentative agreement on a number of important article sections. “We informed them that we’ve provided all of our rollover language and that we need some counter proposals on our future article sections,” said team member Sheila Coonan. “We received four more tentative agreements for rollover sections later in the day, and we proposed two new language sections at the table after lunch.”

Movement at the table is a good sign for the future of negotiations, but the State still needs to provide counter proposals or tentative agreements to these outstanding sections. “Next week, I expect more rollovers to be returned,” said Seastrong. “We need to receive counters so we can negotiate on the articles that matter to our members. The ball is in their court.”

Unit 17’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 23. To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 15, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 17 & 20 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Happy Nurses’ Week from your Bargaining Unit 17 (BU 17) and Bargaining Unit 20 (BU 20) Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committees (BUNC). While we celebrate the work nurses do across the country, SEIU Local 1000-represented nurses went to the table on May 9 to focus on Mandatory Overtime and Voluntary Overtime, which affect our nurses statewide.

Of primary concern to almost all state nurses is the issue of Mandatory Overtime (MOT). “This morning, BU 17 and 20 together met with the State to pass our voluntary and mandatory overtime article sections,” said Unit 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong. “Today at the table a large volume of new proposals were presented from both bargaining teams to address these issues. We passed a total of 10 proposals, 4 for Unit 17 and 6 for Unit 20,” said Seastrong. “As we expected, the State received these MOT article sections but didn’t ask many clarifying questions, and we are still awaiting a counter-proposal.”

BU 17 proposed the following article sections containing new language regarding Mandatory Overtime (MOT):

Article 19.14.17 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17)
Article 19.15.17 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17)
Article 19.22.17 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17)
Article 19.23.17 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17)

BU 20 proposed these article sections addressing MOT for their unit as well:

Article 19.13.20 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20)
Article 19.14.20 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
Article 19.15.20 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)
Article 19.21.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20)
Article 19.22.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
Article 19.23.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Currently, a holdover of less than two hours is not counted as mandatory overtime. “This is an inconvenience and demoralizing for many of our members,” said BU 17 Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi. “An hour means a lot of someone’s day. Our new proposal is to have a holdover of one hour to be counted as MOT.”

These issues led to the team proposing a change to the existing MOT language. “We proposed that the State reduce the number of mandatory overtime shifts by one a year until we get to zero,” said BU 20 Chair Heather Markovich. “We also proposed language to strengthen the voluntary overtime process.”

Currently, BU 17 RNs can be mandated for two overtime shifts per month, while BU 20 CNAs and LVNs have three. “We want to reduce this down to 1 for RNs and 2 for LVNs and CNAs,” said Seastrong. “We would continue to reduce MOT by one shift per year until 2025 when Unit 17 and 20 will both have zero.”

Other changes to the article sections strengthen contract language so that our workers can take the shifts that they want to work and gives state employees preference over external registry. “We want the state to address these article sections,” said Seastrong. “For the last three years, we’ve been in a Mandatory Overtime Task Force, and nothing was done. Without language to make them get this problem under control, we don’t think this issue will be solved. The state has violated this agreement in the past, so stronger language and protections are needed.”

Another ongoing issue addressed during the joint session was language proposed by the units that ensured that BU 17 and BU 20 nurses cannot be mandated into another bargaining unit position. “Unit 17 and Unit 20 are being mandated into other BU positions. “We are being used to plug gaps in the state’s workforce,” said Mutebi.

“Today, state workers stood up and told the State that this practice accounts for the huge turnover in the state’s workforce,” said Mutebi. “This represents a huge disrespect for our LVNs, who are forced to cover for workers making more money when they themselves are not paid equally,” said Markovich.

To ensure that these protections are enforced, bargaining units proposed language that includes penalties for the state when these terms are violated. “We included in this proposal that when mandatory overtime shifts are required of state workers after we bring them down to zero, the state will have to pay a penalty of double time for any mandated shift,” said Markovich.

The two units worked together to present these major proposals to the State. These issues have been ongoing for years while managers have ignored the problem. By joining together, the two units were able to support each other and provide insight to the State regarding the impacts on nurses. “Mandatory overtime has a huge impact on nursing staff, so we have to come together to fight this issue, because it affects all of us, especially after all of us were working mandatory overtime during COVID,” said BU 20 Vice Chair Sarah Cooper.

The fight for this important protection is on. “The nurses’ actions in the workplace are what brought the State to the table on this issue in 2019,” said Seastrong. “We need to see that same energy now to move the State to take our proposals seriously. We need actions in the workplace so the State can see how bad the nurses want mandatory overtime to go away.”

“In 24-hour facilities, there is no separation between these units,” said Mutebi. “Neither of us can say our job is complete without each other. When we come together at the table, it shows the synergy of these two units fighting the injustices that the state is trying to put on our membership.”

In addition to article sections passed during the joint session, Unit 17 proposed the following rollover sections:

Article 19.4.17 – Meal Periods (Unit 17)
Article 19.6.17 – Show Up Time (Unit 17)
Article 19.7.17 – Report Preparation Time (Unit 17)
Article 19.9.17 – Exchange of Days Off (Unit 17)
Article 19.16.17 – Change in Shift Assignment (Unit 17)
Article 19.17.17 – Mixed Shift Work Weeks (Unit 17)
Article 19.19.17 – Work Week Group (WWG) Definitions (Unit 17)
Article 19.24.17 – Floating (Unit 17)
Article 19.25.17 – Travel Time (Unit 17)
Article 19.26.17 – Workweek Correctional Institutions (Unit 17)

Finally, the State offered tentative agreements to the following article sections.

Article 8.13.17 – Court Appearances and/or Subpoenas (Excludes Unit 17)
Article 13.2.17 – Informal Performance Discussions (Unit 17)
Article 13.6.17 – Performance Appraisal (Unit 17)
Article 13.9.17 – Letters of Instruction (LOI)/Work Improvement Discussion (WID) (Unit 17)
Article 13.12.17 – Employment Opportunities (Unit 17)
Article 13.28.17 – Education and Training Opportunities and Resources (Unit 17)
Article 13.29.17 – Research Projects (Unit 17)
Article 14.4.17 – Duty Statements/Post Orders and Work Instructions (Unit 17)
Article 15.4.17 – Employee Opportunity Transfer (Unit 17)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

After their morning session bargaining alongside Unit 20, Unit 17 had an active day at the table, focusing on rollover language. “It was a busy day on our end,” said Unit 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong.

“We have given the State 61 article sections of new language and rollover, and we have only received 18 rollover back in total,” said Seastrong. “While receiving the TAs today was a good sign, the State still needs to start dealing with our new language and not just rollover. We have a number of easy article sections with simple changes that are still under review by the State.”

While the State moves through rollover language, SEIU Local 1000 members are ready to fight for a contract that represents the needs identified in their bargaining surveys and Town Hall meetings.

“We’re hoping that the State will come back and begin the negotiations of bargaining, not just tentative agreements for rollovers,” said Seastrong. “We want to get into the details of language changes. We are focused on action to move the State. Nurses are ready in workplaces across the state to take action to support our bargaining team.”

Unit 17’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 16. To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 15, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

We are entering our third week of bargaining with the State for a contract that respects, protects, and pays the workers who have kept California running. Our Unit 17 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee, or BUNC, went to the table on May 2 to focus on ways to keep our nurses safe and protected while on the job.

Our Unit 17 BUNC presented thirteen articles as “rollovers,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The articles proposed for rollover are the following:

13.2.17 - Informal Performance Discussion
13.9.17 – Letters of Instruction (LOI) /Work Improvement Discussion (WID)
13.12.17 – Employment Opportunities
13.6.17 – Performance Appraisal
13.25.17 – Mandatory Training
13.26.17 – Non-Mandatory Training
13.27.17 – In-Service Training
13.28.17 – Education and Training Opportunities and Resources
13.29.17 – Research Projects
14.4.17 – Duty Statements / Post Orders, and Work Instructions
14.20.17 – Classification Reviews
15.4.17 – Employees Opportunity Transfer
16.7.17 – Continuation of Benefits

Additionally, the State agreed to four of our articles, and thus, a “tentative agreement” (TA) was reached on the following articles that were rolled over in last week’s negotiations.

11.5.17 – Release of Paychecks – Night Shift or First Watch
12.6.17 – Alternate Transportation
12.10.17 – Replacement of Damaged Personal Clothing and/or Articles
12.13.17 – Tools, Business Equipment, Materials, and Supplies

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

During today’s negotiations, the State requested evidence from a subject matter expert on safety. The BUNC was able to bring Charles Staubitz, an SEIU Local 1000 member working as a nurse instructor at the California Medical Facility in Vacaville, to present on article 10.5.17 – Safety Orientation.

“It went very well,” said Vice Chair Mary Naidoo. “He made a brilliant presentation to the State about the backlog in trainings that has created enormous problems.”

Charles stood up for his coworkers and shared with the State the actual training that workers currently get, which covers basic elements of safety policies and procedures essential to doing their job. This training, already part of our contract, is essential to have before starting work in a correctional facility.

“This article currently gives the state 45 days to provide safety training to new employees. We have proposed that this training occur upon hiring of the employees. Having a current backlog of three months to one year is unacceptable. Our new members can end up making mistakes that cost them their jobs and can be catastrophic for the rest of us who work in institutions. One mistake by anyone can lead to a death of any of us,” said Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi.

“We did not have as productive a day as we expected due to the State’s delays and time management issues,” said BUNC member Sheila Coonan. “These delays disrespect the time of the bargaining team, especially when we have so little time to move forward on these issues. We have more time-consuming articles that both sides know will require considerable back and forth discussion.”

“We have 8 more weeks to bargain before the deadline. With only nine (9) TA’s so far out of our total 47 articles proposed, we need the State to give us more. They’re moving at a snail’s pace,” said Chair Vanessa Seastrong.

Unit 17’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 9. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s other bargaining sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

The registered nurses who work in California prisons, veterans’ homes, developmental centers, mental health hospitals, Departments of Health Care Services and Public Health, special schools, and other departments represented by Local 1000—Bargaining Unit 17—went to the table with the State on April 25^th for the second week of negotiations on unit-specific issues.

