Newswire
Solano County Health & Social Services members rally for SB 525 and score a victory
SB 525 passed the Senate appropriations committee!
Essential healthcare and behavior health workers – from hospital janitorial staff to security officers, medical assistants, resident physicians, and nursing home caregivers – from Solano County Health & Social Services rallied last Thursday, May 18, in support of legislation that is essential to fixing California’s patient care crisis. Senate Bill 525 by Senator Maria Elena Durazo (D-Los Angeles) would help California address the field’s staffing crisis by establishing the nation’s first $25 minimum wage for healthcare workers.
AAPI Heritage Month: Centering Asian American and Pacific Islander voices
A conversation with union steward president Mariette Shin
As we continue our Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month celebrations, we are lifting up local union leaders! This week we are speaking with Mariette Shin, union steward president of the Marin Municipal Water District chapter. Mariette will be one of our community speakers at SEIU 1021’s free, family-friendly AAPI celebration for SEIU members and their families on June 3rd at Snow Park in Oakland (RSVP HERE).
Dixon USD classified workers demand better for students and staff
Workers unite to tell the school board to bargain in good faith
Dixon Unified School District classified workers are speaking out and showing up! On Thursday, May 18, Dixon USD classified employees and allies attended the Dixon school board meeting to demand the district take urgent action to address high turnover and short staffing caused by inadequate wages.
SEIU 1021 members show up for the Big Oil Resistance Tour
On May 12, 2023, SEIU 1021 members joined the Oakland stop of the Big Oil Resistance Tour presented by the 900 organizations comprising the Last Chance Alliance. The tour began in San Diego, held events in 8 cities including Los Angeles, Ventura, Bakersfield, Oakland, and concluded on May 13 in Sacramento with 1021 members there too!
Nonprofit workers say: If you want to solve San Francisco’s biggest problems, pay frontline workers a living wage
Workers at city-funded nonprofits say the city’s efforts to tackle the crises of drug addiction, housing insecurity and mental health are hamstrung by short-staffing and turnover caused by low pay
On May 15, 2023, frontline SEIU 1021members employed by nonprofits funded by the City and County of San Francisco rallied on the steps of San Francisco City Hall to call on city leaders to fund cost of living adjustments (COLAs).
The workers say poverty wages are causing excessive turnover and recruitment problems in programs dedicated to addressing the city’s problems with drug addiction, untreated mental health disorders, and homelessness.
SEIU 1021 members take action for SB 525 in Stockton
Last Wednesday, May 10, healthcare workers rallied in support of SB 525 in Stockton. SB 525 is legislation for a $25 minimum wage for healthcare workers to address the patient care crisis and healthcare workforce shortage. Healthcare workers are burned out and traumatized after the stress of the pandemic and the way healthcare employers disregard staffing needs. Lack of adequate staffing produced tragic results during the pandemic, and healthcare workers are leaving their profession in alarming numbers.
SEIU 1021’s AAPI celebration continues to grow!
Counting down to Here All Year: Celebrating AAPI Heritage With Family on June 3rd
AAPI month is going strong, and we’re busy gearing up for our own AAPI celebration on June 3!
Dixon Unified Schools classified workers vote to authorize strike
The district’s lowest-paid employees, including paraprofessionals, nutrition service workers, clerical staff, and custodians, are demanding the district take urgent action to address high turnover and short staffing caused by inadequate wages
May 3, the Dixon Unified School District (DUSD) chapter announced the results of votes by members to authorize a strike — a first for this chapter. A large majority of members – who work as paraprofessionals supporting the district’s special-needs students, nutrition service workers who make sure Dixon students get hot meals every day, staff who keep Dixon schools running smoothly, and custodians, campus monitors, grounds and maintenance staff who keep the schools clean and safe, and various other classified staff – voted yes.
San Joaquin County members take the fight for Juneteenth to the board of supervisors
Tuesday, May 2, rows of SEIU 1021 members holding signs saying, “San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors: Adopt Juneteenth! Black History is American History” filled the San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors meeting.
App-based workers take the fight for fairness and equity to Uber’s doorstep
As Uber Technologies, Inc., prepared to celebrate record-breaking revenue at its annual shareholder meeting on Monday, May 8, gig workers from Seattle to New York City held massive direct actions to demand that Uber improve driver safety by ending unfair terminations and paying drivers fairly for their work.
