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Local 328 members showing solidarity with their union brothers and sisters. |
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On Monday, June 20th, our Local 328 members and those who work in the Environmental Services Department (EVS), in particular, scored a huge organizing victory. A joint communication was released by AFSCME and OHSU advising members that the independent investigator appointed to look into issues of employee abuse at the OHSU EVS Department had completed her work and issued a report.
The report was a comprehensive review of the charges made by AFSCME Local 328 regarding the working conditions of EVS employees, based on in depth interviews with approximately 30 EVS workers. This independent investigation is unprecedented for OHSU and Local 328 and is a direct result of our members standing up for themselves with on the job actions, their willingness to share their stories publically on social media and in person and their willingness to support each other.
When our Local began this process had three demands:
- An independent investigation
- An effective labor management process where workers can be heard and have their issues addressed
- A reform of the internal complaint process when workers are victimized by managers or coworkers.
The report outlines findings in nine areas where the investigator found evidence to support our local’s claims of:
- Cultural insensitivity and bias in the workplace
- Disrespectful behavior down, up and across the workgroup
- Perceived favoritism
- Roles, duties and expectations not clear or standardized
- Lack of accountability
- Operational practices cause lost productivity and waste
- Staffing issues
- Perceived inconsistent application or disregard of rules
- Not enough transparency and communication
Each finding was accompanied by a list of recommendations. OHSU and AFSCME Local 328 have scheduled a series of meetings to review and plan to implement the recommendations. The local will now go about the process of implementing the recommendations through a labor-management committee (LMC), which has been active for a few weeks.
More importantly, the local showed that when you are willing to organize, you can make big changes and ensure progress for your members. Chief Steward Michael Stewart summed it up well, “We did not file a single grievance, we organized. We were not going to continue to allow this to happen to our members and once we went public management realized it could not either. Now the work to make it better begins, and we are up to the task. Thanks to our members for all their courage.”
Talk with your Council Representative if there are problems in your worksite and check out the Tool Kit Section of our website for more information on worksite bullying.
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