We’re proud to announce that members of our union voted to ratify our new Tentative Agreement with Chicago Commons! The accomplishments we achieved in this contract will continue to improve home care jobs and is a powerful step forward toward the future caregivers deserve!

This contract represents continued progress — and it’s a direct result of the strength, unity, and determination of hundreds of Chicago Commons home care workers coming together through our union to take action.

In the spring of 2025, thousands of home care workers took action across Illinois and won tens of millions of dollars in state funding to support a raise in 2026 for Home Care workers. Our next step was making sure Chicago Commons puts that money into workers’ paychecks and that’s exactly what we did as your bargaining committee at the table. 

We won enough money in the state budget to support at least a $.75 across the board increase.  However, we went into bargaining attempting to do more and after some spirited dialog and good faith bargaining with Management, we are proud to present a Tentative Agreement with a $.94 across the board raise for all employees across the entire seniority scale retroactive to January 1^st, 2026! 

Below, you’ll find highlights of what we else we won in this agreement, followed by the full contract language for the articles we strengthened and the new wage scale. 

Wages: What did we improve?

• Effective Jan. 1, 2026, all current caregivers will see their pay increased by $.94. Please see the seniority scale below to determine your new payrate.
• Effective Jan. 1, 2026, the starting pay will now be $19/hour, up from the current $18.06/hour.

403b Retirement Match: What did we improve?

• Effective, Jul. 1, 2027, all part-time employees that are not exclusively Family/Choice caregivers and whom work at least 18 hours/week will begin receiving the same 403b match as full-time employees if they choose to participate in the 403b plan. Part-time Family/Choice caregivers may likewise become eligible if they begin servicing additional clients that are not Family/Choice.  

• This improvement to the 403b plan will see the number of eligible Home Care Aids increase from less than 20 to over 100.  

• There is language to continue dialog with the Employer about additional future expansion of this benefit to the rest of the unit.  

Travel Time Between Clients: What did we improve?

• The rate paid for time traveling between clients during the workday will increase from $17.30 to $18/hour.  

Lobby Day & Bargaining Committee Hours PTO Accruals: What did we improve?

• All paid lobby day hours and hours spent in bargaining will now count for employees towards Paid Leave accruals the same as client service hours, travel time and in-services hours. 

Tentative Agreement Between SEIU Healthcare & Chicago Commons

Article 23 — Wages and Benefits

A. Wages

The following wage rates will be effective January 1, 2026 for all bargaining unit members:

Seniority	Payrate Effective 1/1/26
Less than 1 year	$19.00
1 year	$19.09
2 years	$19.18
3 years	$19.27
4 years	$19.36
5 years	$19.45
6 years	$19.54
7 years	$19.63
8 years	$19.72
9 years	$19.81
10 years	$19.90
11 years	$19.99
12 years	$20.08
13 years	$20.17
14 years	$20.26
15 years	$20.35
16 years	$20.44
17 years	$20.53
18 years	$20.62
19 years	$20.71
20 years	$20.80
21 years	$20.89
22 years	$20.98
23 years	$21.07
24 years	$21.16
25 years	$21.25
26 years	$21.34
27 years	$21.43
28 years	$21.52
29 years	$21.61
30 years	$21.70

As reflected in the wage scales above, all bargaining unit employees shall receive an annual $.09/hr anniversary increase through year 30. 

Employees will be paid twice a month pursuant to the published calendar. If the date for the issuance of paychecks falls on a weekend or holiday, whenever possible checks will be distributed on the preceding working day.  Employees shall be furnished with a copy of the itemized deductions each pay period, which shall include the current hours worked, current wages earned, cumulative wages to date, and any required itemized deductions.  Federal, state, and local laws and ordinances regarding minimum hourly rates of pay will supersede this seniority scale in cases where the minimum wage is higher than the seniority scale wage.  

B. Holiday Pay

No changes.

C. Other Benefits for Full-Time Employees

All Full-Time employees eligible for a bank account will have the option to open a checking or savings account with Credit One.  Employees who do not have a bank account may request a rapid-paid card for direct deposit.  

Effective July 1, 2025, the Employer will match Full-Time employees’ contributions 403(b) to up to 3%, provided they began contributing before or during the open enrollment period from June 1 to June 30, 2025. Employees who reach full-time status by their anniversary are eligible to contribute immediately and can qualify for an employer match of up to 3%. 

D. Other Benefits for Part-Time Employees

All part-time employees who meet the minimum required hours defined by the current plan description will be able to participate in the 403(b) Retirement Plan.

