We Did It--ALL of Us

Hello everyone!!!!!


I am on my way home as I write this. I’m sure you all have heard some information about bargaining. I'm here to tell you that we kicked ass! SEIU-UHW bargained a contract that I believe is still number one in this nation. There is nowhere--and I repeat, NOWHERE--in this nation where you will find a contract that gets workers a 3%wage increase across the board, healthcare benefits that have 5 dollar co-pays and no premium for the employee or family member, and strong job security.

Let's all take time to think back to five years ago when the economy was booming and people were buying houses, refinancing homes, and opening businesses left and right--a time when everything seemed too good to be true. Well that all came to a crashing halt when the housing market fell and people lost their homes and jobs. When people lost their jobs they lost their insurance. Their livelihoods and that of their families were and for a lot still are a struggle from day to day.

In Stockton we were on 20/20 not to long ago because our unemployment and housing foreclosure rates are among the worst in the nation. We were up to 19% unemployment. We have been hit hard there in the CVA. But let me tell you this: in these bad economic times, SEIU-UHW has beaten all the odds and brought home to each and every member the best contract in this nation. We left with no takeaways and even raises despite the nation’s down economy. Everyday that I turn on the television I see the struggle out in the world. I have seen big employers fall and union members strike for better wages and benefits only to have their fight come to nothing.

I leave today tired and worn out from weeks of bargaining and little to no sleep this week but with my head held high and with peace of mind knowing that we--and I mean all of you when I say “we”--are looking at the best healthcare contract ever right now! We picketed, stickered up, and stood together to show that no matter who or what was ahead of us we were not going to lose!

I have told many of you that there is no way you would let anyone hurt your children or yourself on the street, that you all would fight to protect you and your family at any cost. You will never let someone hurt the ones you love. As I’ve said, if you choose to sit back and let it happen then it is on each and everyone of you that chose not to stand strong and fight for you and yours. Well, we had an awsome picket in Stockton and everyone purpled up, stickered up, and stood behind us. If it was not for you all taking a stand and backing up your bargaining team I truly believe that we would not have walked away with the three things that matter most to us: benefits, raises, and job security.

Five years ago Kaiser made more money then this year and last year, but at that time the former leadership that led bargaining walked away with less wages then this contract will end with and less altogether then we got today in this horrible economy. With that said I ask myself, why didn't the previous leadership in 2005, when Kaiser made way more money, fight for more then what we are getting today in these bad times? I leave you all with that question to answer for yourselves.

I am grateful and happy for what we as SEIU-UHW are walking way with today knowing that me, my family, and the members that I fought for and their families will be secure and hopefully less stressed knowing that SEIU-UHW won the best contract in our nation. I owe to each and every person including out leadership a thank you from me and my family. Because of your sleepless nights and dedication, me and my family are more secure. Thank you all--I did what I could but nothing would have happened without each and every member and leader in our organization.

One more thing: Don't sign anything that doesn’t say SEIU-UHW! You will lose all that we have fought for!

In unity !

Victoria De La Cruz

The Waiting Game . . .

Hey Everyone!

So we are still bargaining right now--at 10:30 at night! I have been going since 8:30 am. We are bargaining as we speak. We have been bargaining back and forth with management leadership but have not seen all of them in the same room today. They are caucusing and sending messages over because I believe that they don’t want to make all our members mad by saying the wrong things.

We are standing strong and continue to refuse any of their takeaway proposals. All of our brothers and sisters are making it perfectly clear that we will not accept any takeaways.

This has been a very long day and it seems like we are going round and round and reviewing things over and over, but I feel that we are making progress. All of us on the bargaining team are on the same page--we will stay up as late as need be and work as long as we have to in order to make sure that there are no takeaways and we get the contract we deserve! We refuse to lose anything. We are moving forward and holding on to our benefits.

Stay strong and check back here to get another update.

Victoria De La Cruz

Still Keeping Our Stuff!

Hello Everyone!

So I arrived late Monday night here in Manhattan Beach due to flight delays. The hours I spent traveling to get here were all worth it after that GREAT PICKET in Stockton on Monday!

