Our only chance for higher rates and health insurance
MEMBERSHIP DUES
WSRCC is putting out lies about the Federation membership dues. (WSRCC - The Plain Truth)
Federation dues will be $20-$25 per month per provider.
Dues will not cost more if you have more homes.
FACT: Washington Federation of State Employees uses an alternative dues structure for members who are not state employees. WSRCC is trying to scare you by applying your membership status to WFSE's state employees status.
Your status as a PROVIDER (as recognized by the Public Employees Relations Commission - PERC - for the basis of voting in the Adult Family Home Provider election) determines your status as a member. One vote for each provider = one dues payment per month for each provider.
GUARANTEED: Provider members will pay NO MORE THAN $25 per PROVIDER per month - not per home; not per resident.
WSRCC is putting out lies about the Federation membership dues. (WSRCC - The Plain Truth)
Federation dues will be $20-$25 per month per provider.
Dues will not cost more if you have more homes.
FACT: Washington Federation of State Employees uses an alternative dues structure for members who are not state employees. WSRCC is trying to scare you by applying your membership status to WFSE's state employees status.
Your status as a PROVIDER (as recognized by the Public Employees Relations Commission - PERC - for the basis of voting in the Adult Family Home Provider election) determines your status as a member. One vote for each provider = one dues payment per month for each provider.
GUARANTEED: Provider members will pay NO MORE THAN $25 per PROVIDER per month - not per home; not per resident.
_____________________
ALL PROVIDERS* WILL PAY DUES
FACT: After the election, you will not have a choice - you will be required by the contract to pay dues to either the Federation or WSRCC.
A majority of Providers did not vote in the first election. The run-off election will determine the representative and that representative will charge dues that you will be required to pay.
FEDERATION: Not more than $25/month - GUARANTEED.
WSRCC: $250/year PLUS uncapped - unknown - assessments to pay for your collective bargaining.
You decide.
Vote in the upcoming run-off election!
*(as recognized by the Public Employees Relations Commission - PERC - for the basis of voting in the Adult Family Home Provider election)
FACT: After the election, you will not have a choice - you will be required by the contract to pay dues to either the Federation or WSRCC.
A majority of Providers did not vote in the first election. The run-off election will determine the representative and that representative will charge dues that you will be required to pay.
FEDERATION: Not more than $25/month - GUARANTEED.
- OR -
WSRCC: $250/year PLUS uncapped - unknown - assessments to pay for your collective bargaining.
You decide.
Vote in the upcoming run-off election!
*(as recognized by the Public Employees Relations Commission - PERC - for the basis of voting in the Adult Family Home Provider election)
FEDERATION OPPOSED
Caregiver legislation
The Federation actively OPPOSED HB 2672 and SB 6350, an effort to unionize AFH Caregivers.
The Federation and Save Our Homes activists signed hundreds of petitions that were delivered to key decision-makers, lobbied taskforce and committee members, and put a halt to the bills during the 2008 legislative session.
Caregiver legislation
The Federation actively OPPOSED HB 2672 and SB 6350, an effort to unionize AFH Caregivers.
The Federation and Save Our Homes activists signed hundreds of petitions that were delivered to key decision-makers, lobbied taskforce and committee members, and put a halt to the bills during the 2008 legislative session.
ELECTION PROCESS
PERC rules require a run-off election for Adult Family Home Providers
WSRCC is trying to spin the facts by implying that the Federation acted inappropriately and caused a delay in obtaining a contract (and rate increase) for Adult Family Home Providers.
What they don't understand is the rules! The rules require a second, run-off, election when less than the majority of Adult Family Home Providers vote in the initial election.
Because a majority of Providers did not vote in the first election, a second - run-off - election MUST be conducted.
The run-off election could NOT be conducted before the October 1st deadline set by the state, not because of any action taken by the Federation after the first election.
FACT: the contract (and the rate increase) was delayed because A MAJORITY did not vote in the first election.
NOTE: In the run-off election - scheduled for February 29th - the majority of the BALLOTS mailed in to PERC determine the winner of the election and determine your representative with the state.
DO NOT BE MISLED
Fellow Providers,
Hello my name is Amy E. Thomas. Some of you know me personally and others may not-- but you have probably heard my name through my efforts with Save Our Homes. I am an Adult Family Home Provider.
I have been in the Adult Family Homes business for almost 11 years. My AFH is in South Seattle. I have both private and state clients. I get only $51 for one my state clients. How can I afford to care for him at that rate? This is less than $3 per hour.
In Assisted Living, the state would pay $158 per day for the very same client that they pay me only $51 per day. Yet AFH offer much higher quality in care. I make less money today than I did 10 years ago.
