Local 1000 Sends Loud Message to the State at Los Angeles Rally

SEIU Local 1000 members met at the Ronald Reagan Building in Los Angeles to make sure our voice is heard by the State and to fight for a contract that addresses the chronic issues faced by workers across the state.

After news broke of the State negotiating team’s insulting offer of 6% over 3 years, our members converged on the building and picketed the entrance. Additionally, we sent a delegation representing the assembled members into the building and listened to speakers from across California discuss the crisis unfolding across the state.

State workers have worked too hard for too long for too little pay. We are asking for what we need to recover from the strain of the pandemic, but the pandemic is not the only issue that state workers have dealt with over the last three years. Chronic understaffing across departments has led to an inability to attract and retain talent. Understaffed offices create stress for our workforce, already spread thin as we address the ongoing needs of Californians.

Our work, serving the public and enforcing the laws and regulations of California, benefits the public directly and indirectly. Political leaders from the city of Los Angeles, including Mark Gonzalez, chair of the Los Angeles Democratic Party, spoke on the needs of his constituents that depend on our work.

“It’s very important for us to be here today because 6 percent is an insult to the work these people have done,” said Gonzalez. “They have to choose between gas in their car and food on the table. These are basic services and needs, and we need a fair contract now.”

We are underpaid, overworked, and out of patience, and low pay and high vacancy rates across the state are directly responsible for our inability to provide the citizens of California with the services—and service—they need and deserve. Californians deserve to receive the benefits of an economy that works for all of us. And the offer provided by the State’s negotiating team deprives our members of the money they need to keep up with the rising cost of living, as well as their dignity.

We are determined to take the necessary steps to protect our members’ needs at the table when the State will not. Our escalation in negotiation will continue until every state worker has the opportunity to vote on a contract that actually respects, protects, and pays us for the work we do every day. Our future and the future of California depends on this. It’s time the State understood the importance of our work.