Our Unit 17 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) presented eight articles as “rollovers,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The rollover articles include the following provisions from Articles 11 and 12:

11.2.17 – School for the Deaf and Blind Pay Differential
11.3.17 – Salary Definition
11.5.17 – Release of Paychecks – NOC Shift or First Watch
11.18.17 – Retirement Compensation
11.58.17 – Arduous Pay Differential
12.6.17 – Alternate Transportation
12.10.17 – Replacement of Damaged Personal Clothing and/or Articles
12.13.17 -Tools, Business Equipment, Materials and Supplies

Additionally, this afternoon, the BUNC proposed new language in the following four contract provisions with financial implications to our members:

11.6.17 – Overtime Checks
11.56.17 – Registered Nurse Lead Differential
11.57.17 – Educational Differential
12.18.17 – License Renewal Fees

Finally, the State agreed to five rollover proposals, and thus, a “tentative agreement” was reached on the following provisions:

10.10.17 – Medical Monitoring
10.15.17 – Personal Alarms: CDCR
10.16.17 – Alarm System: DDS and DSH
10.18.17 – Referral of Assault/Battery
10.36.17 – Incident Debriefing

The articles proposed today that have financial impacts for our members represent an important response to a contentious issue for BU 17 members. “We have issues at some of our worksites where the state delays overtime paychecks up to a year, which is both disrespectful to workers and impacts their pay,” said BUNC Alternate Vice Chair Bob Mutebi. “The night shift lead differential of $150 has been in place since 1999. In spite of the changes over the years, the state is resistant to adjust this to reflect inflation and cost of living changes.”

Additionally, the reimbursement of license renewals fees is often delayed due to the CalATERS reimbursement process, which makes it very difficult for our members to receive the money they are owed. “We want to be reimbursed directly within 60 days of when our licenses expire,” said Mutebi. “With the difficult procedure we have now with CalATERS, many workers give up before the process is completed.”

While this represents a large number of articles sent across the table by the BUNC, the negotiating team has noticed a serious issue with the State’s willingness to address critical issues to our members. “We are not even negotiating on many of these articles yet,” said BUNC 17 Chair Vanessa Seastrong. “We gave them 16 articles for rollover last week, and only received 5 back. This is a disturbing signal that it will take a long time to get through our 92 articles that we need to negotiate. We want to move through these minor issues as soon as possible so we can get to the more meaningful issues that matter to our members.”

Simple language changes proposed by the BUNC are under extensive and unnecessary review by the State’s negotiators. While these kinds of delays are not new, this particular State bargaining team has worked with Unit 17 before and should have a thorough understanding of which issues at play are critical and which are procedural.

“We’re asking the State why they are so resistant to making changes to language that deals with non-financial issues when these are existing protections from earlier contracts, sometimes for many years,” said Seastrong. “Moving past these items, while they are important, would help both sides get to the meaningful changes that we need for our members.”

Our negotiating team is interested in an equitable conversation, not delays over minutia that wastes time and delays important resolutions. “The state of California is supposed to be a union-friendly, progressive state,” said BUNC 17 Vice Chair Mary Naidoo. “We should not be experiencing these kinds of difficulties with our process. The State had a whole week to address articles for which they have never shown they have a problem or made any statements that they had any concerns about.”

These concerns will influence our strategy going forward. “We are going to be choosing our words carefully as we move forward so that we can focus on the issues that matter most to our members: respect in the workplace and equitable pay for all members,” said BUNC 17 member Shelia Coonan.

As always, the State’s responses to bargaining are rooted in the amount of pressure SEIU Local 1000 members apply when on the job. “We are passionate at the table and can speak for what is important to our members. We know the low salaries, high turnover and backlogs are hurting our members and their families. We need actions and noise at the workplace. We need noise. The organized action and the noise in the workplace will support our efforts at the table,” said BUNC member Felicia Barbato. “We increase the pressure as the State feels the heat from members statewide.”

Unit 17’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for May 2^nd. To read about what happened in Monday’s Bargaining Unit 11, 20, and 21 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 17 Recap: Tuesday, April 18, 2023

After kicking off bargaining for our “master table” session last week, members across the state are making their voices heard as we demand a strong contract that Respects, Protects, and Pays the employees that kept California running for the last three years.

On April 18, Bargaining Unit 17 (BU 17), went to the table to begin their unit-specific negotiations with the State. BU 17, which represents registered nurses, is prepared for a long negotiation to get members the pay and respect they have demanded. Our negotiating team is using what they saw earlier in the process to strategize on how best to move forward and prioritize issues that members identified as important in town halls, bargaining surveys, and worksite visits.

“We looked at each and every submission from our members,” said Bob Mutebi, Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) Alternate Vice Chair for BU 17. “Each article was considered based on this set of data, which determined what we would roll over and what we would propose changes to.”

During Tuesday’s session, our team presented a number of contract articles for “rollover,” a term used to describe parts of the contract that don’t require negotiation this cycle. We rolled over 16 articles Tuesday, with additional minor language changes to 5 articles focused on health and safety concerns. Setting these protections aside during bargaining ensures that we will be able to address the ongoing issues without risking these workplace protections crucial to medical and social services.

“The most important feedback we’ve received from Registered Nurses statewide is work/life balance, scheduling, and salaries”, stated Vanessa Seastrong, Unit 17 Chair.

BU 17 has the most individual articles of all the bargaining units in the contract, with 92 articles whereas most other units have 30 to 40, so negotiations will take longer to go through each article. “Building our strategies around the responses from CalHR allows us to be flexible,” said Seastrong. “These were simple word changes, things that could be handled fairly easily, and we are expecting to have a response from the State next week.”

With this in mind, for upcoming sessions of bargaining, BU17 is going to focus on a strategic approach to address salaries, health, and safety, as well as recruitment and retention issues that have plagued Registered Nurses.

“This is a long process. A lot of these issues are going to go back and forth for a while,”

said Felicia Barbato, an RN at the California Department of Public Health for 11 years and a member of the BUNC. “Our success at the table is dependent on the strength and unity of our members.”

“Our members can and do bring the State to the table on issues that are important to us. Members can support their bargaining team at their worksites with Purple Up Wednesdays and by attending events and participating in actions,” said Seastrong.”

Unit 17’s next meeting with the State to win a contract that Respects Us, Protects Us, and Pays Us is set for April 25. To read about what happened in Tuesday’s Bargaining Unit 1, 3, and 4 sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 20 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 20 tentative agreement

At the master table, we negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, maintained the health care stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor in to our state income. Our general salary increase, our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.

Here are the highlights from the Unit 20 (Medical and Social Services) bargaining table:

20 different classifications in Unit 20 received pay increases of 5% and 14% (11.1.20 Special Salary Increases). Another 21 classifications received 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.

At DVA, overtime meals are now governed by stronger, expanded language that offers more flexibility in usage and reimbursement. (12.9.20)

Our uniform replacement allowance was increased to $650, a $200 increase. (12.11.20)

The ability to exchange time off has been expanded to include limited term and probationary employees. (19.9.20)

New language provides a workforce stability stipend of up to $9,000 for CNAs (Class Code 8185) working at Veterans Homes in West Los Angeles and Yountville (11.new.20). Another new contract provision provides an interpreter pay differential of $1500/month for SSA Interpreters, which is specific to the Porterville Developmental Center location. (11.NEW.20)

We’ve taken steps to standardize vacation scheduling at DVA and CDCR/CCHCS for Dental Assistants, Dental Hygienists, LVNs, CNAs, and MAs. (8.23.20, 8.25.20, 8.26.20)

We’ve extended the availability of training in the prevention and management of assaultive behavior or therapeutic strategies and interventions to include CDCR/CCHCS. (10.20.20)

With stronger language, we’re ensuring that safety orientation in 24-hour facilities happens within 45 days of hire and provided a process to solve issues quickly by working with management in a Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC). (10.5.20)

At the California Veterans Homes, we increased the number of positions filled by Post and Bid from 65% to 70%. (20.11.20)

The previous work of our task force helped us secure the continuation of the pilot Post and Bid for Medical Assistants at CHCF/Stockton following the same annual process that the Dental Assistants use. (20.18.20)

We’ve created a task force to examine overtime distribution procedures at the California School for the Deaf in Fremont, which is a new provision in the contract. (19.XXXX.20)

In ten different contract sections, we made great advances in mandatory and voluntary overtime:

Greater transparency with a standardized mandate list. Each facility will maintain a universally-available list of impacted employees with dates of last mandated shift. This system will provide a fair and open approach to this process and will ensure that credit for working a mandated shift is duly recorded.
Better protection for days off. We’ve safeguarded against mandated shifts the day before any pre-approved day off. You can’t be mandated to work overtime on the last day of your regularly scheduled week nor can you be mandated to work extra the day before any pre-approved day off.
Stronger task force, early negotiations. This is our biggest win – new language that creates a joint labor-management task force to create solutions for MOT, along with implementation plans for those solutions. The task force will meet every other month and issue a joint report to CalHR, Department of Finance, and the departments heads. Here’s the kicker: This new agreement allows Local 1000 to re-open all MOT-related contract article sections on or after July 1, 2025, well before our next traditional round of contract bargaining. It’s an unheard-of accomplishment by SEIU and gives us optimism for future improvements.

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 20 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

New MOT deal reached after State said “no” a week ago

Tentative agreements add transparency, accountability, and a path to improvement

Our tentative agreements, listed below, do not include a reduction in mandated shifts. Here are highlights of the important changes we achieved:

Here are the contract sections we reached agreement on (with changes as summarized above):

19.13.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20)
19.14.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
19.14.17 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17)
19.15.17 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17)
19.15.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)
19.34 Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) – Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ) and California Correctional Health Care Services (CCHCS) Joint Labor Management Task Force for the Strategic Reduction of Mandatory Overtime for RNs, LVNs, CNAs, and MAs (Units 17 and 20)
19.36 Department of State Hospitals (DSH) Joint Labor Management Task Force for the Strategic Reduction of Mandatory Overtime for RNs and LVNs (Units 17 and 20)
19.37 California Department of Veterans Affairs (CalVet) Joint Labor Management Task Force for the Strategic Reduction of Mandatory Overtime for RNs, LVNs, and CNAs (Units 17 and 20)
19.38 Mandatory Overtime

Earlier this week, we also secured tentative agreement on these two sections governing voluntary overtime.

19.22.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
19.23.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)

As Local 1000 works to bargain a successful contract, we’ve escalated our actions to make our demand to be respected, protected, and paid more visible – and more impactful.

On Wednesday, August 16, Local 1000 members are taking emergency action to demand living wages.

It’s unacceptable that state employee wages are so low that we can’t afford to live in California.

We provide the essential services that keep our state running. We are not backing down until we win the livable wages our families need.

Time is running out. The State of California must act now to pay its essential state workers for the important work we do. Join union members and community allies to demand livable wages NOW.

When: Wednesday, August 16, 2023
Time: 12:00 Noon – 2:00 p.m. Lunch will be provided.
Where: Capitol Annex Swing Space, 1021 O St, Sacramento, CA 95814

REGISTER HERE.

Can’t join us in Sacramento? Check here for other pickets and actions organized by members across California.

Mandatory Overtime (MOT) Side Table Summary 8.1.23. State negotiators signal MOT is a preferred staffing tool, reject improvements, and disrespect medical staff

It’s time for the nurses represented by Local 1000 to take action. If the State won’t move, we can stand together and make our demands to move them.

