The purpose of Local 1000 is to have the power necessary to give our members—and all Californians—the opportunity to have a good life, live in sustainable communities and enjoy the fruits of social and economic justice.
We will achieve this by engaging and developing our members and by creating strategic alliances with key leaders and organizations who share our purpose and values.
For 20 years, Yvonne Walker has dedicated her life to serving the people of California through public service. Yvonne began working for the State of California at the Department of Justice (DOJ) in 1995 as a legal secretary. She soon became a union steward and led efforts to organize her coworkers at the DOJ. Before becoming president of Local 1000, Yvonne chaired our office and allied workers Bargaining team (Unit 4) and was later Vice President for bargaining statewide. In May of 2008, Yvonne Walker broke racial and gender barriers to become the first African-American woman president of SEIU Local 1000. Currently, President Walker is also a Vice President on SEIU International’s Executive Board.
“We cannot get stuck in a race to the bottom. Good Jobs improve our economy and strengthen the middle class.”
—Yvonne R. Walker
President, Local 1000
Yvonne developed her leadership skills in the U.S. Marine Corps where she learned the importance of discipline, dedication and unity of purpose. As President of Local 1000, she has put those leadership qualities to use by empowering Local 1000’s membership to get involved in the fight for economic and social justice. Her efforts have given Local 1000 a stronger collective voice in its fight to defend working families from assaults on their pensions, wages and benefits, and health care.
Associate Information Systems Analyst
Department of Justice
Margarita Maldonado has dedicated a quarter of a century to public service. While working as an Information Systems Analyst for the California Department of Justice, she became active in her union and soon became the Chair of Local 1000’s Bargaining Unit 1, the largest civil sector bargaining unit in the State of California. From there she was elected Local 1000’s Vice President for Bargaining, where she’s led contract negotiations for over 95,000 state workers.
Tamekia Robinson’s quick rise in the U.S. labor movement has been a testament to her exceptional leadership skills and her dedication to broadening the scope and relevancy of unions to a younger generation of workers. A little over a decade ago, she started working for the state as a Program Technician at California’s State Fund. In those short 10 years, she has gone from being a Local 1000 shop steward to being elected statewide as the Vice President for Organizing / Representation for 95,000 state workers.
Senior Insurance Examiner Specialist
Department of Insurance
Cora has served as Vice President Secretary-Treasurer for SEIU Local 1000 for over six years. Members overwhelmingly elected Cora to this position because of her integrity and financial experience. As part of her duties, Cora provides financial and budget analysis and updates to Local 1000’s 61-member Executive Board. She also chairs Local 1000’s Agenda Committee, Budget Committee and its DLC Grants Committee.
Local 1000 stands out among labor unions because of the vision we carry for our members, their families and their communities. We believe that hardworking people should be paid a fair wage, have retirement security, affordable health care and housing, access to quality early education through college, and an equal opportunity to achieve the American dream.
The retirement issues of young professionals in their 20s and early 30s may seem far off for a board that is developing a system to help people retire in their 60s, but we are California’s future.
