Dear fellow Indiana home care worker,

Recently, we learned that Help at Home was not deducting dues from your paycheck, per your authorization when you signed up to join our union. We learned of this when we were updating our members’ records and immediately notified Help at Home. Help at Home unfortunately took a long time, however, we have made progress to ensure they comply with your request to be a full dues paying member. They have notified us that they are ready to correct this issue and you will begin to see your union dues deducted from your paycheck starting Friday, July 7, 2023. 

Dues are paid by all of us who have decided to come together because we know there is strength when workers make a commitment to join together to have collective power!  The only way to ensure Help at Home and other companies are held accountable is through the power of our union. 

Our recent victories are testament to that power we have too. This year, we won three rounds of bonuses from American Rescue Plan Act dollars for our Help at Home Indiana members. The first was paid in April and the next two will be distributed in August and December.  

In addition, thanks to our organizing and advocacy work in Indianapolis during the legislative session, we won historic funding to significantly raise pay for Indiana home care workers. We are gearing up to bargain with Help at Home soon over that new funding and are ready to fight for improved pay and benefits, ensuring as much of that funding as possible benefits those of us on the frontlines. And we aren’t done yet! We are ready to keep fighting for what Indiana home care workers and the clients we serve need.   

Here’s a reminder of what our union dues are: 

Union Dues: Dues are 2% of your gross earning per paycheck with a maximum of $75/ month. 

SEIU HCII Hoosier PAC (Political Action Committee): If you signed up for our Hoosier PAC, you are contributing to our political power. Funding for home care services that affect your pay are determined by lawmakers. Therefore, we must have a voice in how home care is funded and to advocate for increased funding to improve jobs and services, just as we did this spring. Our Hoosier PAC also allows us to make broader political demands that improve our communities from Gary to Seymour to Indianapolis.  

If you have any questions, please contact your organizer, Brient Thomas, at 219-616-8893.  

Stay tuned for ways to get involved and take action as we gear up to bargain with Help at Home over the new state funding we won to improve our pay and benefits! 

In Solidarity,  

Michele Ketelhut,  

Help at Home home care worker & SEIU HCII member 

Lafayette, IN   

United we bargain, divided we beg!