Sunday, December 16, 2007

Courage to Speak Truth

ODOT Local 730 members in South Eastern Oregon stood together against a bully boss and prevailed. Transportation Maintenance Specialists from the Jordan Valley and Basque Station crews had the courage to speak up when a new manager arrived and failed to treat them with common respect. The new manager who was still in the probationary period eventually returned to his prior position.

Crew members reported that from the first day he made it clear that he was friends with several layers of management and would not be removed from this job. He attempted to intimidate these employees by taking them for one on one drives in his agency assigned pick-up to tell them how it was ‘going to be’. They were warned not to go talking to the Union, “if they thought they had problems now, just talk to the Union”. Nor were they to talk to their friends in Safety. During one of several one on one drives, a member was told that the agency was looking to decrease the size of the crew by one or more positions. This employee was warned that a person talking to the Union could be ‘downsized‘.

These Union Members chose to unite and showed the courage to stand up to this intimidation. With the help of the Burns Maintenance Crew shop steward, Tom McCulloch, TMS2, and SEIU 503, OPEU Bend area organizer Sara Routt, these folks found their voice and clarified their concerns. They talked with the District Manager and made these concerns known. The District Manager made several trips to the area to hear these employees, on all shifts.


There has been a discussion on this blog of Member Organizing. This is a good example. These folks of the Owyhee Watershed reached out to other ODOT Local 730 Members and the Union. When an attempt was made to divide them they chose to talk to each other and had the courage to speak to the upline manager. It is that simple. These members understood better than anyone what their issues were and they worked to resolve them. My hat is off to them.

This same kind of work is being done in other places around our agency. In the opposite corner of the state, the North Coast highway maintenance workers on several crews have raised concerns about decisions being made and apparent agency policy violations for several years. These members felt that they were not being heard or taken seriously. When they could not get help locally they reached outside the area and brought their concerns to Salem.

It was not easy. Several of their issues had been on-going for years. Some of the crew members were not comfortable talking about them. They did not like it, but they wanted to just get the work done and go home. Crews had been divided by rumors and stories told by managers. Some did not talk to each other when they saw each other in the grocery store.

Again, these crews reached out to the Union and other ODOT Local 730 Members. Local 730 officers Bart Cotta, Statewide Chief Steward and Kermit Meling, Vice President, along with SEIU 503 organizers Colleen Sullivan and Troy Barnardt helped them clarify what the issues were. Bart asked them to think about what they wanted the future to look like. Keep a record of the past but Look to the Future.

There is currently an audit taking place in this region. Change is coming.

Oregon is our State. ODOT is our agency. Sometimes it takes courage to take responsibility for our worksites. Our brother and sisters in these areas have shown us how.
mac

June 2009 Extra Step Increase

Here is some unexpected good news from Leslie Frane, the executive director of our SEIU 503, OPEU, in Salem. mac

GOOD NEWS!
A New Extra Salary Step for DAS Workers!
On Dec. 13, 2007, SEIU, AFSCME and the State of Oregon reached a special agreement. It states that effective 6/30/09, an extra step will be added to the top of every salary range in the SEIU & AFSCME DAS bargaining units, and the bottom step will be eliminated.

This agreement guarantees that workers at the top step of their salary range as of 6/30/09 will get an extra step on their next salary eligibility date. Workers at the lowest step in their range on 6/30/09 will move to the next step immediately.

In the long run, it means an extra step for every state worker!


THE BACKGROUND:
In October, Governor Kulongoski announced special raises for managers and agency heads, based on "recruitment and retention problems." We contacted the Governor and demanded that he take recruitment and retention problems just as seriously when they affect front-line workers. As a result of these demands, the Governor stepped up and did the right thing. He agreed to the additional step for all DAS workers represented by SEIU and AFSCME.
Congratulations to all bargaining unit members for this victory, and happy holidays to all!

Wednesday, December 12, 2007

Membership

Several years ago, a group of ODOT Local 730 members decided to go their own way. The path chosen was to attempt to decertify SEIU 503, OPEU as the Union for ODOT represented employees; excluding DMV & the engineers. The Oregon Workers Union was to be the new organization.

To get to the point, a number of those employees, who were considered to have led the decertification attempt, had their 503 membership suspended. An easy way for me to think about it is that they were involuntarily forced to become Fair Share members.

This was an action taken by the SEIU 503, OPEU Board of Directors; our statewide board. This board represents all members of 503, not just ODOT employees. It is my understanding that there were two level of suspension; some of these suspensions have expired; some have not.

One of these suspended members has ask the 503 Board of Directors to rescind his individual suspension. The Board of Directors will hear his case during the January 2008 Board meeting.

I am not inclined to rehash the decertification. It is the past. There is much to learn from the past. ODOT Local 730 has many things to do now and in our future. There are many things happening right now: Local 730 elections, restructure, politics; general counsel and the next round of bargaining are not far away.

My reasons for addressing this here are several. It is the purpose of this blog to help keep our 730 members aware of what is going on. Hopefully we will get better and post articles more frequently.

Another reason to make sure we are all ready to unite and look to the future together. These folks are still ODOT represented employees. Our Union would still represent them, if necessary, just as we would any Fair Share employee. Our collective bargaining agreement does not suspend any contract language base on Fair Share status. They are, as a group, hard working State of Oregon employees. They were, once, some of the strongest Union voices in our collective public employee Union.