Here’s how you can take action:

Use the list below to find who you should contact based on your department worksite:

Department of State Hospitals- Executive Director
Department of Veteran Affairs- Director of Nursing
Department of Developmental Services- Executive Director
California Correctional Health Care Services/CDCR- Your facility’s Chief Nurse Executive

***In order to make sure our message is heard, please remember to be courteous and respectful!

Below is a simple script to use when making your calls or emails:

What’s next:

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, July 18, 2023

Our Unit 20 bargaining team reports some progress at the table, recording three different tentative agreements that preserve rights we’ve fought for and won during previous contract campaigns. At the same time, we continue to negotiate on a number of issues and also received one rejection of a new proposal.

Still, overall progress is slow: today’s session was short, and we’re still waiting for the State’s bargaining team to join us in our efforts to bring a good contract to a conclusion.

Here are the tentative agreements we reached today. Each one is a rollover language. Of note, the pilot post-and-bid program for Medical Assistants (MA) in Stockton continues for another three years. During the next three years, the MA’s will follow a process identical to the Dental Assistants and bid yearly. And, table discussion about rest periods provides us with a better understanding of allowable breaks when our Unit 20 personnel are working shifts that go longer than 8 hours.

19.3.20 Rest Periods (Unit 20)
20.16.20 Post and Bid Procedure for Dental Assistant Positions, CDCR (Unit 20)
20.18.20 Pilot Post and Bid for Medical Assistants at CHCF Stockton (Unit 20)

Negotiations continue on a number of key issues. Our economic issues have been moved to the master table.

Where does bargaining go from here?

Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

What is the status of our contract?

As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the State. Our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30. Please remember that the $260 health care stipend had a June 30 sunset clause and will not be included in your August paycheck. That issue is part of our current negotiations.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

What actions can I take to win a good contract?

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, July 10, 2023

There’s good news today in the form of two significant wins at the Unit 20 bargaining table. We reached tentative agreement with the state on two proposals that improve working conditions and expanded job and income opportunities for our represented employees.

Our bargaining team, representing the Medical and Social Services Specialists of Unit 20, reports a positive change in the state’s attitude at the table—a willingness to make progress and to bring the work of the Unit 20 table to fruition.

We made a big step in the fair distribution of overtime today: the state tentatively agreed to our proposal to form a Task Force to create a process for equitable treatment of our members at the Fremont Special Schools. Our Riverside facility has a well-working program, one we hope to replicate in Fremont.

We won stronger language in contract section 20.11.20, which governs the post and bid procedure for CNA positions at CalVet facilities. We increased the number of positions filled by employees through successful bids from 65% to 70%.

In other Unit 20 business today, a number of proposals and counterproposals were exchanged between our team and the state. We will continue our work to advance our members and to resolve outstanding proposals, including those affecting our pay and benefits.

As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the state. Remember, our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30.

Unit-specific bargaining, along with negotiations at the master table, are being scheduled on a day-to-day basis. When there’s activity at the table, we’ll email and post the results, often on the same day. Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Thursday, July 6, 2023

The Unit 20 bargaining team returned to the table on July 6 to negotiate with the State’s team. Once again, the State’s refusal to take their worker’s concerns seriously took center stage. In spite of this, SEIU Local 1000 members will continue to fight for their rights and needs in the workplace to be respected.

SEIU presented the following proposals to the State’s negotiating team today:

8.26.20 CDCR – CCHCS Vacation Scheduling – Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVN), Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), and Medical Assistants, (MAs) (Unit 20) – Updated language that SEIU Local 1000 and the State worked on as task force back in 2019, which was created as a procedure afterward. The team wanted this language in the contract.
10.5.20 Safety Orientation (Unit 20) – SEIU Local 1000 accepted additional language that the State added to create a Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) to ensure that BU 20 employees are receiving safety orientation within the appropriate time frame.
13.30.20 Orientation (Unit 20) – SEIU Local 1000 proposed a rollover language since the State wasn’t willing to accept the new language to strengthen this process.
19.9.20 Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations (Unit 20) – SEIU Local 1000 presented a counter proposal for this section to assist limited-term employees to enable them to do swaps for time off.

The State offered counter proposals for the following articles today –

X.XX.20 State Issued Cell Phones – The Schools for the Deaf (Fremont and Riverside) (Unit 20) – The state countered our initial proposal and rejected it completely.
20.XXXX.X Assignment Preference Teaching Assistants– Special Schools (Unit 20) The state countered our initial proposal and rejected it completely.
9.20.20 Continuation of Flexible Benefits Election (Unit 20) – The state is sending this to the Master table and won’t discuss it at the Unit table.
19.9.20 Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations (Unit 20) – The state is proposing rollover for this article section.
19.XXXX.20 Overtime Distribution Task Force for Fremont Special Schools (Unit 20) – The state countered our new language proposal with the language of their own, however, the team needs to review it thoroughly before responding with a counterproposal.

We were able to reach the following tentative agreements today –

8.26.20 CDCR – CCHCS Vacation Scheduling – Licensed Vocational Nurses (LVN), Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA), and Medical Assistants, (MAs) (Unit 20) – Updated language that SEIU Local 1000 and the State worked on as task force back in 2019, which was created as a procedure afterward. The team wanted this language in the contract.
10.5.20 Safety Orientation (Unit 20) – SEIU Local 1000 accepted additional language that the State added to create a Joint Labor Management Committee (JLMC) to ensure that BU 20 employees are receiving safety orientation within the appropriate time frame.
13.30.20 Orientation (Unit 20) – Rollover.

While we’ve passed a lot of language to the State today focusing on overtime and counterproposals to expand opportunities for probational employees, the State has not provided anything material in return.

“It doesn’t seem like they’re willing to bargain,” said Unit 20 Chair Heather Markovich. “We get back rejection, rejection, rejection, even in the face of the data that explains the situation in workplaces across the state.”

Unit 20 is still fighting for the Exchange of Time Off language to support employees during their year-long probationary period while battling with overwork and rising costs of living. This would be a win for both the State and employees. Employees would be able to get the time off they need, and the State would know the shifts will be covered, which would save the State money as no overtime is required.

“They think that people up in Sacramento know more than people on the ground and the experts who have provided this data,” said Markovich.

One issue that the State’s negotiating team has consistently failed to provide meaningful input on is staff cell phones.

“Regarding cell phones, we’ve brought evidence that this issue goes back at least to 2015, and there’s been silence that whole time,” said Silas Wagner. “They deny that this is an issue and ignore the reality we live with.”

Working with students on field trips, to the store, and to and from their houses, staff have to use their personal phones and are encouraged to do so. The security of the staff’s personal information is a risk for teaching assistants and residential counselors, who are required to distribute their personal information to students, parents, and coworkers.

Workers at California Deaf Schools don’t have consistent distribution and access to resources like phones, video phones, and other resources across classifications. We are not supported by the State while we are working out and about with students. This is an unacceptable situation for all involved, according to Silas Wagner, a Unit 20 bargaining team member working at California School for the Deaf (CSD), Riverside.

“We have shown them stacks of data and reporting,” said Wagner. “The sad part is, when they say this can be resolved at the local level, we’ve made the efforts to do it that way. We’ve taken these issues to Joint Labor Management Committees (JLMCs) and to management directly. Nothing has happened.”

At hearing schools, the state provides walkie-talkies to staff, which cannot be used by any Deaf staff working at the Deaf schools. This obvious problem has not been addressed by management or the State’s bargaining team.

“The Unit 20 lead negotiator for the State repeatedly says she’s concerned that these issues are ongoing, but she still refuses to make a change,” said Wagner. “Something is not right here on the State’s side.”

The fight for respect in the workplace does not end at the negotiating table. Unit 20 employees are prepared to exert their rights in the workplace to demand an end to the policies which have created an untenable situation for workers and families across the state.

“Right now, it’s summer break,” said Wagner. “Our members are planning to stop using their personal phones at the start of the school year to protest this unfair policy. We’ll be grieving this every time it happens; we’ll be fighting this continuously; and we’ll be participating in the Union’s escalating actions as we address the failures of the State’s bargaining team.”

Unit 20 will return to the table as needed to complete a great contract for our members. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you have questions about actions planned at your worksite, contact the Member Resource Center (MRC) at 866.471.SEIU (7348), Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, June 26, 2023

This weekend, and again today, the Unit 20 bargaining team worked with the State to advance the Medical and Social Services workers we represent. While we made progress, the State continued to show frustrating bargaining behavior that didn’t align with our efforts to make positive change.

“All we’ve been seeing is the State wanting rollover language or to take rights away,” said Unit 20 Vice Chair Sarah Cooper. “They’re unwilling to do the back-and-forth; they want what they want, and it’s a contentious environment.”

Another example: Our fight to update our uniform allowance is being stifled; the State doesn’t seem concerned about a dollar figure that hasn’t been changed in 21 years.

Here are the tentative agreements we reached on Sunday and Monday; all are rollovers:

8.27.20 Dependent Care Leave (Unit 20)
19.32.20 Overtime Distribution at the California School for the Deaf, Riverside (Unit 20)
8.28 Continuing Education
14.21 – Classification study

We made the following proposals to the State:

12.9.20 Overtime Meal Allowance (Unit 20) – New language proposed for employees to receive additional meal allowance when required to work extended periods of time
12.11.20 Uniform Replacement Allowance (Unit 20) – New language to raise the uniform allowance
19.6.20 Show Up Time (Unit 20) – New language to hold management responsible to compensate an employee for four hours, if the staffing office doesn’t inform the employee they are not needed (this also applies to any trainings scheduled on an employee’s day off)
19.9.20 Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations (Unit 20) – New language to strengthen the swap process for employees
19.XXX.20 Floating (Unit 20) – New language to ensure that BU 20 employees aren’t made to cover work shifts for other bargaining unit classifications
19.XXXX.20 Overtime Distribution Task Force for Fremont Special Schools (Unit 20) – New language to establish a Joint Management Labor Task Force to create a procedure on overtime distribution procedure for the Special Schools in Fremont
19.32.20 Overtime Distribution at the California School for the Deaf, Riverside (Unit 20) – Countered with rollover

Here are the proposals we received Sunday and Monday from the State:

7.XX.20 Student Holidays – State Special Schools (Residential Counselors, Night Attendants and Teaching Assistants) (Unit 20) – The State rejected our efforts to secure a 40-hour week for our members, even if students are on holiday

We received four proposed rollovers

8.27.20 Dependent Care Leave (Unit 20) – The State proposed rollover
19.32.20 Overtime Distribution at the California School for the Deaf, Riverside (Unit 20) – The State rejected the Union’s proposal to include the School for the Deaf, Fremont in this language and proposed rollover
20.15.20 Post and Bid Procedure for CNA Positions, CDCR (CDCR, CCHCS, DJJ) (Unit 20) – The State proposed rollover
20.16.20 Post and Bid Procedure for Dental Assistant Positions, CDCR (Unit 20) – The State proposed rollover

A number of outstanding proposals remain, mostly economic issues that have been moved to the master table. We also continue our joint effort with Unit 17 to resolve and advance our issues with mandatory and voluntary overtime.

