Last week, we officially kicked off negotiations with the State of Illinois over our new contract!

It feels good to be back at the bargaining table sitting across from a new administration that is ready to engage in a fair negotiations process, unlike the last four years.

During our first sessions, our Bargaining Team members, who are Personal Assistants from all over Illinois, shared some initial proposals and got to share some of our personal stories. We talked about why the Home Services Program is so important and we shared why improving jobs for Personal Assistants is critical and directly connected to improving care for people with disabilities.

We will continue to craft our proposals as we receive more contract surveys from PAs around the State.

If you have not done so already, please click here to make your voice heard on what our top priorities should be by completing your contract survey online.

Our next bargaining dates are scheduled for July 31st and August 1st we look forward to reporting more progress out then.

As we gear up to win the contract that PAs deserve, it’s important that we all remember that no one has ever handed us anything. Personal Assistants have fought tooth and nail to win every improvement we’ve made to our jobs and the services we provide, and we should be prepared to do the same now as we have done in the past.

It’s going to take all of us sticking together in our union to achieve the priorities that we decide, so get involved today!

We have membership meetings coming up this Saturday across Illinois and we hope you will join us at the one happening in your region. Click here to see all the details.