I am going to be very straightforward about yesterday. We all know Kaiser management and the games they play in our facilities to try to wear us down. Well, bargaining is no different. They had us sitting on our butts (for lack of a better word) all day long going back and forth because they tried to pull a fast one on us and renege on their agreed-upon decisions from three weeks ago. Damn, it was so frustrating--but dealing with management is always that way. We did not let them slide and are holding them to what they agreed to weeks ago.

It took all day for them to finally agree to what was already agreed to. The reason, I believe, is they felt that they can wear us down. But NO, that didn't happen--We have over 100 players here for SEIU! We will catch all the little crappy tricks they throw at us one way or another. If someone misses anything there are plenty behind them to catch it. So, needless to say, we didn't lose anything!!!!!

We broke for dinner around 6pm with written, agreed-upon language from the last bargaining session. Thank goodness. Too bad it took all day but at least we got things in writing. We had to be back at the table at 7:30pm to start the talk about money.

The economic speeches were exactly what we expected: Kaiser is crying hard times but we are not having it! We are standing strong and planning to fight! The motto has been "keep your hands off our stuff" and we are standing by it!

Check back in later today to get the update for today. I hope to have some good info for you all on the long-awaited benefits and wages! Purple up and keep the fight going out there!

Victoria

We will not settle

Hey you all!

Another day in paradise...:) yea right! We are still at the table fighting to make sure that management understands that SEIU-UHW members do not want to go to a PTO/ETO plan because it's just a scheme to cut our sick days! I think that they are getting the hint that our union does not want it and SEIU-UHW isn't backing down from out stand to fight it. Management comes up with all sorts of ways to make it look appealing, but it's NOT convincing us. So I think that our strong brothers and sisters at the table are making it known that it's a no-win battle for them and they need to just back off the whole PTO/ETO scheme. Our brothers and sisters at the table as well as the observers have made it very clear that we are not settling.

This round ended yesterday and we will be back home for another week before we hit it hard again in Hollywood on May 4th. In that week and a half time make sure that we continue to wear purple, sticker up, and speak loud that WE WILL NOT SETTLE FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN WE DESERVE! That means keeping all our benefits, including our sick days. It takes all of us out in the facilities to make this happen! Stay strong and make sure to check back here the week of the 4th to see the new updates.

In Unity,
Victoria

They're still coming after our sick days!

Alright you all, I'm back at bargaining. Let's just keep it short and sweet. Based on my calculatons, we could stand to lose about half of our sick days if management has its way. Yesterday and this morning management continued to try and present their reasons as to why PTO/ETO would be a benefit. It was a bad presentation that did not change our views on PTO/ETO one bit. It actually really fustrated me because they came with a weak presentation and in some cases no documentation. What a waste of our time! There is no reasonable logic to support a change to PTO/ETO. We listend to what they had to say but had to stop the discussion of PTO/ETO from further discussion at this time.

When we moved forward, Labor brought up 8 items in the national agreement that are not being enforced but that, if they were, would improve attendance. We believe that if Labor and management would just enforce those items then the agreement would reach its full potential. Things could improve in those areas that have problems and improve more in areas that are already doing well.

Our members at the table are staying focused on the goal at hand and are doing a great job. The next round is on May 4-6. They're gonna keep trying to take our sick days but we will continue to stand up to them. We need your supprt out there, people!

In Unity,

Victoria

We're in for a tough fight!

Hey all!!

So yesterday was the last day of bargaining for the first round and it was a tough fight all week long. Labor is all about keeping our stuff and not veering from that. Our labor brothers and sisters were on the same page throughout the day, standing strong for keeping what we have. We are not willing to give into changing our sick time benefits no matter how hard management pushes us on that issue. Sick time is ours and that is that!

We’re back at the table again on April 20. Keep showing your support and stay committed to the fight!

Victoria

They Came After Our Sick Time Today!

Listen up people: Kaiser is already making moves to take away our sick time!

It's the second day of bargaining and we broke into 4 different subgroups. I am on the Attendance sub group. After some introductions and polite talk, we looked at our attendance numbers from the last four years. Those numbers show that we have improved all over the place during the last few years. THAT IS A FACT. But Kaiser management ignored the facts. They talked about how sick time has decreased but protected time has increased and how that is labor's fault.