With just a few days remaining before our contract expires, Unit 20 is on standby to meet once again with the State to resolve outstanding issues. When we meet, you’ll read it here first!

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, June 19, 2023

We’re reporting today on two Unit 20 bargaining sessions—held on June 16 and 19.

While there was evidence of some movement at the Unit 20 table in these sessions, there remains a serious frustration with the State’s approach to bargaining with just ten days remaining before our current contract expires. Just today, we spent more than ten hours with the State’s team, and we reached no tentative agreements on behalf of the Medical and Social Service Specialists we represent. And that’s on the State, according to Silas Wagner, a member of our Unit 20 team who works at one of our state’s Special Schools:

“We feel that today’s session was a big waste of time,” said Wagner. “Our team has spent a great amount of effort crafting our proposals in response to our members’ priorities, yet, the State remains disengaged and less than fully responsive.”

“We’re being asked to give them information we presented over a month ago, multiple times. We have given them thoughtful input, and it seems that they’ve forgotten it.” Wagner added.

In just one example of the team’s frustration at the State’s response, after our initial SSA proposal, the State wanted to make sure our members were aware that the Employee Assistance Program (EAP) is available. For members who are struggling to pay for meals, for medication, and for a roof over their head, “EAP is not a solution,” said Wagner. Yes, EAP can provide assistance to members in crisis but the real help would be if the State would provide a livable wage. When discussing SSAs, BU 20 Chair Heather Markovich asked the State “What are your state employee’s worth to you?”

At the same time, the State’s bargaining team is floating verbal responses to our proposals, rather than the traditional approach, which is we propose on paper, they should respond on paper.

“The State’s bargaining leadership is not listening to our members concerns with our new language proposals and is pushing back, offering instead to say ‘no’ or to take the easier approach by rolling over existing language, but we are not done fighting“ said Heather Markovich, Unit 20 bargaining chair.

Here’s a look at the progress Unit 20 made in the June 16 bargaining session:

Our Unit 20 team proposed to “roll over” (maintain previous contract language) on three sections:

8.28.20 Continuing Education Leave (Unit 20)
11.16.20 Alternate Range (AR) 40 (Unit 20)
14.21.20 Classification Studies (Unit 20)

We reached two tentative agreements with the State on this day, both of which maintain previous contract wins from past campaigns:

8.24.20 Department of Developmental Services/LVN Vacation Scheduling (Unit 20)
8.30.20 Family Crisis Leave Bank, State Special Schools (Unit 20)

The State made one proposal to Unit 20:

12.11.20 Uniform Replacement Allowance (Unit 20) – State proposed rollover language

On June 19, we achieved the following:

Unit 20’s team made the following proposals to the State:

19.32.20 Overtime Distribution at the California School for the Deaf, Riverside (Unit 20) – proposed new language to include the Fremont School for the Deaf
10.38.20 Rest Areas (Unit 20) – new language to request that the State provide a refrigerator and microwave in break areas for all employees
20.XXXX.X Assignment Preference Teaching Assistants– Special Schools (Unit 20) – new proposal to request that Teaching Assistants take a survey annually to request assignments for the school year so they have some choice in what they do each year (member choice)
20.11.20 Post and Bid Procedure for CNA Positions: California Veterans Homes (Unit 20) – added new language to existing proposal to strengthen the article section
20.18.20 Post and Bid Task Force for Medical Assistants at CHCF Stockton (Unit 20) – updated proposal to include all MAs statewide, not just at CHCF Stockton
8.22.20 DSH Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) Vacation Scheduling (Unit 20) – counterproposal with rollover language as the team didn’t want to accept the State’s language due to negative impact
10.5.20 Safety Orientation (Unit 20) – counterproposal to ensure Unit 20 employees have management support until job orientation has been completed
13.30.20 Orientation (Unit 20) – counterproposal to ensure Unit 20 employees have management support until job orientation has been completed

Unit 20 received the following proposals from the State:

20.12.20 Post and Bid Procedure for Vacant LVN Positions, CDCR (Unit 20) – State proposed rollover language (upcoming joint meeting with Unit 17)
19.9.20 Exchange of Time Off – Multi-Shift Operations (Unit 20) – State proposed rollover language (we proposed looser rules, RNs psy techs, probation)
19.13.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20) – State proposed new language that the team will need to review before responding
19.14.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20) – State proposed new language that the team will need to review before responding
19.15.20 Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20) – State proposed new language that the team will need to review before responding
19.21.20 Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20) – State proposed a new number system to mimic SEIU (19.21.20); other than that it’s rollover language
19.22.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20) – State proposed a new number system to mimic SEIU (19.22.20); other than that it’s rollover language
19.23.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20) – State proposed a new number system to mimic SEIU (19.23.20); other than that it’s rollover language
19.XX.XX Mixed Shift Work Weeks (Unit 20) – a new proposal that the State rejected
20.XX.XX Post and Bid Task Force for Pharmacy Technicians at CHCF Stockton (Unit 20) – a new proposal that the State rejected

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 20 will return to the table on Monday, June 26. With just 10 days remaining before our contract expires, look for possible additional bargaining sessions through the weekend.

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

If you are, help support bargaining teams by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, June 12, 2023

Negotiations continued today with the State after SEIU Local 1000’s march in Sacramento on June 8^th.

The Unit 20 team went to the table on June 1^st to negotiate with the State on the ongoing issues that our members have vocally demanded as we fight for a contract that respects, protects, and pays all SEIU Local 1000 represented state workers.

“We started off slow today and we didn’t start until the afternoon, while we usually start at 11,” said Heather Markovich, Unit 20 Bargaining Chair. In spite of technical issues on the State’s side, negotiations led to responses on a number of Unit 20’s proposals.

SEIU Local 1000 presented the following proposals to the State’s negotiating team today –

8.23.20 Department of Veterans Affairs Vacation Scheduling (Unit 20) – counterproposal sent back where the State accepted our language and added some of their own that benefits Unit 20 classifications
10.20.20 Assaultive Response Training (Unit 20) – counterproposal sent back where the State accepted our language and added some of their own
7.XX.20 Student Holidays – State Special Schools (Residential Counselors, Night Attendants and Teaching Assistants) (Unit 20) – new proposal to ensure Unit 20 Night Attendants, Residential Counselors, and Teaching Assistants can receive a 40 hour workweek when there are student holidays (which doesn’t always happen presently)
7.2.20 Holidays – State Special Schools (Residential Counselors and Night Attendants) (Unit 20) – counterproposal sent back where Unit 20 is accepting rollover language as the State wouldn’t accept BU 20’s language updates
X.XX.20 State Issued Cell Phones – The Schools for the Deaf (Fremont and Riverside) (Unit 20) – new proposal that will ensure that Unit 20 employees at the Schools for the Deaf (Freemont and Riverside) will be issued state cell phones to communicate with each other so they don’t have to use their personal cell phones

The State was able to reach the following tentative agreements today with the Union –

8.23.20 Department of Veterans Affairs Vacation Scheduling (Unit 20) – counterproposal where the State accepted our language and added some of their own that benefits Unit 20 classifications
10.20.20 Assaultive Response Training (Unit 20) – counterproposal where the State accepted our language and added some of their own
7.2.20 Holidays – State Special Schools (Residential Counselors and Night Attendants) (Unit 20) – rollover language
12.18.20 License or Certificate Renewal Fees (Unit 20) – rollover language

Additionally, the State offered counter proposals for the following articles today –

8.22.20 DSH Licensed Vocational Nurse (LVN) Vacation Scheduling (Unit 20) – the State countered with some new language that the team will review and respond to accordingly
20.11.20 Post and Bid Procedure for CNA Positions: California Veterans Homes (Unit 20) – the State countered with some new language that the team will review and respond to accordingly

Finally, the State rejected two SEIU proposals today –

20.XX.X Shift/Day Off Preference Teaching Assistants– Special Schools (Unit 20)
8.XX.20 CDCR-CCHCS Vacation Scheduling – Pharmacy Technicians (Unit 20)

One issue that was addressed today was negotiations around Unit 20 employees at the Special Schools of California regarding cell phone usage. SEIU Local 1000-represented employees at the School for the Deaf are prohibited from using their personal cell phones per the school’s policy, however, management is requesting personal cell phone numbers to communicate via text. “We are asking the State to provide them with a work cell phone, to help in their work, and to protect their personal information,” said Markovich. “When they’re off duty, no one else should have access to their personal information.”

Although the bargaining team did receive several responses today, this has not yet met the expectation of the bargaining team, who are expecting more substantive proposals and language on post and bid, swaps, and mandatory overtime.

There is more work to be done to address the issues that Unit 20 members have prioritized in bargaining surveys and at town halls across the state.

“We haven’t gotten it all back, for example, we still need our vacation scheduling,” said Markovich. “We gave a lot of information, but we need more of the meat on serious issues. The State’s lead negotiator offered to meet with us on Thursday to address some of our outstanding articles.”

“We’re definitely moving,” said team member Oluwadamilola Kamson. “The table was different today, and the State’s team was ready with proposals. My feeling is that we’re moving and that we got some of the TAs we wanted back. “We hope that we can continue this to catch up on the rest of the TAs and get our proposals returned.”

This movement comes after weeks of sluggish responses from the State’s negotiating team and a fight to receive back any of a large number of outstanding proposals.

“We’re finally starting to see movement from the State,” said Vice Chair Sarah Cooper. “Although we’re still waiting to hear back on some of our critical issues., it’s a good sign that the State is willing to meet with us on additional days this week to get this done before our contract expires.”

“I’m just hoping that next week we see the State return some of our outstanding proposals,” said Markovich. “If these issues weren’t important, we wouldn’t have proposed them.”

Unit 20 returns to the table next week, on Monday, June 19. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

There’s real truth to the Local 1000 slogan, Stronger Together. We only win a great contract with a strong Local 1000 membership. So, if you’re not already a member, we encourage you to join us today.

If you are, help support bargaining teams by purpling up on Wednesday and attending our upcoming rally in Los Angeles on June 22.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, June 5, 2023

There was some light at the end of the tunnel today in contract negotiations between our Unit 20 bargaining team and the State.

“It’s the most productive meeting we’ve had; we’re seeing a break in the log jam of unanswered proposals,” said Sarah Cooper, Vice Chair of Unit 20. “With three sessions remaining, we hope to bring home a good contract for our represented employees.”

Still, some of the most important proposals for our members—among them, post and bid and mandatory overtime—haven’t been responded to, and we continue to press for a resolution.

