On the last day of their contract’s coverage, classified employees at Oregon State and other public universities agreed to extend the union’s contract through Aug. 31.
On June 30, the last day of the existing contract’s duration, Service Employees International Union held a rally at McNary Park in Corvallis on behalf of securing their preferred benefits. After agreeing to extend the existing collective bargaining agreement, the union filed for mediation on July 1.
Classified staff are non-academic employees represented by and bargained on behalf of by the SEIU union. All seven Oregon public universities collectively negotiate with SEIU. Negotiations took place in Corvallis on June 29 and 30.
Jax Johnson, the president of the Corvallis sublocal of SEIU, said at the rally that they were being offered no wage increases over four years and that they were facing reduced bereavement and sick time.
“It’s really a slap on the face,” Johnson said.
Johnson said that the union was looking for pay that’s competitive with the consumer price index.
According to the negotiations website, the union and the universities reached a tentative agreement on a bereavement policy.
James Pavis, the vice president and acting membership coordinator of the Corvallis sublocal, said at the rally that they were also trying to secure certain powers in their contract, such as being able to contact new employees about the union. The negotiations website reflects that the union is arguing to be allowed to wear union insignia while representing a university.
Steve Clark, the spokesperson for the universities’ classified bargaining, said in an email that Oregon’s public universities are facing significant financial challenges and are receiving less state funding.
“Oregon State University and Oregon’s six other public universities continue to bargain with classified employees in good faith toward reaching an agreement that is financially responsible and able to be sustained,” Clark said. “The offer provided classified employees is fair and financially responsible given the financial pressures and budget reductions being faced by all of the state’s universities.”
Clark said that the universities appreciate the contributions that the state’s classified employees make to both student and university success. He also said that all seven public universities in Oregon are making budget cuts. According to Clark, OSU is making cuts that will reduce the school’s budget by approximately 5.1%.
SEIU continued to negotiate with the universities at Eastern Oregon University on July 8 and 9. According to the union’s website, they were offered no cost-of-living adjustments over four years at these discussions. The negotiations website was not updated with information on these dates at the time of publication.
The negotiations website published by the universities can be found at https://usse-oregon.org/opu-seiu-negotiations/updates/. Negotiation updates published by the union can be found at https://www.local083.org/news.html.
