January 18, 2022

Please plan to attend the 9 a.m. Caseload Management Forum tomorrow, January 19th. Please use the Zoom link below to join the meeting.

January 14, 2022

As you know, OCEA provided SSA Director Debra Baetz with a list of your demands on December 15, 2021. The most urgent of those demands had a 60-day timeline. On Wednesday, OCEA Labor Relations Staff met with Director Baetz and SSA Chief Deputy Director An Tran for a 30-day status check. The Directors indicated that some progress has been made on a number of the items, however much remains incomplete and we must continue to push them to have your demands met. Below is a summary of the items for which we received a progress update:

January 13, 2022

Kaiser Permanente is partnering with OCEA to provide a series of virtual seminars promoting health and well-being. This week's seminar, "Making Healthy Food and Snacks Work," is a short informational video with tips for making well-balanced snacks.

January 12, 2022

Our current Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the District expires on June 30, 2022. Negotiating a new MOU, which establishes your wages, benefits, and working conditions is one of the many reasons the union exists.

January 12, 2022

The Los Angeles Lakers and the Los Angeles Clippers are an exciting NBA matchup and one of the best crosstown rivalries in sports.

January 12, 2022

We have been informed there is a COVID outbreak at your work location. With COVID cases rising across the County, OCEA successfully pressed the County to authorize an Emergency Paid Sick Leave (EPSL) program. County workers will each receive up to 40 hours of paid sick leave for qualifying COVID-related absences.

January 11, 2022

In direct response to OCEA’s demands, the Board of Supervisors (BOS) today authorized the County CEO to administer a 2022 Emergency Paid Sick Leave Program (EPSL). County workers will each receive up to 40 hours of paid sick leave for qualifying COVID-related absences.

January 7, 2022

For almost two years, County workers have fought to keep themselves safe, to protect their families, and to keep our government open. As the Omicron variant began to drive the current unprecedented surge in COVID-19 cases, OCEA took action and demanded the County provide County workers with additional Emergency Paid Sick Leave (EPSL).

January 6, 2022

A safe workplace is the value that drives all other needs. COVID-19 has put public servants directly in harm's way. Further, the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has increased the number of positive cases exponentially. We know that many of you are concerned about your health and the well-being of your family. We want to remind everyone that the Court has extended the Emergency Paid Sick Leave (EPSL) benefit that was provided as part of early COVID-19 relief efforts through June of 2022. EPSL allows for workers to take necessary time for COVID-19 related illnesses.

January 4, 2022

A safe workplace is the value that drives all other needs. COVID-19 has put public servants directly in harm's way. Further, the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has increased the number of positive cases exponentially. For those reasons we have requested that the County provide an additional 80 hours of COVID-19 sick leave for all OCEA-represented workers in the County. This is not an unusual request. Local public jurisdictions such as the Orange County Superior Court, the City of Anaheim, and the University of California chose to extend their internal leave programs.

January 3, 2022

As many of you know, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA or Act) required employers to provide employees with paid sick leave or expanded family and medical leave for specified reasons related to COVID-19.

December 28, 2021

Kaiser Permanente is partnering with OCEA to provide a series of virtual seminars promoting health and well-being. This week's seminar, "Kaiser presents Winter Vegetable Soup," is a short informational video with tips about using your favorite ingredients and your crockpot to make a hearty vegetable soup.

December 23, 2021

Your FMEF Bargaining Team met with representatives from the City on Dec. 22, 2021. Continued progress was made in the area of wages but the offer still does not reflect the pay you and your families deserve.

December 23, 2021

OCEA recently held our annual Steward Awards ceremony and we wanted to share the names of the awardees with you. You may work with some of the winners!

December 21, 2021

Kaiser Permanente is partnering with OCEA to provide a series of virtual seminars promoting health and well-being. This week's seminar, "Read the Food Label and Know What It Means," is a short informational video about how to decipher food label information.