Greetings, Union Brothers and Sisters. On May 20, 2024, your 008 bargaining team met again with the Department management regarding their proposed plan to have Human Services Specialists (HSS) process the EBT 2259 form and issue replacement benefits. This plan also includes investigating alleged fraud, which is not in the job specification of a HSS.
Your team proposed that the sole duty of a HSS should be to review forms for completeness but not to determine or investigate fraud. This was explained and proposed to the County; however, the County rejected our proposal and declared an impasse. The Department intends to move forward with this change in process, and UPE intends to demand mediation. Stay tuned for additional information on this important issue.