Local 21 Bargaining

 


Together we are setting trends and standing up for public services around the Bay


 


Bargaining season is in full swing for IFPTE Local 21 members around the Bay. Bargaining is an important part of what we do as a union, because it is a time where we demand justice for ourselves and our communities. With our high membership numbers, employers know that Local 21 members stand united behind getting great contracts. Each bargaining table affects not only workers in that jurisdiction, but sets patterns for workers around the Bay. See below for an update on what your fellow Local 21 members are winning! 


 


Sunnyvale


The Sunnyvale Employees Association chapter members won their first contract battle since affiliating with Local 21 and joining with more than 11 thousand of their fellow public servants in the Bay Area. This chapter of robust activists are celebrating big gains after nearly 3 months of bargaining. Among them are 10% in wage increases over three years and two 1.5% bonus payments in years two and three of the Agreement. Members also won a number of increases to pay for things like bilingual/translator pay, education reimbursement, standby pay and the 12 classifications that were added to the list of positions eligible for certification pay. That’s just to name some of the improvements members won! 


Bargaining Team member Edith Alanis says, “In contrast to the last negotiations which took nearly two years and ended just hours before a strike, SEA/Local 21 was able to come to a Tentative Agreement in just over three months. The fastest in Sunnyvale history, or at least in the 22 years that I have been employed here. We made it look too easy. But, in reality it wasn’t and we could not have done it without our affiliation to IFPTE/L21. The SEA Executive Board and L21 staff spent the prior 15 months laying down the groundwork by having meetings with elected officials, the Director of Human Resources and the City Manager to establish positive relationships and open doors of communication. We sought to collaborate and inform, and to have our membership be recognized and feel valued. I feel that this contract is the direct result of those efforts and one that I am proud of.”


 



 


Oakland


Oakland workers have been loud and out front in the battle against continued neglect of city workers and city services by Oakland leaders. Coming off a seven-day strike in 2017, Local 21 members are ready for a fight and working closely with SEIU members and community groups who are also concerned about and an Oakland that is increasingly only for the rich.


Members made their voices heard at the Mayor’s and City Administrator’s offices last month and advocating at multiple City Council Meetings. Recently members spoke up at Council Member Dan Kalb’s community event, educating about chronic understaffing and unnecessary austerity budgeting.


“For almost a decade, the City of Oakland has consistently under-projected revenue by large margins,” said IFPTE Local 21 Bargaining Team member and Oakland Revenue Operations Supervisor Nicole Welch. “Each year, we hear the same story — that there isn’t enough money for services or to help city workers keep up with the cost of living, but each year the City closes its books with millions in extra revenues.”


 



 


Richmond


Richmond bargaining has been contentious from the start. All four unions representing city workers have come together to form a coalition and push back against four years with no cost of living increases and a new City Manager who manufactured a budget crisis and then insisted that laying off union workers was the only way to balance the budget. Through multi-union rallies and impassioned speeches at Council meetings, union members have made their voices heard and successfully fought off layoffs, balanced the budget, and challenged the City Manager’s professionalism – resulting in his termination. The battle for a fair contract continues!


 



 


Cupertino


Cupertino members are proud to announce a Tentative Agreement for a new contract. Members have won a three-year deal that secures 4%, 3.5%, and 3% wage increases, along with wage realignments for most of the chapter ranging from 1.3% – 9.8%. Other major wins like adoption of a California Short Term Disability policy and increases to education and wellness benefits make this contract something for members to be proud of. Situated in the heart of Silicon Valley and subject to huge increases in the cost of living, members’ deserved a great deal and they got one!


 





OCII San Francisco


Members of San Francisco’s Office of Community Investment and Infrastructure Chapter have negotiated a contract that features 11% in wage increases over three years, twelve weeks of parental leave mirroring CCSF, and improvement to existing severance language which allows for a week of severance per year of service up to twelve weeks. This hardworking and intelligent Bargaining Team put in a lot of research to get this great contract.