I have been ask if I am afraid they will come back and take over. I was elected, by you, to be the president of ODOT Local 730. If these members are reinstated and YOU THE MEMBERSHIP elect them as your officers and delegates, so be it. It is by definition the right thing. We are a represented body of laborers. All of us make up Our Union. The officers and delegates are chosen to raise our collective voice to our agency and the legislature to protect our rights as laborers.

I have faith that you know what is right for you and your families; now and in the future.
mac

Tuesday, November 13, 2007

ODOT Visits Colorado


A few pictures of Rex Parks, HET 2 and Cam McGinnis, TMS 2 on their organizing trip to Colorado.

Saturday, November 10, 2007

CAPE Update

Hi All,

I am one of three ODOT employees who was elected by voting members of CAPE contributers to the CAPE Committtee. The other two are Kermit Meling in District 1 and David Roadman in District 4. We have been elected to serve a two-year term that ends on Oct 31, 2009. The CAPE Committee held their first meeting on Nov 3, 2007. For members who may not be aware, CAPE stands for Citizen Action for Political Education. This is the political arm of the our union. If you elected to be a 2 cent contributor, you are a member of CAPE. This contribution adds up to $50 per year and is a tax deduction you are allowed to take. If you are a 4 cent contributor and file jointly, you can take up to $100 per year tax deduction.

To become a member of CAPE and put in your 2 (or more) cents worth, please contact a Union Organizer in your area, a steward, any 730 Board member or Kermit, David or myself and we will be happy to send you a form to complete and return.

Every employees has 75 cents of your dues money paid to CAPE each month, unless you have diverted these funds into the SEIU scholastoc fund. I can hear some of you now. "I already give my money to the union and they use it to support candidates and measures I don't agree with." I won't lie to you. That is a possibility. However, if you do not share your thoughts about candidates with CAPE members, how are we to represent your views? One of the reasons I ran for this position, is so my views as an independent would be heard. If you are an independent or a republican and believe the only people SEIU supports is democrats, than I have some news for you. While many times, the CAPE Committee does support democrats, they have also supported republicans. CAPE does not look at party affiliation when determining who they will recommend to the Board of Directors to endorse. We look at voting history, answers to questionnaires and interviews to determine who is best to support, if anyone, in any particular race. In the last election, we withheld endorsements from candidates we had supported previously because they didn't vote as they told us they would on important issues. As a result, those candidates either lost or won by slimmer margins. Many know our support goes a long way with Oregon workers, not just state workers.

Anyway, we elected the District Chairs on Nov 3rd and officers for the Statewide Board. All officers and elected CAPE leaders were sworn into at that time. Each district will be holding meetings/interviews for candidates that are running in their areas and seeking SEIU endorsement. The CAPE page on SEIU has not yet been updated with the current members. Hopefully that will be happening soon. I will keep you posted and hope you will check it out.

Recently, SEIU Oregon (Locals 503 & 49) decided to endorse John Edwards for the primaries. SEIU International has decided not to endorse any candidate for the primaries and have left it up to each state to decide. As of Oct 30th, 11 states have decided to support Edwards in the primaries, including New Hamshire and Iowa.

With several key races going on within Oregon, I need your input on who you think we should endorse for the state offices. Several key state representatives have supported Oregon workers and voted for worker issues. Many of these representatives, along with two senators, have been approved to receive endorsements from the CAPE Committee without having to go through the interview process. If the Board of Directors approve these recommendations, CAPE will be sending funds to their campaigns. Each OregonRepresentative will receive $250 and each Senator will receive $500.

Well that is all for now. Please leave you comments as I will be checking frequently for your input.
Thanks, Mike

Thursday, November 8, 2007

Member Organizing

To Avoid Criticism
Do Nothing, Say Nothing,
Be Nothing.

Elbert Hubbard.


Organizing. Member organizing. Service Employees International Union, Local 503 made a decision several years ago to build our Union by Member Organizing. It was discussed amongst the true believers; I am sure there was some debate. Unions do not seem to make any decisions without arguing it from all sides. (Some call it democracy.)

Member organizing is really a pretty simple idea. The people who have the greatest knowledge about the work they do . . . are the workers. They know how the work is performed. They know where the work is performed. They know the best way to get the work done, if the rest of the world will stay out of the way. These people should organize.

The workers also have the most to gain by effective organization. Good organizations provide a framework that fits the workers, their lives and their workplaces. Good labor organizations find a way to speak with one voice for many. The purpose of that one voice is to carry a message to those we work with. The well crafted message will voice what the workers require, not just to work, but to work happily, to work efficiently.

I ask that each member of ODOT Local 730 get organized. We each get organized to come to work: pack a lunch; wear appropriate clothing; choose transportation. In the same way we need to organize to belong to a strong Union: study our contract; elect our own workers to represent our needs; bargain & negotiate wisely for our future.

In a strong Local all members will read and seek to understand their contract, their collective bargaining agreement. Effective Locals teach their managers what the contract means and firmly insist that all abide it.

Members with an eye to the future form an opinion. Those who labor for their family and the public interest learn about the issues in their communities. They Vote. They elect persons who will carry forward their concerns to their community, the legislature and the Union.

Elders in our Local will teach the new employee that strong Unions make for strong communities with good wages and healthy families. Some members will step forward to work for all.

I am not asking that all members become stewards. Do get to know your steward. There should be a steward on every crew, elected by you, the crewmembers.


The staff of SEIU 503, OPEU is a vast resource.

