Unit 4 has been negotiating through the weekend to make the needs of members heard. After the State’s unreasonable 6% general salary increase offer, Unit 4 brought these issues to the State this week as they fight for a contract that addresses the ongoing needs of state workers, defending and expanding their rights in the workplace.
Over the weekend, Unit 4 negotiators passed the following rollover article sections to the State:
- 11.27.4 – California State Lottery (CSL) Scratcher Sales Bonus (Unit 4)
- 11.31.4 – California Department of Tax and Fee Administration (CDTFA) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.32.4 – California State Lottery (CSL) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.33.4 – Employment Development Department (EDD) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.35.4 – California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) Call Center
- Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.36.4 – State Teachers’ Retirement System (STRS) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.66.4 – Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.67.4 – Department of Transportation (Caltrans) Toll Collectors’ Night Shift (Unit 4)
- 11.68.4 – Health Benefit Exchange Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
- 11.69.4 – Department of Managed Health Care Call Center Differential (Unit 4)
“This situation looks promising for Unit 4, although we are working with the same Chief Negotiator as the master table,” said Bargaining Unit 4 Chair Karen Jefferies. “The pace has been going slowly with both tables being very demanding. We haven’t allowed their concerns to rush conversations about our member’s needs.”
Today, Bargaining Unit 4 Representatives reached a tentative agreement on the following article:
5.XX.4 – DMV Joint Labor Management Committee
After weeks of negotiation, the State came back to the table with a counterproposal to create a JLMC, which represents a hard-fought win for Unit 4.
“This JLMC language is a big win for our represented members,” said Tom Krieger, Vice Chair, Bargaining Unit 4. “The State recognized that we needed a statewide JLMC to address the issues that are plaguing DMV across the state.”
Previously, ongoing negotiations about working conditions at DMV would be addressed workplace-to-workplace, creating no consistent standard and limiting employee’s abilities to engage with their employer on issues.
“We passed it across the table three times,” said Terry Gray, BUNC Member, Bargaining Unit 4. “It’s very good to see this important win at the table that will impact workload, the changes in technology in the workplace, and our health and safety. Our members will have a voice at the table to discuss their working conditions across the state on an ongoing basis.”
As negotiations continue, our member’s voices are crucial bargaining tools at the table, both as member impact stories, which provided much-needed personal perspectives at the table, as well as by directly contacting the State’s representatives to show them the impact their decisions will have on the public.
“We emailed Steven Gonzalez-Lederer, CalHR’s Unit 4 LRO, and he didn’t know if he’d gotten it because his email was so full,” said Freda Legree, BUNC Member, Bargaining Unit 4. “We think this is because our members have been emailing him so much, bombarding their emails and telephones with demands for respect at the table.”
To help with bargaining, the team is asking for member impact stories, focusing on our demands for a general salary increase from the State at the master table.
”The State needs to hear the truth about our member’s struggles at home and on the job,” said Nikia Brisco, BUNC Member, Bargaining Unit 4, who delivered her own statement to the State today. “I didn’t need to write down my impact statement. It’s my reality. We’re renters, and our landlords ask for more and more every year. We’re paying more than half of our checks towards rent, and we are worried about feeding our families. We’re a paycheck away from sleeping in our cars, and some already are.”
Unit 4 plans to return to the table next week. To see updates on other bargaining unit contract sessions, please visit the Contract Action Center page at seiu1000.org
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