CORVALLIS, Ore. – Benton County management and representatives of AFSCME Local 2064 will meet on Nov. 7, 2024, for the 18^th day of collective bargaining for a contract for union employees. In 140 hours of negotiation to date, the county has brought multiple wage proposals to the bargaining table, adding money to each one. 

The current proposal has a cost of about $45 million for total wages and benefits in the first year of the contract, $50.4 million in the second year, and $53.5 million in the third year – about $147 million total. The current cost of wages and benefits is about $42.4 million per year.

When the two parties last met on Nov. 1, the county management team presented two options to the AFSCME negotiation team. Updated salary tables for all pay grades were provided so employees can see what their actual salaries would be in each year of the contract under these two proposals. The first pay increase would be implemented upon ratification of the contract. 

Option A is the Last Best Offer submitted to the Oregon Employment Relations Board (ERB) on Oct. 7, 2024, after the union declared impasse. It includes:

• Annual cost-of-living increases for all AFSCME employees equal to either a set percentage or the Employment Cost Index (ECI), whichever is greater.
• For C-band employees: an additional 6% increase upon contract ratification to raise wages to or close to market rates for these job classifications.
• An additional step (step 9) added to the salary schedule to create room for future wage growth for employees already on the top step of their pay grade.

Option B is a variation that allows for even more future wage growth. It includes:

• Annual cost-of-living increases for all represented employees equal to either a set percentage or the Employment Cost Index (ECI), whichever is greater.
• For C-band employees: an additional 5% increase upon contract ratification to raise wages closer to market rates for these job classifications.
• Three additional steps (steps 9, 10 and 11) in salary schedules to adjust the overall pay grade ranges to align with management/confidential (non-represented) employee pay grade ranges.

A document titled Article 13.2 - Wage Proposal includes job classifications to show how a representative sample of employees would be impacted by both proposals. 

Benton County remains committed to settling the contract. If resolution is not reached on Nov. 7, the two parties will meet again Nov. 12. The County management team looks forward to continuing working toward resolution. 

Steps Toward Pay Equity

Benton County is committed to the Oregon Pay Equity Law. As part of the county’s fulfillment of this, a pay equity analysis was performed for all employees. One-hundred-fifty employee salaries were found to be inequitable, and those employees received wage increases in March 2024. About two-thirds of the adjustments (102 total) were to union-represented employee salaries, including 86 AFSCME employees; the remaining one-third (48 total) were non-represented employees.

Fewer than half of the county’s non-represented employees received wage increases as a result of the pay equity analysis. Of those who did, a relatively small number received larger-than-usual pay raises. Over the last 3 years, management positions were hard to fill, and several managers were hired at rates above managers in the same classification with more experience and/or education. The understanding was that these inequities would be resolved through the next pay equity analysis. In addition, two managers had their classification corrected to reflect recommendations made by a compensation consultant.

Prior to the pay equity analysis, a market equity analysis was conducted for 113 non-represented employees. Between 2015 and 2021, non-represented employees did not receive annual cost of living increases. In 2023 the salary schedules were adjusted for the cost of living, but employees’ salaries were not adjusted. Employees were assigned to the step of the new salary tables that was closest to their current salary, effective Jan. 1, 2024. In some cases, this resulted in a slight pay increase. The only employees who saw significant increases during this action were the Sheriff’s Office management.

Benton County is an Equal Opportunity-Affirmative Action employer and does not discriminate on the basis of disability in admission or access to our programs, services, activities, hiring and employment practices. This document is available in alternative formats and languages upon request. Please contact the Public Information Office at 541-766-6800 or pioinfo@bentoncountyor.gov.

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