PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Within days of the November 7 certification of the Service Employees International Union as the recognized bargaining agent for upwards of 540 at-home childcare workers, the union sought a sit-down with Governor Chafee's director of administration.
Asked on Tuesday if SEIU District 1199 had initiated first-ever negotiations with the state, administration director Richard A. Licht emailed this response: "End of last week they asked me to meet,'' but "I do not intend to discuss substance until negotiations are complete.''
At this point, he said, "negotiations have not started but even if they had I would not discuss their substance until completed.''
The Democrat-led General Assembly paved the way for the largest SEIU membership-expansion drive in recent Rhode Island history by passing legislation, allowing state-subsidized child-care providers, working out of their homes, to unionize.
Subsidized childcare is currently available in Rhode Island for children younger than 13 in families with incomes below 180 percent of the federal poverty level. That poverty level stands at $23,550 for a family of four, which would place the income limit for subsidized childcare at $42,390.
In the fiscal year that ended June 30, the overall taxpayer cost for subsidized childcare in Rhode Island was $53.2 million, with $13.6 million going to the daycare providers who look after an estimated 2,170 children in their own homes.
The reimbursement rates range from $49 to $155 a week for home-based childcare, depending on the age of the child and who is providing the care -- a certified provider or a family friend, relative or neighbor.
The highest paid received $76,991 in subsidy payments from the state's Department of Human Services during the last tax year.
The SEIU has not responded to inquiries about the pay and benefits it intends to seek for these private, at-home workers in Rhode Island but a long-standing contract between the State of Washington and the SEIU may provide some insight.
Childcare providers there are entitled to state-subsidized health care, overtime pay, tuition reimbursement, $500 training incentives and a minimum of 10 paid holidays a year, including the day after Thanksgiving.