Bargaining 2009
DAS/OUS Bargaining News
OUS Bargaining Updates
Scroll down to "Bargaining" to see OUS Proposals.
OUS (HIGHER ED.) BARGAINING CALENDAR:
April 16-17 at PSU
April 30-May 1
May 28-29 at SOU
June 11-12 at Salem Headquarters
June 25-26 at U of O
Contract expires June 30th
WHAT CAN YOU DO?
Our bargaining team is fighting against these OUS proposals that would freeze steps, cut our pay by making us take furlough days at management’s whim, make us take unpaid holidays, lose our accrued vacation time, and the rest. All these changes could be permanent, if we don’t fight back! DAS is only asking for Letters of Agreement which expire at the end of the contract term; OUS is asking for permanent contract language changes. We cannot allow this.
Do your part to help! The most powerful bargaining team is the team that has all workers standing firmly behind it. Show solidarity with your bargaining team! Wear purple, attend meetings and rallies, sign petitions, speak up and act in solidarity. Become a CAT (Contract Action Team) member. Send emails to OSU’s President Ray, to Chancellor Pernsteiner, and Vice Chancellor Kenton. Express your feelings about these proposals and demand fairness and shared sacrifice.
Bargaining has just started—we are in it for the long haul. Stay the course. Be firm. Show the colors, talk with your friends and co-workers, be loud and be proud! Let management know that we will not stand for these takebacks! Be visible and vocal! Give your bargaining team the most clout they can have—your activism!
YOU TAKE ONE OF US ON, YOU TAKE ALL OF US ON!
DON’T MAKE HIGHER ED. A PART-TIME WORKFORCE!
STOP RANDOM FURLOUGHS!
WE DEMAND FAIRNESS AND SHARED SACRIFICE!
NO TAKEAWAYS! SENIORITY AND LAYOFF RIGHTS ARE OURS!
BARGAINING
In recent contracts, we have jointly bargained economics with DAS. This year, things have changed. Only health insurance, PERS, and COLAS will be negotiated jointly. According to the 2009-11 Ground Rules for Negotiations between SEIU Local 503 OPEU and Oregon University System:
“Health insurance, PERS and across-the-board salary rate adjustments will be as negotiated at the DAS/SEIU negotiations, unless mutually agreed otherwise. For purposes of this Ground Rule, salary rate adjustments do not include performance pay increases, additional salary range steps, or any other compensation adjustments such as unpaid furloughs.”
Friday, Feb. 26th, OUS presented their proposals. Following are the worst of them. Remember, language that is bold and underlined is new language proposed for the next contract; language that is bold and strikethrough is language proposed to be deleted from the current contract.
Article 22 – Salary administration
Section 3. Performance Increase. Notwithstanding the following, no annual performance pay increases will be granted during the 2009-2011 contract term. Effective July 1, 2009, and for the duration of the 2009-2011 contract term, each employee shall be compensated at the salary rate corresponding to the Salary Range and Step at which that employee was compensated as of June 30, 2009.
Article 66 - Information technology compensation plan
Section 1. Merit Pay Program. Notwithstanding the following, no base pay increases will be granted during the 2009-2011 biennium.
Section 6. On-call duty for FLSA-exempt employees
Compensation for on-call duty under Article 26, Section 2 for FLSA-exempt Information Technology employees shall be the Employer’s choice of either exchange time-off administered subject to the provision of Article 26, Section 4(B) or payment in cash, FLSA-exempt Information Technology employees covered by this Article shall not be compensated for on-call pay under Article 26, Section 2.
* This means no step increases for anyone for two years!
Article 42 – Holidays
New section 8: During the term of this 2009-2011 collective bargaining agreement, all holidays under this Article 42- Holidays shall be unpaid furlough days.”
* That means every single holiday will be unpaid time off, most of which occur between Thanksgiving and mid-January, a real hit on our paychecks during the big holiday season. We will not be allowed to use vacation or comp time to make up the loss. Will we allow this? NO!
Article 51 – Temporary Interruption of Employment-Lack of Work
Section 1. Any temporary interruption of employment because of lack of work or unexpected or unusual reasons which does not exceed fifteen (15) days, shall not be considered a layoff if, at termination of such conditions, employees are to be returned to employment. Such interruptions of employment shall be by work unit and recorded and reported as leave without pay. Under no circumstances shall this Article be used to remedy shortage of funds. [This language is being removed from the contract.]
