Front Page. Trickle-Down Poverty: Mendocino workers walk off the job to protest BOS bad faith bargaining

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1 From: Subject: Talk the talk, walk the walk with the 1021 NewsWire - Sept. 16, 2011 Date: Vol. IV, Issue September 16, 2011 In This Issue: Mendocino workers vote with their feet on the FRONT PAGE. Register for the 1021 Convention in ACT! HERE! NOW! Last days of summer in CALENDAR. Aren't you in the 1021 Network yet? 1021 NewsWire The Live Wire Facebook Twitter YouTube Front Page Trickle-Down Poverty: Mendocino workers walk off the job to protest BOS bad faith bargaining SEIU 1021's entire Mendocino County bargaining unit more than 700 county workers walked off the job Monday afternoon to protest and call the public's attention to bad faith bargaining and retaliatory actions by the Board of Supervisors. As the supervisors' forced deadline for a deal passed on Monday, we filed new Unfair Labor Practice charges with the NLRB. It was the first time in county history that SEIU workers have walked out in protest. Hundreds of workers lined the streets in downtown Ukiah, Willits and Fort Bragg, waving signs and chanting as they circulated around major intersections while cars honked loud and long in support. On Tuesday morning, members carried their protest into the 9am Board of Supervisors meeting. A deal is a deal... unless it's in Mendocino

2 A deal is a deal... unless it's in Mendocino Actually, we had a deal: a 36-hour work week, amounting to a 10 percent pay cut that would have left county workers as full-time employees. During negotiations this summer, county workers presented the Board of Supervisors with more than $6 million in proposed cost savings for the county, a proposal the supervisors ignored. "We agreed to the supervisors' proposal with the largest show of support in county history. Employee morale was high and productivity was up. But the Board responded by retaliating against us and backpedaling on their own deal," said Andrea Longoria, a substance abuse counselor in the Health & Human Services Agency and member of the SEIU 1021 bargaining team. The Board threatened to cut wages 15 percent and make all workers "permanent part-time" employees, and impose these terms (even though we weren't at impasse) if they didn't agree by 5pm on Monday. Well, they didn't; instead they walked out and took to the streets. "This 15 percent will kill my household," said Pat G., a case manager in Child Support Services. "My husband is disabled. The pay cut is what we spend each month on his medications. We agreed to a 10 percent reduction but they're just throwing us to the wolves." Same old story Such board tactics are not new in Mendocino County. In December 2007, the supervisors gave themselves a 43 percent pay raise while increasing county workers' health care premiums by 43 percent. The county's plan administrator tried to sneak the premium increase through the board, "notifying" the union at old addresses she knew to be incorrect so that we would have no chance to respond. "It's trickle-down poverty," Bob O'Connell, a social worker assistant, said about the supervisors' current move. "Poverty goes down, money goes up." Get story updates and see photos of Monday's action Mendocino Forward Ukiah Daily Journal: "SEIU Countywide walk-out: Unfair labor lawsuit field against the county" Press Democrat (Santa Rosa): "Mendocino County employees walk off the job in protest of unfair labor practices" Act! Here! Now! "It's not just texting; it's , it's voic , it's snail mail..." "That's regular mail." "Whatever, none of it's working. I had this guy leave me a voic at work, so I called him at home and then he ed me to my Blackberry, and so I texted him to his cell, and then he ed me to my home account, and the whole thing just got out of control. I miss the days where you had one phone number and one answering machine, and that one answering machine has one cassette tape, and that one cassette tape either had a message from the guy or it didn't. And now you just have to go around checking all these different portals just to get rejected by seven different technologies. It's exhausting."

3 different portals just to get rejected by seven different technologies. It's exhausting." "Hmmm. What about that MySpace guy?" "Jude. I like him." "Good." "Yeah, I feel like we connected." Mary (Drew Barrymore), Anna (Scarlett Johansson) in "He's Just Not That Into You" (2009) Really Into It, Part 1: Welcome to the new SEIU1021.org We here at the NewsWire love technology... although it doesn't always work like we expect. One time we set our iphone to "airplane mode" and tossed it in the air. Worst. Transformer. Ever. Visitors to the new SEIU 1021 website, however, have been far from disappointed. On the contrary, members have been thinking up lots of ways to use the site for running campaign communications and minding their monthly chapter or committee business. What it can do The new SEIU 1021 website is far from "just" a website. It is powerful campaign tool that the entire local creates in collaboration. It features: Embedded full-screen video and photo albums to highlight your actions; Featured spaces for contracts and your latest action flyers; Customizable menus for chapter officers, chapter meeting minutes, and news blogs by industry or topic (e.g. state budget, Fight for a Fair Economy); Links to SEIU 1021's Facebook page, YouTube channel and Twitter feed; you can even follow our latest tweets right on the home page;... and much, much more. Who does it Each chapter, committee and industry council assumes control of its own home page by appointing or electing a "web steward" to keep the page current with the information members need. The web steward then goes through training and receives a user account to begin publishing content. That's all it takes to get started. From there, the possibilities are endless. Some SEIU 1021 bodies are already finding innovative ways to organize members and use the site to communicate. Members of Napa County's "Rapid Response Team" are using their page as part of an effort to combat and respond to negative stories in the local media. The local's retiree chapters are using their pages to engage current retirees and recruit new members. Some are taking advantage of the site's flexibility and powerful publishing capabilities to organize on a wider scale. The City Workers Industry is beginning to find and organize web stewards to create unified and widespread industry messaging. The Reserve Organizing Corp (ROC) is planning a network of web stewards to cover new member organizing campaigns in different areas. Visit our website and get connected today. Unlike online dating, the new SEIU1021.org is one technology where you won't get rejected.

