News

AFSCME Local 2064 Urges County to Address Unfair Wage Practices and Safety Concerns 

Corvallis, OR - In light of Benton County’s refusal to come to the bargaining table with reasonable wage proposals, county workers represented by Oregon AFSC

Prior to 2021, the members of Oregon AFSCME Local 2046’s bargaining committee had never held a rally, ran a contract campaign - or any campaign. And they also never had a win as big as the one they got this year in their new Collective Bargaining Agreement.

“The employees of Benton County were tired of having poor contracts, were tired of not being paid a market wage, and realized if we wanted a win, we had to be in it together,” said Dawn Dale, Local 2064 President.

In building their contract campaign, Local 2064 started out with six simple goals: 

STATEMENT FROM STACY CHAMBERLAIN, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, OREGON AFSCME ON 2022 LEGISLATIVE SESSION

With Oregon working families facing so many challenges right now, we needed state lawmakers to take action on the lack of child care options, the behavioral health staffing crisis in communities and at the Oregon State Hospital, the housing crisis, and other issues our members said were priorities.

Today in a bipartisan vote, the Oregon House of Representatives passed HB 4005 to make providing care more economically feasible for family child care providers. The bill is part of a historic $100 million child care package that is moving through the 2022 legislative session.

The 2022 legislative session is starting to deliver for Oregon workers. Oregon AFSCME started the 2022 legislative session with several priority bills that advance economic and social justice for members and for other Oregon workers and their families. As we move into the last two weeks of the session, we have reached some important milestones in our advocacy. 

PORTLAND, OR - Over the last few weeks, employees at Lines for Life, a 24-hour crisis line non-profit based in Portland, voted by an overwhelming majority to join Oregon AFSCME.

After over 25 months of bargaining, the members of the six unions that make up the District Council of Trade Unions (DCTU) have voted in favor of accepting city management most recent proposal, which calls off a declared strike with just over 24 hours to go.

The agreement includes:

  • A 2% across the board raise on top of COLA in the fourth year of the contract

  • Preservation of essential worker language

State lawmakers must prioritize Oregon’s working families and those left behind during the pandemic. While corporate profits skyrocket, our state has serious issues affecting everyday Oregonians that must be addressed. Every county in the state is a child care desert due to a lack of support for parents and child care providers, especially parents and providers of color. Oregon has the highest rate of addiction in the country because of historic underinvestment in treatment service staffing that has only gotten worse since the pandemic.

Yesterday, Oregon AFSCME Executive Director Stacy Chamberlain testified in favor of HB 4005 – a key piece of the 2022 Childcare Investment Package. 

“I’m honored to represent over 33,000 workers in every corner of Oregon, including more than 2,100 family child care providers. In our union, we see the child care crisis from all sides.