As a provider, I have no benefits and no health insurance for myself or my children. I do not make enough money from state pay clients to make any profit from my AFH.
Did I go into this business to be a volunteer? No! These issues are the reason I got involved in trying to improve conditions for providers.
One year ago when the questions about liability insurance and the Federation came up, I listened to both sides. I attended meetings for both sides. I even joined the WSRCC. But when the WSRCC supported the liability insurance rule at a public meeting with the state—my decision was made. Any organization that supported and profited from this costly requirement did not have provider interests at heart. I also looked at the past ten years and saw they had won very few improvements for us-- very few raises and they have never even tried to get us benefits or health insurance. So I started supporting the Federation with hopes that if we had a more powerful political voice we could make real improvements.
I started the Save our Homes coalition because we needed help on the liability insurance problem, our rates and benefits—and the Federation backed us! Providers signed over 750 petitions to protest the liability insurance rule and for the first time ever AFH providers sat in the Governors office to talk about the problems we face as providers. Then we went next door to DSHS and dropped off 750 letters to them. Within a week DSHS announced they had suspended the liability insurance requirement until August 2008.
Next we went to work on rates. If the state does not seriously raise rates, Providers will decide to not take state clients. With Save Our Homes and the Federation we got more than 1000 petitions signed asking the state to raise our daily date to a minimum of $100 per day for state clients.
Since the Federation has been helping us we are making progress-10% in less than 2 years. When it was the WSRCC only we got 12% in 10 years. The WSRCC has not even kept our rates up to inflation. You can do the math.
With the Federation we have made serious progress-we got the liability insurance rule suspended, raised rates, stopped the caregiver bill, stopped a very scary training bill and finally have the state listening to us. We are meeting with them to change our assessment system and to increase pay for DD homes. It is working!
And now the WSRCC has started with their lies.
I am sure that many of you have received the misleading letter sent out by Craig Frederickson. While it is true that he has served on task forces in the past, he has failed to represent AFH providers with the state. Craig Frederickson supported the liability insurance requirement that forced providers to pay outrageous amounts to insurance companies. Only after Save our Homes and the Federation collected more than 750 signatures from providers against the liability insurance was it suspended.
When providers and the Washington Federation of State Employees spoke AGAINST the liability insurance requirement last year at an ADSA meeting--Craig Frederickson tried to get us kicked out of the meeting. He is anything but neutral!
Because Craig and others have failed to represent the interest of providers at those meeting with the State- Save our Homes and the Federation have worked hard to make sure more providers were appointed to DSHS committees.
Great news! The state listened and as of last month we have 4 more providers on the ADSA committee-- including myself. We are very pleased to have won these appointments since Craig and others does not accurately represent providers with the state.
You have my commitment as a new representative of the ADSA committee to NEVER sell out fellow providers in favor of insurance companies or membership fees. It is unethical and I would never do what they did!
I think we are all tired of being told something different than what we can see with our own eyes. In the last 10 years of WSRCC "representation" our rates have not kept pace with inflation, we lack benefits, we get more rules and unfunded requirements. We are subjected to citations without a legitimate appeals process, we take care of the elderly and disabled while we go without health insurance ourselves. We have had no effective political voice to make the state listen to our needs—until now!
Since the Washington Federation of State Employees began helping us last year, we have started to see real rate increases. Now we can call the Federation when we are having trouble with citations, rate assessments and home-owner's associations.
They have helped us for free. With the backing of the Federation—DSHS is even taking us seriously when we appeal a citation. Now—we are close to getting health insurance for all providers. The WSRCC has never even tried to improve conditions like this.
It just takes a minute to look at the past ten years with the WSRCC to see we need a more powerful voice in Olympia. The WSRCC has done nothing to raise rates and win us benefits. I am voting for the Washington Federation of State Employees because I know we need more power, higher rates and health insurance. I encourage you to join me and vote for the Federation!
Sincerely,
Amy Thomas
Adult Family Home Provider
& President, Save Our Homes Coalition
PERC rules require a run-off election for Adult Family Home Providers
WSRCC is trying to spin the facts by implying that the Federation acted inappropriately and caused a delay in obtaining a contract (and rate increase) for Adult Family Home Providers.
What they don't understand is the rules! The rules require a second, run-off, election when less than the majority of Adult Family Home Providers vote in the initial election.
Because a majority of Providers did not vote in the first election, a second - run-off - election MUST be conducted.
The run-off election could NOT be conducted before the October 1st deadline set by the state, not because of any action taken by the Federation after the first election.
FACT: the contract (and the rate increase) was delayed because A MAJORITY did not vote in the first election.