Member Organizing. Rank & File members doing Quality work for our State and our communities.

mac

^^^
Elbert Hubbard, an American, lived from 1856 - 1915. A writer, publisher and philosopher, he was influential in the arts and crafts movement. Much of his writing illustrated people doing for themselves.
Other quotes attributed to him:

“Responsibility is the price of freedom.” and

“Do not take life too seriously. You will never get out of it alive.”

mac

Thinking about Disappointment

Thinking about Disappointment
Or
The Joe Thing

You may have heard about “the Joe thing”. I have. Here is some information for you to use to make an informed decision, should you need to. There are petitions being circulated to start a recall.

The Joe here is Joe DiNicola, President of SEIU 503, OPEU. Joe is also a public employee who came out of the Department of Revenue, where he was the local president about 10 years, I believe. This is the Joe of ‘President Joe’s Journal’. He was elected president of the statewide local of public employees here in Oregon, by us, the members. He is about halfway through his second 2 year term.

After his second election, Joe DiNicola requested payment for over 2500 hours of comp time. This is the primary act that is getting so much attention. Here are some of the reasons why.

* Joe is currently working as the president of SEIU 503, OPEU. Therefore, the payment for those hours of comp time would have to be paid by the Union. The figure would be in the 6-figure range.

* Many folks, including past presidents, consider time spent outside of the 40 hour workweek to be unpaid, volunteer time; part of the job. No past president has asked to be paid for comp time. These same folks believe that most Union activism happens on a volunteer basis. For these reasons people believe that precedent is in place. Many are angry that the current president wants to be paid for time that others volunteer.

* SEIU 593, OPEU has sought counsel from labor experts who seem to agree that precedent and our constitution and bylaws do not require the Union to pay this claim for comp time.

* Also, the constitution and bylaws do not allow for an officer to be an adversary of the Union. This is relevant because Joe DiNicola has now filed suit against 503 and the Department of Revenue for payment of the comp time. This lawsuit places Joe in an adversarial role with our Union by definition.

Those are a few of the issues surrounding the Joe thing.

As president of Local 730, I believe that I am to work on issues affecting the work days and nights of ODOT employees. It disappoints me that my Union has to spend time and money on this comp time litigation. I consider it a distraction from the important work of Our Union.

As a member of the SEIU OPEU 503 Board of Directors, I can tell you that several hours of the board meetings are lost on this issue directly or indirectly. Board members have taken sides and almost every other item before the board is seen through this lens.

As the president of ODOT Local 730 I represent you and your views. If you want to express those views to me you can do so at my e-mail account: odotmac@hotmail.com. Or you may respond here at the blog.
mac

Cameron M. McGinnis
TMS2 Meacham Section
ODOT Local 730, President

Friday, October 5, 2007

ODOT/DMV Stewards Training

October 19th and 20th. Interested contact odotmac@hotmail.com

Bush Vetoes SCHIP... SEIU kids Reaction

Monday, September 17, 2007

MPAC

The speeches just concluded so I wanted to let you all know how things went. I thought Obama and Edwards really impressed the 1400 members in the audience. Hillary and Dodd did okay, and Richardson concluded by saying 'Thank you, AFSCME'. You should really spend the time and watch the videos once SEIU puts them on the webpage. I will try to link them into here to make it easy, but i've heard there will be tons of pictures at http://photos.seiu.org At the end of the speeches (Dodd, Obama, Richardson, Clinton, then Edwards) there was a strawpoll and I will update when we hear the results of that. Any questions about this let me know and I'll try to answer them. One interesting thing that I thought was cool was multiple candidates mentioned stopping the privitization of public employees jobs.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

Con DOT and ODOT

There are two approaches to take on the growing amount of work to be done on our roads and transportation systems. 1) we can get more ODOT employees, much like Connecticut is doing or 2) you can contract out. I got a feasibility report today that costs taxpayers over 2 million dollars MORE to contract the job out rather than having ODOT employees do the work. What are your thoughts?

Thursday, August 23, 2007

Salem Leadership Training

TOMORROW and Saturday: August 24th and 25th - Salem SEIU Building (Leadership I). If you are interested call the Salem Office and sign up! 503-581-1505

Raingear Committee

On September 14th union members will meet with HR to discuss the parameters in which Electricians and Facilities Maintenance Specialists will receive the raingear allowance. The union will be represented by Ron Johnson (FMS), Ken Sorenson (Electrician), and Gary Davis (Electrician).

Saturday, August 11, 2007

Dodd, Richardson, and Edwards

The other 3 candidates who have taken the SEIU challenge so far:





Thursday, August 9, 2007

Presidential Election 2008

In order to be considered for SEIU's presidential endorsement a candidate must be willing to 'walk a day in the shoes' of an SEIU member. I thought you all might want to see this piece of the latest candidate to do so, Barack Obama, which aired on the Today Show. If you want to learn more about this process go to www.walkadayinmyshoes2008.com

Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Contracting Out

What changes would you like to see to the way ODOT contracts out? If you deal with ODOT contracting out you may have some really great ideas that would benefit current ODOT employees and also taxpayers. The politicians are asking for ideas and we are putting together a list on an ODOT conference call this Thursday at 6 p.m. If you are interested email me at barnardt@opeuseiu.org and I will get you the call-in information.

-Troy Barnard

Sunday, July 29, 2007

Ideas for Next Bargaining

Post any ideas you have for next bargaining here. Remember to pay special attention to what is 'broken' about the current language. 18 months from now we can come back and use these ideas to make our bargaining proposals.

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

The End is Just the Beginning

There's just 18 months to get ready for bargaining! Yup. You read it right. ODOT Local 730 cannot wait until 2009 to start to get ready for the next round of contract bargaining.

