Posts tagged state workers
Three California state worker unions stood together at SEIU Local 1000 strike
October 21, 2026 // Many state workers are adjusting to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s four-day return-to-office mandate and state-employed scientist raises slated to start in July initially went unfunded. Those raises were eventually funded in August with last-minute legislation. These instances were top of mind Wednesday when leaders from fellow unions — California Professional Scientists, UAW Local 1115 and California Attorneys Administrative Law Judges and Hearing Officers in State Employment — joined SEIU Local 1000
Government Unions Are Making a Comeback — and Taxpayers Will Pay the Price
September 15, 2026 // Taken together, those same four unions have added back more than 230,000 members since 2024, the Commonwealth Foundation reports. That’s a 3.5 percent jump, and it has wiped out most of what looked like a permanent decline. Two of the four unions, AFSCME and SEIU, now have more members than they did before Janus. Only one union, the NEA, is still losing members, but even that decline has slowed.
‘Keep Washington running’: Thousands of state workers walk out amid contract talks
September 1, 2026 // Thousands of Washington state employees walked off the job Monday at more than 100 sites across the state as contract negotiations continue. The Washington Federation of State Employees, the union representing the workers, organized the walkouts. At a Department of Children, Youth and Families (DCYF) office in Bellevue, about 20 workers joined the demonstration. Larger rallies were also held at the University of Washington, Western State Hospital, the state departments of Health and Ecology, and other DCYF offices.
Opinion: California’s unions have built a $1B taxpayer-funded machine
August 31, 2026 // One group, more than any other, has cashed in on this arrangement: California’s public-sector unions. For them, higher taxes are good business. More taxes means more state workers, which means more union members, more dues, and more power for union bosses. The union bosses, in turn, keep the dollars flowing, agitating for more tax hikes, more spending, and more state workers. How powerful are California’s public-sector unions? In the calendar or fiscal year ending in 2024, 10 of the largest California-based unions with public-sector members collectively raked in more than $1 billion in dues and fees.
SEIU Local 1000 is holding strike schools — what does that mean?
July 27, 2026 // A union that represents nearly 100,000 California state workers is holding strike schools starting this weekend to educate its members on what to know if a strike unfolds.
Newsom administration, SEIU Local 1000 failed to reach new contract, union says
July 1, 2026 // SEIU Local 1000, which covers nine bargaining units and represents nearly 100,000 workers, is the only union negotiating a new contract with the state this year. In the absence of a deal between SEIU Local 1000 and the state, the union’s existing contract conditions remain in effect.
Unions moan as California state workers ordered back into the office 4 days week
May 21, 2026 // Last year, Newsom faced push back from unions over Executive Order N-22-25 and it’s happening again. Unions like SEIU Local 1000 — which represents nearly 100,000 state workers, and CAPS UAW, representing 6,000 scientific workers for the state — have blasted the governor over the move. In a press release from SEIU Local 1000 — it wrote that “as the State refuses to bargain in good faith over changes to teleworking conditions, SEIU Local 1000 filed an Unfair Labor Practice Charge with the Public Employment Relations Board (PERB).” “SEIU Local 1000 remains committed to fighting for Telework that Works through bargaining, legislation, and statewide member organizing efforts.”
Unions push back against Spanberger’s collective bargaining changes
April 23, 2026 // Spanberger’s term in office ends in 2030, around the time local government employees would be allowed into the terms of the bill. She defended the correlation between the two, pointing out Virginia’s unique rule limiting governors to one consecutive term. “But that doesn’t mean that just because I only have four years as governor that I need to rush things much, much faster,” Spanberger said. “It is about being methodical.”
How CA state worker unions have fared since landmark SCOTUS decision reshaped membership
March 17, 2026 // According to eight years of data obtained from the State Controller’s Office on the number of dues-paying state workers, some unions have slowly bled members since the Janus decision. For other bargaining units, the membership level has dropped 20% over that period. Labor groups representing peace officers and prison staff, however, hardly saw a change pre- and post-Janus. And still other units have increased the percentage of workers who pay monthly membership dues, the data revealed. Nearly 10 years before the Janus decision, the public’s approval of unions hit a historic low. In 2009, Americans’ approval ratings dipped below 50% for the first and only time since the public opinion polling company Gallup began assessing ratings of labor unions in 1936. In the years since, the public’s opinion of labor unions has improved substantially. Last year, 68% of Americans reported approval of unions.
Union proposes 100% remote work as California state workers resume negotiations
March 14, 2026 // As California’s labor negotiators and state worker unions resume discussions over the governor’s return-to-office order, SEIU Local 1000 is making significant demands: full-time telework for eligible workers and free parking for employees who are required to be in person.