November 30th, 2009
Talking Union: Leaving SEIU and Joining NUHW
An Open Letter to my SEIU friends, former co-workers, and all SEIU members and staff
By Paul Krehbiel
As a former staff worker for Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 660 (now 721) in Los Angeles from 1998 – 2007, I am appalled by the degeneration of SEIU under the direction of President Andy Stern. While Local 660 had its share of problems, it had been in many respects a vibrant union. I was committed to Local 660 and its members and worked hard to build a strong, democratic, member-empowered union. But I can no longer remain silent about the degeneration I see, not only in Local 721, but also in many other SEIU units that Stern and his agents have taken over.
November 26th, 2009
Union allies gather to support NUHW, undeterred by SEIU violence
As union leaders, elected officials, and community allies gathered this month to support healthcare workers, paid SEIU staff tried to deter them with violence and empty threats. Beyond Chron reported on SEIU’s attacks on progressive leaders and on supporters in Los Angeles, which have only increased support for NUHW and further isolated SEIU. Yesterday, the […]
November 24th, 2009
Immigrant and disability advocates protest SEIU voter intimidation
Workers say SEIU is retaliating against whistle-blowers after illegal tactics exposed by Wall Street Journal
Fresno, Calif.—Immigrant and disability advocates spoke out at a protest today outside the Fresno office of the labor union SEIU. SEIU came under fire last week for allegedly tampering with ballots and making illegal threats against its own members—including threats that immigrant workers could be deported—in this summer’s controversial union election for 10,000 Fresno homecare providers.
“No union has the right to threaten to deport workers,” said Leonel Flores, an organizer with the Fresno-based Union de Exbraceros y de Inmigrantes. “Many workers have no way to legalize their status. But all workers have rights. SEIU must stop the threats and start treating workers with respect.”
November 24th, 2009
L.A. NOW: SEIU could sever ties with California Democratic Party
California Democratic Party Chairman John Burton says one of the state’s most politically powerful unions has threatened to cut off funding for the party over his support for a group that has broken away from the labor organization.
…Burton said SEIU’s California president, Bill Lloyd, made the threat as Burton was set to appear last week at a San Francisco fundraiser for the splinter group, the National Union of Healthcare Workers.
“They threatened me,” said the 76-year-old Burton.
Burton said that he was championing union workers “when [SEIU’s national president] Andy Stern was in college.” He hailed the breakaway union’s leader, Sal Rosselli, as a lifelong friend and “one of the strongest labor leaders in this state.”
November 24th, 2009
WorkingUSA: The Progressive Quandary About SEIU
The terrain of “progressive labor” in the U.S. has shifted dramatically in recent years. The two-million member Service Employees International Union (SEIU)—long associated with the remaking of labor as a force for social justice—has become embroiled in a series of controversies that have alienated past campus, community, and political allies. A union that once commanded almost automatic support in left-liberal circles now finds many “friends of labor” arrayed against it, rhetorically at least, and, in some cases, actively assisting organizational rivals such as UNITE HERE and the new National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW).