There’s new leadership for our contract bargaining team: Susan Rodriguez, the Chair of Bargaining Unit 1, has been elected to the position of Local 1000 Chief Negotiator and will guide the 60+ members of our bargaining team as they work to improve our wages, benefits and working conditions in 2026 negotiations.
Susan has been on the bargaining team for the last four contract cycles, in 2013, ’16, ’19, and 2024. She was the Unit 1 bargaining chair for the last two campaigns and will retain that role moving forward.
A 23-year veteran of state service, Susan works at State Fund as a Senior Worker’s Compensation Claims Adjuster. It’s her experience as a rank-and-file state employee that informs and motivates her work at the bargaining table as well as protecting our hard-earned contract rights.
“We’re working to make the jobs and lives of state workers better,” Susan said. “State workers provide vital services to California every day, and they deserve to be respected and valued.”
In 2023, Susan was part of the bargaining team that, with the support of thousands of Local 1000-represented workers, won the largest contract in our union’s history.
“Members really made the difference in bringing home a contract that puts more money in their pockets,”
she added. “We won a 10% general salary increase, special salary and wage adjustments for more than 300 job classifications, a health care subsidy and a reduction in pre-retirement deductions.”
What’s next? “A great contract in 2026,” says Susan Rodriguez. How do we get there? “A strong membership is always our top priority. More members equal more POWER that leads to more money in our paychecks! And it is going to take everyone represented by SEIU Local 1000 to make that happen.”
Join the fight for a better contract! We win better wages, benefits, and working conditions when we have a strong membership. More info at seiu1000.org/sign-up/