Close to 500 workers who are members of Service Employees International Union Local 503 keep Portland Public Schools (PPS) healthy and safe for our kids.

Slightly more than 300 Portland Public School Custodians are responsible for keeping more than 9 million square feet of space clean and safe.

About 200 Nutrition Service (NS) workers serve 16,000 breakfasts, 20,000 lunches and, in some cases, dinners every school day.

Please call Carole Smith at 503-916-3200. 

Ask her to make safe and healthy schools a priority.

  In 2002 the School Board fired Portland Public Schools' Custodians and replaced them with contract janitors. Four years later the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that the firings were illegal and ordered the district to reinstate the Custodians.

  Currently Portland Public School Custodians' starting pay is $13.25/hour. PPS Nutrition Services workers earn the lowest wages in the district – a Food Services Aide who prepares meals in our schools earns $9.62/hr.

  PPS has proposed cutting wages for the returning Custodians up to 27% and up to 33% for the newly hired Custodians. The proposal slashes starting wages for an entry level Custodian to $10.70/hour.

  The custodian pay scales proposed by PPS would reduce starting wages 20% to 35% placing PPS custodial wages as much as 28% lower than the average at other Oregon school districts — according to a market survey conducted by Portland Public Schools.

  Nutrition Service workers' wages are between 2% and 28% lower than the average wages at other Oregon school districts — according to the same PPS market survey.

  Portland Public Schools has proposed a 1.5% cost of living raise for Nutrition Services workers and an additional increase for Elementary School Lead workers of approximately 1.7%.

 Nutrition Service workers and Custodians have proposed a cost of living increase based on the Consumer Price Index with a minimum of 3.4% and maximum of 5%. Additionally, the workers are proposing new wage scales.

  The SEIU proposal for custodial pay creates a 10-step pay scale that maintains current workers’ wage rates; however, the entry level step is 20% lower than the top of the scale. Current wage rates are the top of the scale.

  The SEIU proposal for Nutrition Services workers is a 15-step pay scale that increases wage rates between 2.5% and 7% to bring PPS wages closer to other Oregon school districts.

  PPS contributes $698/month on behalf of full time NS workers and Custodians towards their health insurance. Workers' monthly premium share costs up to $221/month.

  The PPS actual average health care contribution for the 2006–2007 school year was 2% lower than the average contribution at other Oregon school districts —  according to the PPS market survey. PPS did not increase their contribution for the 2007–2008 while many other Oregon school districts did.

  Part-time workers who were hired after November 2006 are not eligible for any health care contribution by the district. PPS provides a pro-rated health care contribution to other district employees and most other Oregon school districts provide some level of contribution towards part time health care.

  Workers have proposed extending a pro-rated health care contribution to part-time workers and increasing PPS’s 2007-2008 average monthly health care contribution to $779 and 2008-2009 average monthly health care contribution to $850.

Negotiations began May 22, 2007. The contract between SEIU Local 503 and PPS expired on June 30, 2007 but has been extended through the next mediation session. On December 27, 2007 the union and entered into mediation.