February 2026 Update DCYF Meet and Confer

Publish Date
Committees
Dept. of Children, Youth, and Families (DCYF)

Hey MAPE workers,

I know it’s been some time since you’ve heard from your DCYF Meet & Confer team, so here is an overdue update on what we’ve been working on. This is a lengthy update, so it’s also attached to this email as a PDF, in case you’d prefer to read it that way.

Before I get into the details, I want to introduce myself as your new DCYF Meet & Confer chair. I got involved in the Meet & Confer space a few years ago when I worked at DHS, and I’m looking forward to continuing that work here at DCYF. 

Below are updates from:

  • Meet & Confer meeting with DCYF management - Jan. 30
  • Meet & Confer townhall with members - Jan. 21
  • Meet & Confer meeting with DCYF management - Dec. 16, 2025

Meet & Confer meeting with DCYF management - Jan. 30

We had our most recent Meet and Confer with DCYF management on Friday, January 30, and below is our report out. As always, we brought your concerns to the table and pushed for clarity, accountability, and action. 

Classifications & MOUs – What’s Really Going On?

This issue continues to be a major concern for our members, and a concern MAPE has been bringing up to MMB and DCYF since 2022.

The Meet and Confer team shared that members have brought forward concerns about vacated positions being reposted at lower classifications. When members have raised these concerns with supervisors and managers, they have been redirected to HR, who have provided no answers on how positions are being classified. This issue has been consistently brought to DCYF management over the last year, yet communication remains infrequent and unclear. 

The Meet and Confer team requested a subcommittee including Ty Sullivan, Toni Shobe, and MAPE members to discuss classification concerns. This is a right of the union and its members per the contract with MMB. Meet and Confer members emphasized the need for this subcommittee given that the listed management were not always present at the Meet and Confer, limiting what could be accomplished in this space. Kamaria and Tracy committed to follow up on this request “once more decisions have been made.” The Meet and Confer team will continue checking in with management on this issue.

Kamaria stated MMB is meeting with MAPE leadership on the topic of classifications and expressed optimism about an agreement coming soon. They expressed support in changing the statute language they believe prevents DCYF from changing the classifications of staff who transferred to the agency when it was established. They also stated once the statute has changed, they would like to establish DCYF-specific classifications rather than conforming to Enterprise classifications.

The Meet and Confer team asked about next steps for staff who need reclassification. Management confirmed staff who need their positions reclassified should still work with their leadership to submit that request now; whenever DCYF is granted the authority to reclassify these staff, approvals will result in backpay to the original date of submission.

We need transparency, consistency, and a commitment from DCYF to engage in good-faith discussions about classification equity. This includes:

  • Ensuring fair access to job postings.
  • A commitment to addressing pay discrepancies.

Return to Office (RTO) & Upcoming move to new DCYF office building

Management emphasized the message from the January DCYF Commissioner forum - the lease for the new DCYF office space is not yet signed, and they cannot share information about the new location until the lease is signed.

We posed several options for management to consider to support members during the transition, like increasing flexibility in in-person work requirements during the building transition, communicating a clear timeline of when the building transition will occur, and committing to allow staff to continue reporting to their current office location through the summer months.

Management pushed back on reducing in-person work requirements during the building transition, but reiterated that employees currently concerned about reporting to the office can and should work with their supervisor to request increased flexibility of their in-office time.

Student Loan Reimbursement

  • We asked for an update. Management reshared information from the January DCYF Commissioner forum - the draft policy is being reviewed by MMB. Once MMB signs off, the policy goes to the DCYF executive leadership team for approval. The policy will be implemented on March 2 and management will start sending out communications about the policy in February.
  • We reiterated our request for staff input on the policy prior to implementation, and management committed to sending the policy to the Meet & Confer team once MMB approves it.

Meet & Confer townhall with members - Jan. 21

We had our latest Meet and Confer townhall with members on Wednesday, Jan. 21, and below is our report out. 

Some of the issues we heard from you included:

  • Clarity on what is appropriate for state employees to do during work hours in response to any federal enforcement actions.
  • Clarity regarding who has access to and what kinds of activities are permitted at state facilities and properties.
  • Posting of signage stating federal agents are only allowed access to nonpublic areas by presenting a signed judicial warrant.
    • The processes and procedures that go along with this.
  • A travel reimbursement issue resulting from a policy change in Child Safety and Permanency.
    • Take this member survey about this issue to help us collect information on the impact - https://forms.office.com/g/dWs4Y8ETVN
    • DCYF staff expected to request an advance or get reimbursed for all travel costs except for airfare.
      • Responsible for booking hotels ourselves.
        • One member indicated they had to cover an over $1000 hotel stay out of pocket until their receipts were approved for reimbursement.
      • Not able to use a credit card that incurs rewards, which is extremely limiting.
        • Was suggested that staff could open a new credit line just for state expenses, which is clearly unreasonable.
  • An existing, recurring travel reimbursement issue for staff in Greater Minnesota.
    • Shortest distance rule is not equitable for those who were hired before RTO with the understanding that home would be their primary work location.
    • Staff having to travel once per month to travel long hours with no gas/mileage reimbursement, overnight accommodations, or flex time.

Some of the issues raised in that townhall we were able to address in our January 30 meeting, including:

  • Student loan reimbursement policy
  • Location of the new DCYF office building
  • Classification issues
  • ADA Audit
    • People are still waiting to hear back on the new documentation they submitted to know if it was approved or to set up meetings with the ADA coordinator
    • No consequences reported as of yet for refusal to comply
    • One member told point blank that the audit was in response to an increase in ADA requests after the return to office mandate

If someone has a concern/story about their experience regarding the ADA audit, they should share that with the chair of the meet and confer so we can share their experience.

If there is a specific issue not addressed, they should reach out to a steward who can reach out to the ADA coordinator on their behavior reiterating the questions/issue. If there is further lack of movement, the steward should reach out to Tracy and cc Wanda Fortune-Stiffin and myself. 

We also talked a little bit about our team goals for this year, which include:

  • Increasing our committee membership
  • Developing and fine-tuning our committee processes for keeping/distributing minutes, setting agendas, communicating with members, etc.

Meet & Confer meeting with DCYF management - Dec. 16, 2025

We had an issue-specific Meet and Confer with DCYF management on Tuesday, Dec. 16, 2025, about an Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) reasonable accommodations audit the Equal Opportunity and Access Division is overseeing. As always, we brought your concerns to the table and pushed for clarity, accountability, and action. 

We asked for this meeting with management after members received a notice of a reasonable accommodations (RA) audit sent to all staff holding a RA on November 24, 2025.

The minutes from that meeting will be posted here, and they’re also attached to this email. The questions and requests we had for management included:

  • What options are there to approve accommodations without employees having to schedule further doctor appointments after already submitting documentation?
  • What options are there for temporary accommodations if appointments for more documentation can’t be scheduled quickly?
  • Commitment to better communication from management so MAPE stewards and Meet and Confer members are not caught off guard when asked to assist.
  • Documentation to stewards so they can effectively point workers in the right direction during the interactive process.

We told management they have harmed trust with members through this process and asked how they plan to apologize and make amends. Management committed to improving communication moving forward but reiterated that staff with concerns should reach out to EOAD for one-on-one resolution. EOAD Director Anthony Pledger indicated they have apologized about the communication failure to staff who have reached out individually and they do not plan to communicate this apology more broadly to rebuild trust.

Final Thoughts

Since early 2025, DCYF Meet & Confer has lacked meaningful engagement from the executive team and leadership, which has led to inconsistent progress on issues.

To our members, if you are frustrated by this behavior, you should be. This is a statutory meeting, not a courtesy meeting or space that leadership can choose to attend. We expect decision-makers to be present and engaged.

We believe this is a space to invest in, which is why we’re making an effort to recruit more people to join the team and represent their coworkers and continue to push for what we deserve.

We will meet again with DCYF management in a few weeks, and we’ll provide an update to folks during our next Meet and Confer Townhall on Wednesday March 18, at 12 p.m. 

Sincerely,

MAPE @ DCYF Meet and Confer Team