This is a chart of the 41 positions that are up for election in SEIU 1021 under the newly approved Bylaws.

The reform group change1021 (change1021.org) is growing and includes grassroots Rank-and-File members of our union, including members from the MAC (Member Advisory Committee) and the E-Board (Executive Board) who struggle with issues around the merger and the bylaws.

On Friday 10/16/2009, after a difficult process, and the persistence of members involved,  Local 1021’s Vision and Bylaws Committee (comprised of MAC and E-Board members and the union officers) agreed to a compromise set of Bylaws modeled after those adopted by SEIU 521, with some “concessions” that were agreed to that day.

The document that will go before the members for a vote in November is less than ideal, but not passing these Bylaws could result in our Union being placed in receivership – still, we urge you to read the bylaws and decide for yourself.

Some Bylaws strengths

-      Rank-and-file President
-      Executive Board must approve all expenditure of funds
-      Rank and File Officers shall be included in resolving all complaints and grievances
-      Proposed amendments to these bylaws may be originated by majority of

Executive Board members and approved by a majority vote of all members

Some Bylaws shortcomings

-      Retired Members are losing their voice as they will not be able to vote or run for office
-      Staff membership rights’ concede members’ strength
-      Industry Representatives are not ‘elected officials’

Staff forced to promote bylaws

Recently, we learned that staff was ordered to collect signatures (with large quotas) on petitions pledging members’ support of the Bylaws. This at a time when our members are facing mass layoffs and, more than ever, we need staff to focus and help to organize campaigns to oppose layoffs and raise revenues. Staff is pushing back, but have been told they will be fired immediately if they do not push a “yes” vote on the Bylaws. We believe this is highly inappropriate. Staff should be required to do no more than provide unbiased information to the membership.

Please contact us at change1021.org (click “join us”) and we will add your name to list serve and telephone trees to get out information to you regarding the upcoming Officer Elections that will start in 1/2010 (after the Bylaws are adopted).

What happened at the last Bylaws meeting?

After two years of intense bylaws negotiations, the Member Advisory Committee (the MAC) and the Executive Board came to an agreement on June 21 in Fairfield regarding two important issues: the size and make-up of the Executive Board, and whether Staff can be full members with the right to run for office and campaign. With this breakthrough, the two bodies were in agreement on a complete bylaws document.

Around an hour later, three appointed Officers of our Local voted down this final bylaws draft that the MAC and the Executive Board had come together around (the two bodies have a combined delegate membership of more than one-hundred.) This bylaws document would have gone to the members for a vote, but Stern and the officers wanted the bylaws to designate a small, elite body of officers with enormous decision-making powers; and they wanted staff to run for office and have the right to campaign for candidates.

At the end of June, Local 1021 President Damita Davis-Howard unilaterally declared our Local’s bylaws process to be at an impasse and sent a letter to Stern asking him what to do (a copy of the letter was sent to MAC members). Neither the MAC nor the Executive Board had discussed the impasse issue, and at its July meeting, the Executive Board voted to continue the bylaws process with a functioning mediator. Davis-Howard ignored this vote and failed to communicate it to the MAC.

What has happened since?

Three months later, in mid-September, Stern finally responded to Davis-Howard’s letter. He said that more bylaws meetings were not necessary, and in fact were discouraged. He said Davis-Howard had the authority to send an earlier bylaws draft to the membership for a vote–a draft adopted by the small Bylaws Content Committee (BCC) in April. That document would allow staff involvement in the Local’s officer-election campaigns. Stern’s letter insisted on bylaws language that would give the president the power to run the Local with virtually no oversight or control by the members.

During the three months since the June 20 and 21 marathon meetings between the Mac, the Executive Board and the Officers, Davis-Howard did not allow further bylaws meetings despite requests from the Executive Board, the Vision and Bylaws Committee Co-Chair, and several members of the MAC.

What now?

We are at crossroads: will Stern and Davis-Howard be able to force us into a Staff-Driven Union? Or, will the Executive Board and MAC members fight back for the members’ voice in the creation of bylaws for a democratic, Member-Driven Union?

It is important that the MAC has the opportunity to weigh in on the bylaws document that will be presented to the membership for ratification. A democratic process to reach agreement on these issues must be allowed to continue.

A group of concerned members has created a website to discuss options. Please visit this website and weigh-in, and stay connected with us! We oppose the following provisions of the April BCC bylaws document that Stern and Davis-Howard want to impose on the membership:

1. STAFF INVOLVED IN OFFICER-ELECTIONS: the BCC draft would allow staff to run for President, and campaign if they take a leave of absence, or if they are ‘off-the-clock.’  The BCC bylaws would give the president the power to hire and fire staff. Staff would lose job security and would have no choice but to be completely loyal to the Local’s president.
2. STAFF-DRIVEN, NOT MEMBER-DRIVEN: a staff-president would have union resources that would allow staff to always dominate the Local. If staff can run for office, the playing field will be completely uneven.
3. ELITE OFFICERS: the BCC draft creates an elite group of five “Officers” with extensive power and authority, making the rest of the Executive Board meaningless.

Please visit our website and stay connected with us:

www.change1021.org September 26, 2009 – labor donated