We Honor Your Service and Sacrifice
SEIU District 1199 is proud to represent many Union members who have served our nation. This year for Veterans Day, we would like to share photos to honor those with military service backgrounds.
As you may know, the Union started a Veterans Caucus last year and members can sign up online. If you send us photos from your military service, we would like to spotlight and honor member veterans on social media.
Send any service related photos to be shared online on Veterans Day by sending them to media@seiu1199.org. Together, we thank you and honor your service and sacrifice.
In Solidarity,
Becky Williams – President
SEIU District 1199 WV/KY/OH
Members: We’ve Got YOUR Back
By now you have probably received an email from this out-of-state, anti-worker organization calling themselves the Freedom Foundation or OptOutToday? If you are like me, you deleted it quickly and put it in the trash where it belongs.
For those of you who don’t know much about the so-called “Freedom Foundation,” they are funded by out-of-state billionaires who want to destroy unions and elect anti-worker, anti-union candidates that will keep wages low, eliminate paid sick leave, and slash crucial funding for quality public services like the reliable and front line services you provide.
In fact, the Freedom Foundation is a long-time advocate and contributor of so-called Right to Work Laws like Senate Bill 5, which we soundly defeated before and will do again if necessary. We will not allow the wealthy and the out of touch politicians to work in the shadows through failed organizations like the Freedom Foundation to lower wages, take away the benefits, healthcare, and protections you negotiated through your Union. They are trying to attack your solidarity and strength and make your workplaces less safe while eroding your protections and securities to enrich their overflowing pockets.
Don’t believe their lies and misleading information. They are using every trick in the book to further divide workers by badgering SEIU members via your private work email and cell phones. Sowing division and weakening workers’ rights is truly their ONLY goal.
Most of us, no matter our color, origin, or gender, want our communities and our country to be places where freedom is for everyone. We beat groups like them when we defeated Senate Bill 5, and we won’t allow anyone to take away our dignity, rights, and respect on the job and in our communities. That’s why the members of our Union are proud to continue to stand in solidarity, united to fight for the improvement of the lives of all working people as we strive for a more just society for all people. Ignore these out of town billionaires and stand united to win for working families as we have always done.
In Solidarity,
President Becky Williams
SEIU District 1199 WV/KY/OH
2020 Union Scholarship Winners
Kentucky
Vernal Wiley, Highlands ARH
West Virginia
Stephanie Fiber, child of Tina Fiber, Northern Panhandle Head Start
Andrew Leist, child of Sarah Parks, Cabell Huntington Hospital
Jake Meek, child of Retha Meek, American Red Cross – Huntington
Shauntina Reed, child of Priscilla Reed, Rescare – West Virginia
Ohio
Tiera Cross, Lutheran Hospital
Andrew Curry, child of Kim Moore, Cleveland Metropolitan School District
Valerie Dranchak, child of Christa Dranchak, Greene County Public Library
Amanda Frerking, child of Mary Frerking, Stark County District Library
Christina Fulton, Zepf Center
Stephanie Furino, Cuyahoga County Public Library
Marc Judy, child of Lisa Judy, Steward – Trumbull Regional Medical Center
Ariel McLain, child of Erica McLain, Cleveland Metropolitan School District
Keith Nelson, child of Tasha Nelson, Rescue Mental Health
Tamhra Phelps, Mercy Lorain – RNs
Cara Potocki, child of Therese Potocki, Frontline Services
James Snowden, OS – Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections
Gage Thompson, child of Kristina Thompson, OS – Department of Developmental Disabilities
Rachel Witten, OS – Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections
Trisade Zimmerman, child of Dwayne Henson, OS – Ohio Veterans Home
Stillwater Center Members in Dayton Ask for Community Support and Stand United for a Fair Contract as Union Negotiations Continue Amid the COVID19 Pandemic
During an outbreak that recently occurred, 25 staff members and residents with the Stillwater Center contracted COVID19. Nurses with the Stillwater Center have been working tirelessly in the current pandemic to protect residents – healthcare workers and their families have also been exposed to a new level of risk as the pandemic continues.
For Immediate Release: Thursday, October 1, 2020.
Media Contact: Carol Walters – Deputy Director: (740) 709-9004.
