Dear Agency Leaders,
As a first-of-its-kind labor-management partnership, the founding partners of Uplift Oregon — the State of Oregon, SEIU 503, and AFSCME Council 75 — charged the program with providing training and education in benefits, wellness, and equity to State of Oregon employees.
Because new employees were missing out on benefits, choosing health plans that did not fit their needs, and were not fully understanding the financial value of their benefits package, our primary focus turned to benefits education. In partnership with PEBB, DAS, and PERS, we developed Uplift Your Benefits, a two-hour workshop to help new employees make the most of their benefits.
Now that we are offering benefits training regularly, we are launching additional workshops on wellness and equity. Upcoming newsletters will have more information about them.
You are receiving this email because our partnership with you has helped make it all possible. We want to keep you apprised of Uplift Oregon news and updates. But don’t worry, we will not flood your inbox. These updates will only be sent once a month. And if you have any questions or want to reach out in the meantime, please contact me or our Stakeholder Liaison, Heather Blankenheim ([email protected]).
Sincerely,
Kelley Weigel
Uplift Oregon Director
Upcoming Workshops
Open Enrollment
As you know, every year, State of Oregon employees are required to make decisions about their benefits, including their healthcare. In 2022, this open enrollment period lasts from Saturday, October 1, to Monday, October 31.
Uplift Oregon will host multiple workshops to guide state employees through the open enrollment process and explain their benefits options.
You can visit UpliftOregon.org/OE2023 for more information, including a full schedule, and to register your employees for a workshop. Two of the workshops are already at capacity, but we have more upcoming and will launch a web-tool to guide employees through open enrollment.
And, for the first time, Uplift Oregon is planning to present a benefits workshop at an Eastern Oregon ODHS wellness fair. If you have an upcoming wellness fair and would like Uplift Oregon to provide education and resources on open enrollment, please contact our Stakeholder Liaison, Heather Blankenheim, at [email protected].
Uplift Your Benefits (UYB)
UYB attendance has grown significantly over the last five months and to accommodate the influx of participants, we have added regular, weekly trainings for Uplift Your Benefits.
The new, full schedule can be found at UpliftOregon.org/resources-for-agencies/. There are also flyers, sample emails, and a registration guide to promote this crucial benefits training to your new employees.
As one participant wrote:
I’m new to public service and appreciated the clarity with which the [Uplift Oregon] team conveyed the importance of knowing how to best use benefits for each person’s individual situation.
Wellness Series
Monthly Wellness Series with Kaiser Permanente: Living Well with Chronic Conditions
Living well with a chronic condition is possible by working to overcome the physical and emotional problems caused by the disease. Participants will learn tips and tools about positive, healthy lifestyle behaviors that improve self-management and control.
Visit: Uplift Oregon.org/wellness for more information to register for the webinar.
Annual Report
We are proud to share our 2021-2022 annual report! The success and growth our program has experienced in the last year would not have been possible without your partnership. Thank you for your continued work sharing Uplift Your Benefits with your new employees to help them make the most out of their incredible benefits package.
You can read the full annual report here.
Uplift Oregon in the News
Uplift Oregon was recently featured in a national report on state-based efforts to lower healthcare costs.
The Center for American Progress (CAP), a think tank based in Washington, DC, recently released a report, Employer- and Worker-Led Efforts To Lower Health Insurance Costs. This study examines four coalitions working in their states to “reduce the price of health coverage and improve the quality of care.” Uplift Oregon was one of the programs they featured.