At the end of the last pay period, on February 8th, COVID-19 response pay was terminated by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM). We fought over the past two years for expanded response pay and other types of compensation for the risks frontline workers are taking during this pandemic. Despite our demands at bargaining for a clear process on response pay, DBM would not budge on anything but a pay-period by pay-period extension at their discretion.
COVID is still present at all our congregate care facilities and just yesterday an officer at one of our facilities passed due to complications after COVID. We are demanding DBM reinstate response pay especially since many of the other COVID restrictions and practices are still in place (for example, masking and testing).
This year we will continue to fight in the legislature during budget hearings for fair compensation especially for those working in congregate care facilities. These hearings are a critical time to speak out on your agency’s budget and the unsafe decision DBM is making to cutoff response pay for frontline workers putting themselves at risk. You can read more about the legislative session and budget hearings on our website here.