Last Wednesday, the Alameda Health System Board of Trustees voted to accept the direction of the Board of Supervisors and defer all layoffs until June 30, the end of the fiscal year! This vote by the Trustees brings to a successful conclusion the fight SEIU 1021 members have been waging for months, ever since the county’s safety-net healthcare system began plans to issue layoff notices on Christmas Eve.

AHS Chapter President Maria Betancourt said, ”This is a massive win, and I want to be clear that it was only possible because of the incredible work from our members, who showed up time after time to keep fighting until we won. We are going to have to keep fighting, too, because we know AHS really will have funding problems because of the Big Ugly Bill.

“To make sure we are prepared for this fight, we need to stay ready across our worksites. Wear your purple every Wednesday to show your unity. Meanwhile, we will work on this new ad hoc committee, lobby in Sacramento, and explore every option to protect public healthcare and protect jobs.

“But that is for tomorrow. For today, I’m proud and grateful for the hard, smart work our members did to win this fight, and I’m optimistic that we’ll be ready for the next one.”

Union representatives and AHS management will now begin work in the Alameda County Board of Supervisors ad hoc committee, headed by Supervisors Nate Miley and Nikki Fortunato Bas, to review options to address AHS’s financial imbalance for this and next fiscal year. In addition to working on this committee, SEIU 1021 members will fight to make sure any future layoffs will have to go through all legally required processes from the beginning, including WARN notices and a Beilenson Hearing.

Meanwhile, in the City of Hayward, members rallied last Thursday outside the mayor’s state of the city address to protest layoffs of their own. 

So far, the City is holding fast, insisting that they would rather put money into fattening their reserves than protect jobs and services. Why it’s more important for the City to own a movie theatre than invest in city workers who help Hayward residents improve their lives is a question Mayor Salinas has so far been incapable of answering.

City of Hayward Chapter President Evelyn Olivera said, “We showed our unity in front of the mayor’s state of the city, and were joined by supporters from across Alameda County, including IFPTE Local 21, the Alameda Labor Council, and other SEIU 1021 members. We’re not done fighting.”