Vaccine-Clinic Win!
On February 8, OHSU Human Resources gave notice to our union that the COVID-19 vaccine clinics would be moving to a volunteer staffing model. AFSCME staff discussed the matter with Local 328 leadership and discussed with Oregon AFSCME’s in-house counsel the legalities of employees volunteering for their employer. This discussion led to the following actions:
We issued a demand to bargain the change per Article 3.3 (Non-Contractual Standards and Benefits) of our contract with OHSU. Essentially, Article 3.3 allows our union to require OHSU come to the table and discuss matters that are mandatory subjects of bargaining or that change a well-established benefit that is bargaining-unit wide. It was our union’s position that OHSU’s decision to not pay employees for work performed was a change to employee wages, which is a mandatory subject of bargaining.
We filed a grievance and a request for information based on Article 6.3 (Timekeeping Records), which states that “Employees shall not work off the clock, and managers shall neither direct nor condone such activity.” OHSU bargained that language with our union years ago, and we believe both parties are still very clear on what that language means.
We let OHSU know that we would be filing an unfair labor practice complaint due to the employer directly dealing with employees about their wages, which is a violation of Oregon statute. OHSU also breached its duty to bargain with our union by unilaterally implementing the change in compensation, which is a separate violation of the same Oregon statute.
We let OHSU know that we took offense at the following statement in OHSU’s February 9 update: “This also recognizes the great privilege, and responsibility in turn, that we have as members by getting access to vaccines so early in the distribution.” The reality is that you were able to be vaccinated early because of the jobs you do — because many of you put your lives and your families’ lives on the line every day that you come to work. Another reason that frontline healthcare workers got early vaccines is because healthcare organizations could not assure your safety. OHSU workers shouldn’t feel guilty about being able to be vaccinated.
On February 11, OHSU responded that the vaccine-clinic work is not currently bargaining-unit work. We don’t buy that argument — as you know, our represented employees register and schedule patients, check patients in, ensure accurate documentation, and prepare and deliver vaccines on a daily basis. Our union began gathering data from employees who had been compensated for working at a vaccine clinic.
In its February 17 update, OHSU notified employees that it was making immediate changes to how employees are compensated for helping staff the vaccine sites: from February 18 through March 28, employees will be paid for work performed. This is a huge win for our members, and we appreciate all of the employees who reached out to us about OHSU’s request that they work for the employer for free.