I’m getting alot of questions about this, so here are the basics:

The fastest growing and most diverse labor union in the nation is uniting ten of its existing California locals into one regional union, SEIU 1021. The union will represent a combined membership of roughly 54,000 workers in health care, local government, special districts, non-profit/private agencies and schools.

Frequently Asked Questions about SEIU Local 1021

What is Local 1021? SEIU Local 1021 is the newly chartered SEIU public services local in the northern region of California. Local 1021 unites members of former Locals 535, 614, 616, 707, 790, 949, 1280, 1292, 4988, and public sector workers of UHW and 1877—a combined membership of nearly 54,000 workers in local government, special districts, non-profit/private sector agencies, health care, and schools.

How did this new union come about?
SEIU members voted at the 2000 SEIU convention to engage in a process across the country of reorganizing local union jurisdictions to create stronger local unions by ensuring that they are large enough to have the resources needed to represent workers effectively and to focus locals in a single industry—in our case, public services. That vote was reaffirmed by a vote of the members at the 2004 SEIU convention in San Francisco. Hearings were held in California in March and April of 2006 where hearing officers asked members throughout the state to give their opinions on what structure would make our union stronger and produce bigger wins. The hearing officers issued a decision which was adopted by the SEIU Executive Board in June and approved by a margin of 88% in a vote of all affected members that culminated on October 6, 2006.

Why change now?
Public employees in California are under increasing attack. Our pensions are constantly under attack. Rising health care costs are the number one issue in bargaining in all sectors and are eating into our standard of living. Budget cuts at the federal, state, and local level put our services at risk, and contracting out schemes and outsourcing threaten our job security. And the decline in wages and benefits in areas in California and around the country where labor is not strong is undermining our standards more every day. If we don’t take bold action to make our union stronger, we will continue to see our wages, benefits and job security eroded.

How will this new union make us stronger?
We will be in one union with county, city, court, non-profit, health care, and schools workers from all over northern California. Employers will no longer be able to pit one local union against the other where we share common jurisdictions. United as one we can strengthen members’ voices in the workplace to solve problems, raise workplace standards, and improve their working lives. Workers across the region will be able to coordinate and support each other on common issues like wages, pensions, health care, retiree medical, and staffing. And we will be able to combine and share resources so that we can strengthen our communications and education programs, improve our technology systems, and help the many unrepresented workers join with us.

What difference will this make when dealing with problems at the worksite?
The plan is to develop stronger worksite leaders/staff partnerships so we can more effectively coordinate with members with similar problems, develop strategies that work and take action. Having additional resources and input from members will enable us to identify and examine what is and what isn’t working.

Have members had a voice in determining what Local 1021 will look thus far?
Yes. In the fall of 2006, members from all of the affected locals participated in 10 committees that came up with recommendations on what politics, representation, organizing, new leader/staff development, member participation, a nurse program, community involvement, communications, structure, and administrative/finance programs should look like in the new local. Those committees will continue their work as we move forward as one local.
I did not vote for this, why should I support it now?
We understand and respect not everyone supported the restructure. However, the reality is if we are going to achieve our goals and truly affect change, we need to come together to fight for the issues that effect us like health care, stronger contacts, a better future for our children, and secure retirement. For this to work, we need to fight together and work together.

Who will lead Local 1021?
Damita Davis-Howard, formerly the executive director of Local 535 and labor leader in SEIU for over seventeen years, has been appointed by SEIU President Andrew Stern as the provisional president of the new northern local.

The other provisional officers are Vice President Christal Cox (registered nurse and former Local 616 vice president), Treasurer Sandra Lewis Combs (former Local 790 East Bay regional vice president), and Secretary John Morrison (former president of Local 707).

There will also be an provisional executive board of up to 20 member leaders and an provisional advisory committee of up to 108 member leaders from all the affected locals.

Will the new union be democratic?
Yes. The new rank and file officers, executive board members, and advisory committee members were all previously elected to a leadership position in their former locals. These member leaders will oversee a process of creating bylaws and democratic governing structures for the new local. They will set direction and priorities until the work is completed and members can elect their permanent officers and vote on their permanent bylaws. Additionally, during this interim period, industry councils will be set up to lead on issues that affect members and their work in that industry.
Members will continue to elect their own stewards, officers, and negotiators and have the ability to approve or reject their own contracts.

Will my contract be affected?
No. All SEIU contracts with employers will remain in place and will be enforced. Members will not lose any benefits, pay, or other protections as a result of the unification of our locals into one. We will work with our lawyers to make sure that all contracts are transferred to the appropriate new local.

Will my dues change?
Your dues will remain the same until the members of the new local vote on a new dues rate. First, leaders of the new local will review all existing dues structures and make recommendations about a new structure and a democratic process for implementing it.

Will we still have local offices and staff?
Yes. Our leaders, with member input, continue the process of deciding on the vision for our new local and on the programs and structures needed to achieve that vision. In the meantime, local union offices in each region remain open and locally based staff is still in place to support our members. You can still reach your union by using the same phone and fax numbers.