Engaging our future member leaders
2:41 PM - February 12, 2014

Local 1000 reaches out to young state workers and finds a group of members eager to work hard for social and economic justice.
The next generation of the labor movement may be led by the new activists Local 1000 is recruiting and investing in today.
Member leaders and organizers are discovering a wealth of enthusiasm among some of Local 1000’s young professional members and are working to give them the tools and the training to continue building on the labor movement’s legacy of social and economic justice. 
“A key element of the Local 1000 Purpose Statement is to engage and develop new members,” said Vice President for Organizing/Representation Tamekia N. Robinson. “Our goal is to demonstrate to our younger members that the Union offers them the structure and tools they need to make a big difference at work and in their communities. It is our responsibility to help them harness their grassroots power by working together.”
Pioneering this effort is District Labor Council (DLC) 762 in Sacramento, where a group of nearly two dozen members, ages 35 and under, came together to build a strong member network in their workplace. Discussions in their meetings range from topics such as student loan debt and career mobility, to strategizing the most effective way to broadly communicate Local 1000’s values. They’re already reaching out to other young members to help them organize in their own worksites.
Bargaining Unit 4 member Maurice James, age 30, is eager to mobilize his colleagues while working to become a steward. “I first became active in the union to get more information about issues like upward mobility,” he said. “But my interest in the union really stems from my understanding of the need for power, for people to organize themselves to share information, speak to the powers that be as a unified voice and collaborate on campaigns,”
Bargaining Unit 1 member Robert Bayze is in his twenties and wants his coworkers to know that our work as a Union cannot afford to be limited to self- interests even if that’s where it begins. “The union is a microcosm of a bigger picture of everyday people coming together for a common cause,” he explained.
“I want to show that we care for our colleagues and our communities. I’m excited to share that message because unity makes it possible to tackle the larger issues like income inequality–a problem that exists because wealthy individuals in power want to stay in power and further divide the middle class.”