Effective July 1, 2027, Part-time employees  who complete a minimum of nine hundred sixty (960) hours of work during the 2026 calendar year shall become eligible to participate in the Employer’s 403(b) Retirement Plan with a matching contribution of up to three percent (3%).  

For the term of this agreement, employer matching contributions shall not apply to hours worked by Part-time Choice and Family Homecare employees except as provided below. 

Choice and Family Homecare employees who serve additional client hours outside of Choice or Family Homecare programs and who meet the nine hundred sixty (960) hour annual threshold through a combination of assignments shall become eligible for the Employer’s 403(b) Retirement Plan with a matching contribution of up to three percent (3%).  

The parties recognize the importance of competitive retirement benefits in supporting recruitment, retention, and long-term workforce stability.  Nothing in this Article shall be construed as a waiver of the Union’s right to seek employer matching contributions for such employees in successor negotiations or as otherwise permitted by law. Retirement benefit improvements for these employees remain a proper subject of bargaining. 

E. Paid Time Off Policy (effective January 1st, 2024)

Section 1: Benefit

Paid leave may be used by the employee for any purpose. Paid leave under this Article shall accrue at a base rate of one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked in a 12-month period. Hours worked shall include hours spent caring for a client/s, travel time hours, and in-service training hours, approved Lobby Days and time spent in negotiations with the Employer as a member of the Union’s bargaining committee for the collective bargaining agreement.  

Employees shall be paid their hourly rate of pay for paid leave. Paid leave under this Article shall begin to accrue on January 1, 2024. Employees hired on or after January 1, 2024, shall be entitled to begin using accrued paid leave 90 days following commencement of their employment. 

Section 2: Scheduling

Paid leave shall be provided upon the oral or written request of an employee in accordance with the employer’s paid leave policy notification requirements:  

(1) If use of paid leave under this Act is foreseeable, the employer may require the employee to provide 7 calendar days’ notice before the date the leave is to begin.  

(2) If paid leave under is not foreseeable, the employee shall provide such notice as soon as is practicable after the employee is aware of the necessity of the leave. The employer shall not deny an employee’s right to take their paid leave.   

(3) The Employer may not require, as a condition of providing paid leave, the employee search for or find a replacement worker to cover the hours during which the employee takes paid leave. 

Employees may choose to make-up client hours before or after paid leave is taken but shall not be required to do so as a condition of receiving the paid leave. 

Employees shall determine how much paid leave they need to use, however paid leave must be utilized in an increment of no less than 2 hours per day, unless the employee’s scheduled workday is less than 2 hours day, then the employee’s scheduled workday shall be used to determine the amount of paid leave. 

Paid time off is not included in the calculation of overtime. 

Section 3: Accrual Rates

Paid leave under this Article shall accrue at a base rate of one hour of paid leave for every 40 hours worked in a 12-month period. 

Section 4: Anniversary Deposit and Annual Caps

Full time employees will have 75 hours deposited into their PTO bank on their anniversary. They can accrue and use a maximum of 115 hours of Paid Time Off annually.  

Part time employees with less than 10 years of seniority will have 15 hours deposited into their PTO bank on their anniversary. Part time employees with less than 10 years of seniority can accrue and use a maximum of 55  hours of Paid Time Off annually.  

Part time employees with 10 or more years of seniority will have 22.5  hours deposited into their PTO bank on their anniversary. Part time employees with 10 or more years of seniority can accrue and use maximum of 62.5 hours of Paid Time Off annually.  

Section 5: Carry-Over

Paid leave accrual shall carry over ½ of accrued time annually to the extent not used by the employee, provided however that the employee may elect to cash out any portion of such unused paid leave. Such election shall be made by the employee prior to their anniversary.  

If an employee does not make such an election, ½ of an employee’s unused hours shall carry over.  

Section 6: Reporting

The Employer shall regularly make available to employees all paid leave hours accrued and paid leave hours used via Ultipro or whatever subsequent online payroll system is used by the Association. The Employer will also provide employees with their available Paid Time Off balance(s) within 72 hours of a request. 

