In-home supportive services workers, who assist older adults and people with disabilities, are seeking a union contract with Siskiyou County that would raise their pay above the minimum wage.
SEIU Local 2015 representative Laticia Guerrero said they’ve been trying for a contract since 2022.
“They're the only county in the state of California that does not have a union contract,” she said. “So they're the only county that's making minimum wage.”
Minimum wage in California is $16.90 per hour. The county has not agreed to the union’s request for a $2 increase.
Guerrero said 49,000 available hours for in-home services went unused — more than triple the amount in any other California county — in part because of a lack of workers.
“That means that somebody went without care,” she said. “Somebody missed showers, somebody may have missed meals, somebody did not receive the care that they were allotted.”
Guerrero said a pay bump could help attract more workers. She also noted that other counties provide training and personal protective equipment.
SEIU Local 2015 members and community supporters showed their approval for a contract during this week’s board of supervisors meeting.
Guerrero said the 500 home care workers in Siskiyou County must pay for gas to drive sometimes hundreds of miles per week.
In-home supportive services are funded through Medi-Cal or Medicare but administered through the county. According to the union, Siskiyou County would only be responsible for 16% of the pay increase.
“Raising the IHSS wage is the smartest solution to this crisis because not only does the program reduce annual costs for long-term care, but it also would bring in more than $500,000 from state and federal sources Siskiyou otherwise wouldn’t receive,” said SEIU Local 2015 Executive Vice President Kim Evon in a statement.
The county did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
California’s Public Employment Relations Board conducted a fact-finding hearing on Feb. 2 after a request by the union. The state agency will release those findings and recommended contract terms in the near future.
Guerrero said the union has 30 days to work out an agreement with the county following the most recent impasse.
