Tentative Agreement Reached Between COCC Union and Administrators

The Classified Association of Central Oregon Community College released a statement on Wednesday, April 1 that a tentative agreement has been reached with college administrators. Union members were expected to approve the agreement by Wednesday night averting a strike that was set to begin Thursday, April 2. News releases from both the union and college administrators are below.

The Classified Association of Central Oregon Community College has released the following statement:

A tentative agreement that could avert strike has been reached. COCC Administrators have listened to reason and made the laudable choice to listen to the voices of their classified staff instead of fighting against living wages for college employees.

The unwavering unity of Bend and our entire Central Oregon community is what flipped the balance of power and brought us this victory, as well as the vision, dedication, and unbowed spirit of every custodian, grounds keeper, library worker, IT specialist, and essential classified worker at COCC who refused to believe that their labor does not deserve dignity.

Without the courage of COCC classified staff, our union’s members, victory would never have been possible. We got here by interrupting business as usual to speak out about what’s really been happening at COCC, and exposing poverty wages that had brought employees and their families to their knees.

CACOCC members have spoken extensively in public about the most dehumanizing and degrading experiences of our lives to illustrate the injustice of our wages for more than a year, including CACOCC members who were unable to afford pain management for their cancer treatments, and who were actively homeless and experiencing daily hunger.

This is unacceptable for any workplace, any industry, at any standard. Yet it happens to public school and college educators in Oregon far too often: lives of educators and stability for students thrown into constant hardship and chaos because of the impact of poverty wages in destabilizing and disrupting our statewide public education system.

All labor has dignity. Together, we’ve won it for ourselves at COCC.

Thank you to the members of the media who have helped tell our stories for months, and to the brave, incredible students who have continually supported us, joined us, and encouraged us to not stand down in our pursuit for living wages.

To our COCC Union siblings in COCCFF, the also-OEA affiliated COCC Faculty Union, simply: Thank you; we will never forget. Being able to rely on your unending unity and support has been essential in our preparedness for what would have been a 2-3 month long strike, and without your commitment to honoring the strike, we would not have had the power we did to avert it. You are leaders in our college community, and as you continue your own negotiations with COCC, we will adamantly be there every step of the way to vocally support you.

CACOCC members are meeting now to review the full contents of the new tentative agreement, and will be deciding whether to approve or reject the agreement this evening.

Ratification voting for the tentative agreement is already underway, and will conclude this evening at 6pm.

Once ratification voting is completed, we will proudly share all details of the historic new agreement — which is by far the best agreement ever secured for classified staff at this college, and will provide raises of up to 25% for the lowest-paid members, on top of new health insurance savings– as well as ratification results this evening.

If ratification of the contract passes, as it is resoundingly expected to, the strike set to begin tomorrow at 5am and last indefinitely will officially be averted and called off.

Thank you again to our community, students, and colleagues for standing fiercely beside us, and over 18 months not wavering once in our pursuit of justice for the lowest paid employees at COCC.

Living wages are a core human right, and this union stands united in our central belief that all labor, including ours, has irrevocable dignity.

This statement is from college administrators:

Central Oregon Community College (COCC) and the Classified Association of COCC (CACOCC/OEA) have reached a tentative agreement on a new collective bargaining contract for 2025-2028, following ongoing negotiations. The tentative agreement is subject to ratification by union membership and approval by the COCC Board of Directors.

“We are pleased to have reached a tentative agreement through continued dialogue and good-faith negotiations,” said Greg Pereira, COCC president. “This agreement reflects a shared commitment to supporting our employees while maintaining the College’s responsibility to students and the long-term health of the institution.”

The agreement outlines a 3-year contract and includes a wage and step increase totaling approximately $1.9 million over a 3-year contract period, including additional benefits to Classified employees. The tentative agreement includes:

Compensation: A 6% wage increase in the first year, 4.5% increase in the second and 4.5% increase in the third year of the contract
Benefits: The agreement also includes a change to tiered insurance rates for the classified bargaining members. This allows savings to these employees and the College.

Negotiations between the College and the union have been ongoing for more than a year under Oregon’s public collective bargaining framework, with recent mediation sessions helping both parties move toward resolution.

“We appreciate the time, effort and collaboration from all involved in reaching this tentative agreement,” said Erica Skatvold, chair of the COCC Board of Directors. “Our focus throughout this process has been to support our employees while ensuring we remain financially sustainable and able to serve our students and community. We are grateful to have the opportunity to bring this to closure.”

CACOCC members are reviewing the tentative agreement the afternoon of April 1 and will be voting this evening. If ratified by CACOCC, and approved by the COCC Board of Directors, the agreement will take effect as of July 1, 2025 and continue through June 30, 2028. COCC will continue to share updates as the ratification process moves forward at: https://cocc.edu/negotiations

This story has been updated to include the news release from administrators.