In addition to canvassing and phone banking to get
pro-worker legislators elected, SEIU members told
their stories and moved the legislature.
Virginia
Mary
Bill
Virginia Santillan and Portia Moye,
child care providers, testified about how
difficult it was to provide quality child
care on a sub-minimum wage. They also
pushed for an expansion of working
parents' ability to access affordable day
care. As a result, the legislature
Portia
moved Oregon from 49th in the U.S.
to a top-tier state for child care subsidies for working
parents.
Mary Wood, a homecare provider from Lincoln
County, testified about being treated as a second-class
worker because she does not have mandatory workers'
compensation coverage to protect her from on-the-job
injury. The legislature passed legislation to provide
Workers' Comp for homecare workers.
Bill Morris and dozens of other front-line workers at
the Eastern Oregon Training Center drove hours to
tell legislators about the services they provide for the
developmentally disabled. As a result, members stopped
an effort to close the EOTC facility in Pendleton.
These are just a few of the examples of SEIU members fighting for themselves,
fortheir clients, and for quality public services. Individually, a lot of voices were
heard. Collectively, a lot of fights were won. We still have work to do to improve
public services, stop rampant privatization, make health care affordable, and make
corporations pay their fair share.
But we should stop for a moment and recognize the accomplishments of those
member-leaders and our allies in the legislature who fought long and hard for
fairness and justice.
Our success in the election gave us a momentum in the legislature.
Labor union members whom we helped elect chaired committees,
were in leadership, and moved legislation. We were proud of our
fellow elected union members:
Representative Brad Witt from United Food and Commercial Workers
Representative Larry Galizio from American Federation of Teachers
Representative Diane Rosenbaum from Communications Workers of America
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