Yes, I think we did fairly well this round. All mechanics got a leg up in their selectives. Which they worked hard for during negociations. Parts & supply specialists. Our lowest job classification got moved from Salary Range 6 to SR 8. TOS's & TMC's got SR selectives. Article 122 values are up. Also, the managment bargaining team brought language to the table to weaken our seniority rights. This was in response to a grievance & arbitration won by Our Union and Kurt Kinder of ODOT Pendleton. Your Coalition bargaining team helped them see that their proposal was backward.

But on to 2009. This session, we struggled when we could not provide numbers to back up our proposals. Occassionally we could not articulate what we were trying to fix; yes it seemed like a good idea, but why? We could not always define the group of Union Members that were affected by our proposals. We could not always say we had addressed the issue at our statewide Labor/Management meeting.

The ask. If you see something you would like to get changed in our contract start researching it now. What article of the contract do you want to change? What do you want to change? Who does it affect? Is there a cost associated? Why do you want to change the language?

You may not be able to answer all the questions but give them consideration. When you are ready to talk about them contact an ODOT Local 730 officer or activist; Troy Barnard, our statewide organizer; or your area SEIU 503 organizer.

Here is a real life example of what we are trying to accomplish. Dan Metz is the TMC 1 on the ODOT Heppner crew. Dan went to Salem and did the presentation for the TMC selective. He made an excellent presentation. TMC's did get a selective, but not what they targeted. Starting now, Dan is looking at his proposal; in light of the response by DAS, he looking for more numbers. He is researching the job descriptions for ODOT TMC's and the surrounding states and counties.
He looking to visit with fellow TMCs statewide.

This is our goal. To be completely informed about our issues. To know more than anyone at the bargaining table. To answer those questions about Who, What & Why. We have time to calmly collect our information for a year or more. We have time to present our issues at the Labor/Management forum. We have time to create success.

The Local looks forward to working with you. mac

Cameron M McGinnis
TMS2 Meacham
ODOT Local 730, President

Monday, July 23, 2007

New Union Steward

We have a new steward today out in Estacada, so welcome TMS II Steve Briggs to your local leadership.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

Leadership III



ODOT members Cam McGinnis, Kurt Kinder, and Rick Favorit attended Leadership III training in Bend today. If you have not participated in any of the trainings before I encourage you to try one out. If you have, what did you learn from it?

Thursday, July 19, 2007

Reclass, Selectives and COLA

This is my best attempt to explain both the reclasses and selectives and how they fit with the first year cola. If you see any mistakes, please let me know as soon as possible to avoid frustrations.

Your new salary can be calculated by taking your current salary and multiply by 1.03 (3% cola). If you make below 2667 you will receive an 80 dollar cola instead of 3%. This will apply to the majority of ODOT workers – TMS’, Office Specialists, MCEO, Electricians, etc. The following exceptions are below:

  • If you have gone through a selective (see under SELECTIVES).
  • If you have gone through a reclassification (see under RECLASS)

Some useful definitions:

Selective – A selective is a classification of workers (i.e. Transportation Maintenance Coordinator) changing from one salary range to another. Example: The Transportation Maintenance Coordinators getting a one range increase.

Least Cost Implementation – When a group has won a selective the change to the new range is done by putting the worker at their current salary, unless the current salary does not exist in the new range, and in this case is put at the closest step.

Reallocation and Reclassification – When DAS re-classes different job classifications the worker is put in the class DAS feels is the most appropriate including new and revised classes. If the reallocated worker feels the new allocation is not appropriate they can follow the procedure under article 81 to remedy the situation.

SELECTIVES:

TOS and TMC members who won their selective increase will see a one range increase from their current level. This means if you are at range 19 step 4 you would be moved to range 20 step 3. These selective increases only change the money for those currently at step one of their current range who would move to step 1 of the new range. Everybody will receive the cola raise and move up one range and down one step.

Traffic Survey Interviewers: Have been increased from salary range six to salary range eight. Also they will be advanced with the living wage proposal which cuts off the first three steps of salary range eight beginning November 1st, 2008. An example is a worker at the 2nd step of range 6 would be moved to the 1st step of range 8 and would get an 80 dollar cola. This would increase this worker from 1468 to 1591 starting July 1st, an 8% increase. After November 1st, this worker will be increased to 1847. This would be an increase of over 25%.

REALLOCATION/RECLASS:

The following classifications’ changes will be implemented October 1st, 2007. All changes in salary ranges will be done on a least cost implementation. Final allocations for individuals are not yet determined and all the following information is for the salary ranges of the new classifications.

Heavy Equipment Technician I’s: Currently at range 19T these folks will be moved to range 23T. On the current salary schedule there is no range 23T; but you can expect the T range to fall between a range 23 and 24. Right now the topped out HET I’s are at 3449. Under the re-class these folks will go to the step 5 of the newly created range 23. This is done least cost so these folks will continue to make 3449, plus the 3% cola increase. My calculator tells me this brings them to 3552. Workers at the other steps will be increased to the new 1st step in this range as well because their current salary will no exist on the new range. This means they will get an immediate raise on October 1st and will thus start making 3552. Because of this immediate increase, their salary eligibility date will be changed to October 1st to reflect that increase. The next increase for HET I’s will be on their salary eligibility date (step increase) and then again on November 1st, 2008 with a 3.2% increase.

Heavy Equipment Technician II’s: Currently at range 22B, these employees will move to range 26B. A HET II at the top step, currently earning 3847, will move to the 5th step of range 26, as it is done least cost. The new salary for these mechanics will be 3962; reflecting the 3% cola. Also these employees will now be eligible for step increases on their salary eligibility date. The HET II’s at steps 5-8 will be moved from their current step to range 26B at step 5. For a HET II at the 5th step earning 3183 currently, they will start earning 3962 starting October 1st. For those into the numbers that is a 779 dollar monthly increase, or 24.5% increase over their current salary.

