From the Desk of Local 1000 Board Chair Bill Hall
Good afternoon –
As we prepare to return to the bargaining table in 2023, Union
membership is more important than ever. Research supports what we
have always known to be true — Unions improve and protect wages
and working conditions
for all workers. As a result, Local
1000 represented workers have more job safety protections, more
paid leave, and are more secure exercising their rights in the
workplace. As we continue to grow our membership, a new law
—
SB 931 — puts real penalties in place when public
employers are undeterred from violating their employees’ rights
to organize. It’s also important to recognize the role our labor
allies at the SEIU State Council and California Labor Federation
played in demanding that the Legislature provide meaningful
consequences for these bad faith actions.
SB 931 prohibits a public employer from deterring or discouraging
public employees or applicants from becoming or remaining members
of an employee organization. Government Code section
further 3550 permits a Union to file a claim at the Public
Employee Relations Board (PERB). And PERB may now issue
significant fines against the employer ($1,000 per affected
employee, not to exceed $100,000) and award attorney’s fees and
costs to a prevailing Union. Together, these new rights
leave Local 1000 well-positioned to protect our workers.
- I want to recognize the accomplishments of our Union’s
elected Board of Directors at our regularly scheduled meeting
December 3rd and 4th. On Saturday,
the Board heard Department presentations in the morning and
engaged in our Human Rights Committee meetings in the
afternoon. Sunday began with an Executive Session and
moved 2023 Budget Finance report and presentation. The
Board of Directors worked collectively to pass the 2023-operating
budget, clear all business on the agenda, and ratify the
selection of the members for the Committee on the Future of Local
1000.
- To help bring cohesive structure and leadership for our
bargaining efforts, the Board of Directors also ratified the vote
of the Bargaining Unit Chairs, approving Vice President for
Bargaining Irene Green as the Master Table spokesperson for our
2023 contract negotiations. Our next scheduled Board of
Directors meeting is in person in Sacramento, March 17-19. There
will also be a hybrid option.
- On Monday, December 5, our leadership team – Vice President
for Organizing/Representation Anica Walls, Vice President for
Bargaining Irene Green, Vice President Secretary-Treasurer David
Jimenez, and myself — with support from our political team —
spent the day developing relationships with key Senate and
Assembly members. We will need their support in our
Contract Campaign.
- On Tuesday, I participated in the SEIU State Council Meeting
for the California Healthcare Industry. After listening and
learning about their issues, concerns, and frustrations, I spoke
about the issues our members have working for the State. These
include our nurses, dental assistants, and LVN’s, who work for
lower wages than other private sector counterparts. Many other
issues were also shared, such as being mandated for overtime,
working conditions, and unreasonable employers and
managers. Our Political Department followed up by securing
the support of the California Labor Federation for our 2023
contract negotiations.
- On Wednesday, I returned to my state job at Caltrans in
Oakland.
- On Thursday, Executive Director Nina Schulman and I spent the
morning moving forward with staff planning related to our 2023
Contract Campaign. The afternoon was spent on a Public
Sector Planning session with SEIU State Council. This is
the first step in making our 2023 contract a top priority.
- Finally, on Friday, after leadership development work for myself, we held a meeting with the Contract Campaign Planning Group, followed by an interview for the consultant for the Committee on the Future. VP Secretary–Treasurer Jimenez and I both agreed on hiring the same consultant after speaking with him for over an hour via Zoom.
I’m very encouraged with the work we are doing. We have the
talent and the leadership needed within our ranks to build our
membership and secure a great contract in 2023.
Together we will succeed.
William (Bill) Hall
Board Chair, SEIU Local 1000
bhall@seiu1000.org