June 22, 2007

As your President, it is indeed an honor for me to submit this 90 Day Report to you, our membership. The staff of Local 221 accepts the challenges and appreciates the chance to reaffirm the commitment we have to advance the opportunities of all members of our Local.

For your convenience I have broken this update letter up by department. Each Department has been working on exciting and innovative approaches to assist the Local in achieving our mission of becoming the leading voice for San Diego and Imperial Counties’ working families.

OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT

In addition to the one-on-one member coffees and the Ask Every Member Campaign being conducted by our Local, I will begin to host monthly “Fireside Chats” with our members. These chats are an opportunity for members who do the same work to come together and discuss issues and events that affect them. The dates and groupings for the chats will be posted on the Local’s website www.seiu221.org and invitations will be mailed to members so that everyone knows the location, date, and time of the chats.

Local 221 has plans to commemorate the rich history of our two legacy locals 535 and 2028. To document this history we will designate one of our conference rooms to this cause. We will display the pictures, posters, flyers, banners, stories, and other items that our members think should be commemorated in this room. This “historical room” will serve as a museum where our past can be celebrated. I have asked that this information be included on a part of our web site that will document the rich history that created Local 221. This web section will show where we have come from and where we will go in the future. If you have ideas or suggestions for this section please call Alecia Bacon, Manager for the Office of the President, at 858-560-0151 x234. All photos and stories are welcome.

Recently, I attended the SEIU International Board meeting in Montreal. SEIU as a whole is growing at explosive levels; our direction is exciting and innovative and will ensure better wages and benefits for our members. What became clear to me is that California is the place the International Union is watching. Our innovation and determination sets us apart from other areas of the country. In San Diego we are no different. Over and over I heard from other leaders who were excited about the work we are doing in San Diego. I was proud to give the credit where it is due; to you the members who work tirelessly to advance the rights of working families.

Within our local there have been some things going on that that I think you should know about:

Our Local has a new Staff Director, Chris Swanson, who will manage our Worksite Organizers. Chris comes with years of experience as a Worksite Organizer herself as well as a manager. Most recently Chris worked for SEIU Local 721 in Riverside County. She is extremely talented and is ready to manage and do the high level multi-tasking needed to run the Internal Field department.

Dequasia Gardner is now Organizing Director. Dequasia comes from the ranks of organizing and as the former Staff Director she knows our local well. Recognizing the importance that organizing will play in the future growth of our union she took the reigns of the Organizing Department. With her years of experience organizing for the International Union, Dequasia is well suited for the many challenges we have ahead, organizing in San Diego County.

Mathew Kostrinsky was promoted to the Deputy Director of Government and Community Relations. Mathew comes with over a decade of experience working in the United States Congress. On top of his knowledge of “the Hill” Mathew has an acute knowledge of both San Diego and Imperial Counties. His proven campaign experience is an asset to our Local.

Kay Ryan and Eric Banks conducted several meetings in May on the County Retiree Health Benefits that have been threatened by the San Diego Board of Supervisors. This is an on-going issue for our members and we will continue to provide you with the latest information on this important issue. Please check the Local’s website for upcoming meetings and information as it breaks.

During my meetings with members I have heard numerous concerns about the financial situation of legacy Local 2028. Legacy Local 535 has already closed its books, filed tax forms and transferred funds to Local 221. Financial concerns from the past remain on the forefront of our members’ minds. I have heard your concerns and as a result I have asked the Executive Board to approve an independent audit. The Lindquist Group, LLC was selected for their experience auditing unions. The auditors from Lindquist will be doing an analysis of legacy Local 2028’s finances; this will give us the clearest picture of Local 2028’s balance sheet and make way for the final transfer of all of its funds to Local 221. Since Local 221 is financially responsible for any debt legacy Local 2028 may have the audit is crucial to our union moving forward. The Lindquist Group will also audit Local 221 for our financial practices. These auditors will give us their opinion of what we must do to develop the strongest financial policy we can. The auditors’ suggestions will become the financial policy of Local 221.

Bringing two locals together with different cultures and practices has been a challenging and rewarding experience. Together we are taking the best practices and combining them to create a strong and vibrant union. But challenges do exist and change is always difficult. Food at worksite meetings is one of the issues that I have been working to address. In the past food had been provided at the worksite meetings of one of our legacy locals, and not at the other. In coming together I cannot continue to practice for one group of members and not all. The reality is that there are 1296 worksite meetings that will occur in 2007. If we estimate that we will spend $50 at each meeting the final food bill will be over $65,000. There are many factors to weigh in this process, and we will have to make some difficult decisions. After the audit is completed I will convene to select a Budget Committee to address all the financial needs of our union. Food will be one of the issues that we will consider when budget recommendations are prepared for the Executive Board to consider.

Finally, I have included what I feel is a clear and concise overview of how your dues are allocated to the work of Local 221. “Where do my dues go,” is the question I am asked in every meeting that I hold. At your request I worked with staff to develop the attached easy to read pie chart with explanations for you. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me directly.

OFFICE OF THE INTERNAL FIELD STAFF

The internal field staff has been working diligently to “Ask Every Member” what they want for themselves and their families in the next five years and what role the union can play in achieving those goals. We are coding the responses in a database to keep track of what is most important to the membership. To date, healthcare has been the overwhelming topic of concern. Anyone interested in taking part in this Listening Campaign, please contact your worksite organizer or give us a call at the Local.

We have hired another worksite organizer to meet the needs of our members. Julija Zubac comes to us with significant union experience and is a tremendous asset to the team. At this time we are almost completely staffed. We are on target to have a full staff of worksite organizers by the end of June. This enables us to be more responsive to our members and improve our visibility at the worksite.

