Union bosses vie for a bigger slice of Oregon’s federal stimulus pie
(The Center Square) – Five of Oregon’s largest unions say their workers deserve a bigger piece of the $4.2 billion in federal stimulus pouring into the state.
In a Friday news conference, representatives of SEIU Local 503, SEIU Local 49, AFSCME, UFCW 555, and PCUN unions, called on state leaders to spend some of the billions coming in from Congress on bonuses for frontline workers. Those workers include grocery store employees, health care providers, state employees, and non-faculty higher education staff, who union bosses say have kept the state humming through the pandemic at great personal risk.
“Oregon has been a leader in keeping down cases and deaths, saving thousands of lives, and we have been able to do that because hundreds of thousands of people have gone to work, putting their health at risk, to protect our communities,” SEIU 503 executive director Melissa Unger said.
Under their proposal, every worker making less than $50,000 per year would be eligible for a one-time payment of $2,000. Everyone making more than that amount would be eligible to receive a one-time payment of $1,000.
The idea follows a wave of $1,400 individual federal stimulus payments now on their way to qualifying U.S. taxpayers under the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan signed into law by President Joe Biden last week.
Oregon is set to receive $4.2 billion of that money, the Oregon League of Cities reports. About $2.6 billion will be directed to state services while another $680.6 million will go to cities, and $818 million set aside for counties.
According to the Oregon League of Cities, this latest batch of money is expected to come with fewer strings than prior stimulus packages like the CARES Act Congress passed last spring.
Based on conversations with members of Congress, league members state, Oregon will be virtually unimpeded from spending the money on projects related to COVID-19 health services, water services, broadband investments, and offsetting lost revenue for essential government services. No federal money is allowed to be spent on tax cuts or pension fund deposits.
In a statement, Gov. Kate Brown’s office said the governor is “looking forward to conversations with the legislature and stakeholders about this proposal” once federal guidance on spending the state’s stimulus money becomes clearer and state lawmakers have had their say.
Grocery store employees, farmworkers, the homeless, and people ages 45-64 will be eligible for priority vaccinations starting March 29 weeks before slots open up to the general public on May 1 at the direction of the Biden administration.
Oregon unions’ relationship with Brown has been on shaky ground ever since the governor cut in line to get a shot of Johnson & Johnson’s COVID-19 vaccine earlier this month.
According to the CDC’s COVID Tracker, 12.3% of the state has received both shots of the vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna while another 21% have gotten at least one jab in the arm.
Disclaimer: This content is distributed by The Center Square
