Northwest Labor Press is an independent union-supported newspaper founded in 1900. Our print version is mailed twice a month to about 45,000 members of over three dozen local unions in Oregon and Southwest Washington. Our online version has been maintained here since 1997.
Tag:
SEIU Local 503
Collective bargaining
Marion County union sets strike date
About 1,000 workers will strike Sept. 22 if management hasn’t reached agreement with SEIU Local 503 on a new collective bargaining agreement.
Oregon
Public employees union takes aim at bloated college administration
SEIU says an increasing share of state university budgets goes to a swelling army of administrative staff and excessive executive pay.
Oregon
Oregon Legislature faces revenue crunch as unions prepare to rally at the Capitol
Oregon lawmakers meet from Feb. 2 to no later than March 8 for their biennial “short session,” and this one is expected to be challenging.
Union Organizing
Student workers at Portland State form a union
The massive unit would mean nearly wall-to-wall unionization at PSU.
Collective bargaining
Workers ratify two-year deal with State of Oregon
The contracts with SEIU and AFSCME cover 29,500 workers and provide a 2.5% raise Feb. 1, 2026, and 4% on Jan. 1, 2027.
Jobs
Public radio staff brace for CPB shutdown
In July Congress zeroed out funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) for the first time in its 58-year history.
Oregon
Kotek calls special session to look at transportation funding
The Aug. 29 session will take up legislation to pay for basic road maintenance at the state and local level and to bolster transit funding.
Collective bargaining
New union contract raises Oregon homecare wages to $25 by 2027
The proposed contract also adds four new holidays, where workers will make 1.5 times their normal rate for the first eight hours worked.
Jobs
Oregon fires highway workers
State lawmakers ran out of gas. Now hundreds of employees of the Oregon Department of Transportation are out of work.
Jobs
As session nears end, transportation workers worry for their jobs
Oregon lawmakers are weighing new taxes to pay for roads, but opponents may try to refer the bill to the ballot to try to defeat it.
National
Rallying for Medicaid as Congress weighs deep cuts
A House Committee wants to cut $880 billion over 10 years from programs it oversees, and it can’t do that without deep cuts to Medicaid.
Collective bargaining
New union contracts at nursing homes
SEIU Local 503 represents roughly 4,200 workers at 59 Oregon nursing homes owned by six companies — half of the nursing home beds in Oregon.
Oregon
Rayfield appoints labor advisors
The Oregon Attorney General-elect wants advice on how to respond to possible future actions by the incoming Trump administration.
Union democracy
Oregon’s largest union rejoins the Oregon AFL-CIO
The re-affiliation of SEIU Local 503 has in the works for a year and a half.
Union democracy
SEIU Local 503 rejoins the Oregon AFL-CIO
The phased-in re-affiliation will boost Oregon's premier union federation by 30%. It also signifies greater labor unity.
Collective bargaining
Oregon nursing home workers may strike
More than 3,000 unionized nursing home workers across Oregon are operating under expired contracts as of Oct. 1.
Union Organizing
OPB reporters unionize
Oregon Public Broadcasting and KMHD Jazz Radio voluntarily recognized SAG-AFTRA as the union for 65 on-air staff, hosts, and reporters.
Collective bargaining
Higher ed: COLA should keep up with inflation
SEIU Local 503 and the Oregon university system are pretty far apart on bargaining over raises for campus support workers.
Collective bargaining
Oregon home care workers get raise of $1.73 an hour Jan. 1
The current base wage is $17.77 an hour. The new two-year agreement also increases the number of hours caregivers are allowed to work.
Collective bargaining
State of Oregon workers ratify union contract
The two-year contract covers nearly 25,000 workers represented by SEIU Local 503. It provides 13% raises and a one-time $1,500 bonus.
