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SEIU 1021
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Looking for stories from our latest weekly SEIU 1021 Newswire? Here you go!

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Adjunct Faculty and Lecturers at Beloved Silicon Valley Institution Santa Clara University File for a Union Election with the National Labor Relations Board

AFLOC members Dawn Hart, Natalie Linnell, and Stephanie Hughes tabling on campus on Thursday, April 21, 2022.

Media Contact: Chris Flink, chris.flink at seiu1021.org, 510.701.9637

The rising tide of unionization comes to higher education in Silicon Valley, hoping to help fix the “gig-ification” of being a college professor.

Santa Clara, California — On Friday, April 22, 2022, adjunct faculty members and lecturers at Santa Clara University (SCU) filed with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), requesting a formal election process to found a union at SCU. The adjuncts and lecturers have been organizing the union since 2017.

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Gig workers speak out about new Uber, Lyft policy making face masks optional

With zero worker input, Uber and Lyft have now made wearing face masks optional for riders and drivers. The ride-hailing companies announced the new policy unilaterally last week, shortly after several significant airlines announced a similar change in policy. The changes come after a federal judge struck down the Biden administration’s mask mandate for airplanes and other public transport methods.

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The election is on! Mullissa Willette, the First Vice President of SEIU Local 521, is the choice for public-sector workers.

This year, workers whose retirement benefits are governed by the California Public Employees’ Retirement System will have an opportunity to vote for a new member of the  Board of Administration. This is a crucial election, as Board members are responsible for setting employer contribution rates, determining investment asset allocations, providing actuarial valuations, and much more.

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As Tax Day Approaches, SEIU 1021 Members Call on Corporations to Pay Their Fair Share

Tax Day is April 18. The day is an opportunity for us to call on corporations to pay the taxes they owe. We live in the richest country on earth. We know we have the resources to provide good schools, affordable housing, and safe communities for everyone. Yet, we are two years into a global pandemic that has devastated communities of color, killed more than 900,000 people across our country, and deeply divided our communities, while corporations are reaping massive profits. Working people are fed up. We are coming together to say: Enough is enough!

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CCA Staff, Adjuncts Ratify Contract with Big Improvements

Last week, staff and adjunct faculty at California College of the Arts voted overwhelmingly—by 98% and 96% respectively–to ratify the tentative agreements reached in the wake of a four-day unfair labor practice (ULP) strike February 8-11. The contract is the first for CCA staff, who voted by a supermajority to form a union with SEIU 1021 in 2019, and the second for CCA adjuncts, who formed their union with SEIU 1021 in 2014.

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Sac City Schools Classified Staff Went on Strike & Won Big!
Both SEIU 1021 and SCTA reached tentative agreements Sunday evening. The strike is now over.

“When we fight, we win! When we fights, students win!” was the mantra for the eight workdays (and twelve calendar days) of the Sacramento City Unified School District strike. Both classified staff–including school bus drivers, nutrition service workers, custodians, instructional aides, maintenance workers, and clerical staff–and teachers represented by Sacramento City Teachers Association (SCTA) went on strike starting March 23.

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Congratulations to our union’s newest Executive Board members!

A hostile, anti-labor president, a cadre of millionaires and billionaires attacking workers across the country, Janus v. AFSCME, wildfires blazing up and down California, the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic, a continuing onslaught of police brutality and white supremacy, an insurrection to overthrow a democratic vote at the U.S. capital, the last Executive Board of SEIU Local 1021 saw a world turn upside down. Yet, through it all, our union survived.

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Oakland Unified School District staff unanimously approve tentative agreement
The new contract will provide much-needed ongoing raises, thousands in one-time payments, and other improvements

Last week, SEIU 1021 members at Oakland Unified School District voted on a tentative agreement that will provide meaningful ongoing raises; thousands in one-time payments for all members, including part-timers; COVID safety protections on the job; and more contract improvements. Members voted by 100% to approve the TA.

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San Joaquin County Human Services Agency Workers fight back and win a realistic caseload

San Joaquin County Human Services Agency Eligibility Workers understand the demanding conditions they face. Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, the turnaround time for caseload management was quickly becoming unrealistic. Now, the pandemic has revealed truths about how our workplaces run. That is why having a member-led union that fights for all workers at the workplace is vital. Without worker power, our caseload management would be overrun, high-quality patient care would not be delivered, and the health of our community would be at risk.

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RNs & healthcare workers blow the whistle on the staffing crisis crippling SF General Hospital

On Thursday, March 10, Registered Nurses and healthcare workers at San Francisco General Hospital held a lunchtime rally to call attention to the staffing crisis that is plaguing city services and impacting patients and residents.

Over 100 hospital workers took part in the lunchtime rally, with many grabbing the bullhorn to share personal stories that highlight all of the ways they’ve seen patient care and hospital services suffer as a result of the chronic short-staffing and abuse of temporary workers.

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Fast-food workers strike at McDonald’s in Saratoga for better wages and working conditions

On Tuesday, March 8, 2022—also known as International Women’s Day—striking workers from McDonald’s on Prospect Road in Saratoga led a rally protesting the discrimination and retaliation against Seberiana Reymundo, a worker with cancer at the store. They also protested the company’s failure to abide by paid sick leave laws and demanded that state legislators pass AB 257 - the FAST Recovery Act.

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Gig workers are fighting for bathroom access and humane working conditions in San Francisco

Gig workers with We Drive Progress are continuing the fight for bathroom access. The campaign over entry to permanent, sanitary, and reliable facilities with adequate toilets for gig workers is looking to take its fight to Uber, Lyft, DoorDash, Instacart, and other gig companies.

Through a Northern California survey back in December 2021, gig workers told We Drive Progress the inability to access bathrooms while working was one of their most significant issues. 

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San Francisco City & County workers take their fight against short-staffing to a whole new level

The City and County of San Francisco has a staffing crisis. Decades of cutbacks have contributed to this crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic has made things worse than ever. Research indicates that the city has over 3,800 unfilled jobs, which forces members to do more with less and has potential impacts on service delivery for residents. Now, as SEIU 1021 members head to the bargaining table this year and the city continues to drag its heels on adequately staffing services, members are looking to turn up the heat on management.

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Mills College Staff March on the President’s House Demanding a Fair Contract & Just Transition
The college is scheduled to be acquired by Northeastern University this summer, and there have been no guarantees in writing that employees will keep their jobs.

Last Tuesday, March 1, dozens of Mills College staff, faculty, students, and alumnae converged on Holmgren Meadow to make administration hear their demands for a just transition. They started with a festive Mardi Gras-themed gathering, followed by a march to the on-campus mansion of the college president, Elizabeth Hillman, where they led a spirited rally and a candlelight vigil.

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Coalition of SF City College Unions Urge Mayor Breed to Support Revenue Measure to Restore, Improve CCSF

Mayor Breed listens to Maria Salazar-Colón at Friday's meeting at City Hall

Friday afternoon, members of the San Francisco City College Revenue Unity Coalition, representing the unions that employees of SF City College (CCSF) belong to, met with SF Mayor London Breed. We introduced a plan to generate the annual $43.7 million they have identified as a gap between current revenue and what is needed to meet the minimum demand for CCSF programs and services.