NUHW Endorses Five Candidates in Local Races
Salinas, California – Last weekend, members of The National Union of Healthcare Workers made a series of endorsement decisions on candidates running for local public offices.
NUHW has endorsed the following candidates:
- Hartnell Community College District, Area 1: Demetrio Pruneda
- Hartnell Community College District, Area 4: Ralph Garcia
- Hartnell Community College District, Area 5: Bill Freeman
- Monterey County Office of Education, District 4: Francisco Estrada
- Monterey County Office of Education, District 5: Tony Acosta
NUHW received endorsements requests from a number of candidates in several local races and invited all candidates to a forum last week. NUHW members interviewed candidates on their positions on issues related to healthcare and worker empowerment, and made a democratic decision based on their assessments of each candidates’ responses.
“The candidates that the membership has selected for endorsement have a demonstrated history of union activism and commitment to working class values,” said Ernesto Gonzales, a Dietary worker at SVMH. “With the repeated attacks on workers all over the country and here in the Salinas Valley, we need to ensure that candidates that are seeking public office understand the issues facing working Americans. We feel that these candidates have met that threshold.”
NUHW represents approximately 800 workers at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital. Since joining NUHW last year, caregivers at SVMH have fought off mass layoffs by the Hospital Board through collective action at the worksite, in public forums and through the media, including a spirited one-day strike.
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