SEIU 1021 celebrates AAPI Heritage Month
Join us as we raise up AAPI union leaders and celebrate with a special event
May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month! We’re celebrating this month and beyond, recognizing the critical contributions of our AAPI brothers and sisters to the union and our communities.
City of Oakland workers show up to support Mayor Sheng Thao’s budget
On Wednesday, May 3, Mayor Sheng Thao presented her budget to the Oakland City Council and the public. Working people united in SEIU 1021 and other community members were there to show their support.
California College of the Arts students walk out in protest of staff layoffs
The CCA Student Union organized the walkout and blackout in support of the CCA Staff Union
A year ago, staff at California College of the Arts (CCA) went on a four-day strike in protest of the administration’s illegal labor practices, pushing for a first contract that took over two years (and that strike) to secure. Last month, CCA administration announced their intention to lay off 8-10% of frontline staff in response to lower than expected enrollment – even as they continue to pay their president, Stephen Beal, over $580,000 – more than any other private university president in the Bay Area with the exception of Stanford.
Alameda County members win a new contract after long fight
On Wednesday, April 26, Alameda County workers made it official and voted to ratify their new contract, with 95% YES votes. This followed a lengthy bargaining campaign that started in July of 2022 with the election of a bargaining team and featured near-constant countywide actions, from rallies and marches and unity breaks to petitions, packing the Board of Supervisors meetings to make public comment, and spreading their message with billboards and bus ads.
Gig workers of the world, unite: San Francisco sees international movement of gig workers fight for a labor rights
Hailing from Argentina, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, Denmark, Hong Kong, Italy, Mexico, Nepal, the Philippines, Spain, the U.S., Sweden, and Taiwan, gig workers allied to support the California Gig Workers Union’s appeal to the California Supreme Court to rule Proposition 22 unconstitutional. It was the culmination of a week full of events surrounding the first convening of the International Congress of Gig Workers.
Felton Institute faces harsh criticism for union busting, anti-worker activity
San Francisco Board of Supervisors sides with union and workers
The Board of Supervisors hearing at San Francisco City Hall last Tuesday, April 25, was a testament to union power. In an unorthodox move, the entire board listened to reports of San Francisco nonprofit Felton Institute’s union busting and anti-worker activity. It was clear from the outset that the board was unhappy with Felton. The worker testimonials, supported by indisputable evidence that SEIU provided, were reinforced by every board member on the dais chiming in with their support for the workers and their dismay at Felton’s brazen, unethical actions.
Faculty, students, alumni, and elected officials join forces to Reclaim Holy Names
At a town hall last Thursday, they spoke out about HNU's importance -- and why the campus must be preserved as an educational institution
When Holy Names University administration announced the school would be closing after the spring 2023 semester, after years of mismanagement and lax oversight by its board of trustees, the fates and futures of hundreds of low-income students of color, faculty, and staff were put on the chopping block.
Sacramento City Unified Schools bus drivers win huge raises
The precedent-setting agreement will lift school bus drivers out of poverty while addressing the staffing crisis
Last spring, Sacramento City Unified School District (SCUSD) classified staff and educators went on strike together for 12 days as district administration refused to take urgent action to address its severe staffing crisis.
Sonoma County members ratify new contract with big gains
Members considered "extra-help," those whose classifications are below market, and those who are bilingual will see extra benefits
Friday, April 21, the votes were counted: Sonoma County members of SEIU 1021 voted by 92% to ratify their hard-won tentative agreement that nets hefty increases across the board for county workers, with some extra benefits for those who need it the most.
Starbucks workers win 300th store union victory
What began as a single election at the Elmwood Avenue Starbucks store in Buffalo, New York, in late 2021, has now grown to three hundred.
Starbucks Workers United, an affiliate of SEIU, won its most recent victory at the store at 7th and K streets in downtown Sacramento. The result of unionizing came after an eleven-to-two vote.
“I am overjoyed that despite Starbucks using every dirty trick to deter us, we were able to become true partners in the company,” said Maizie Jensen, a barista at the Sacramento store.