Parts Specialists I’s: If you are currently a Parts Supply Specialists I and II and you are moved into Parts Specialist I you can expect to move from salary range 10 and 14 to range 15. These are done least cost so if your current salary exists in the range 15 you will move to that step. I will do a few examples from both ends of the spectrums and one in between. For a current Parts Supply Specialist who gets moved to Parts Specialist I and is at the 9th step at range 14, earning 2649, would be moved to the 8th step of range 15, at 2649, plus the cola raise which would bring this worker to 2729. At the other end of the spectrum, a brand new Parts Supply Specialist I, currently earning 1613 at the 1st step of the 10th range, will be moved to the new range, and because the current salary does not exist in the new range will be moved to step 1 of range 15. This employee will now make 1963, plus the 80 cola raise putting them at 2043 beginning October 1st. This employee will have received a monthly raise of 430 dollars; which equals an increase of 26.65%. Everybody else will fall somewhere in between depending on what their previous classification was. If you get an increase due to your current salary not existing on the new range your salary eligibility date will change to this date of implementation on October 1st.

Parts Specialist II’s: For the Parts Supply Specialists who are allocated to Parts Specialists II the worker will be moved from range 16 to salary range 20. If you are at the top step at range 16 and you are moved to range 20, done least cost, you will now be at the fifth step earning 2903, plus a cola increase that will put you at 2990. For somebody at step 1, currently earning 2049 at range 16, will be increased to the 1st step of range 20 at 2420, plus the 80 dollar cola, putting these folks at 2500. This example shows an increase of 451 dollars or an increase of 22% starting October 1st.

Sign Technician Entry, and I’s: If you are currently a Sign Technician I and are moved into Entry you can expect to go from salary range 12 to salary range 15L. If a worker is currently at range twelve at step one, earning 1701, is moved to the first step of the new Entry classification, they can expect to be at 1913, plus the eighty dollar cola, putting them at 1993. This would be an increase of 17.2% beginning October 1st. For a person currently in the Sign Technician II classification who is allocated to the new Sign Technician I classification they would move from range 14 to range 19. I will put up two examples, one from both ends. Person ‘A’ is currently at step one of range 14 and is moved to step one of range nineteen. They currently started making 1837 a month and will be moved to 2258 (step one of range nineteen). In addition ‘A’ will receive the eighty dollar cola to put them at 2338. For person ‘A’ this would represent an increase of 21.7%. For person two they are currently at step 6 or range 14 and will be moving to their current salary in range 19. This will put them at step one of range 19, and after the cola raise will be at 2338. For ‘B’ this would be an increase of three and one half percent or eighty dollars a month.

Sign Technician II’s: If somebody is currently a Sign Technician III it would make sense they would be Sign Technician II’s in these revised classes, although we will not know who is where until reallocation data is in. However, based on that assumption a Sign Tech goes from range 16 to range 21. I will show three examples with person A and person B and person C: Person A is currently at step 9 of range 16, making 2717 would be moved to step three in range twenty-one and would earn after the cola increase 2798 (three percent increase from current). Person B is at step 1 of range 16 and currently earns 1999 a month. B would be moved to step 1 of range 21 and begin to earn 2480, plus the 80 dollar cola raise; which would put them at 2560. B will have gotten a 481 dollar increase or 24% increase. Person C is currently at step 3 of range 16, earning 2165, and will be moved to step 1 of range 21, bringing them up to 2560; an increase of 395 dollars or 18.2%.

Supply Specialist I’s and II’s: Supply Specialist I’s will be at range 14 which is the current range for Property Specialist II’s. If a Property Specialist II is allocated into this new classification they will not see any change resulting from the re-class on their salary. They will still get the cola raise of 3% or eighty dollars. If a Property Specialist III is allocated into Supply Specialist II they will go from range 16to range 20. If they are in step nine of range sixteen they will go from the current 2903, to step 5 at 2903 plus the cola increase that would put them at 2990. Another example would be somebody at the first step of range 16 who would be moved to the first step of range 20, going from 2049 to 2500 after cola; an increase of 451 dollars or 22%.

If there are any questions or mistakes please let me know either in the comments section (odot730.blogspot.com), or by email barnardt@opeuseiu.org

Bend

There is a leadership II training in Bend. If you are in that area and are interested in attending please call your organizer. I plan on spending the day talking to ODOT folks in Bend on Friday with Cameron McGinnis, your local president. I will be available all day tomorrow and my cell phone number is 503-830-1201 if you would like us to stop by and introduce ourselves.

Wednesday, July 18, 2007

ODOT Slideshow

Living Wage Victory

I've talked with many of you about the impact of the living wage proposal that was part of the agreement. It cuts off many of the bottom steps (in ranges 5-10) beginning November 1, 2008. I found an example of somebody in ODOT and I wanted to share what this would look like for an actual person over the next two years:

Currently SR 6 step 2:
$1468

Selective to SR 8 step 1:
$1515

7/1/07 COLA:
$1595

11/1/08 COLA:
$1680

11/1/08 Living Wage Adjustment SR 8 Step 4:
$1847

07 increase: 8.65%

life of contract increase: 25.82% $379

This becomes reality because so many of you stepped up and said none of your union brothers and sisters should be eligible for food stamps. I will post more examples and a guide to least cost implementation today (posted in right hand column under leastCOST.pdf). The rest of the day I will be driving around worksites talking to people. If there are burning questions you can email me at barnardt@opeuseiu.org or you can call my cell phone 503-830-1201.

