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SEIU 1021 members stood on the picket line with Registered Nurses during their one-day strike at San Leandro Hospital on September 20. Nurses called out management’s unfair labor practices and bad faith bargaining after negotiations stalled.

John Pearson, ER nurse and SEIU 1021 chapter president of Alameda Health Systems, felt it was important to show solidarity with the Nurses.

“We are in the exact same fight with Alameda Health Systems and we know that management is going to treat us the same way during our contract negotiations.”

On September 20, SEIU 1021 members across Northern California stood with students, climate change activists, and other unions by participating in the International Youth Climate Strike.  Together, workers demanded that world leaders take immediate, bold action on climate change and to raise standards for working people. 

On September 12, over 250 hospital workers rallied to address chronic understaffing at Laguna Honda Hospital and the Adult Residential Facility (ARF) at San Francisco General Hospital’s campus. Holding signs that read “A Patient Care Solution is Safe Staffing Not Scapegoating,” workers criticized the SF Department of Public Health (DPH) for outsourcing jobs to save money.

On September 14, nearly 100 East Bay 1021 Chapter leaders spent the day strategizing, socializing, and building unity.

Laura Ocon, a member from La Clinica de la Raza, said “It’s so important to meet other people and get other perspectives on how we can become better together. The challenges we face are the same. Realizing that we aren’t alone is important. We have more in common than what people think.”

On Tuesday, September 10, the Contra Costa Board of Supervisors unanimously voted for a 3.44% wage increase for Social Workers. While the 3.44% salary adjustment is a welcome win to the Contra Costa County social work classification, other classifications are still below the salary mean.

“We’re one of the lowest-paying counties in California,” said Chief Steward Ashley Payne, an Eligibility worker for Medi-cal. “Other counties have fewer cases and get paid more.”