Struggling to reform the SEIU

[chimx]

Here is the latest from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), a notoriously anti-democratic labor union in the United States. The workers of a local SEIU union based in LA, which boasts a membership of 160,000 workers, has had their dues funneled into firms and other ventures owned by the relatives of the union's president.

Last year they spent $300,000 on a golf tournament, elsewhere they spent $16,000 on a minor league baseball team that was coached by the brother-in-law of the president.

This union represents workers assisting people with disabilities or other health problems in their homes. It is a notably under paid profession, with care givers often making only $9/hr. Wasting the dues of these people is a slap in the face and is telling of the need for greater accountability in the SEIU, especially fiscal accountability.

The SEIU is one of the largest unions in the US, and one of the few unions that has seen growth in the past few years, but it is coming at an unacceptable expense, with minimal democratic procedures and limited accountability.


For those interested in campaigns to reform the SEIU follow these links:

http://www.democracy4seiu.org/home
http://www.reformseiu.org/
http://www.seiuvoice.org/

For the LA Times story on the recent corruption follow this link:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-union9-2008aug09,0,7561842.story

[Devrim]

Hardly surprising really, the question is whether it is reformable.

Devrim

[chimx]

the question is whether it is reformable

Yes, that is the question really. The size and power of the union really are a curse and a blessing in this situation. Changing something that size from the bottom up is quite the task, but having that kind of organizational framework for workers would be nice.

There have been some gains recently. The SEIU in DC recently lost a lawsuit with the SEIU-UHW (united healthcare workers). This local in California has been really helping to spearhead the SEIU reform movement within the union and the lawsuit was a tactic to try and discredit these workers who wanted greater democracy and accountability in that tangled bureaucracy. Here's a brief article:

http://www.seiu-uhw.org/mediacenter/pressreleases/victory-for-reformers-judge-tosses-out-seiu-s-nuisance-lawsuit-against-california-members.html

The SEIU in California will be something to watch as the UHW is actively trying to organize all healthcare workers into one big union, whereas the SEIU bureaucracy is trying to keep different healthcare trades divided.