DAYTON, OHIO – Members of SEIU District with the Stillwater Center in Dayton are currently negotiating their next three year contract agreement. Workers with the facility have continued working bravely during the current pandemic, despite often difficult conditions.
On August 10th, members with the Stillwater Center alerted local media through a press release sent by SEIU District 1199 that workers at the facility believed that some infectious disease control protocols, such as quarantining staff following exposure, needed to be improved. At that time only a handful of cases had been reported by the Ohio Department of Health. Ultimately, 25 staff members and residents contracted COVID19 in that outbreak. SEIU District 1199 represents approximately 32 nurses with the Stillwater Center and numerous healthcare workers there have contracted COVID19 through their work.
“In negotiations, the Stillwater Center has offered minimal wage increases for these brave nurses. We believe that staff retention and caring for those serving on the frontlines of this crisis is within the interests of local government and management at the Stillwater Center,” said Carol Walters, a deputy director with SEIU District 1199. “While we understand budgetary concerns, many staff members at the Stillwater Center have actually contracted COVID19, which may have long-term health implications,” continued Walters.
Workers with the Stillwater Center care deeply about their work and have do everything possible each day to maintain the highest possible level of quality care. This week, the workers submitted a new public records request to management to understand what stockpiles of personal protective equipment (PPE) are available at the facility to prepare for the possibility of a new outbreak. Workers also sent a letter about ongoing negotiations to members of the Montgomery County Commission on September 17th.
“Nurses have always been heroes in Dayton and across our country. Members of the public in Montgomery County are submitting letters to local officials to ask them to stand with these nurses. It’s critical that we care for those who care for others in this crisis,” concluded Walters.
Stand With the Union Healthcare Heroes at the Stillwater Center
Standing Together for Nursing Home Safety and Unions for All
Nursing home members with SEIU District 1199 of all backgrounds have worked bravely across West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio, during the current pandemic. Members have faced hazardous conditions while providing health care services and support on behalf of long-term care residents.
Last week, a new study was released by a journal called Health Affairs about nursing homes, labor unions, and COVID19. The study found that at nursing homes where workers had a Union in New York State, COVID19 infection and fatality rates were significantly lower than at non-Union facilities. The study concluded that this is likely because “health care worker unionization may play an important role in ensuring access to appropriate PPE and implementing infection control policies that protect vulnerable nursing home residents.”
Members can contact elected officials online about the need for greater availability of personal protective equipment, the importance of a nursing home worker bill of rights, and the Heroes Act, which would guarantee hazard pay for frontline workers. Together, we will continue to speak out for priorities important to nursing home workers and for elected leaders to protect all workers.
In Solidarity,
Becky Williams — President
SEIU District 1199 WV/KY/OH
2020 SEIU District 1199 Election Results
Register to Vote Online and Request an Absentee Ballot in Ohio
Health Care Workers With the Stillwater Center in Dayton Call for Improved Safety Measures, Pandemic Protocols, and COVID19 Response
On Wednesday, August 12th, the Ohio Department of Health reported a total of 6 residents and 15 staff members testing positive with COVID19. Healthcare Union Members With the Stillwater Center Say COVID19 Related Infectious Disease Protocols and Safety Measures Must Improve to Protect Residents and Staff
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, August 13th, 2020
Contact: Joshua Norris at 877-419-7348
DAYTON, Ohio – Workers with the Stillwater Center in Dayton are speaking out about safety protocols as the COVID19 pandemic continues. Workers with the Stillwater Center provide health care and support services to clients with disabilities.
Local media in Dayton first reported a positive case at the Stillwater Center on June 22nd. Staff members who are members of SEIU District 1199 say that failure to adhere to sound protocols at the facility increases the risk of additional spread among staff and residents.
“Workers with the Stillwater Center have a Union, which means that they have a voice on the job and the ability to speak out for themselves and residents,” said Josh Norris, an Executive Vice President with SEIU District 1199. “These workers care tremendously about their work. It’s important that every measure possible is taken and adhered in order to prevent additional positive cases.”
Workers with the Stillwater Center have relayed concerns to the Union and Stillwater management, which include the need for additional quarantine measures to prevent the spread of COVID19 among staff, the ability to access and use N95 masks (instead of KN95), and instances in which there have been confirmed COVID19 positive cases but insufficient notice given to employees.