As part of today’s session, we reached a tentative agreement on a number of contract sections:

We won stronger language on 13.12.20 – Employment Opportunities, which will modernize the way the department posts and communicates job openings available to our members.
Following up on a joint commitment we made with the State during the last bargaining cycle, we reached tentative agreement on 8.25.20 – CDCR/CCHCS Vacation Scheduling and solidified our ability to reasonably schedule time off.
We reached tentative agreement on 20.13.20 – Shift/Day Off Preference of Assignment – Schools for the Deaf. It preserves our previous, hard-won contract language.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 20 will return to the table on Monday, June 12. In addition, we’ve made it clear to State negotiators we’re ready to meet at any time to get our work done. As Unit 20 Chair Heather Markovich said today, “We’ve got employees on this team who often work 16-hour days, and we’re good to go.”

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Thursday, June 1, 2023

The Unit 20 team went to the table on June 1 to negotiate with the State on the issues that have been impacting workers across the state as we fight for a contract that respects, protects, and pays all SEIU Local 1000 represented state workers.

BU 20 proposed the following new language to the State during today’s session:

11.xx.20 Alternate Range Criteria Adjustment for Registered Dental Assistants

The State’s negotiating team proposed the following rollover sections to our bargaining team:

10.38.20 Rest Areas (Unit 20)
12.23.20 Laboratory Services and Deliveries (Unit 20)
13.31.20 20/20 Programs (Unit 20)
13.30.20 Orientation (Unit 20)
13.32.20 Education and Training Opportunities (Unit 20)
13.33.20 Mandatory Training (Unit 20)
13.34.20 Non-Mandatory Training (Unit 20)

Additionally, the State offered a counterproposal to the following sections:

10.20.20 Assaultive Response Training (Unit 20)

The State agreed to SEIU Local 1000’s language change and added additional language, which the BU 20 team will review and respond to the State at the appropriate time.

7.2.20 Holidays – State Special Schools (Residential Counselors and Night Attendants) (Unit 20) the State did not accept our language changes and countered with rollover.

Finally, a tentative agreement was reached today on the following new language section:

10.25.20 Infectious Disease Control (Unit 20)

The State did reach a tentative agreement on the language change proposed by Local 1000, in section 10.25.20, expanding the infection disease control language to include CCHCS and CDE. This gives our members the right to information on outbreaks in their workplace.

Additionally, the team presented new language adjusting the range criteria for Registered Dental Assistants. These underpaid and understaffed workers have demanded a pathway to reach their maximum pay in a shorter amount of time. The team proposed new language to the State today to change the amount of time it takes to go from one range to another range from 10 years to 4 years. This was in direct response to the survey feedback and town halls that were attended by the Registered Dental Assistants.

“Previously, Registered Dental Assistants took about 15 years to get to their max pay,” said Unit 20 Chair Heather Markovich. “We presented to the State that all dental assistants should have the same process for reaching their maximum pay.”

“The State needs to take action on our articles,” said team member Silas Wagner. “We’ll be back at the table on Monday with the same demands, and we will continue to fight for what our members deserve. We aren’t going to roll over in the face of delays.”

While the State presented the team with 8 rollover proposals today, there continue to be delays in negotiations on critical issues faced by Unit 20 workers.

“We need to negotiate over the exchange of time language, vacation time, post and bid, and mandatory overtime,” said Markovich. “We need the meat, not the crumbs.”

Unit 20 returns to the table next week, on Monday, June 5. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, May 22, 2023

While our Unit 20 bargaining team continues to work with the State by presenting proposals that advance the wages and working conditions of our Medical and Social Services Specialists, the State remains largely unresponsive to those proposals.

“Negotiation is a two-way street, an exchange of information, and we’re still waiting,” said Heather Markovich, Unit 20 Chair. “We’re doing our part, but without feedback on our proposals, there’s no opportunity for progress, and we’re not solving the issues facing our members.”

The numbers are stark: to date, there are 39 outstanding proposals that remain unanswered. We’ve reached tentative agreement with the State on just 12 contract sections, and one more is in progress.

We’ve told the State that time is running out. With no bargaining scheduled for next Monday (Memorial Day), only 4 regularly scheduled sessions remain before the contract expires.

“We’ve asked the State what they’d do if the roles were reversed and asked them to imagine that they weren’t getting the input necessary to respond to,” added Chair Markovich. “Their response was, basically, ‘we’re doing our due diligence’ without any promise of a change of behavior.”

Still, our team is moving forward. We reached tentative agreement on three proposals, a number of weeks after we presented them:

11.5.20 – Release of Paychecks (Unit 20)
12.22.20 – State Special School Field Trip Expenses (Unit 20)
15.4.20 – Employee Opportunity Transfer (Unit 20)

These “rollovers” preserve and protect rights from previous contract wins. We’re awaiting a response on 39 additional proposals.

There will be no bargaining on Monday, May 29 (Memorial Day). Unit 20 returns to the table in two weeks, on Monday, June 5. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, May 15, 2023

Our bargaining teams have returned to the table this week, fighting for a contract that respects, protects, and pays all SEIU Local 1000 represented state workers. Our Bargaining Unit 20 negotiating team went to the table on May 15 to negotiate financial matters that impact these vulnerable and underpaid classifications. Subject matter experts in the unit discussed the issues they experience in the workplace and explained in detail to the State the consequences of years of short staffing and low pay.

During today’s bargaining session, the team proposed four sections for “rollover,” maintaining important workplace protections secured in previous contracts:

11.5.20 – Release of Paychecks
11.61.20 – Split Shift Differential
11.63.20 – Certified Nursing Assistant/EMT Pay Differential
12.18.20 – License or Certificate Renewal Fees

We proposed the four sections below with new language to reflect changes we want to see to our contract:

10.5.20 – Safety Orientation
11.1.20 – Special Salary Adjustments
11.60.20 – LVN Recruitment and Retention
11.62.20 – Dental Assistant Registration Differential

Additionally, we made a counter proposal in response to the State’s first counter proposal for the following section:

13.12.20 – Employment Opportunities

Finally, the State and the Union reached a tentative agreement on the following rollover sections:

19.18.20 – Rescinding Approved Time Off
19.31.20 – Split Shifts

The language proposed today about safety orientation by the bargaining team reflected the same concept as BU 17. The bargaining teams are trying to align the language of Units 17 and 20. “We work side-by-side with each other,” said Unit 20 Chair Heather Markovich. “LVNs, CNAs, RNs, and Medical Assistants working on the same unit should have the same protections.”

Today, the bargaining team proposed special salary adjustments for Unit 20 employees, asking for individual pay raises for some of the most impacted and lowest paid classifications. “We let them know our members should not have to suffer anxiety about homelessness or paying for food instead of rent,” said Markovich.

These issues are at the heart of the State’s current crisis of vacancies in positions across California. “If they don’t pay and respect us, they will run out of employees,” said Markovich.

“If the wages are not raised, no one will come to work for the state.”

The focus at the table on economics is giving voice to the concerns of state workers who have struggled for recognition of their needs for years. Experts spoke about their experiences in job roles across California, including a Senior Clinical Laboratory Technologist, an X-ray technician, and SSA-I (ASL interpreters) from the Department of Rehabilitation and School for the Deaf in Riverside.

“We are dealing with ASL proficiency,” said bargaining team member Silas Wagner. “It takes years of experience to become an interpreter with the skills necessary for the unique needs and education levels of our deaf state employees. Someone who has 6 months experience, which is listed in the job description, will be woefully unprepared and overwhelmed on the job.”

These jobs are in-demand positions; not everyone can be an interpreter and years of experience are needed. The State knows this but has refused to pay these qualified professionals what they’re worth. “They work hard,” said Wagner. “Those in these roles need to be taken seriously.”

The State also heard from a Senior Clinical Lab Technologist and an X-Ray Technician in regard to how their low pay has impacted new hires and retention. The high vacancy rate has increased their workload; instead of covering one facility, they have to cover multiple facilities. The Senior Clinical Lab Technologist must have a license from the State Department of Health Services. In order to obtain that license, they must have a bachelor’s degree and a major in clinical laboratory science. Due to the low pay, most people with this license seek higher-paying positions outside of state service.

Similarly, the X-Ray Technicians also have a high proficiency level for their job along with a license. Due to low staffing levels, they also service multiple facilities while they were originally hired to service just one facility. This also causes patients to be transferred to outside facilities if there is no X-Ray Technician on duty as they are at another facility. The cost of transporting patients along with their escorts is extremely high, which is costing the state unnecessary funds.

In the CNA classification alone, there are 749 vacant jobs across the state. Uncompetitive wages have meant that the state can’t hire, further exacerbating the problems. In order to solve the state’s financial issues regarding their workforce, Unit 20 employees need to be paid a fair and competitive wage.

Unit 20 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 22. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 17 & 20 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

BU 17 proposed the following article sections containing new language regarding Mandatory Overtime (MOT):

Article 19.14.17 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17)
Article 19.15.17 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17)
Article 19.22.17 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services (Unit 17)
Article 19.23.17 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling (Excluding CDCR) (Unit 17)

BU 20 proposed these article sections addressing MOT for their unit as well:

Article 19.13.20 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20)
Article 19.14.20 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
Article 19.15.20 – Overtime Mandatory Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)
Article 19.21.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – Excluding CDCR LVNs and CNAs (Unit 20)
Article 19.22.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services LVNs (Unit 20)
Article 19.23.20 – Overtime Voluntary Scheduling – California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Correctional Health Care Services CNAs (Unit 20)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

In addition to article sections passed during the joint session, Unit 17 proposed the following rollover sections:

Article 19.4.17 – Meal Periods (Unit 17)
Article 19.6.17 – Show Up Time (Unit 17)
Article 19.7.17 – Report Preparation Time (Unit 17)
Article 19.9.17 – Exchange of Days Off (Unit 17)
Article 19.16.17 – Change in Shift Assignment (Unit 17)
Article 19.17.17 – Mixed Shift Work Weeks (Unit 17)
Article 19.19.17 – Work Week Group (WWG) Definitions (Unit 17)
Article 19.24.17 – Floating (Unit 17)
Article 19.25.17 – Travel Time (Unit 17)
Article 19.26.17 – Workweek Correctional Institutions (Unit 17)

Finally, the State offered tentative agreements to the following article sections.

Article 8.13.17 – Court Appearances and/or Subpoenas (Excludes Unit 17)
Article 13.2.17 – Informal Performance Discussions (Unit 17)
Article 13.6.17 – Performance Appraisal (Unit 17)
Article 13.9.17 – Letters of Instruction (LOI)/Work Improvement Discussion (WID) (Unit 17)
Article 13.12.17 – Employment Opportunities (Unit 17)
Article 13.28.17 – Education and Training Opportunities and Resources (Unit 17)
Article 13.29.17 – Research Projects (Unit 17)
Article 14.4.17 – Duty Statements/Post Orders and Work Instructions (Unit 17)
Article 15.4.17 – Employee Opportunity Transfer (Unit 17)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

While the State moves through rollover language, SEIU Local 1000 members are ready to fight for a contract that represents the needs identified in their bargaining surveys and Town Hall meetings.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, May 1, 2023

We are entering our third week of bargaining with the State for a contract that respects, protects, and pays the workers who have kept California running through chaotic and unprecedented times. Our Unit 20 (BU 20) Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC) went to the table on May 1^st, International Worker’s Day, prepared to fight for our members and the safety and security of the people they serve.

