Posts tagged SEIU Local 1000
Newsom used telework as a bargaining chip. State worker unions see opportunity
August 22, 2025 // With this win over telework, an issue which unions previously had little leverage over, labor groups hope they can gain even more traction in future negotiations, to secure even stronger protections over when employees can work from home. On top of that, labor’s argument against requiring state employees to be in the office four days a week received a boost from the independent audit released last week. “Now we actually have an audit that backs up what we have been saying,” said Susan Rodriguez, the chief negotiator for SEIU Local 1000. Auditors surveyed departments, many of which reported their employees were just as or more productive working from home, which Rodriguez said the union has been touting all along. Telework “saves money for the state so they can use it towards more meaningful programs,” she said.
Editorial: Pampered state workers threaten to strike (California)
June 4, 2025 // On May 17, AFSCME Local 2620’s Executive Board unanimously voted to set up a strike fund. Their website promised: “This action sends a clear message: We are serious. We are organized. And we are ready.” But the unions should listen to another clear message: Californians are tired of being taxed to the max to support a bloated, inefficient state government that only delivers low-performing schools, potholed roads and massive budget deficits. If these state government workers don’t like their working conditions, they should quit and get real jobs in the private sector with the rest of us.
For California’s largest public union, telework poses challenge — and opportunity
April 15, 2025 // SEIU Local 1000’s leaders in recent years have struggled to stem a decline in the percentage of members who pay dues. The group represents roughly 95,000 state workers, which includes accountants, nurses and custodians. Fewer dues-paying members in their ranks means less sway at the bargaining table and with state leaders.
MEMBERSHIP IN SEIU 1000, CALIFORNIA’S LARGEST STATE EMPLOYEES UNION, FALLS BELOW 50 PERCENT
June 20, 2024 // In May 2018, the month before Janus was decided, 96,229 state employees worked under SEIU 1000 contracts, effectively all of whom had union dues or fees deducted from their paychecks by the state. The next month, following the Supreme Court’s ruling, the number of represented employees with union payroll deductions had dropped to 58,953 — a membership rate of 61.4 percent — reflecting the loss of fee payments from nonmembers rendered unconstitutional by Janus.
SEIU 1000 LOSES 130 MEMBERS IN A SINGLE DAY
April 1, 2024 // And it’s happening specifically because of the Freedom Foundation’s direct mail and email campaigns. But we can’t take all the credit. SEIU 1000’s long history of incompetent, indifferent, scandal-plagued representation in playing a huge role in the union’s downfall. And that isn’t just speculation. The Golden State’s largest public employee union has already seen its dues-paying membership shrink to about half of those in the bargaining unit. And there are reasons to believe it’s even less than that. Like public-employee unions all over the country, SEIU 1000 diverts a huge percentage of its revenues to the national headquarters in Washington, D.C., to fund leftist candidates and causes that have nothing whatever to do with the workplace concerns of its rank and file.
Union membership is plateauing among California state workers, data show. Here’s why
December 23, 2023 // Across state government, just over 64% of employees paid union dues in October, according to the most recent available data from the State Controller’s Office, which deducts dues from union members’ paychecks. That’s down less than 0.5% from last October. The state’s total number of rank-and-file employees increased by about 1,580 people from October 2022. Meanwhile, the number of dues-paying members increased by just under 330 employees. These trends buck previous years’ patterns, which saw decreases in total staff as well as dues-paying members.
Some of California’s best-paid public employees say they’re ready to strike. Here’s why
August 7, 2023 // Some of California’s highest-paid public employees are in an intensifying labor battle with the Newsom administration over staffing shortages at state prisons and hospitals that workers say endanger patients and staff. The union representing doctors and psychiatrists working in California correctional facilities said that 91% of voting members authorized a strike Monday. Non-competitive salaries, strenuous working conditions and an overreliance on higher-paid contracted doctors, make it difficult to hire staff physicians, said Dr. Stuart Bussey, president of the umbrella Union of American Physicians and Dentists.
Gavin Newsom expects a deficit this year. What does that mean for state worker contracts?
January 13, 2023 // High inflation would usually be a strong argument for raising pay. But budget deficits typically call for cuts in public spending, not increases. State employers face a tough decision. Some public employees are paid under the market rate for their roles and could leave for the private sector if raises are withheld. Public employee unions are also struggling with retention, which could worsen if a recession hits and older workers retire faster than departments can hire new ones.
Chaos in one of California’s largest government unions as VPs lock out Local 1000 president Read more at: https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/the-state-worker/article258884048.html#storylink=cpy
February 28, 2022 // “Troubling patterns emerged with Brown’s actions that dismantled both transparency and democracy that members expect,” the vice presidents said in the letter. “Due to his actions, the three Vice Presidents had no alternative but to promptly step in to restore fiscal prudence, board oversight, democratic procedures, and the proper delegation of officers’ duties all required for our members’ benefit.”
SEIU Leader Suspended For Six Months Following $44,000 Time Sheet Fraud
November 29, 2021 // Tony Owens, the former Vice President of Bargaining for the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 1000 in Los Angeles, was suspended for six months without pay from his California Public Employee’s Retirement System (CalPERS) on Monday following an investigation that found that he had committed $44,000 worth of time sheet fraud last year.