WHEREAS:

Oregon AFSCME Council 75 represents corrections workers, mental health and behavioral health workers in secure, semi-secure and non-secure 24-hour, seven day a week settings; and

WHEREAS:

For decades, employers have used overtime as a regular part of their staffing system, and not as a rare emergency but as a regular and daily occurrence; and

WHEREAS:

The COVID-19 pandemic has made the problem so much worse, to the point that workers are often working multiple overtime shifts per week and have been for over a year; and

WHEREAS:

These working conditions are driving workers out of these jobs, which only increases the burden on the remaining staff, causing more overtime and then more workers to leave; and

WHEREAS:

Employers seem to be unable to hire in sufficient numbers to address this problem. We have seen in some institutions, for every three people they hire, five are leaving; and

WHEREAS:

If something is not done, the public safety system will begin to collapse.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:

AFSCME will work on policy solutions to protect workers from overtime abuse, including caps on overtime and protections for those workers that refuse the egregious use of overtime; and 

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:

AFSCME will push for funding at the state legislatures to support workers that are being driven out of their professions due to unsustainable overtime.

SUBMITTED BY:
Frederick Yungbluth, Jr., President
Meredith Hickman, Secretary
AFSCME Council 75
Oregon