“We passed a lot of language over to the State for approval, including vacation scheduling language from the task forces, as well as making minor tweaks to language around infection control, assaultive response training which includes de-escalation techniques. We also proposed expanding existing language on infectious diseases training to the California Department of Education (CDE) as well.”

These are all meaningful changes that respond to the major disruptions that the State of California has gone through over the last three years of the pandemic. The State, however, does not share the same urgency for our member’s needs.

Unit 20 has 11 outstanding provisions from previous weeks, not including the 5 additional rollovers and 7 new proposals passed today, pending responses from the State. “I felt like there wasn’t sincerity on the State’s part,” said Heather Markovich, Unit 20 BUNC Chair. “We started the day and asked what they had for us. They told us they had one rollover.”

After multiple weeks, the State is still slow to respond to these issues or even ask clarifying questions. “It’s hard to say what’s going on behind closed doors,” said Markovich. “When we asked them if they had any questions or comments about what we sent, they said they were still reviewing.”

Unit 20 was able to reach a Tentative Agreement with the State on one rollover provision from our previous contract, 13.18.20 – Professional Practice. You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 20 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 8^th. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today.

Unit 20 Bargaining Summary: Monday, April 24, 2023

Bargaining has entered its second week for our Unit 20 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC), representing LVNs, CNAs, Teaching Assistants, Dental Assistants, Registered Dental Assistants, Dental Hygienists, Pharmacy Technicians, Laboratory Technologists, Physical Therapists, Counselors, and many other classifications working across California.

On April 24^th, the Unit 20 BUNC went to the table to continue unit-specific negotiations with the State. We presented four contract articles to the State for “rollover,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns. The State agreed, and thus, a “tentative agreement” was reached on these three articles:

5.18.20 –         Labor Management Committee, California School for the Deaf, Riverside
10.32.20 –         Information Regarding Medical Condition
21.22.20 –         Licensure/Certification

The State also returned a proposal from last week on continuing education. “When they asked why this proposal was an issue for us, we went into our surveys and were able to provide specific cases from responding workers,” said BUNC Chair Heather Markovich. “The State was pushing back on costs on this issue, but we wanted them to understand that by increasing the knowledge of our workforce, we can both support the quality care to our patients and the career opportunities workers have.”

In addition, the Unit 20 ream proposed new language today, centered around the Post and Bid procedure, which affects our certified nurse assistants and LVNs in all our locations. “This has a very broad impact,” said Markovich. “The Post and Bid process allows members to choose shifts, work area, and days off based on seniority. This allows our workers to better manage their work-life balance as they see fit. We have multiple people who have spouses or significant others who use the post and bid process so that they can minimize childcare costs, which remain high across the state.”

As we present more and more articles to the State, negotiations will continue to evolve, but our goals are clear. Our members need more support from their employer, and we need to maintain and expand our protections in the workplace. “This meeting was a little more tense than last week,” said Markovich. “They had a lot of questions for us, but we handled it well as a team.”

The tensions at the table are in part due to our bargaining team holding the State accountable to its workers. After a proposal is passed across the table to the State, their negotiators have a week to review it and respond. “We’re putting a lot more pressure on the State to respond to us,” said Sarah Cooper, BUNC Alternate Vice Chair. “The State sometimes delays passing back counteroffers and tentative agreements. They started the day saying they had nothing to give us and that we may receive one agreed on proposal by the end of the day.”

In spite of the State’s pessimistic outlook, the Unit 20 BUNC was able to use our member’s responses to surveys, town hall meetings, and other comments to keep the meeting productive and fight for our member’s rights. “Heather pushed and demanded answers after they had a week to do their research,” said Cooper. “By the end of the day, we had three rollovers agreed to and proposed new language.”

Unit 20 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 1^st. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today.

Bargaining Unit 20 Recap: Monday, April 17, 2023

On April 17, Bargaining Unit 20 (BU 20), went to the table to begin their unit-specific negotiations with the State. BU 20, which represents medical and social services specialists, including LVNs, CNAs, Teaching Assistants, Laboratory Technologists, Physical Therapists, and Counselors, has faced some extremely challenging conditions as they navigated COVID-19 and the State and management’s response.

“Members drive this process, and we follow their direction,” said Heather Markovich, Bargaining Unit 20 Chair. “There’s a lot riding on this, but we came in prepared thanks to our research, the strength of our team, and the time we spent getting to understand our strategy. We’re very cohesive.”

During Monday morning’s session, our team presented a number of contract articles for “rollover,” a term you’ll hear used to describe parts of the contract that don’t require negotiation this cycle. Today’s rollover articles include maintaining our Labor Management committee at California School for the Deaf, Riverside; our return-to-work “light/limited duty” program for employees incapacitated due to illness or injury; and a continuation of the Flexible Benefits Program (FlexElect). Setting these protections aside during bargaining ensures that we will be able to address the ongoing issues without risking these workplace protections crucial to medical and social services.

We presented four new proposals in the afternoon that contained new language and new protections for members. Two of these proposals focused on time-off exchanges and continuing our education leave programs, built off existing language to strengthen the protections we have in our worksites.

Additionally, we presented two new proposals designed to address the ongoing problem of mixed shifts. BU 20 represented employees often find themselves working most days on one shift but with some days assigned shifts earlier or later in the day. Additionally, we proposed a task force for pharmacy technicians in Stockton, including post and bid language. If successful, pharmacy technicians could choose their workplace and pick their schedules.

“Our focus is on addressing the issues our members identified in our bargaining surveys, town halls, and meetings at worksites across the state, said Markovich, who works as a Licensed Vocational Nurse at the California Medical Facility. “We’re members just like all of our coworkers. The input from the surveys and town halls leads where we go in negotiations.”

Unit 20 returns to the table next week, on Monday, April 24. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Unit 21 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 21 Tentative Agreement

Here are the highlights from the Unit 21 (Professional Educators and Librarians) bargaining table:

We instilled and reinforced respect for our Unit 21 professionals:

Protected our professional status by preserving language in three contract sections:
1. 19.19.21 – Work Week Group E – Policy (FLSA-Exempt);
2. 19.19.21(a) – Guidelines for Applying Work Week Group E Policy; and
3. 21.16.21 – Professional Responsibility

Enhanced our professional autonomy by removing a reference to work schedules from the contract
Retained our right to convene a Professional Assessment and Development Committee
Received commitment to discuss the potential for educational leave transfers in the new State Payroll System Project

We strengthened protections for our Unit 21 professionals:

Enhanced due process rights for arduous pay differential requests which include receiving written responses from departments
Protected our right to training for hostile and threatening behavior
Protected our right to training in infectious disease control
Protected our right to the alternate pre-retirement death benefit

We increased compensation for our Unit 21 professionals:

Won special salary adjustments (SSAs) of 5% for three (3) classifications, retroactive to July 1, 2023:
1. Transportation Programs Consultant, Department of Education (2683)
2. Nursing Education Consultant, Department of Consumer Affairs (8250)
3. Private Postsecondary Education Senior Specialist (2743)

Secured new reimbursements of up to $200 for job-related certifications
Increased professional development reimbursements from $75 to $200
Increased travel reimbursement rates to federal levels

This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 21 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.

What happens next?

To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.

Unit 21 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Your Unit 21 bargaining team is reaching out to give you an update on our negotiations on behalf of the Educational Consultants and Library workers we represent. Our last Unit 21 bargaining session with the State was on June 26. A couple of Unit 21 proposals are still outstanding, and another group of Unit 21-related proposals—largely economic—are being negotiated at the master table.

Want a more detailed Unit 21 bargaining update? Join us on a Zoom call on Tuesday, July 25. Use the link below to sign on. **Please note: no registration is necessary.

Tuesday, July 25, 2023, 12 Noon to 1 PM:

https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/j/82053318155?pwd=bStnMXNDQ2YrRWdNWHNWMDBHRHVWQT09

Here are some things you need to know:

Where does bargaining go from here?
Watch this July 13 video message from Irene Green, Local 1000 Vice President for Bargaining.

What is the status of our contract?
As you know, we have not yet reached an overall tentative agreement on a new contract with the State. Our rights are still protected under the terms of our previous contract, which expired on June 30. Please remember that the $260 health care stipend had a June 30 sunset clause and will not be included in your August paycheck. That issue is part of our current negotiations.

You can read about your current contract rights in this mobile-friendly, searchable database.

Stay informed with all the bargaining news at our Contract Action Central web page

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Monday, June 26, 2023

As we push towards completing our negotiations with the State, our Unit 21 team recorded another significant tentative agreement that protects a key priority of ours: maintaining our professional status as Educational Consultants and Librarians.

After the State tried to delete language that grants us discretion in executing our work, we were able to retain all our language in the contract section 21.16.21 – Professional Responsibility. We fought the State’s attempt to impose a takeaway, keeping the language that allows us to exercise our professional judgment in our work, including the location and scheduling of work hours to fulfill our professional responsibilities.

We also secured agreement on 11.65.21 – Arduous Pay Differential. We improved language in this section, which now guarantees proper notification from management when our members submit a request for arduous pay for extreme overtime work. Previously, no notice was required, and “answers” often never happened.

We also rolled over 12.8.21 – Overtime Meals and 8.28.11 – Educational Leave, preserving two past contract wins.

Finally, our efforts to, with a new proposal, enable Unit 21 members to transfer educational leave to those not normally eligible for this leave were rejected. Despite being positive about the idea, the State ultimately rejected our proposal, citing problems with implementing the idea due to a “Vietnam-era” payroll system.

Want a more detailed Unit 21 bargaining update? Join us on a Zoom call on Tuesday, June 27. Use the link below to sign on. **Please note: no registration is necessary.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023, 12 Noon to 1:00 p.m.:
https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/j/82053318155?pwd=bStnMXNDQ2YrRWdNWHNWMDBHRHVWQT09

With just a few days remaining before our contract expires, Unit 21 is on standby to meet once again with the State to resolve outstanding issues. When we meet, you’ll read it here first!

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Sunday, June 25, 2023

Your Unit 21 bargaining team worked through the weekend to bring home a strong contract for the Educational Consultants and Librarians we represent. We’re reporting some progress today, along with aggressive efforts to preserve our professional status.

We reached agreement with the State on contract section 8.15.21 Personal Leave – Voluntary as rollover language from previous contract campaigns which continues the solid protections we have to maintain a work/life balance.

We still have a number of outstanding proposals at the table. Among the most important are proposals that govern the very core of our work: the ability, as professionals, to control the “when,” the ”where,” and the “how” of what we do.

