Bend, OR – A vote of no confidence has been launched by hundreds of Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) employees working in group homes serving vulnerable Oregonians, targeting the leadership of ODHS Director Fariborz Pakseresht. Oregon AFSCME Local 1246, which represents approximately 650 workers in the department’s Stabilization and Crisis Unit (SACU), is holding the vote amid significant concerns about management and ongoing changes within the unit.
The SACU serves individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities and mental health needs across the state, providing care in group homes from Portland to Eugene. The vote, which began on November 23 and runs through November 30, has come at a time when the agency plans to close two of its 20 group homes—one in Lebanon and another in Portland. While a vote of no confidence is largely symbolic, union leaders and workers hope it will send a clear message to both the agency’s leadership and the public regarding their growing frustration over the current state of affairs.
The closures are scheduled for the end of January and have fueled concerns among workers who say the decision could have been avoided had leadership acted on repeated warnings over the past two years. Christina Sydenstricker-Brown, president of Local 1246 and a group home worker, criticized the department’s management for failing to address issues that have been raised about staffing, safety, and financial mismanagement.
“These closures could have been avoided if leadership had taken action when concerns were first raised,” Sydenstricker-Brown said, pointing to problems like staff burnout and low morale, as well as the department’s failure to implement incentive pay for additional shifts, despite lawmakers appropriating the necessary funds.
Union leaders also worry that these closures could signal further cuts to services for vulnerable Oregonians, potentially putting residents at risk. Pakseresht defended the closures, stating that consolidating the two vacant homes would allow the department to focus resources on providing better care in the remaining homes. According to Pakseresht, the homes being closed are underutilized and do not provide the necessary operational efficiency to justify continued operation.
“The decision to close these homes was based on an assessment of their physical conditions and operational efficiency,” Pakseresht said. “This will allow us to focus on providing better care to residents and shift our attention to services and supports, rather than covering the costs of maintaining these homes.”
Despite the closures, Pakseresht reassured staff that the program would continue to operate, with no additional closures planned. The agency is also facing financial challenges, as rising operational costs and overtime expenditures have strained the budget. Overtime costs in SACU have surged from $3.6 million in fiscal year 2014 to a projected $14.6 million in fiscal year 2024. Additionally, the cost per resident has more than doubled, from $40,000 per month in 2016 to over $103,000 per month this year.
Pakseresht indicated that the department may face budget reductions in the upcoming fiscal period but emphasized that any decisions about cuts would be made through a comprehensive planning process.
Despite the director’s assurances, many union members remain deeply concerned about the impact of the closures. Dr. Simrat Sethi, president of AFSCME Local 3327 and a psychiatrist at the Oregon State Hospital, expressed fears that the closure of group homes would exacerbate existing pressures on the state’s already overloaded mental health system. “Closing SACU, in whole or in part, could have detrimental effects on our community,” Sethi said. “We need every residential bed in the community, and this is the wrong time to be closing any beds. Patients are likely to end up in emergency rooms or psychiatric units, placing even more strain on our already stretched resources.”
As the vote continues, workers are expressing their dissatisfaction with leadership and calling for more transparent communication regarding the future of SACU. Sydenstricker-Brown noted that the union members are frustrated with the lack of clarity and fairness in the department’s decision-making process, adding that many workers feel their concerns have been ignored for too long.
“We just need to have a real conversation,” Sydenstricker-Brown said. “It isn’t fair to the individuals we serve, and it isn’t fair to us as workers. We need to know what’s really happening and why these decisions are being made.”
While the vote may not lead to immediate changes, it signals a deepening divide between the workers on the frontlines of care and the leadership of the Oregon Department of Human Services.
