An Action to Call

State, OUS Workers Dial Up the Heat June 30

With contracts set to expire Tuesday (June 30), state and university workers will turn their attention to Governor Ted Kulongoski and OUS Chancellor George Persteiner that day at worksite and campus actions that include phone calls the governor and chancellor with this message:

"Oregon needs us and we need a fair contract. We have been willing to step up and be a part of the solution from the start of negotiations, but we expect equity: a fair contract that protects step increases and calls for no more furlough days than are actually necessary."

The actions follow productive bargaining sessions with DAS and OUS, yet no movement whatsoever off economic proposals from the state and university that seek inequitably severe sacrifices from front-line workers.

“In the two weeks since our United for Oregon March,” the DAS bargaining team reported to members following mediation sessions June 22 and 23, “we have made significant progress on key issues in bargaining.

“First the State felt compelled to withdraw its proposal to unilaterally cut the pay of workers in programs where management did not want to impose furloughs. Then we scored a victory when the State agreed to our proposal to extend recall rights for laid off workers from two years to three, offering workers who have been or will be laid off a greater likelihood of being able to return to their jobs.



“This week that momentum continued. In bargaining Monday and Tuesday, the state agreed to a binding timetable for a classification study for workers in 35 clerical and health-related classifications.”

And after two sessions with OUS the week before, SEIU 503 bargainers reported reaching tentative agreements on four contract articles and making promising strides toward further agreement.

“Negotiations these two days were fruitful and non-contentious,” the SEIU 503 team emailed members. “Our Union left management negotiators with several proposals to which they will attempt to respond at our next session, June 25 and 26 at U of O.”

Yet, while in most years the quickening of the pace might portend a speedy and mutually agreeable conclusion, this time state negotiators seem more interested in running out the clock toward another declaration of impasse than reaching a fair settlement.

More recent news about DAS/OUS bargaining