-Troy

Monday, July 16, 2007

ODOT Visits Colorado DOT

Three members from ODOT, John Drago, TMS II from Ona Beach, Kathy Reiten, TMS II from Coos Bay, and Lee Erickson, Incident Responder from Portland went to Colorado to help the state employees (specifically CDOT) organize into the labor movement. John Drago wrote this of his trip:

I headed for Colorado a bit unsure of what we were setting out to accomplish, but upon arrival it became clear quite quickly that we were there to do the same things we do here at home for SEIU 503,....to inform people, to help them stand up for themselves and their rights, to unite them, and to show them that things can be different if they choose to get involved and speak out against the inequities and unfairness that take place so often in workplace environments. I should have realized that the work we have all done here at home, and the training we have been through would equip us perfectly to offer a solid promise to the workers of Colorado for a
better future, but the thing I could not have possibly guessed before I made the trip was that it would be an inspiration to me to return to Oregon with renewed vigor to fight the labor/management battles we face here at home. For that reason, the trip has served two states quite well I think.
If you've never been to Colorado, you have never seen the "real"
mountains in the United States. Oregon's Cascades are beautiful no doubt, but they don't quite compare to the Colorado Rockies! I wish that I had been able to see the western side from the ground, but that dosen't lessen the experience of visiting the eastern half of the state. The beauty of the state and the opportunities it provides for people to get out into nature are obviously a strong attraction and quite possibly one of the main reasons so many good people have chosen to live with the substandard pay and benefits packages that are offered to Colorado public employees. My main connections were made with members of the CDOT community, and it was very natural and comfortable to talk with them since I am able as an ODOT employee to "speak their language". I found that they face all the same issues an ODOT worker might face, with a few added concerns due to the nature of their harsher winters. Additionally, I had the opportunity to talk with folks from Corrections, CDOT management, and a few people from other areas of state service such as CSU employees. Each and every one of them struck me as hard working, dedicated people who care a great deal about the work they do, and the level of service they are able to provide the taxpayers of Colorado. There was a common thread or two between all of them in the form of being unhappy with their compensation and unfortunately, also, with a seeming acceptance that things have been bad for so long that they can't be changed. So, when I was able to show them concrete evidence, ie. "our contract" that things can truly be different than their current reality, it was very satisfying to see the change in their expressions. Many of them already knew the difference a labor union can make for workers, and those who didn't seemed to catch at least a faint flicker of the fire we
know as activism, and SEIU must not lose the opportunity to fan that flame into a full blown fire. I intend to do anything I can from this vantage point to help keep things burning in Colorado, because these people are a bit like frightened children,..they know there's something better out there, but they still need some encouragement and proven leadership to guide them along the road to success. And I can easily remind myself that it is largely due to the leadership of SEIU 503 that I am able to work in a union environment, and that I have become an activist myself. It always takes leaders/teachers to pass the union spirit along to others, and I think that all SEIU members owe a debt to Colorado public employees to reach out to them and to welcome them into the world of organized labor and the better way of life that it creates.
I do have a couple of regrets however,...first off, I should have taken more photos!!,...and secondly, I don't have the total picture of the impact we made during our visit since the "numbers" were not in at the time of our departure. I will be in contact with many of the new friends/union brothers and sisters that I met there in the coming weeks, so I expect to know better how well we rallied the troops soon! As for the photos,.....I guess that will require another trip to Colorado!!
The experience of seeing the state of Colorado was worth the trip by itself, but the idea of being able to give a hand up to state workers there and help them attain the dignity and respect they deserve was like a triple layer of frosting on the cake!! In closing I would just like to say a heart felt thank you to all the 503 people who had a hand in choosing the people who got to go on the trip and in making all the arrangements that helped to make it a smooth and successful trip. There are still challenges ahead in bringing Colorado into the SEIU family, but the good people who are there working for the International side of SEIU day in and day out have laid a solid foundation for the rest of us in SEIU to build on, and we owe it to them, the State of Colorado, and to ourselves, to stay firmly in the trenches with them until victory is won, because I think that any gain made for labor anywhere is a gain for labor everywhere.

-John Drago

Saturday, July 14, 2007

ODOT Bargaining Pictures

ODOT Local 730 Pictures

Click on the picture to see the rest of the pictures. Bargaining Conference registration form and info is posted in pdf format in the right column. You have to sign up by the 17th to ensure a room (if you're traveling from outside Salem). I hope to see a lot of you all there that participated in this contract campaign.