The State is trying to strip us of this fundamental right to control our schedules and that affects the quality of our work and the autonomy already granted in the contract. Section 19.19.21 defines our FSLA-exempt status, and 19.91.21(a) has guidelines for the implementation of 19.19.21. The State proposes to delete the guidelines and take away previously hard-earned rights. They have also proposed revising 21.16.21, stripping us of our use of our professional judgment in conducting our work.

“This cannot stand, and we need to keep up the fight to the very end,” said Bobby Roy, Unit 21 bargaining chair. “We need each of our represented employees to reach out to CalHR and make the demand for no takeaways.”

Right now, you can call, email, or Tweet CalHR and make that demand. Use this link to get the contact information, and Tell CalHR to Respect Us, Protect Us, and Pay Us

Then, stand up for state workers on Thursday, June 29 at 10:00 a.m. by joining a silent protest march at the Capitol. You can sign up here.

Want a more detailed Unit 21 bargaining update? Join us on a Zoom call Tuesday, June 27. Use the link below to sign on. **Please note: no registration is necessary.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023, 12 Noon to 1:00 p.m.:
https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/j/82053318155 pwd=bStnMXNDQ2YrRWdNWHNWMDBHRHVWQT09

With just a few days remaining before our contract expires, Unit 21 is on standby to meet once again with the State to resolve outstanding issues. When we meet, you’ll read it here first!

To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Winning a good contract starts with you. Don’t just belong to the Union, participate. Sign up for our Silent Protest March in Sacramento on June 29.

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 29 Silent Protest March at the Capitol in Sacramento here.

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Thursday, June 22, 2023

Respect for our professional status as educators in Unit 21 has been a constant theme over the nine weeks we’ve been bargaining a contract. Today, as we have in previous bargaining sessions, we’ve made advances in our demands for the Educational Consultants and Librarians we represent.

We reached tentative agreement (TA) with the State on four contract sections. While all four were rollovers of previous contract wins that preserve our hard-earned rights, one is of particular importance: the FLSA Exempt Policy that grants our represented employees the freedom to choose how, when, and where we do our work. Those four TAs are:

11.64.21 – Professional Development
19.19.21 – FLSA Exempt Policy
12.24.21 – Commercial Driver License Fee Reimbursement
13.18.21 – Professional Assessment and Development Committee

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

We listened carefully to the input you shared through town halls and the bargaining surveys, and today we continued to fight hard for some contract language that governs our ability to develop ourselves and our careers, our professional responsibilities, and the discretion to apply our professional judgement in our work. We’re seeing evidence that the State wants to actually take away some of our previously-won rights in this area, and we’re fighting vigorously against it.

This is how bargaining works: We propose, the State counters, and our team strategizes our response in an effort to achieve our members’ goals. In another example of our work, when we proposed to offer educational leave credits to eight additional Unit 21 classifications, the State rejected it. Our response: A new idea, the transfer of educational leave credits to other employees so that they can take advantage of opportunities they normally couldn’t.

Want a more detailed Unit 21 bargaining update? Join us on a Zoom call next Tuesday, June 27. Use the link below to sign on. **Please note: no registration is necessary.

Tuesday, June 27, 2023, 12 Noon to 1 PM:

https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/j/82053318155?pwd=bStnMXNDQ2YrRWdNWHNWMDBHRHVWQT09

Unit 21’s next session with the State is Monday, June 26. However, with just eight days remaining until our contract expires, bargaining sessions could happen at any time. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Monday, June 12, 2023

Today’s Unit 21 bargaining session showed greater engagement by State negotiators, and we made some positive steps with six tentative agreements reached today.

There was troubling news: The State attacked us with counter proposals on three contract sections that define the very nature of the work of Education Consultants and Librarians.

“This is disrespect, pure and simple. These three sections are foundational, at the heart of Unit 21,” said Bobby Roy, Unit 21 chair. “The State wants to weaken our professional status and to diminish our autonomy.”

“These are three sections that matter most to us,” added Bobby Roy. They are: 19.19.21 and 19.19.21 (a), which govern how our work is scheduled, and 21.16.21, which governs how we do our jobs. “This cannot stand, and we need to engage as a Unit and push back to protect our rights and our ability to provide quality services to California’s residents.”

Here’s where the fight begins: Unit 21-represented workers are encouraged to attend a bargaining update (Zoom call) where you’ll learn more about the State’s dangerous proposal and our plans to maintain our professional status as stipulated in the contract.

Here are the scheduled times you can join this important update:
**Please note the Thursday call requires pre-registration.

Tuesday, June 13, 2023, 12 Noon to 1:00 p.m. :

https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/j/82053318155?pwd=bStnMXNDQ2YrRWdNWHNWMDBHRHVWQT09

Thursday, June 15, 2023, 6:30 p.m. (Pre-registration Required): https://seiu1000-org.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_VPU5MNAHTN-lR4GY9uc5PA

In other Unit 21 bargaining today:
We proposed to roll over and protect earlier contract wins on two sections:

9.18.21 – Alternative Pre-Retirement Death Benefit
13.12.21 – Employment Opportunities

We reached tentative agreement with the State on six contract sections, plus the two sections (above) that were proposed today:

8.21.21 – 10-12 Leave
8.31.21 – Personal Leave Program: 1992 and 2003
17.11.21 – Education Leave: Conversion at Retirement
17.12.21 – Retirement Systems: State Teachers’ Retirement System (STRS) and Public Employees’ Retirement System (PERS)
9.18.21 – Alternative Pre-Retirement Death Benefit
13.12.21 – Employment Opportunities

Unit 21’s team also agreed to move these two economic proposals to the master table for further negotiations:

11.1.21 – Special Salary Adjustments
12.14.21 – Professional Development

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21’s next session with the State has not yet been scheduled. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 22 Rally at the Governor’s Office in Los Angeles here

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Monday, June 5, 2023

With less than a month before our contract expires, our bargaining team forges ahead while facing growing concerns about a backlog of unanswered proposals that address key priorities of the Unit 21 members we represent. And it’s frustrating our team.

“The State’s reluctance to move forward is not without a cost,” said bargaining team member Susie Watt. “It results in a low level of trust in the process, and we want to believe that the State cares and wants to collaborate with us on the well-being of state employees.”

“Right now, what does the State have to offer us except overwork and underpayment?” added Watt.

“We’re being stonewalled on the things that matter most to our employees,” said Unit 21 Chair Bobby Roy. “At the same time, we’re concerned about the $260 health care affordability payment and a bump in our CalPERS contribution that is scheduled to take place at the end of our current contract.”

Unit 21 continues to fight for contract language that recognizes our professionalism and protects our earlier contract wins.

Today, we proposed to roll over section 17.12.21 – it’s language that allows those in Unit 21 to carry over their retirement “relationship” earned at CalSTRS, bypassing any issues that would be affected by their state employment. It’s an important recruiting tool and a huge benefit to retaining our retirement eligibility and status.

We reached tentative agreement with the State on one contract section: 10.13.21 – Access to Work Areas 24 Hours. It’s a win, as this language change further acknowledges that the work of Unit 21 doesn’t have a set schedule and guarantees maximum flexibility to do our work.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21 will return to the table on Monday, June 12. In addition, we’ve made it clear to State negotiators we’re ready to meet at any time to foster progress. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Monday, May 22, 2023

We’ve listened carefully to the contract priorities of our Unit 21 members—gathered at town halls and through bargaining surveys—and we’re responding with proposals that reinforce our rights and underscore the State’s obligation as an employer.

While we’re pushing hard to advance those priorities, there’s been no real response from the State on proposals that have been on the table for weeks. “I haven’t been given the authority,” was the response from the State’s lead negotiator when pressed for an explanation.

Today, Unit 21 presented five contract sections as “rollover” language that our members identified as top priorities.

“These sections define the professional status of our members and ensure our ability to perform at our best,” said bargaining team member Susie Watt. “These protections are of vital importance to every Unit 21 employee.”

Those key “rollover” sections are:

19.19.21 Work Week Group E – Policy (FLSA-Exempt) (Unit 21)
19.19.21(a) Guidelines for Applying Work Week Group E Policy (Unit 21)
21.16.21 Professional Responsibility (Unit 21)

These three sections are made more important because Unit 21 employees are more likely to work well over 40 hours a week. A number of grievances have been filed over violation of rights conferred in these three articles, yet the State isn’t seeing that simple respect for the contract by the State and its managers is a clear path to improving our work environment.

Unit 21 proposed stronger and more precise language in the following section:

10.13.21 Access to Work Areas 24 Hours (Unit 21)

Our goal is to strengthen language that governs our ability to align office access and our personal work schedules. “Few of our employees have a conventional schedule, and expanded access ensures the quality and timeliness of our work product,” said Unit 21 Chair Bobby Roy.

Today, we also proposed to roll over the following sections:

8.21.21 10-12 Leave (Unit 21)
8.31.21 Personal Leave Program 1992 and 2003 (Unit 21)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

No bargaining is scheduled for next Monday (Memorial Day). Unit 21 returns to the negotiating table in two weeks, on Monday, June 5. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today.

And be sure to save your spot for the upcoming June 8 March to the Governor’s mansion here.

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Monday, May 15, 2023

As the Unit 21 bargaining team presses the State for additional recognition of their professional skills, their commitment to serving the state, and the importance of their work, we’re utilizing members as Subject Matter Experts who provide real context to the jobs they do and the challenges they face.

Today, three of our Unit 21 archivists spoke in support of three contract sections we proposed that would strengthen existing language by aligning it more closely with today’s reality.

To wit: our Archivist series job classification hasn’t been updated since 1966—just one example of many where the state is falling farther and farther behind in recognizing and correcting this and many similar needs of Unit 21 members.

Stephanie Geller, Veronica Lara, and Melissa Tyler used real-life examples of those challenges; perhaps none more stunning than the evolution of the documents they handle from paper to digital.

“Old job specs don’t speak at all to the work we do. Digital information requires new skills to collect, preserve, and provide access to records, and we’re fighting to bridge the gap between new job demands and the formal education required to do our jobs,” said Archivist Veronica Lara. “Every day we’re not trained or earn additional certifications is another day the state loses records.”

Today, under the umbrella of “Respect Us!” and “Pay Us,” we proposed stronger, more relevant language on the following contract sections:

12.14.21 Professional Development (Unit 21)
12.15.21 Reimbursement of Credential – License Fees (Unit 21)
11.64.21 Professional Development (Unit 21)

A proposal for new contract language—XX.XX.21 Telecommute Telework Program (Unit 21)—was presented by Unit 21 bargaining team member Monica Grimes and the Unit 21 archivists, who described key issues affirming our professional status—that we are evaluated by our work product and are not hourly employees. This new contract section reinforces our demand for respect to do our work professionally and on time.

Finally, under the heading of “Respect Us,” we reached tentative agreement on two previously-presented proposals. They are 13.6.21 Performance Appraisal and 21.17.21 Recognition of Authorship.

