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Speak out against toxic soot!
Sign up for SEIU's Climate Summit on April 15
Soot is a terrible burden on our most vulnerable members of our community: children, elders, and those already living with chronic illness. Soot is a particular issue for working-class and Black and brown families across the country, and we need the EPA to step up and do its job to enact the strongest possible standards to limit soot pollution.
Gig workers continue the fight after the California First District Court of Appeal decision on Proposition 22 lawsuit
Voters approved Proposition 22 over two years ago after app-based ride-hailing and delivery companies, including Uber, Lyft, Instacart, and DoorDash, spent more than $200 million marketing the ballot initiative to Californians as a boon to workers and customers. Despite the promise of flexible schedules, some worker benefits, and low prices, drivers are no better off than before—it has only allowed these companies to deprive them of a living wage, access to workers compensation, paid sick leave, and meaningful healthcare coverage while maximizing their own profits.
SEIU 1021 and Oakland elected leaders join forces to maintain higher education at Holy Names
When Holy Names University (HNU) became the latest private Bay Area nonprofit college to announce its closure after mismanagement, poor decision-making, and self-dealing by administration and board members, SEIU 1021 was immediately invested in advocating for the college to stay open or to be replaced by another higher education institution.
Starbucks workers across U.S. to tell CEO Howard Schultz: “Union busting is disgusting!”
What do you do when the bosses throw parties to celebrate themselves? Starbucks workers in Seattle have an answer: Crash that party and make it your own. Starbucks Corporation is hosting a “Founders Day” event on Wednesday, March 22, in Seattle, Washington, to celebrate CEO Howard Schultz. Union members and supporters plan to be there as well for a party of their own that celebrates the real founders of Starbucks and its erstwhile progressive values: the workers.
As Alameda County’s staffing crisis continues, county workers march on the Board of Supervisors to demand a solution
To protest Alameda County administration’s failure to act urgently to fill its 2,611 vacant positions – nearly 25% of the entire County workforce – more than 100 County workers marched on the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday, March 14, at noon. Workers from SEIU 1021, IFPTE Local 21, and IBT 856 all took the chambers, chanting “Staff up! Alameda County!” for several minutes before workers delivered powerful testimony to the board.
Over 500 Sonoma County workers rally as contract expires
A settlement for 2300 County workers remains distant as County administration refuses to take adequate measures to address retention and recruitment
Over 500 SEIU 1021 members working for Sonoma County braved the rain and cold to rally outside and inside the county administration building as the Board of Supervisors met last Tuesday, February 28, as their contract expired with the County still insisting on takeaways that would completely absorb or even eclipse the cost of living adjustment for many workers.
Dixon Unified School District classified staff pack school board meeting to demand living wage
The Dixon Unified School District school board meeting was flooded with a sea of purple last Thursday, March 2, as over 65 classified employees packed the chambers to share their stories during public comment and show support for their bargaining team, who have been negotiating a successor contract for 11 months.
Spotlight
Coffee tastes better when its unionized: Peet’s Coffee workers hold rally after winning first union vote in North America
After voting fourteen to one to become the first unionized Peet’s Coffee location in the United States, Peet’s Coffee workers, now members of the Service Employees International Union Local 1021, held a rally on Saturday, January 28, 2023, in front of the coffeehouse in North Davis. The vote comes after nearly nine months of workers organizing with SEIU Local 1021 and Workers United, an SEIU affiliate organizing workers on the “Starbucks Workers United” campaign.
Fast food workers secure $2.2 million in wage theft violations, vow to continue their fight back against corporate greed
While fast-food corporations like McDonald’s Corporation, Burger King Corporation, Jack in the Box, Inc., and others attempt to roll back the significant gains with the passage of 2022’s Assembly Bill 257 – the Fast Food Accountability and Standards Recovery Act, or the FAST Recovery Act for short, fast-food workers continue the fight for higher wages, safer workspaces, and a union.
The Starbucks organizing momentum reaches the Bay Area amid national strike
What began as one unionizing effort at a Starbucks coffeehouse in Buffalo, New York, has spread across the United States to over six thousand five hundred workers at over two-hundred-fifty corporate-owned Starbucks stores in under one year.
Fast food workers go on strike to say “Stop the referendum: come to the table NOW!”
Last Tuesday, November 15, fast food workers across California went on strike and rallied in five cities to demand that major corporations including McDonald’s, Chipotle, Jack in the Box, and Starbucks come to the bargaining table to solve major problems these workers face on the job.
Relationships matter: SF VP Kristin Hardy on why our union gets active in politics
The midterm elections are right around the corner and SEIU 1021 members are fired up to talk to their friends, neighbors, and coworkers about the political candidates we are endorsing in this election. It is crucially important for our union to endorse and support candidates who are committed to the cause of working folks—it’s our opportunity to elect the people who approve our contracts, make decisions about funding our services, and set policies that dictate the future of our communities.
Rideshare and delivery drivers form the California Gig Workers Union
App-based drivers and delivery workers from across the Golden State announced the formation of a union Wednesday — the California Gig Workers Union (CGWU) — at a rally in front of Uber headquarters in San Francisco.
Citing low wages and a lack of basic protections on the job, gig workers called on Uber and other tech giants to grant them employee protections and to recognize their right to join together in a union. Drivers marched to Lyft and DoorDash headquarters, too, holding similar rallies outside each.
SEIU 1021 Climate Justice Committee celebrates passage and signing of landmark bills: Senate Bills 1314 and 1137
Great news! Two bills have been successfully passed through the California state legislature and have been signed by Governor Newsom to help make progress toward our union’s climate justice goals: Senate Bill 1314, which stops supporting further oil and gas extraction, and SB 1137, which creates new restrictions to protect communities from the pollution and dangers of fossil fuel drilling.
