MOU money: Hill staff union announces pay bumps as talks continue

WASHINGTON — After months of negotiations, workers in two House offices announced Tuesday that they have signed memoranda of understanding with their managers, securing some of the first pay raises for unionized Hill staffers.

As collective bargaining agreement talks continue, aides for Reps. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., and Val Hoyle, D-Ore., inked MOUs that provide bumps in salary while other contract provisions are negotiated.

Such a step usually — but not always — leads to signing a binding collective bargaining agreement soon after; the MOUs mean aides get pay raises while the negotiations continue. These two preliminary agreements run through the end of 2024.

“We’re proud to have signed a Memorandum of Understanding that ensures better compensation, back pay, security, and clarity for staff as we continue working towards a Collective Bargaining Agreement,” Pocan’s staff said in a statement.

Pocan’s staffers received an 8.5 percent raise on average, with the most junior aides getting 10 percent bumps. Every bargaining unit member received a $7,500 advance on their bonuses. The pay increases were also backdated to the start of the year.

Eleven workers in Hoyle’s office received a cost-of-living adjustment averaging to a 4.7 percent increase in salary, with junior staffers receiving slightly larger bumps. Their increase was backdated to May.

“Today’s victories show that when congressional workers come together to bargain for the pay they deserve, they win — and we’re just getting started,” the Congressional Workers Union, an umbrella organization overseeing each office’s bargaining unit, said in a statement.

“We appreciate our management coming to the table ready to negotiate and working with us to secure these wins,” Hoyle staffers said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing to work together towards a Collective Bargaining Agreement that increases salaries and reflects the value and contributions of our members.”

Hoyle and Pocan are both outspoken labor supporters. Before her 2022 election to Congress, Hoyle served as Oregon’s labor commissioner and pursued labor-friendly policies during her time in the state legislature prior to that. Pocan, a co-founder of the Congressional Labor Caucus who brought AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler as his guest to the State of the Union this year, was one of the first members to support his aides’ organizing.

“Last year, I was pleased that our office was one of the first in Congress to elect to join the Congressional Workers Union. It has been our focus to ensure that we approach our first contract negotiations in an interest-based manner. I am proud of the fact that we prioritize working with our staff on making sure our office is one where they feel their work and interests are valued,” Hoyle said in a statement. “I feel the Congressional Workers Union is a net positive for ensuring that workers’ interests are represented, and members can recruit and retain the highest quality staff to be able to represent the needs of our constituents.”

Through a spokesperson, Pocan said his office does not comment on internal personnel policies.

To date, only one congressional office has signed a CBA — Andy Levin’s, shortly before he left office after losing reelection.

Congressional staff began a labor organization push in 2022 amid demands for better pay and working conditions after years of stagnant wages in an increasingly expensive city. The House adopted a resolution allowing member and committee staff to form unions in May 2022. The Senate has yet to pass a similar authorization, but Democratic Sen. Edward J. Markey of Massachusetts voluntarily recognized his staff’s union last year. So far, only Democratic offices have petitioned to form unions.

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