Image provided by: SEIU Local 503; Salem, OR
About The Oregon public employe. (Salem, Oregon) 1981-???? | View Entire Issue (June 1, 2002)
—----------- ■■ SEID Local 503, OPEU General Council 2002 SEIU Local 503, OPEU members and leaders will be assessing how we move from " Vision to Action " for three days in August when delegates convene in Corvallis for the Union's General Council. Bringing Action to Our Vision T ocal 503 doesn't just talk about the needs of Oregon's working people; we 1 have a vision of what our state should be and we work to put that vision into action. "Vision to Action." It means that we show the power of our Union; that workers' voices must be heard in all decisions that affect our lives. VISION TO ACTION - "Our Vision to Action theme for this Council and for the next two years really shows that we place our emphasis on the action," said SEIU Local 503, OPEU President Kathie Best. "Many organizations have a 'vision,' or should. Some sound very nice. What's special about SEIU Local 503, OPEU, is that our actions are directed by our vision." SEIU Local 503, OPEU's 51st General Council will be held from Wednesday, August 21 through Saturday, August 24. At the General Council, delegates will vote on resolutions that set the course of the Union for the next two years. They will also review and approve the 2002-2003 budget. SEIU Local 503, OPEU members know that decisions are made that affect our lives at the Legislature and at local governing board meetings; in local, state and federal elections; in the workplace and at the bargaining table; in the courts; at the Employment Relations Board and arbitration hearings; by community groups and in our neighborhoods. Consequently, as a Union, as working people, as voters in our state, we must demand a place in each of these forums where decisions are being contemplated that may affect our lives. Our voices must be heard. PACE 4 THE OREGON PUBLIC EMPLOYEE ---------------------------------------------------------------- Our Union’s Action Recognized by AFL t the recent 47th Oregon AFL-CIO Convention, SEIU Local 503, OPEU was honored for fielding the most door- to-door volunteers. (See story, "Vision to Action," this page) "I was proud to accept this award that recognizes the members of our Union who continue to volunteer countless hours to campaigns that affect our lives," said SEIU Local 503, OPEU President Kathie Best. "It shows that others are recognizing we are turning our vision into action." When President Best received die award, she was joined by candidate for Governor of Oregon Ted Kulongoski, Commissioner of Labor and Industries Dan Gardner and Oregon AFL-CIO President Tim Nesbitt. A union that can turn out a large number of political volunteers to go door-to-door is a union political candidates appreciate. The convention itself was one that committed Oregon labor to a raised bar for organizing and participation by union members in elections. SEIU Local 49 was honored at the convention for its coverage of downtown Portland worksites. Four other unions and individuals were given awards. Some 256 delegates from 80 different unions met on the OSU campus in mid-June. They approved resolutions and launched programs to; ♦ Expand the state labor federation's organizing assistance program. ♦ Increase member-to-member communication to elect pro-worker candidates and protect and advance the interests of working families through the initiative process. ♦ Move forward with campaigns to qualify for the ballot and pass the Initiative Integrity Act and the Minimum Wage Inflation Adjustment Act. > Undertake a program to control health care costs and reform the health care system. ■ SEIU Local 503, OPEU President Kathie Best is surrounded by candidate for Governor of Oregon Ted Kulongoski, Commissioner of Labor and Industries Dan Gardner, and Oregon AFL-CIO President Tim Nesbitt. — THE STRENGTH OF OUR MEMBERSHIP ~ SEIU Local 503, OPEU members know that our success depends on the strength of our membership. It takes trained members and leaders to turn our vision into action. It takes members who know how to become leaders in our communities and in our workplaces. It takes members who are trained, prepared and supported when we speak to the media, when we organize our fellow members or unorganized workers, when we address a crowd or testify at the Legislature — when we take on the boss. At SEIU Local 503, OPEU, it is truly our members who run the Union. Trained and supported shop stewards are the most visible faces of the Union in the workplace. Throughout our Union, members who have never given a speech or thought of themselves as leaders find that they have the skills and ideas to succeed as local officers, leading several thousand rank-and-file members. Members and activists have demonstrated to the Governor of the state, to legislators, to city council members and county commissioners, to nonprofit board members that their power and their authority derives from the voters of the state — people like us. Our vision extends to others who may not be members of our Union. Our action includes standing side-by-side with them, fighting for dignity and justice for all. Whether it's steelworkers or farmworkers, our elderly and disabled clients, families needing assistance and children needing protection, or members of the community demonstrating for a just cause, we are there — in action. Turning our vision into action. We've done it for years. We'll rededicate ourselves to it at General Council in August. -