Section 2. An employee who is affected by a temporary interruption of employment shall be allowed to use any form of paid leave including vacation, compensatory time off or personal leave provided the leave has been accrued, except in the event of unpaid furloughs. The number and dates of such unpaid furlough days shall be exclusively determined by OUS or the respective university. Such employee shall continue to accrue all benefits during this period to the extent permitted by law.
* This means that every job at OSU could be a part-time job. Unpaid furlough days at the drop of a hat. Is this fair? Will we stand for this? NO!
Article 47 - Vacation leave
Section 15. To avoid losing vacation the employee must request vacation leave. When such leave is impossible a cash payment of not more than forty (40) house shall be made. In lieu of cash payment, The Employer shall may schedule time off in excess of 250 hours within thirty (30) days prior to the date the vacation leave would reach 250 hours.
Section 17. An employee may request in January a cash out of up to forty (40) hours of vacation leave. The request may only be made once within a twelve (12) month period. The employee must have a minimum of eighty (80) hours of accrued vacation leave remaining after the cash out. [This language is being removed from the contract.]
* We’re understaffed and overworked. You don’t take your vacation because there’s so much work to do, you can’t schedule time off. So you’re close to accruing 250 hours, you’re at” use it or lose it”, but your boss can deny you time off and you lose that money, there’s no cashout option. And you can’t cash out your vacation time in January, either, so that vacation time you earned is gone, stolen from you. Poof. Will we accept this? NO!
Article 48 - Layoff
Section 1 (B) Amend to read as follows:
(B) An employee who has been disciplined as defined in Article 17 during the last three (3) years may not displace another employee.
Section 3 (B) Add: "Administrative unit" is defined as the unit reporting to the lowest level Director or Department Head or equivalent level manager (for example: Registrar or Comptroller), Dean, Vice President, Assistant/Associate Vie President, Assistant/Associate or Vice Provost, Provost or President where a layoff occurs.
* Denying workers layoff rights. Limiting the options for bumping and layoff rights, diminishing the opportunities for placement. Not acceptable!
Article 34 - Trial service
Section 6. An employee who is removed from trial service following a promotion shall have the right of return to the university and the classification or comparable salary level from which the employee was promoted
layoff rights as provided in Article 48- Layoff, except Section 3 (E)(3), (4) and (6), in the classification in which the employee held regular status prior to promotion unless charges are filed and he/she is discharged as provided in Article 17- Discipline and Discharge.
* This means the employee can’t bump into a position in their old classification. Only vacant positions would be open to them. If there are no open positions, the employee will be laid off. This is not acceptable!
Article 10 - Union rights
Section 2. Union Organizer Visitations. Union organizers, with approval from a responsible manager, shall be allowed reasonable contact with bargaining unit members in university facilities or grounds. The Union organizer will have the right to contact any represented employee in the workplace, in his/her specific work area with prior approval from the responsible manager or any public area within the university facilities or grounds, as long as it does not interfere with the normal flow of work (e.g. lunch hour, break, before and after work shifts. ) The purpose of these visits will be to meet with Union Stewards, with employees or management regarding any actions or procedures under this Agreement, including but not limited to, employee grievances per Article 18-Greivance and Arbitration Procedure. The Union agrees to provide the Employer with a list of authorized representatives.
Section 10. Union stewards will be granted mutually agreed upon time off during regularly scheduled working hours to investigate and process grievance, and to represent bargaining unit employees in investigatory interviews as described in Article 17- Discipline and Discharge, Section 5, and, if no Union organizer is present, Article 18- Grievance and Arbitration Procedure, Section 7 upon notice to their immediate supervisor. If the permitted….
* Seeks to deny or limit union rights to talk to workers in the workplace or on the grounds or in public areas. To limit the rights of stewards to defend workers. Other language aims to further limit geographic area at OSU for bumping rights. To force workers to bump the lowest seniority employee. And so on. Nothing OUS has proposed is good. Our bargaining team is fighting mad. And so are we all.