Section 7: Waiver

The benefits provided by this section are in lieu of any benefits under the Illinois Paid Leave for All Workers Act (820 ILCS 192/1 et seq.), the sick leave provisions of the Cook County Earned Sick Leave Ordinance, and the Chicago Minimum Wage and Paid Sick Leave Ordinance (Chapter 6-105 of the Chicago Municipal Code) (collectively the “Leave Laws”), and any subsequent amendments to the Leave Laws or the Leave Laws’ rules or regulations.  The parties further agree that pursuant to the collectively bargained language and consideration herein, all provisions, rights and benefits of the Leave Laws related to such leave are waived. The parties stipulate that this waiver of the requirements under the Leave Laws is clear and unambiguous and shall remain in effect until the execution of a successor agreement. 

Article 26 — Union Security

Section 1:

Union membership shall be a condition of employment for all employees in the bargaining unit covered by this Agreement. Each employee shall be required to become a member of the Union in good standing. “Good standing” means the tender of periodic dues and initiation fees uniformly required by the Union. Any employee who fails to become a member of the Union on or before the 31st day after the effective date of this Agreement (February 19, 1993) or the employee’s date of hire, whichever is later, or who fails to pay the required initiation fee or regularly authorized dues as prescribed by the Union according to the Union’s Constitution and By-Laws, shall be discharged by the Association within 14 days of the Association’s receipt of written notice from the Union of the failure on the part of the employee. 

Membership in good standing in the Union shall not be denied or terminated for reasons other than the failure of an employee to tender the periodic dues and the initiation fees uniformly required to be paid as a condition of acquiring or maintaining membership. 

No employee to whom this Agreement is of application shall be discriminated against by the Union in respect of membership therein or any right arising there from on account of race, sex, religion, national origin, age, political belief, marital status, color, handicap or sexual preference. 

• Within thirty (30) days following the effective date of this Agreement, the Association shall furnish the Union a list of all employees in the bargaining unit.  Such list shall include names, addresses, hourly rate, total hours worked per month, date of hire, telephone numbers, and email addresses (if any), and social security numbers, of said employees.
  
• Within fifteen (15) days following the end of each month. The Association also agrees to give the Union a list with the following information: 
  • The names of all employees (existing and new hires), their address, hourly rate, hours worked per month, date of hire, telephone numbers, email address (if any), social security numbers, job classifications including Family and/or Choice provider status, and dates of hire; and
  • The names of all employees who have been terminated or who voluntary quit; and
  • The names of employees on leave of absence, and the starting dates of the leaves.
    
• The Association only has the obligation to provide the names, addresses, telephone numbers, and email addresses the Association has on file at the time it gives the Union the list.  The Union and the Association agree that employees are solely responsible for providing updated information to the Association, and the Association is not responsible if employees fail to provide updated information to the Association.  

Article 28 — Transportation

Section 1: Travel Time

1. Employees who travel from one client to another during the workday will be compensated for travel time at $18.00 per hour or the Chicago minimum wage rate, whichever is higher.
   
2. Compensation will only be provided for travel between clients.  No compensation will be provided for travel:  (1) from the employee’s home to the employee’s first client and (2) from the employee’s last client to the employee’s home. 
   
3. Employees will be required to keep precise time records of their compensable travel time, and to timely turn in those records for payments in accordance with the Employer’s normal payroll procedure and practices. 
   
4. The Employer expects its employees to, in good faith, utilize the fastest and most efficient means of transportation when traveling between clients.  If the Employer believes travel time claimed on the forms is inaccurate, then the Employer must contact the employee in advance in order to reach a mutual understanding on travel time to be processed for payment.  
   
5. Any total travel time between clients that is less than 15 minutes will be rounded up to 15 minutes. 
   
6. Travel time shall be paid on a semi-monthly basis. 

Section 2: Transportation

All employees shall be reimbursed for the actual cost of all client-related trips up to, but not more than a total of $45 in any given calendar month.  A client-related trip is defined as (1) traveling from the home of one client to the home of another client in one day, (2) traveling to, or from, purchasing something for a client, and (3) traveling to, or from, escorting a client to a hospital, clinic or doctor’s office or escorting the client on a shopping trip. Transportation shall be reimbursed on a monthly basis.  Employees who drive their own vehicle between clients will be reimbursed at the mileage rate set by the Internal Revenue Service. 

Article 34 — Reopener

 The Association and the Union agree that during the term of this Agreement, any time the Association’s Community Care Program Homemaker rate increases or decreases to an amount greater or less than $30.80/hour then the Association or the Union may, upon written notice to the other ninety (90) days prior to said increase or decrease, reopen this Agreement for the sole purpose of negotiating over wages and benefits.  In the event this Agreement is so reopened, all remaining provisions of this Agreement shall remain in full force and effect.