Labor scholars denounce retaliation against local union; stewards and members vote to defend their union against SEIU's hostile takeover of United Healthcare Workers-West SAN JOSE, Calif., Sept. 6
SAN JOSE, Calif., Sept. 6 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- More than 4,000
members of SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West (UHW) and other SEIU locals
marched in downtown San Jose on Saturday to oppose a planned takeover by
national union officials.
On Aug. 25, national SEIU President Andy Stern and Secretary-Treasurer
Anna Burger announced their intent to put UHW into trusteeship, which would
replace elected rank-and-file UHW leaders with handpicked appointees
accountable only to Stern and Burger. UHW members, who work in hospitals,
nursing homes, and private homes across California, have been leading an
effort for democratic reform within SEIU and opposing Stern's efforts to
centralize power in Washington, D.C.
A letter to Andy Stern from leading labor scholars and historians was
presented by Cal Winslow, a labor history fellow at the University of
California, Berkeley. The letter declares that a takeover of UHW would be "a
disaster for the California labor movement and for SEIU nationally."
"This is a desperate attempt by Stern to distract attention from the
growing scandal involving local union presidents he appointed and promoted,"
said Maria Martinez, an elected shop steward for 15 years at Fifth Avenue
Healthcare Center in San Rafael. "In UHW, members elect our leaders and they
are accountable to us."
Pat McGinnis, director of California Advocates for Nursing Home Reform,
said that the trusteeship could lower standards for nursing home care across
the state by limiting caregivers' voice to advocate for residents.
"The strategy SEIU International and Local 6434 have pursued with nursing
home operators in California discourages caregivers from speaking out about
dangerous conditions in nursing homes," she said. "Nursing home workers in UHW
have been the leading voice for union contracts that empower them to stand up
for their residents."
Eloise Reese-Burns, a nursing assistant at Cottonwood Healthcare Center in
Woodland and member of UHW's executive board, announced two resolutions that
were debated and approved at the local's annual conference by more than 2,000
elected stewards and member leaders.
One resolution directs the union to protect member control of UHW by
mobilizing the union's 150,000 members to stop the illegal trusteeship. The
other reaffirms UHW's longstanding goal of building one statewide union that
is accountable to healthcare workers in California instead of union officials
in Washington, D.C.
With more than 150,000 members, SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West is the
fastest-growing healthcare union in the United States. We represent healthcare
workers in all job classifications and all healthcare settings, including
hospitals, homecare, nursing homes and clinics. Our mission is to achieve
high-quality healthcare for all.
Contact: Sadie Crabtree, +1-323-365-2083
SOURCE SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West