To develop a strong cohesive group the internal field staff went on a work retreat June 14^th and 15^th to restructure and reorganize the department and looked at ways to streamline operations to better meet the needs of our membership.

OFFICE OF THE EXTERNAL FIELD STAFF

Our external organizers are working hard on a Fair Share campaign with workers at Neighborhood House Association's (NHA) Head Start program. The key elements of this campaign include educating workers about the role of the union at their worksites and communities, recruiting workers to become members of the union, motivating union members to become involved in union activities, and strategizing with members to make improvements at NHA. Our efforts have successfully resulted in doubling our membership at NHA in the last 60 days.

Our union has helped win many important victories for the workers at NHA:

• Workers will no longer have to make calls to find their substitutes when they are home sick.
• NHA workers will no longer be forced to flex their schedule to avoid eligibility for overtime pay.
• Management at NHA is committed to seriously consider solutions to the short-staffing within the agency.
• Head Start workers at NHA will receive an across the board cost-of-living-adjustment in addition to their step increases.

Our members are working closely with the external organizers on an Adopt-A-Center program aimed at uniting workers throughout NHA in various classifications and geographic locations. This is the best way to show management that workers are united to make NHA a better place. Through all these actions we hope to have the support needed to win the Fair Share election.

OFFICE OF GOVERNMENT AND COMMUNITY RELATIONS

This month Local 221 received a special honor when International Union President Andy Stern appointed Richard Preuss to the International Union’s Republican Advisory Committee. Richard works for the City of Chula Vista in the Police Department’s Community Outreach Program and is an active Member Political Organizer (MPO). With his newly held position he will help shape the International’s outreach to our Republican members. Within our local Richard will work closely with fellow Republican and County Executive Board member Silvia Arnold to develop our union’s own GOP caucus to engage Republican members on the local level. We are committed to reaching out to our Republican members to establish common ground and create bipartisan union programming.

Our Local has been an active participant in the It’s Our Healthcare Campaign, a statewide coalition of SEIU locals and healthcare interest groups that are working to get affordable healthcare coverage for all Californians. Our campaign is based on a series of principles that we are talking about across California to help shape the health care debate. During the Ask Every Member sessions the rising cost of health care overwhelmingly tops the list of issues our members care about. After securing resources from the California State Council, Ledale Curry, a member from California Children’s Services, joined our staff and helped organize over 15 house parties around the county where health care was the topic of discussion! For more information on the It’s Our Healthcare Campaign and how you can get involved call Mathew Kostrinsky at 858-560-0151 x231.

The staff of the Government and Community Relations Department has had a busy but productive year. The Committee on Political Education (COPE) drive is going strong. COPE funds are raised through voluntary contributions by our members to help fund lobbying and other political efforts including elections. COPE dollars have been used to stave off cuts to public services, strengthen our ability to protect our public service jobs and helped elect over a dozen local public officials. Nicolaz Portillo, the COPE Chair of the MPO Committee, has worked closely with the Government and Community Relations Staff to establish the campaign in targeted areas of our union. If you are not already giving to COPE, please consider donating in this year’s drive.

OFFICE BARGAINING AND TRAINING

We were successful in settling contract negotiations for our members in National City. It was not an easy process to move city management of the City Council but we did it. The National City contract was ratified only after an informational picket was held at the City’s budget planning meeting. Negotiators James Slade, Adam Landa, Mona Rios, Larry Verry, Bob Drew, John Gish, Ariceli Covarrubias, and Mary Gaffney presented a three year contract to the membership. The contract calls for a $2300 bonus the first year, 3% and 4% raises in each of the next two years. Employees agreed to increase their annual PERS contribution by 1%. Staffing the member negotiating committee was Director of Bargaining and Training, Lois Balfour, and Worksite Organizer, Michael O’Connor.

To meet the emerging training and bargaining needs of our Local we have hired Teresa Valladolid as the Deputy Director of Training and Bargaining. With over 25 years experience working with organized labor, Teresa brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Local 221. Before joining our staff Teresa worked for SEIU Local 6434 organizing homecare workers in the Imperial Valley. We will be assessing the training needs of our members and will be developing a comprehensive training curriculum.

Office of Operations

A vital component of the Unite to Win process is the development of a Membership Services Center (MSC). This Center will allow all four public sector locals to share basic functions through a centralized center. Through the MSC public sector locals will be able to communicate more effectively, share resources, and leverage the power of joint purchasing for such things as office supplies. The MSC will also serve as a centralized library for all contracts for all the public sector bargaining units across the State. This will be a tremendous resource for our members who need immediate information on their contract and local events happening within our local. Most importantly this MSC will be a vital resource for stewards and will give them prompt service. Developing this kind of service is no easy task. This type of center has been developed in Australia, Chicago, and New York City. To ensure that this process runs smoothly and meets the highest standards for our members I have asked Kay Ryan to serve as Local 221’s Membership Service Coordinator. With over 40 years experience in our union Kay has always been an ardent defender of our members’ interests. I can think of no better person to take on this task.

Conclusion

I am proud to be your President. Everyday when I come to work I see the good and meaningful changes that we have been able to create. I also see the challenges that lie ahead of us. I am confident in the staff we are assembling and the member leaders who are stepping up to the plate to take on the challenges of the future. By creating a transparent organization where members have direct input into shaping the course of our union, I know we will do great things. Thank you so much for the work that you do. If you are not already actively involved in some way I encourage you to become involved. I am sure we can find a place for you and your talents.

This will not be the last report I write. I believe you deserve to know what is happening in our union between membership meetings. As your President I am committed to being accessible to you and your ideas. It is the only way we will be able to make the changes we need to become the leading voice for San Diego and Imperial Counties’ working families.

Sincerely,

Sharon-Frances Moore

President

SEIU Local 221