SEIU Local 205 members at Meharry Medical College in Nashville voted unanimously to support a new four-year contract.

The new contract gives each employee two step increases in January and then guarantees eligible employees a step every year on the date of their hire.

A whole new wage “grid” was added, increasing all jobs from 15 steps to 25. A point system related to attendance was added, as was an employee sick bank. There were improvements in seniority and job bidding and there is an agreement for the company and the union to meet each November to discuss COLA (cost of living) raises.

Quality was an important topic during negotiations and as a result, the company has re-activated the Safety Committee. Also, employees who are bi-lingual will be compensated with a three-step increase. Moving forward, there are plans to negotiate a new policy book. The college will also begin providing the Union with data on new hires, as is the case in many other chapters.

“This is one of the best contracts we’ve negotiated at Meharry in years, and it wouldn’t have been possible without a strong Bargaining Committee and a new leadership team at the College who are committed to improving quality and service,” says Benny Goolsby, Local 205’s Senior Staff Representative.

The bargaining team was made up of Jeff Fenton, Greg Spencer, Francis Garcia, Joyce Buchanan, and Desiree Roby.