4 Website Community Guidelines 1021 Web Steward Registration Really Into It, Part 2: Convention registration at 1021Convention.org The new SEIU1021.org introduces a totally new feature that our legacy local and SEIU 1021 websites did not have: Registering with the website. You can also register for the 1021 Convention through the website at the shortcut 1021Convention.org. Let's be clear. We're talking about two different kinds of registration: 1) Register to attend the 1021 Convention. You don't have to be an elected Chapter Delegate to attend the convention attendance is open to all current members but you do need to register and put down a $50 *refundable* deposit. Find links to the registration form (online and download) at 1021Convention.org. 2) Register with the website. This is not necessary to attend the convention or to view content on the site; it is completely optional and voluntary. However, registering with SEIU1021.org offers the benefit of enabling you to use the site's interactive features: Post comments to content on the 1021 Convention home page. That means you can join the discussion and make your voice heard on convention business even if you don't attend. After you register (or during the registration process), you need to request membership in the 1021 Convention group; read the next paragraph for an explanation. Comment on your own chapter or committee page content, or on other pages. These pages are called "groups" by the website, and to participate you must apply to join each group separately by clicking the "Request Membership" link in the title box in the upper right corner of each page. If, for instance, you work for Alameda County, you could join at least three groups by visiting their pages Alameda County, Alameda Co. COPE, and Alameda Co. Retired Employees (ACRE) and more if you wish. [Please *do not* post comments at times when you should be working. You can bet your employer is monitoring the site.] Monitor recent postings and activity in your selected groups from one convenient dashboard (once you log in) so you don't have to bookmark or favorite all those pages. So why wait? Make SEIU1021.org your union home on the web. Register today. Visit the 1021 Convention Home Page

5 Calendar 1021 Calendar Find an SEIU 1021 Office Moon Phases - 3rd Q, Sept New, Sept. 27-1st Q, Oct. 4 - Full, Oct. 12 Download your free September social justice calendar from RLM Arts Sept. 17: SEIU 1021 Workers with Disabilities Conference Topics include: Know Your Rights as a Disabled Worker Americans with Disabilities Act Family Medical Leave Act & California Family Rights Act Disability Law under the California Fair Employment and Housing Act Social Insecurity: What To Do When an Injury or Medical Condition Threatens Your Career Sa 9/17-10a-1p (registration 9:30a) - SEIU 1021, 350 Rhode Island, #100 South Bldg., San Francisco - Info: David Williams, iamdhw@comcast.net SEIU 1021 Leadership Committees Sa 9/ Executive Board - 10a-5p - SEIU 1021, 2300 Boynton Ave., Fairfield Fr 10/28 - Budget & Finance Committee - 10a-4p - SEIU 1021, 2300 Boynton Ave., Fairfield Sa 10/ Executive Board - 10a-5p - Location TBA Committee On Political Education (COPE) Tu 10/4 - Alameda County - 5:30-8p - SEIU 1021, 100 Oak St., Oakland Tu 10/4 - Sonoma County - 6-8p - SEIU 1021, 600 B Street, Santa Rosa Tu 10/ COPE - 6p Rhode Island, #100 South Building, San Francisco - Live via videoconference at SEIU 1021 offices in Fairfield and Oakland; phone conferencing available - RSVP for a location at We 10/12 - Solano County - 6p - SEIU 1021, 2300 Boynton Ave., Fairfield San Francisco All events take place at the SEIU 1021 San Francisco office, 350 Rhode Island, #100 South Building, unless noted otherwise. Th 9/22-5:30-8p - SF Regional Leadership Meeting

6 Tu 9/27-6p - Special SF COPE Meeting - Officer elections Mo 10/3-5:30p - SF COPE - Regular meeting We 10/12-5:30p - SF Industry Council Social & Economic Justice Mo 9/19 - AFRAM Solidarity Committee - 6p - SEIU 1021, 100 Oak St., Oakland Mo 9/19 - Disability Caucus - SEIU 1021, 100 Oak St., Oakland Tu 9/20 - Peace & Solidarity Committee - 5:30p - SEIU 1021, 350 Rhode Island, #100 South Building, San Francisco Tu 9/27 - Lavender Solidarity Committee - 6p - SEIU 1021, 100 Oak St., Oakland Education & Training View the complete catalog and register at Th 9/22, 9/29 (Sessions 2 & 3) - Advanced Shop Steward Training - 5:30-8p - SEIU 1021, 100 Oak St., Oakland Sa 9/24- Basic Shop Steward Training - 10a-4p - SEIU 1021, 600 B Street, Santa Rosa Tu 9/27 - Making the Labor-Management Committee Work - 5:30-8p - SEIU 1021, 2300 Boynton Ave., Fairfield Regions & Industries Sa 9/17 - Cities Industry Council - 10a-2p - SEIU 1021, 100 Oak St., Oakland Tu 9/20 - East Bay Region - 5:30-8p - 40 Douglas Drive, Martinez Retiree Councils Mo 9/19 - West Bay Retirees p - SEIU 1021, 350 Rhode Island, #100 South Building, San Francisco Mo 10/3 - Alameda Co. Retired Employees (ACRE) - 10a-Noon - SEIU 1021, 155 Myrtle St., Oakland Tu 10/ Retiree Council - 10a-1p - SEIU 1021, 155 Myrtle St., Oakland Th 10/6 - East Bay Retirees Chapter p - Hs. Lordship's Restaurant, 199 Seawall Drive, Berkeley Th 10/6 - Sacramento Valley Retirees Chapter - 10a-12p - SEIU 1021, th Street, 8th floor, Sacramento Mo 10/17 - West Bay Retirees p - SEIU 1021, 350 Rhode Island, #100 South Building, San Francisco * * * * Send all Calendar announcements, corrections and changes to calendar@seiu1021.org.