County rescinds wage proposal; SEIU 2015 members demand accountability over worsening caregiver shortage
Shasta County, CA – Today, Shasta’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) workers—members of SEIU 2015, California’s largest union representing more than half a million long-term care workers—returned to the Board of Supervisors meeting to hold Shasta Supervisors accountable for violating state labor law and demand they take urgent action to reach an agreement on a union contract that meets the needs of county residents.
Across Shasta, more than 4,500 IHSS workers provide essential in-home care (paramedical, personal care, and household services) to more than 4,700 older adults and people with disabilities, including veterans. Low wages are driving a shortage of IHSS workers, making the essential long-term care IHSS recipients need to stay in Shasta County harder to acces—increasing hospital and long-term care facility visits and driving up costs for the county and state.
For more than a year, Shasta’s IHSS workers have made multiple good faith attempts to improve wages and benefits, but the Board of Supervisors have failed to make any compromises that address the caregiver shortage.
In their most recent move on December 19, 2025—just 6 days before Christmas—Shasta Supervisors rescinded their offer from March 2025 for a forty-cent wage increase over the next two years. The county claims a “change” in their financial circumstances due to challenges with the fund that pays for IHSS and recent federal budget cuts passed by House Resolution 1 (H.R. 1, or the “One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act”).
Yet, impacts of both of these factors remained the same in July and August 2025 when the county reaffirmed their forty-cent offer. The county failed to explain any changes in their financial circumstances between August 2025 and December 2025 when they rescinded their proposal. Therefore, SEIU 2015 is taking legal action by filing an unfair practice charge with California’s Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).
Further, the union has declared an impasse in negotiations, which could lead to a fact-finding process intended to consider the facts presented during contract negotiations and ultimately lead to recommended settlement terms that both the union and county should agree to. The process would be conducted by a panel consisting of a representative from SEIU 2015, the county, and a neutral third party who would serve as the panel chairperson.
If parties go through this process and the fact-finding panel’s recommended settlement terms are more favorable to the union than the County’s current offer of no increase to the wage supplement for Shasta County IHSS workers, and Shasta Supervisors still fail to enter into an agreement, the county may receive a $1 million annual penalty from the state—decreasing funding for essential social services like home care, children’s services, foster care, and adoption.
“This isn’t just a ‘job,’ it takes a person with a huge heart to remain in a position with no option for advancement, no 401k, no vision, no dental, no medical insurance, no paid vacation days,” said Susan McMains, a Shasta County IHSS worker. “The work we do keeps families together and helps ensure those who need long-term care have the freedom to choose where they receive that care—the least Shasta Supervisors can do is pay us enough to provide for ourselves and families.”
“Shasta Supervisors’ actions at the bargaining table are a violation of state law and we will not standby as they continue to devalue Shasta’s IHSS workforce and exacerbate the healthcare crisis,” said SEIU 2015 Chief Negotiator, Laticia Guerrero. “Our members and the hundreds of Shasta residents who support us will continue showing up and escalating our actions until this Board follows the law, bargains with us in good faith, and delivers an IHSS union contract that meets the needs of our county.”
SEIU Local 2015 is committed to advancing policies that improve the lives of long-term care workers and those they care for. The union’s bargaining team calls upon the Board of Supervisors to address these pressing issues by raising wages for IHSS workers and ensuring Shasta’s long-term care system is prepared to support the county’s future.
To learn more about SEIU Local 2015 visit www.SEIU2015.org or on social media @SEIU2015.