NOTE: In the run-off election - scheduled for February 29th - the majority of the BALLOTS mailed in to PERC determine the winner of the election and determine your representative with the state.
DO NOT BE MISLED
Fellow Providers,
Hello my name is Amy E. Thomas. Some of you know me personally and others may not-- but you have probably heard my name through my efforts with Save Our Homes. I am an Adult Family Home Provider.
I have been in the Adult Family Homes business for almost 11 years. My AFH is in South Seattle. I have both private and state clients. I get only $51 for one my state clients. How can I afford to care for him at that rate? This is less than $3 per hour.
In Assisted Living, the state would pay $158 per day for the very same client that they pay me only $51 per day. Yet AFH offer much higher quality in care. I make less money today than I did 10 years ago.
As a provider, I have no benefits and no health insurance for myself or my children. I do not make enough money from state pay clients to make any profit from my AFH.
Did I go into this business to be a volunteer? No! These issues are the reason I got involved in trying to improve conditions for providers.
One year ago when the questions about liability insurance and the Federation came up, I listened to both sides. I attended meetings for both sides. I even joined the WSRCC. But when the WSRCC supported the liability insurance rule at a public meeting with the state—my decision was made. Any organization that supported and profited from this costly requirement did not have provider interests at heart. I also looked at the past ten years and saw they had won very few improvements for us-- very few raises and they have never even tried to get us benefits or health insurance. So I started supporting the Federation with hopes that if we had a more powerful political voice we could make real improvements.
I started the Save our Homes coalition because we needed help on the liability insurance problem, our rates and benefits—and the Federation backed us! Providers signed over 750 petitions to protest the liability insurance rule and for the first time ever AFH providers sat in the Governors office to talk about the problems we face as providers. Then we went next door to DSHS and dropped off 750 letters to them. Within a week DSHS announced they had suspended the liability insurance requirement until August 2008.
Next we went to work on rates. If the state does not seriously raise rates, Providers will decide to not take state clients. With Save Our Homes and the Federation we got more than 1000 petitions signed asking the state to raise our daily date to a minimum of $100 per day for state clients.
Since the Federation has been helping us we are making progress-10% in less than 2 years. When it was the WSRCC only we got 12% in 10 years. The WSRCC has not even kept our rates up to inflation. You can do the math.
With the Federation we have made serious progress-we got the liability insurance rule suspended, raised rates, stopped the caregiver bill, stopped a very scary training bill and finally have the state listening to us. We are meeting with them to change our assessment system and to increase pay for DD homes. It is working!
And now the WSRCC has started with their lies.
I am sure that many of you have received the misleading letter sent out by Craig Frederickson. While it is true that he has served on task forces in the past, he has failed to represent AFH providers with the state. Craig Frederickson supported the liability insurance requirement that forced providers to pay outrageous amounts to insurance companies. Only after Save our Homes and the Federation collected more than 750 signatures from providers against the liability insurance was it suspended.
When providers and the Washington Federation of State Employees spoke AGAINST the liability insurance requirement last year at an ADSA meeting--Craig Frederickson tried to get us kicked out of the meeting. He is anything but neutral!
Because Craig and others have failed to represent the interest of providers at those meeting with the State- Save our Homes and the Federation have worked hard to make sure more providers were appointed to DSHS committees.
Great news! The state listened and as of last month we have 4 more providers on the ADSA committee-- including myself. We are very pleased to have won these appointments since Craig and others does not accurately represent providers with the state.
You have my commitment as a new representative of the ADSA committee to NEVER sell out fellow providers in favor of insurance companies or membership fees. It is unethical and I would never do what they did!
I think we are all tired of being told something different than what we can see with our own eyes. In the last 10 years of WSRCC "representation" our rates have not kept pace with inflation, we lack benefits, we get more rules and unfunded requirements. We are subjected to citations without a legitimate appeals process, we take care of the elderly and disabled while we go without health insurance ourselves. We have had no effective political voice to make the state listen to our needs—until now!
Since the Washington Federation of State Employees began helping us last year, we have started to see real rate increases. Now we can call the Federation when we are having trouble with citations, rate assessments and home-owner's associations.
They have helped us for free. With the backing of the Federation—DSHS is even taking us seriously when we appeal a citation. Now—we are close to getting health insurance for all providers. The WSRCC has never even tried to improve conditions like this.
It just takes a minute to look at the past ten years with the WSRCC to see we need a more powerful voice in Olympia. The WSRCC has done nothing to raise rates and win us benefits. I am voting for the Washington Federation of State Employees because I know we need more power, higher rates and health insurance. I encourage you to join me and vote for the Federation!
Sincerely,
Amy Thomas
Adult Family Home Provider
& President, Save Our Homes Coalition
