Tuesday, August 4, SEIU 1021 members at the Greater Vallejo Recreation District — including facilities supervisors, landscape supervisors, recreation coordinators, administrative assistants, and accounting clerks — voted unanimously to ratify their new union contract.

It was a hard-won fight. The employer opened bargaining by demanding concessions, including overtime restrictions and eliminating Christmas Eve as a holiday.

In July, members organized and confronted the Board of Trustees at its meeting.

That organizing paid off. Members secured 9.5% in wage increases over the three-year contract.

In addition, for the first time ever, members won:

• Longevity pay.
• Bilingual pay.
• Four more hours of floating time.
• Safety boot reimbursement.
• A deferred compensation match.

Jeffrey Worrell, an SEIU 1021 member who works as an administrative assistant at Greater Vallejo Recreation District, said: “It was rough because it felt like the Board had made up their minds early on. They weren’t moving on anything. For a while it felt like banging your head against a wall. Continuous no movement. But finally, we had breakthroughs. That came through persistence, hard bargaining, and organizing.”