SEIU declares impasse in labor contract negotiations

Negotiations with the Service Employee International Union and Oregon’s seven public universities entered a new stage when SEIU declared impasse on August 16.  

The parties have been in negotiations since January 2019 and moved to mediation over the summer. SEIU declared impasse after the last mediation session. The parties will submit their final offers within seven days of the impasse declaration, and then a 30-day cooling off period will begin.

Two additional mediation sessions between the parties are scheduled in September during the cooling off period. After the cooling off period, SEIU can strike. A chart explaining the Oregon public employer bargaining process is available at the state’s website.

Negotiations with SEIU are led by the University Shared Services Enterprise, which provides a variety of functions for Oregon’s public universities, including the University of Oregon. The UO is represented on the bargaining team but does not lead the negotiations. SEIU represents 1,600 employees at the UO.

The shared services enterprise has been negotiating and mediating with SEIU for several months. The group’s website provides information on developments and latest offers following each bargaining and mediation session through its summaries of negotiations.