Did You Know?

  • Personal Care Assistant union elections are notorious for low voter turnout. Most have fewer than 30% participate in the election and some states like Minnesota, unionized PCAs with as little as 13% of the eligible voters casting ballots for the union. 

  • We estimate the unions have siphoned hundreds of millions of dollars from Medicaid programs in the form of dues, fees, and other contributions negotiated into contracts.

  • Only a small percent of PCAs who pay dues or fees receive health insurance as the result of a union contract. 

  • Many states have been unsuccessful in negotiating benefits for PCAs.

  • In states like Minnesota where the elderly or disabled person can set the wage of the PCAs he/she employs, unionization could result in the State setting those wages. This takes control away from the actual employer, the person receiving the Medicaid benefit and brings a union in between the person with the disability and the PCA.

  • PCAs in other states pay hundreds of dollars per year. Watch the video of the mother from Washington testify that she pays close to $95 per month for a union she does not want.

  • Once the union is recognized, it would be nearly impossible to break free or decertify from them. 

  • In Washington, the union pushed a ballot initiative requiring 75 hours of training for the PCAs they are supposed to represent.  A few years later they pushed another one through requiring a background check for PCAs. Should a mother really need to go through the process of a criminal background check before caring for her child? To make matters worse for these PCAs, their union spent around two million dollars to push these initiatives through. In a sense, their own dues money was used to make their jobs—and the lives of their employers with disabilities—more difficult.

  • Anything negotiated into a union contract can be passed through the legislature without a union contract.

  • Anything negotiated into a union contract must be funded by the legislature. Even if the state or county and the union reach an agreement in negotiations, the legislature could choose not to fund it. 

  • A large amount of dues is typically sent out of state to the International Union and is not earmarked to benefit PCAs. That money is used by the international union at their discretion and is used to advocate and fund things you may not support.

Snapshot of PCA Unions Across the Country

California
Union: SEIU, AFSCME and CUHW (SEIU & AFSCME Collaboration)
SEIU-UHW Dues: 2% with a minimum of $28.00 and maximum of $36.33 per month unless under 15 hours  http://www.yolopa.org/wages.html
AFSCME-UDW Dues: $10.30–$40.70 per month
http://www.udwa.org/about-union-dues/
Fair share: Yes
Health Insurance: Yes, Limited
Contracts: Yes, by county rather than statewide.

Connecticut
Union: SEIU (Home Care Workers United District 1199)
Dues: 2% according to testimony of David Pickus
Health Insurance: No
Agency fees: Authorized in union contract, but not being collected in aftermath of Harris v. Quinn
Contract: Approved by Connecticut General Assembly in last-minute budget implementer bill

Illinois
Union: SEIU
Dues: unknown
Fair Share Fees: No longer permitted since Harris v. Quinn
Health Insurance: Yes, limited number of participants.
Contract: http://www2.illinois.gov/cms/Employees/Personnel/Documents/emp_seiupast.pdf

Maryland
Union:  AFSCME
Dues:  $25 per month
Fair share fees: Yes
Health Insurance: NO
Contract: Ratified, unclear if funding was appropriated. 

Massachusetts
Union: SEIU
Dues: 2%
Health Insurance: It appears to have been revoked or capped
Agency fees: Yes
Contract: Yes, Active. See first contract linked below.
massachusetts_contract.pdf
File Size: 197 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File
Michigan
Union: SEIU
Dues: 2.5% (originally 2.75%)
Fair Share Fees: N/A
Health Insurance: NO
Contract: Expired, union no longer recognized

Minnesota
Union: SEIU
Dues: 3%
Fair Share Fees: N/A

Missouri
Union: Collaboration of SEIU and AFSCME
Dues: Still in negotiations
Health Insurance: NO
Fair Share Fees: N/A
Contract: Still in negotiations

Oregon
Union: SEIU
Dues: 1.7% + $2.75 per month
Fair share fees: Authorized in union contract, suspended in aftermath of Harris v. Quinn
Health Insurance: Yes, limited
Contract: Yes, Active
http://www.oregon.gov/dhs/spd/adv/hcc/docs/contract1113.pdf

Vermont
Union: AFSCME
Dues: TBD
Fair share fees: Still in negotiations
Health Insurance: NO
Contract: Still in negotiations

Washington
Union: SEIU
Dues: Up to $90 per month
Fair share fees: N/A
Health Insurance: Yes, limited
Contract: Yes, Active
http://ofm.wa.gov/labor/agreements/13-15/nse_hc.pdf