Stepped Up

Thank you to all the members in ODOT who stepped up to earn this contract. The leadership in your local was very dedicated to earning this victory. At Central Table, your local Vice President, Kermit Meling, dedicated hundreds of hours of his time to help ensure a good settlement and his voice was instrumental in advocating for ODOT issues. At coalition Cameron McGinnis, Kermit Meling, Eddie Dunton, Mike Johnson, Lorrie Schaefer, Betty Huskey, Roger Upshaw, from ODOT were there every session, and many of our coalition delegates like Mac, Roger (Eastern Oregon) and Bob Fields from Forestry (Coos Bay) made the long drive consistently to Salem to fight for our locals. Our local got a lot of mentoring from Cory McIntosh (Coalition co-chair with Kermit and our Central Table chair) from DMV and I know those of us who showed up are very grateful for Cory's leadership and advice and showing ODOT the path for success. There are a lot of people who got involved for the first time with their union and I want to recognize that. The victories at coalition simply do not happen without the numbers of advocates that you turned out. On central table issues, in the last two weeks long time steward Lee Erickson moved a great petition for the TOS, which led to a selective salary increase. Also coordinators like Scott Stinnett, kept the pressure up on ODOT to do something on behalf of the coordinators (with signatures from dozens of coordinators) and it payed off with their selective salary victory. When the HEM I's found out management was trying to put them at 22B (and thus increasing the difference between I's and II's by many ranges) they came down to the union hall the night the contract was settled and had a talk with DAS. Their persistence and unity, showing up at event after event (usually ten deep) taught me a lesson in what unions are all about. If you show up and follow the process you can fight and win. The Salem Shop (Jay Burkert, Dennis Bonnono, James Cooper, Andy Everetts, Jerry Noble, Kirk Spindler, Ben Lalonde, Jack Withers, and Machinist Peter Wilde) and Roger Upshaw from La Grande showed up to virtually every coalition bargaining session. They walked away not only getting a 125 dollar increase in their tool allowance, but also a 4 dollar increase to their meal allowance and the respect of others in our coalition when they and others in ODOT did their best to support the folks in Parks on their righteous victory to win a boot allowance after 20 years. While we did not win every issue and selective we went for (the Electricians led by Eddie Dunton and Gary Davis put up a heck of a organizing campaign), we did put up a fight for issues that were just (Mike Scott made great arguments and follow up on an increased pesticide differential that we did not end up getting, and Scott Stinnett was tenacious in his effort to get the crane certifications expanded to sign crews; but we unfortunately lost that battle). You can read below some of the changes your bargaining teams made; while we did not win every battle there were a ton of major gains. Anonymous was correct in the comments section, the bargaining delegates from all the agencies will vote whether to approve the TA and if they approve it will go out to membership for a vote. If you want to vote on the contract you must be a member. Call your organizer if you need a membership form (if I am your organizer my number is 503-830-1201). If you are interested in becoming a CAPE member you can sign up on that form too. CAPE members pool a few extra dollars a month to make sure we have politicians in office who are working for us (and oregonians). The work SEIU members from our local did in the last election paid off both in negotiations (getting the governor to put in millions more the last couple days) but also in the legislative session, with more victories for the labor movement since we've won since 1973. Some ODOT members who spent time at the legislature this session will share their experiences over the next couple weeks soon on here hopefully (Kermit?... haha) Anyway, enjoy the fruits of YOUR hard work, ODOT rocks.

What are your thoughts on the contract?

Friday, July 13, 2007

It's Official: Settlement reached!!!!!

Tentative Agreement Reached!

When push came to shove, we stood strong for what’s right! We won raises equal to inflation. We maintained fully paid health care. And we established a living wage for state employees.

Our worksite pressure has led to an agreement that moves workers and public services in the right direction. Here’s what we’ve won through our unity:

Raises: July 1, 2007: 3%; but not less than $80 per month

November 1, 2008: 3.2%; but not less than $85 per month

6.2% in raises over two years is higher than the projected inflation rate. It is the highest COLA we have won in a single biennium in over a decade. And the $80 & $85 floor will protect our lowest paid members

Insurance: Full-time employees will not pay for health insurance! The State will pay the full cost through 12/31/08. On 1/1/09, they will pay up to 12% in increased costs, but if the increase is more than that, we will be able to use PEBB reserves to pay for the excess so it will not come out of our monthly checks!

Part-time: Employee premiums will be frozen at their current levels!

Living Wage: Our salary scale will be restructured in the second year of the contract to boost the pay of the lowest paid workers. Effective 11/1/08, the lowest paid full time state worker will earn $1847 per month, up from $1411 currently. That means no full time state worker will earn less than the gross income limit for food stamp eligibility for a family of three! Here’s how this works:

Salary Range 5: Steps 1 through 6 will be eliminated

Salary Range 6: Steps 1 through 5 will be eliminated

Salary Range 7: Steps 1 through 4 will be eliminated

Salary Range 8: Step 1 through 3 will be eliminated

Salary Range 9: Step 1 and 2 will be eliminated

Salary Range 10: Step 1 will be eliminated

Selectives: We won many (though not all) of the selectives our members deserve. See below for details.

Bereavement: We won 24 hours of paid time (without using vacation or sick leave) in the event of a death in the immediate family.

Vacation: Employees with 25 years will earn two more hours of vacation per month (for a total of 18 hours per month).

Our bargaining team unanimously recommends ratification of this agreement. The next step is a bargaining conference on July 28, where bargaining delegates will vote to send the agreement to the full membership, which has the final vote on ratifying this agreement.

Here are more highlights:

