Shasta County IHSS Workers Mull Benefits or Pay Cut

On Wednesday, Shasta County officials told In-Home Supportive Services workers that the county must either cut medical benefits for some employees or reduce their wages from $9.30 an hour to $8.70 an hour. Currently, 284 of the county's nearly 2,800 IHSS workers receive medical benefits through the county, according to Tristan Brown, political director for California United Homecare Workers. If the union chooses the pay cut, about 400 workers likely would qualify for county medical coverage, according to Cynthia Lahey, Shasta County chapter chair of the California United Homecare Workers Local 4034.

• "In-Home Workers Face Tough Choice; Pay Cut, Loss of Health Care on Table" (Shulman, Redding Record Searchlight, 7/28).