On Friday, April 14, 2023, AFSCME Council 93 reached a Tentative Agreement (TA) with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for a new contract for Unit 2. These employees include human service and other workers in the Departments of Developmental Services, Mental Health, Public Health and Youth Services, employees of the Department of Conservation and Recreation, and others. In total, approximately 8,000 state workers would be impacted by this contract. The contract is a one-year deal and, if ratified, will run from July 1, 2023 through June 30, 2024.
The focus of this round of negotiations was wage increases, as Unit 2 employees have historically been both underpaid and essential to state operations. Specifically, the contract includes the following provisions:
- A 4% increase effective July 1, 2023
- A second 4% increase effective January 1, 2024
- A pool of approximately $3.6 million to be used for reclassifications and adjustments with a specific focus on job series that have not been reviewed or reclassified in a number of years. The specifics of the distribution of these funds will be negotiated with the Commonwealth upon ratification of the TA, with a finalized plan for distribution of funds completed within 90 days.
- If, during the term of this agreement, a CBA is submitted and funded by the legislature to include across-the-board salary adjustments in excess of those outlined in this agreement, the parties will re-open those provisions of the agreement for further bargaining.
“We have been laser focused over the past three years in particular on increasing the wages of our Unit 2 members, and that focus has borne fruit,” said Eddie Nastari, Director of Field Services and Organizing and the lead negotiator of the contract. “If nothing else, the COVID-19 pandemic laid bare the critical nature of the work done by these essential workers, and the Commonwealth has at long last - after years of advocacy by our members - begun to recognize their critical role. We are by no means done, but we consider this contract a very positive step forward.”
Reaching this TA would not have been possible without the years of advocacy and hard work by Council 93 Executive Director Mark Bernard, the leadership of the Unit 2 Locals, and the Unit 2 Field staff. The next step will be to conduct a vote on ratification of the contract. The contract will only take effect once it is ratified by a vote of the majority of Unit 2 members and funded by the state legislature.
Please watch this space for additional information about the contract and the ratification vote!
