These Fresno County workers might get a one-time payment of $1,500. See who’s eligible
Thousands of Fresno County essential workers could soon see a one-time payment of up to $1,500, a union leader told The Bee.
The Fresno County Board of Supervisors and the SEIU 521 bargaining team reached a tentative agreement in December to provide a one-time premium pay to workers, said Riley Talford, SEIU 521 Fresno County chapter president who works as a supervising juvenile correctional officer for the county.
The tentative agreement calls for workers, represented by the union, who work full-time to receive $1,500, he said. Employees working less than 32 hours will be eligible for a payment of around $750. Some 3,700 employees would benefit.
“We sacrificed throughout this pandemic,” Talford told The Bee during an interview. “We like to see some recognition besides just verbal” acknowledgments.
Fresno County officials have been tight-lipped about the agreement.
Essential workers were left out of the Fresno County survey asking the community for input on how it should spend the nearly $200 million in federal stimulus funding it received under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
That prompted Talford to speak up about the issue during the Board of Supervisors meeting on Dec. 14.
“One of the designated uses for these funds was to honor and acknowledge essential workers with a one-time bonus,” he said according to the meeting’s video recording. “Unfortunately, that response was left out of the survey asking citizens how the money should be used.”
During the meeting, Talford told supervisors that neighboring government agencies had provided premium pay to essential workers. For example, he said, Fresno Unified School District, Madera County and Stanislaus County workers received about $3,000, while Tulare County employees got $1,500.
Leaving out essential workers in Fresno County from the ARPA investments, Talford said, is another reason why the county has a “retention crisis” that has ripple effects to Fresno County residents.
Talford delivered a community petition, with more than 600 signatures, asking Fresno County to add essential workers to the survey.
The petition said it’s “disingenuous” to leave out essential workers from ARPA funding.
Citing child welfare crisis
“The child welfare crisis within the County of Fresno is not singular,” the petition reads. “Departments across the County that serve as safety-nets continue experiencing alarming turnover rates and inadequate staffing — all amidst a critical recovery from the pandemic.”
The county’s survey is no longer available online as Dec. 24 was the deadline for community members to provide input. However, a screenshot captured on Dec. 10 by union leaders shows the survey didn’t include essential workers.
“The County of Fresno did not include the premium pay option for essential workers on the Community Survey as the survey is intended for community input on areas or projects that will help to mitigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic and improve wellness within the communities of Fresno County,” Sonja Dosti, spokeswoman for Fresno County, told The Bee in a statement Tuesday. “However, the Board of Supervisors will consider premium pay for essential workers at the Board meeting on January 18th.”
The tentative agreement was reached after Talford spoke about the issue and delivered the community petition to supervisors.
Dosti in December said officials couldn’t comment on the specific details of the agreement.
“Officially speaking, the County cannot comment on items that may be subject to negotiation during active bargaining,” she told The Bee in an email. “The County will gladly share all information pending the conclusion of negotiations.”
Talford said he wasn’t sure if the funds for the tentative one-time payments will be pulled from the federal stimulus money or a different pot of county funds.
The tentative one-time payment is for SEIU units 3,4, 12, 22 and 36, which mainly cover employees in the Department of Social Services, Talford said. Union members, he said, still have to approve and ratify the payment, as well as the county supervisors.
The final approvals are expected later this month. The one-time payment for workers will help many of them pay bills and get a good start in 2022, Talford said.
Talford said he hopes to keep an open communication with supervisors to address the low wages that have made it difficult to retain safety-net workers.
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