Early Saturday morning, the SEIU Local 1000 bargaining team reached an overall Tentative Agreement with the State. If ratified, the contract would significantly raise the wage floor for tens of thousands of state workers. It represents the largest three-year contract in Local 1000 history.
At the master table, we negotiated a retroactive pay raise for all employees, won retroactive special salary adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, maintained the health care stipend with no expiration date, reduced the pre-retirement (OPEB) funding, secured a health facility retention payment, and added, changed, or preserved a number of skill-based differentials, allowances, and other reimbursements that factor in to our state income. Our general salary increase (GSI), our wage equity increase, and our unit-based Special Salary Adjustments are retroactive to July 1, 2023.
Here are the highlights from the Unit 11 (Engineering and Scientific Technicians) bargaining table:
25 different classifications in Unit 11 received pay increases of 5% (11.1.11 Special Salary Increases). Another 31 classifications received 4% (11.5 Wage Equity Adjustment). These increases are on top of the general salary increase, retroactive to July 1, 2023, and pensionable. You can read a complete list of classifications affected by these increases here.
Transportation Engineering Technicians (TETs):
- TETs will receive a 5% Special Salary Adjustment (SSA) in addition to the 3% GSI in the first year of the contract for a total of an 8% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023.
- TETs will also receive an increase to the Transportation Engineering Technician (11.48.11) pay differential. We’ve won $50 increases to each of the four different differential pay opportunities, based on eligibility.
- We’ve also negotiated a substantial increase in Diving Pay (11.43.11) for incumbents currently eligible for this differential – raising the rate from $12/hour to $25/hour.
Laboratory Assistants:
- Lab Assistants will receive a 4% SSA in addition to the 3% GSI in the first year of the contract for a total of a 7% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023.
- Five different Unit 11 classifications who are certified Phlebotomy Technician I or II will now receive a $200 differential, a $75 increase from the previous amount.
- Unit 11 won a new classification review of the Laboratory Assistant Series (14.X.11) that will examine five different laboratory assistant positions in an attempt to remedy historical classification issues and to align with current and projected workforce needs.
Water Resources Technician:
- WRTs will receive a 5% SSA in addition to the 3% GSI in the first year of the contract for a total of an 8% salary increase retroactive to July 1, 2023.
- Additionally, WRTs will receive an increase to the Water Resources Technician II (11.48.11) pay differential. We’ve won $50 increases to each of the four different differential pay opportunities, based on eligibility.
This email summary shares highlights from the Unit 11 table; you may have already received the email recap from the master table. During the ratification process, you’ll be able read and learn more detail about the Tentative Agreement. Besides email, we’ll be posting information about our Tentative Agreement on our Contract Action Center page.
What happens next?
To become a contract, our Tentative Agreement must go through a number of steps in order to become law and the document that governs our working relationship with the State. Those steps include approval by the Statewide Bargaining Advisory Committee, a ratification vote by Local 1000 membership, legislative approval, and the Governor’s signature. Click here to read more about what steps we’ll be taking.