eNewsletter - May 23, 2008
Labor Makes Key Endorsements for June 3rd Elections
Several key statewide and local initiatives will be on the ballot on Election Day, Tuesday, June 3rd. Visit Local 21's Political Action page for a list of Local 21 endorsements and voting recommendations (pdf). All endorsements were approved by Local 21's Executive Committee, and include several incumbents and newcomers in City Council races in Oakland, Hayward, and San Leandro, and a Board of Supervisors candidate in Santa Clara County. Local 21's Executive Committee also made endorsements in several State Assembly and Senate races, State-wide propositions (No on 98, Yes on 99) which impact all Local 21 members, and took firm positions on San Francisco's propositions. Local 21's Political Action page also features endorsements made by the California Labor Federation (pdf), the San Francisco Labor Council (link), and the Alameda County Labor Council (pdf).
Local 21's CCSF Bargaining Team Sets Budget Strategy
Over 75 members of the Local 21 CCSF bargaining team met on Wednesday, May 21st to review the current budget crisis in San Francisco and shape a strategy in response to the Mayor's "request" from city unions to accept eight unpaid furlough days over two years. According to the City, agreeing to this concession could save 500 employees from impending layoffs. However, regardless of any agreements, 300 vacant positions have already been eliminated and another 300 filled positions will be laid off.
The City has overspent its budget by $338 million in a year where revenues have increased. "The situation in San Francisco is not like the State budget problem, which is driven by a decline in revenue," noted Joe Brenner, Local 21's Director of Research, Policy & Education. Brenner led a delegation to meet with the City Controller and review their financial records. The delegation included economic consultants, Steven Raphael, Associate Dean of the UC Berkeley Goldman School of Public Policy, and Michael Stoll, Chair of UCLA's Department of Public Policy.
Local 21's bargaining team expressed the importance of rejecting the Mayor's proposal: Making a concession won't fully eliminate the occurrence of layoffs in a situation where the deficit was foreseeable and avoidable. Moreover, the City has interpreted past givebacks and cooperative steps by Local 21 as a signal to spend more. Although the City's budget is still in flux, one thing is clear: Local 21 members believe we need to continue to explore equitable solutions with the City and look for ways we can be supportive, while maintaining that the City not use pay cuts as a solution to their spending spree. For more information on CCSF's budget and Local 21's response, visit the San Francisco Budget Information page on our website.
Contra Costa County Organizing Update
The Local 21 Contra Costa County Organizing Committee held their second general meeting on Wednesday, May 21st. Over 90 unrepresented employees attended the meeting, where Local 21 Attorney Chris Platten spoke about organizing rights and answered labor-related questions. East Bay MUD Chapter President Pat Hendl and EBMUD leader Joe Young also addressed the group and spoke of their organizing efforts at EBMUD, as well as the importance of having a strong union working to guarantee contractual provisions and rights. Local 21's Treasurer Willie Lim was also present to extend his support at both the general meeting and an Organizing Committee meeting which followed. The meeting ended with numerous employees committing their support to strengthening the ongoing campaign.
Local 21 staff members present included Representative/Organizer Nancy Ostrowski, Organizer Carla Woodworth, and IFPTE International Organizer Carl Webb. Lead Representative/Organizer Bob Britton will be working with the Organizing Committee to coordinate the next general meeting, scheduled for Wednesday June 18th.
Local 21 Members Rally with SEIU Against Budget Cuts
in San Francisco
In response to looming budget cuts and layoffs, Local 21 members joined several hundred SEIU members at a noontime rally on Thursday, May 22nd. SEIU 1021 organized the event at the steps of City Hall to protest threats of furloughs, givebacks, additional layoffs, and further cuts to under-staffed programs. Speakers including San Francisco Supervisors Tom Ammiano, Chris Daly, Ross Mirkarimi, and Gerardo Sandoval, and several leaders from SEIU, all addressed the need for controlling spending rather than cutting City jobs and services.
Save-the-date! Oakland City Council Budget Meeting:
Thursday, May 29, 5:00 p.m.
Close to 50 Local 21 members were in attendance when Local 21's Oakland Vice President Jeff Levin addressed the Oakland City Council at a special budget hearing on Thursday, May 15th. Speaking on behalf of nearly 1,000 City employees, Levin reminded the Council of the integral work Local 21 members perform to implement the programs and policies that make Oakland run. He also reminded them of the many sacrifices Local 21 has made in the past to help mitigate the impact of budget shortfalls on the City and on Local 21 members. Levin's speech stressed that Local 21 members will not support any budget solutions which are inequitably adopted across the City's employee organizations. He also added that Local 21 is looking forward to bargaining in good faith with the City to ensure that any unavoidable budget cuts minimally impact both employees and the community services they provide.
Save-the-date! On Thursday, May 29th, Mayor Dellums will be presenting his budget to the City Council, followed by a discussion of the draft budget. Show your support by coming to the City Hall Council Chambers at 5:00 p.m. and joining your colleagues and Local 21 in sending a clear and united message to the City Council: The budget cannot be balanced on our backs! Please wear your Local 21 UNITY t-shirts to the budget hearing. Additional shirts will be available for members who attend. We need you there!
Save-The-Date! Delegate Assembly is June 7th
The next Delegate Assembly will be held on June 7th at the Hotel Whitcomb in San Francisco. The agenda will focus on government budgets with a presentation by Bob Brownstein, a former San Jose City Budget Director, and now current member of Working Partnerships in the South Bay. The annual adoption of the union budget, a post-election analysis, and a guest speaker you will not want to miss will also be on the agenda. Registration and breakfast begins at 8:30 a.m. and the Assembly starts at 9:00 a.m. All delegates should R.S.V.P. to Mandy Bratt at mbratt@ifpte21.org.
L21 Express is the bi-weekly email publication of IFPTE Local 21. Local 21 represents more than 7,000 Bay Area professional public employees. Main Office Phone: 415.864.2100 South Bay Phone: 408.291.2200