  1. All custodians will stay at Salary Range 10; we beat back the State’s effort to drop custodians from Range 10 to Range 7.
  2. We won the right to use sick leave to care for sick grandchildren.
  3. We expanded the “no discrimination” clause to include gender identity & any other protected class under State or Federal law.
  4. We won stronger language requiring management to give notice if they recoup an overpayment from an employee’s check.
  5. Employees may now save up to 40 hours of vacation leave while on FMLA provided they give notice that they want to save the time within five days of the start of the leave.
  6. For the 2009 contract negotiations, we gained paid time for up to 24 coalition bargaining delegates who must bargain or travel during their normal work hours.
  7. In most cases, disciplinary investigations must be completed within 120 days unless Agency requests a 30-day extension; employees on paid leave must be interviewed within 30 days.
  8. We established limits on the employer’s ability to require criminal records checks for current employees.
  9. The State will now have to apply the 20% “handicap” to state worker wages in ALL cases when it compares cost of contracting out with cost of doing work in-house and to do feasibility studies on contract renewals.
  10. Statewide labor/management committees will get 30 minutes of paid time to prepare for meetings; training for these committees will also be on paid time.
  11. If essential employees are late due to inclement weather, they can make up the time and use paid time if weather-related absences would otherwise affect their eligibility for holiday pay.
  12. Shift differential will increase from 50 to 75 cents per hour; for RNs, it will increase from $1.35 to $1.85.
  13. Direct-care RNs will receive a 4.75% differential with bachelor’s degrees and 9.5% if they have master’s degrees.
  14. OYA Group Life Coordinators will receive a differential of $1.50 for hours spent conducting groups if they have certain certifications.
  15. The ODOT meal allowance will increase from $8 to $12 & the per diem rate will increase from $47 to $64 and be indexed to DAS policy for future increases.
  16. We won expanded compensation for approved home phone calls in ODOT, Parks, Forestry & Aviation and time & a half payment for missed breaks at ODFW & 24-hour operations in ODOT.
  17. We established a $100 boot allowance for permanent workers in Parks and raised the ODOT boot allowance by $25.
  18. W e raised the tool allowance by $125 in ODOT and $75 in Forestry & DAS.
  19. ODFW workers won $50 increase in uniform and rain gear allowance and will now be able to choose cash or comp for night time on call
  20. Forestry workers raised comp time cap from 80 to 120 hours and won $25 allowance if they must use their own tents at fires.
  21. Justice workers won more latitude to choose stewards who may not be closest geographically.
  22. Many agencies won better language regarding alternative/flexible work schedules.
  23. Plus lots more.

Selective Salary Increases for:


· Cartographer 1 (to 17)

· Cartographer 2 (to 21)

· Cartographer 3 (to 23)

· Cartographic Program Specialist 1 (to 25)

· Client Care Surveyor (to 28)

· Dental Assistant (to 15)

· Dental Hygienist (to 27)

· Facilities Engineer 1 (to 27)

· Facilities Engineer 2 (to 29)

· Facilities Engineer 3 (to 31)

· Government Auditor Entry to 19L)

· Industrial Hygienist 1 (to 22L)

· Industrial Hygienist 2 (to 27)

· Industrial Hygienist 3 (to 29)

· Industrial Hygienist 4 (to 31)

· Institution Registered Nurse (to 30N)

· Licensed Practical Nurse (to 19)

· Medical Lab Technician 1 (to 17)

· Medical Lab Technician 2 (to 20)

· Medical Lab Technologist (to 24)

· Medical Records Specialist (to 18)

· Microbiologist 1(to 22)

· Microbiologist 2 (to 24)

· Microbiologist 3 (to 26)

· Nurse Practitioner (to 35)

· Nutrition Consultant (to 28)

· Occupational Safety Specialist 1(to 22)

· Occupational Safety Specialist 2 (to 27)

· Occupational Safety Specialist 3 (to 29)

· Psychiatric Social Worker (to 28)

· Public Health Nurse 1 (to 28)

· Public Health Nurse 2 (to 31)

· Shipping Point Inspector 1 (to 15)

· Shipping Point Inspector 2 (to 17)

· Social Service Specialist Entry (to 20L)

· Tax Auditor Entry (to 20L)

· Tax Auditor 1 (to 25)

· Tax Auditor 2 (to 28)

· Timber Auditor/Appraiser 1 (to 21L)

· Timber Auditor/Appraiser 2 (to 25)

· Timber Auditor/Appraiser 3 (to 28)

· Traffic Survey Interviewer (to 8)

· Transportation Maintenance Coordinator 1 (to 21)

· Transportation Maintenance Coordinator 2 (to 22)

· Transportation Operations Specialist (to 20)


For jobs in the office specialist, office assistant, office coordinator, and public service representative series, the State will conduct a classification study to determine their proper placement on the salary range chart. They will tell us, within ninety days, when this study will take place.

Higher Ranges for Employees in New and Revised Classes:


· Administrative Law Judge 1 (to 30)

· Administrative Law Judge 2 (to 32)

· Administrative Law Judge 3 (to 37)

· Automotive Service Technician (to 11)

· Automotive Technician 1 (to 17)

· Automotive Technician 2 (to 21)

· Dormitory Counselor Entry (to 12L)

· Dormitory Counselor 1 (to 16)

· Dormitory Counselor 2 (to 20)

· Equipment Operator (to 21)

· Finance and Securities Counsel (to 32)

· Grounds Maintenance Worker 1 (to 14)

· Grounds Maintenance Worker 2 (to 17)

· Heavy Equipment Technician Entry (to 18L)

· Heavy Equipment Technician 1 (to 23T)

· Heavy Equipment Technician 2 (to 26B)

· Insurance Examiner Entry (to 26L)

· Insurance Examiner (to 30)

· Laborer/Student Worker (to 12)

· Mail Delivery Driver (to 14)

· Parts Specialist 1 (to 15)

· Parts Specialist 2 (to 20)

· Seamster (to 15)

· Sign Technician Entry (to 15L)

· Sign Technician 1 (to19)

· Sign Technician 2 (to 21)

· Supply Specialist 1 (to 14)

· Supply Specialist 2 (to 20)

· Truck Driver 1 (to 17)

· Truck Driver 2 (to 20)


Our bargaining team unanimously recommends ratification of this agreement. The next step is a bargaining conference on July 28, where bargaining delegates will vote to send the agreement to the full membership, which has the final vote on ratifying this agreement.