Why'd they do that, you ask? In their polite, roundabout way, they want to take away our front loading of sick time and they want to take away days of sick time. They look at sick time as something that we should not use because it makes our departments short staffed. We would have more then enough staff for the sick calls if management would stop trying to take everything away from us! We would have facilities that wouldn't be overworked and stressed out, which effects everyone's health. Management likes to play the blame game: Blame the workers for sick time and then try to take it away from us.

Management needs to stop wasting their time in bargaining pointing fingers at us and trying to take our stuff. They need to look at their own practices and their own managers.

It's getting serious, people. Make no mistake: Kaiser wants concessions from us on sick time. I'm ready to fight them, but I need your support. Get mad, get purple, and get ready to fight!

You're Not Taking Our Stuff!

So we met with management this afternoon and they started off bargaining by saying how bad the economy is and how we have lost so many members. The same thing that we have been hearing over and over in the CVA. As we all know, we have heard about how bad membership is and the struggles that Kaiser is going through. Same old, same old from management's mouth, and we all were falling asleep because we've heard it all before and seen their slides. But then Dave Regan got up to speak . . .

Once Dave started in, the whole room woke up and cheered what he had to say--except management, of course. He told it how it is: We have all seen the slides and heard the financial info, but we were not going to let Kaiser take ANYTHING away from us. We are NOT backing down. We are at a fork in the road. Kaiser can either choose to go the way that they are comfortable with and we can drag this out until next year, or they can agree to not take away our healthcare benefits and we can all move forward. If we move forward, we can get these millions of members from the new heathcare reform bill on board with Kaiser. But if they choose to go the long road and try to get takeaways then we will spend our time battling each other rather than working together to get all those millions of members. This would only cost Kaiser more money.

I have come to find that Dave is about the people and a very down to earth man who does not sugarcoat anything. He does not try to speak above anyone's head. Management likes to talk around the point but Dave gets right to the point. He states facts and lets it be known that we are united and we are ready to fight. It doesn't matter what side of the table you are sitting on, every word that comes out of his mouth you will understand whether you want to or not.

In the CVA I know that there are a lot of people who still question our leadership. I did so myself at one time. But I truly know now that our leadership and our sisters and brothers here today are all ready to fight and give it our all. But you all need to understand that it is not only up to us here. It is up to all of you out there too! The CVA needs to stand up right now for our contract and our rights. We need to show Kaiser that what Dave said is true: We will not let Kaiser take anything away from us! Kaiser will not touch our benefits, our wages, or our job security! If they continue to attack our benefits, we will continue to fight back. But it takes all of us, including each and every person in the CVA.

If you know me, you know that I will always say, "Do not come complaining if you choose to do nothing." Needless to say, if you choose not to stand up and fight this battle by wearing stickers, rallying, marching, picketing, and whatever else it takes to make management see that we will battle them, then do not complain in the end if your wages and benefits are not the same for you and your family! It's time for the CVA to open our eyes and see that we are in the battle of our lifetimes and our SEIU-UHW leadership is standing behind us!

In Solidarity,

Victoria DeLacruz

Hey Everyone!!!!

I arrived yesterday and everything is rolling fast but going well. We started off with training yesterday afternoon and went over our game plan to take on management. We were all able to get our questions answered about how we'll go into bargaining united and strong. It has been exciting to see all the people here in purple ready to fight for our members. About 120 SEIU-UHW members are here to support our people. WE'RE STANDING STRONG!!!

We have not met with management yet, but after lunch today we will have our first interaction with them. We'll start by hearing the viewpoints of both labor and management. Then the negotiations begin! I'm expecting this year's national bargaining to be exciting and for history to be made with an amazing new contract.

I will have more to come after this afternoon. For now, just know that we are here getting ready to fight a battle that can only be won with all of you out there standing and supporting us!!!!! So wear those stickers today and show that we're ready to fight. We all stand united here and we hope that you all are standing united out there!

Talk to you again soon!

Victoria DeLacruz
Kaiser Bargaining Team Member