“This is a bargaining unit comprised of life-long learners,” said Unit 21 chair Bobby Roy. “In all cases, we want to be fairly treated, to enhance our service to the state through career development and to grow in our jobs.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 22. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today.

Unit 21 Bargaining Summary: Monday, May 8, 2023

Our Unit 21 (Educational Consultants and Librarians) bargaining team continues to press state negotiators for recognition and reward for contributions they make to California, for the high level of expertise and experience their job classifications demand, and for the adverse working conditions they experience due to untenable workloads and a high vacancy rate.

“Respect us, protect us, and pay us isn’t a campaign slogan, it’s a demand,” said Bobby Roy, Unit 21 Bargaining Chair. “We are presenting contract proposals that will make all three of those demands real for Unit 21’s represented employees.”

Today, we called for respect and pay by proposing stronger language for 11.65.21 – Arduous Pay Differential. Our classifications don’t offer overtime or CTO for additional work, which is prevalent due to high vacancy rates. We’re calling for contract changes that will compel management to provide timely answers for requests for this differential, and for the ability to use a grievance/arbitration procedure when denials are unreasonable.

Several subject matter experts from Unit 21 were on hand to present our proposal and back it up with a compelling presentation. Click here to learn more about the issue.

We also are making a “pay us” demand with new language in 11.2.21 – Special Salary Adjustments in the following three classifications: Nursing Educational Consultant (58%); Transportation Program Consultants (14.28%); and Private Postsecondary Education Senior Specialists (5%).

Six of our Nursing Educational Consultants (NECs) joined the bargaining session to illustrate their need for respect and parity and a 58% Special Salary Adjustment. “This is a classification that is facing a 41% vacancy rate, demands an experienced, licensed nurse with additional educational degrees, yet pays $11,000 a year less than registered nurses fresh out of school,” said Chair Bobby Roy.

Local 1000 is making a concerted effort to show that state workers aren’t anonymous lines on a spreadsheet—they are dedicated professionals. These SSAs would reward them for their commitment.

Grace Clerk is a NEC, working in Redlands for the Department of Consumer Affairs, where she “protects the state, protects the health care providers, and the patients,” but asks, “Who protects the Nursing Education Consultant?” She wants to be recognized as a nurse “who has dedicated my life to my passion. I am not a nameless person behind a computer.”

Towards that goal of recognition, and to stave off a growing vacancy rate, Unit 21 today proposed a new language calling for a 5% Recruitment and Retention differential for NECs.

We continue to make progress on other fronts, reaching tentative agreement on seven “rollover” articles from previous contract wins, all focused on the concept of “protecting” Unit 21-represented employees. In addition, we presented two additional articles to the state, also existing articles, for “rollover” – 13.6.21 Performance Appraisal of Permanent Employees, and 21.17.21 Recognition of Authorship.

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 15. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today

Bargaining Unit 21 Recap: Monday, May 1, 2023

Persistent and widespread vacancies are one of the biggest challenges facing the Unit 21 (Educational Consultants and Librarians) we represent. The adverse impacts on our workload and the quality of the service we provide to Californians are increasing.

In 2019, the Unit 21 had a 14% vacancy rate; today, it’s grown 50% to a staggering 22%. With one in five positions unfilled. The Unit 21 team chose to have an open-ended discussion about the problem.

We asked the State about their awareness of the problem, and what their plans were to improve the working conditions by filling the positions. The responses were less than satisfying. In one example, the State claimed increased recruiting efforts at the college level, despite many Unit 21 job descriptions calling for a minimum of 3-5 years’ experience.

“The state’s solutions don’t match the problems we face,” said Susie Watt, a member of the Unit 21 Bargaining Unit Negotiating Committee (BUNC). “We’ll continue to keep pushing the issue as we work through these negotiations.”

Unit 21 reached tentative agreement with the State to “rollover” current contract language for article 12.25.1, preserving our rights to reimbursement for medical examinations related to commercial driver licensing.

Today, we proposed to “rollover” seven additional contract articles that are examples of our “protect us” demand during this contract campaign and every day at work. Of particular note in this group: articles that govern training in infectious disease control (like COVID) and training in dangerous situations. These are all hard-won rights from previous contract battles.

10.5.21 Health Promotion Activities (Unit 21)
10.7.21 Protective Clothing (Unit 21)
10.9.21 Safety Equipment (Unit 21)
10.14.21 Personal Alarms (Unit 21)
10.20.21 Training for Hostile and Threatening Behavior (Unit 21)
10.25.21 Training in Infectious Disease Control (Unit 21)
13.10.21 Education and Training Required by Department (Unit 21)

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 8. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today.

Unit 21 Bargaining Summary: Monday, April 24, 2023

Bargaining Unit 21 went to the table with the State for their second bargaining session, negotiating for unit-specific contract advances for the Educational Consultants and Librarians we represent.

The April 24 session was hallmarked by the appearance of four subject matter experts who provided personal stories as a prelude to the proposal of a new contract article that would pay a $300 differential for our Transportation Program Consultants (TPC), who are required to hold and maintain a commercial driver license as part of their job requirements.

Andrew Peters, Ula Justus, and Kerri Gardner represented the TPCs, and shared the story of their responsibility in “training the trainers” who, in turn, train and certify the 56,000 bus drivers who transport more than a million of California’s K-12 students each year, while driving more than a quarter-billion miles.

“California’s school transportation system is the safest in the nation,” said Andrew Peters. “Our job requires significant driving experience, transportation management experience, and … a commercial license.” Our proposal aligns TPCs with other job classifications across the state who have similar licensing requirements and already receive a differential.

The team worked on two additional articles related to reimbursement related to maintaining those commercial licenses, and await the State’s response.

Hilary Thomson, Education Fiscal Services Assistant, was a fourth subject matter expert, and part of the one out of five Unit 21 employees that are not currently offered educational leave, despite the continuing education demands of their work. Our team presented a proposal to modify article 8.28.21, Educational Leave, to include the remaining eight (8) Unit 21 classifications not currently eligible for educational leave. At the same time, we proposed rollover language on a related article, 17.11.21, which converts unused educational leave into retirement service credits.

Following up on last week’s bargaining session, the Unit 21 team secured tentative agreement on eight different “rollover” proposals from last week, which maintain language from our current contract and preserve hard-won rights from past contract campaigns.

12.13.21 – Tools, Business Equipment, Materials and Supplies
14.4.21 – Duty Statements, Post Orders, and Work Instructions
15.4.21 – Employee Opportunity Transfer
19.1.21 – Hours of Work
19.16.21 - Shift Change
19.28.21 – Reduced Work Time
19.29.21 – Release Time for Commercial Driver’s License Examination
21.24.21 – Job Related Conferences and Conventions

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21 returns to the table next week, on Monday, May 1. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, click here for our Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org.

If you’re not already an SEIU Local 1000 member, join us today.

Unit 21 Bargaining Recap: April 17, 2023

The Educational Consultants, Specialists, Archivists, and Librarians represented by Local 1000—Bargaining Unit 21—went to the table with the State on April 17 for the first day of negotiations on unit-specific issues.

Respect Us! was the focus of this inaugural session. “Unit 21 employees are professionals with a special kind of expertise and deserve a contract that’s respectful of their commitment and contributions to the education of California’s youth,” said Bargaining Unit 21 Chair Bobby Roy.

“We are essential and every essential worker deserves to be respected, protected, and paid accordingly,” they added.

Unit 21 presented eight contract articles to the State for “rollover,” signaling our desire that the existing language remains unchanged, keeping in place the hard-won rights from previous contract campaigns.

These eight “rollovers” all govern working conditions. Bargaining Chair Bobby Roy underscored two of these as exemplars of Respect Us! “15.4.21, Employee Opportunity Transfer, is important to Unit 21 since there are not as many opportunities for career advancement for our professionals, so we embrace new challenges via career mobility. 19.1.21, Hours of Work, is a priority to those Unit 21 members in Work Week Group 2 because it acknowledges and respects their work/life balance.”

12.13.21 – Tools, Business Equipment, Materials, and Supplies
14.4.21 – Duty Statements, Post Orders, and Work Instructions
15.4.21 – Employee Opportunity Transfer
19.1.21 – Hours of Work
19.16.21 - Shift Change
19.28.21 – Reduced Work Time
19.29.21 – Release Time for Commercial Driver’s License Examination
21.24.21 – Job-Related Conferences and Conventions

You can read the details of these and all current contract articles at contract.seiu1000.org

Unit 21 returns to the table next week, on Monday, April 24. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org

Related Links

Related Content

Member Resource Center

Facebook

Instagram

Twitter

LinkedIn

Bargaining Unit Updates 2023

— Master Table Updates —

Local 1000 Reaches Contract Agreement with the State. Tentative Contract Agreement Reached.

Member protests, and arrests, drive State back to the bargaining table. Emergency rally shows the State we want a contract … now!

News from the bargaining table: More economic progress. Negotiations sharply focused on economics.

Weekend bargaining news: more economics, more agreements. Saturday bargaining session brings more money talk, new agreements

Bargaining update: State beginning to move on economics, OPEB reduced! OPEB contribution reduced as State shows movement on economics

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 10, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 9, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: Monday, August 7, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 4, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 3, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: August 2, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 31, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 26, 2023. State’s Counteroffer: One Additional Percentage Point, Tons of Disrespect

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 19, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 12, 2023

Master Table Summary: June 29, 23

State to Local 1000: “We Really Don’t Care”

Master Table Summary: June 25, 23

Voicemail will fill up quickly. If the voicemail is full, please send an email, text, or tweet.

Bargaining team stands strong with 26% counter - Master Table Summary 6.25.23

Master Table Bargaining Summary: June 21, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: June 14, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: June 7, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: May 31, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: May 24, 2023

Master Table Summary: Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Master Table Summary: Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Recap: Wednesday, May 3, 2023

No Master Table Bargaining Session for Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Recap for Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Recap for Wednesday, April 12, 2023

Highlights from Unit 1 Tentative Agreement

Bargaining Unit 1 Update: Friday, August 4, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Monday, July 19, 2023

Unit 1 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Bargaining Unit 1 Recap: Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Unit 3 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 3 Tentative Agreement

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, July 18, 2023

Unit 3 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Saturday, June 24, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Bargaining Unit 3 Recap: Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Unit 4 Bargaining Updates

Highlights from Unit 4 Tentative Agreement

Unit 4 bargaining update for July 13, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 27, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 20, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 13, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Tuesday, May 2, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 – Recap: Tuesday, April 25, 2023

Bargaining Unit 4 Recap: Monday, April 18, 2023

Unit 11 Bargaining Updates

Bargaining Unit Updates
2023

Master Table Bargaining Summary: July 26, 2023.
State’s Counteroffer: One Additional Percentage Point, Tons of Disrespect

Master Table Bargaining Recap
for Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Master Table Bargaining Recap for
Wednesday, April 12, 2023