Contract Ratified!
Congratulations! Your contract has been ratified by 94% of voters.
The effective dates for this new agreement are January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2024.
Agreement Highlights
- An updated classification/reallocation system allowing for resolving initial classification and reallocation disputes through the formal demand to bargain (negotiations) process.
- A new salary grid and agreed employee placement on the grid with an average wage increase of over 9% beginning 1/1/23. The grid follows a 2.5% annual step increase formula as well as a minimum 10% difference between ranges, adjusted to 11% and 12% in some job classes, based on market data.
- A ratification incentive of $1,400 for those initially placed at less than $75,000/year on the new salary grid and $750 for those placed at or above $75,000/year.
- A new monthly employer paid health care coverage amount that averages a 12% increase overall and a 20+% increase for full families, effective January 1, 2023. This means the employer will pay, at a minimum, 100% of the cost of Kaiser Permanente’s CDHP plans or that amount toward any other offered plan, regardless of family configuration.
- An additional employer paid Health Care coverage increase of 5% across the board for 2024.
- The employer will continue to pay the $200/year lump each January 1 directly into employee’s FSA’s, regardless of health insurance election.
- A retention incentive of $1,000 per employee who remains employed by KCD from 1/1/23 to 6/30/23.
- A total 5% pay increase to occur on 1/1/24 (broken down into a simultaneous 2.5% COLA and 2.5% Step increase).
- A retention incentive of $1,000 per employee who remains employed by KCD from 7/1/23 to 6/30/24.
- One additional paid holiday per year.
- Automatic conversion of Casual Employees to Regular (permanent) Employees upon working 2080 hours in a 12 consecutive month period.
- Provisional pool of $1,000 per employee for training and development made permanent.
- Provisional employer paid ORCA card made permanent.
- Change from employee waiting on employer reimbursement of field gear costs to employer providing field gear.
- Maternity/Paternity leave increased to 16 weeks from 3 months (12 weeks). 90 day notice requirement for Maternity/Paternity leave use removed and replaced with a 30 day or as soon as possible provision replacing it. Employees now permitted to take Maternity/Paternity leave intermittently rather than only all at once. Employees may substitute PFML for paid leave at employee’s election.
- Cap on use of Vacation Leave for Child Care emergencies removed.
- Minimum of 1 day/week telework provision maintained. Employees may request to telework more than 1 day/week. Any denial of this request is subject to the employer providing a written justification.
- As part of Emergency Preparedness, First Aid and CPR training to be offered by certified instructors at least every 2 years.
- Improved process for requesting alternate work schedules.
- Cap on comp time accrual removed and now required to be tracked by employer as accrued. Comp time to continue to be cashed out annually.
- Conversion of all sick leave hours to vacation leave hours, on a 4 to 1 basis, after 720 hours of sick leave balance accrued.
- Expanded rights to voluntary Leave Without Pay
- Contractual acknowledgment that all changes/additions to employer policies that impact the working conditions, compensation and/or benefits of Union Members are subject to Mandatory Notice to the Union.
- Increase to 21 days for the Union to exercise its right to file a Demand to Bargain, if unable to informally resolve. Previously it was 14 days.
- Expanded right to Union Representation.
- Increased Shop Steward rights to release time for representation and new Shop Steward training purposes.
- Removal of cap on paid release time for bargaining team members and Shop Stewards.
- Lowered threshold for being able to donate leave to coworkers in need.
2022 Bargaining Dates
- June 27 & 28
King Conservation District
Previous Cycle Final Bargaining Update-May 21, 2020
Effective through December 31, 2022. View the full collective bargaining agreement (CBA)/contract here.
View a summary of the highlights of our CBA.