According to the Ohio Department of Health, as of August 5th, one resident at the facility and seven staff members had contracted COVID19. In the most recent update from the Ohio Department of Health on August 12th, 6 residents and 15 staff members have now tested positive for COVID19. SEIU District 1199 represents over 30 workers with the Stillwater Center, in addition to health care and social service workers across West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio.
Health Care Workers With the Stillwater Center in Dayton Call for Improved Safety Measures, Pandemic Protocols, and COVID19 Response
Healthcare Union Members With the Stillwater Center Say COVID19 Related Infectious Disease Protocols and Safety Measures Must Improve to Protect Residents and Staff
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Monday, August 10th, 2020
Contact: Joshua Norris at (877) 419-7348
DAYTON, Ohio – Workers with the Stillwater Center in Dayton are speaking out about safety protocols as the COVID19 pandemic continues. Workers with the Stillwater Center provide health care and support services to clients with disabilities.
Local media in Dayton first reported a positive case at the Stillwater Center on June 22nd. Staff members who are members of SEIU District 1199 say that failure to adhere to sound protocols at the facility increases the risk of additional spread among staff and residents.
“Workers with the Stillwater Center have a Union, which means that they have a voice on the job and the ability to speak out for themselves and residents,” said Josh Norris, an Executive Vice President with SEIU District 1199. “These workers care tremendously about their work. It’s important that every measure possible is taken and adhered in order to prevent additional positive cases.”
Workers with the Stillwater Center have relayed concerns to the Union, which include the need for additional quarantine measures to prevent the spread of COVID19 among staff, the ability to access and use N95 masks (instead of KN95), and instances in which there have been confirmed COVID19 positive cases but insufficient notice given to employees.
According to the Ohio Department of Health, as of August 5th, one resident at the facility and seven staff members have contracted COVID19. A member with facility reports that several additional residents and workers have also now tested positive. SEIU District 1199 represents over 30 workers with the Stillwater Center, in addition to health care and social service workers across West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio.
Social Justice Committee Elections
Greetings Sisters and Brothers,
The nomination process for the Social Justice Steering Committee has now closed. A listing with all candidates can be found at this link.
All members in good standing, including retiree chapter members, are encouraged to participate and attend the bi-annual Social Justice Activist meetings. If you have questions, please contact me at (216) 246-8772.
In Solidarity,
Samara Knight – Executive Vice President
Civic Engagement and Community Outreach
Standing Together for a Relief Bill for All Working Families
It has been two months since the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Heroes Act. Working people have been waiting for relief in this crisis. With inaction from U.S. Senate Republicans, pandemic related unemployment assistance is set to expire on July 31st.
The U.S. Senate Republican proposal is not the rescue package that is needed. That’s why I am encouraging you to call 844-944-1556. When you are connected, ask your U.S. Senator to pass a strong economic relief bill that includes the important measures found within the Heroes Act. Tell your U.S. Senator that pandemic unemployment assistance must be extended.
Workers across Ohio, West Virginia, and Kentucky, have been providing vital services and support in this crisis. Many families have felt the economic distress caused by this pandemic firsthand. It is more important than ever that workers make their voices heard. Together, we will continue to speak out for relief for all working families.
In Solidarity,
Becky Williams – President
SEIU District 1199 WV/KY/OH
Advanced Grievance Chair Training (Columbus)
An Advanced Grievance Chair Training will be held this August in Columbus. The training is a great resource and will help members develop the knowledge and tools needed to fight back and win at work.
The Advanced Grievance Chair Training is designed for Grievance Chairs, Delegates and Executive Board Members, who have taken the Basic Grievance Chair Training. Face coverings or masks will be required. Social distancing guidelines will be applied. The meeting space will be sanitized.
Location: SEIU District 1199 Office at 1395 Dublin Road in Columbus, Ohio.
Date: Wednesday, August 26, 2020
Time: 10:00am – 4:30pm
Please bring a copy of your union contract. Contact your administrative organizer for lost time eligibility. Register online with the form on this page or with your organizer by phone or email. We are stronger together.
