UNITE HERE Local 634 Members Beat Back SEIU Raid By 2:1 Vote

by jre, Fri Nov 06, 2009 at 06:45:42 AM EST

Last week the Pennsylvania Labor Relations Board (PLRB) announced the results of the election to represent the 2,300 cafeteria workers and noon time aides in the Philadelphia School District: members of UNITE HERE Local 634 voted by a 2:1 margin to stay with their union and rejected SEIU's anti-union tactics.

After months of attacks directed by New York-based SEIU 32BJ, the PLRB counted 1121 votes for UNITE HERE Local 634 and only 551 votes for SEIU Philadelphia Joint Board.  There were 10 votes for no union and 198 challenged ballots.

Local 634 members had already made their choice clear months ago.  In March, Local 634's Executive Board voted unanimously to stay part of UNITE HERE and leave the Philadelphia Joint Board.  In April, two thirds of the workers signed a petition remaining UNITE HERE Local 634 and rejecting SEIU again - just as workers could choose a union under the Employee Free Choice Act.  But SEIU wouldn't take no for an answer.  Instead SEIU filed for an election, stalling the contract negotiations underway with the Philadelphia School District and subjecting workers to months of dishonest attacks.  And SEIU lost again.

Local 634 members are among nearly 30,000 workers across North America who have resisted SEIU raids and returned to or stayed with UNITE HERE, including the 2300 members of St. Louis' Local 74 last month and the 2000 Delaware North company food service workers in August.

As AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka wrote:

I am proud that workers supported their union, UNITE HERE Local 634, and took a stand against improper and counterproductive raids. Unions should be working together to improve workers' lives, not conducting raids against workers who already have a union.

The workers' contract with the Philadelphia School District expired September 30.  Hundreds of Local 634 members rallied in September to demand a fair contract with the staffing and training they need to do their jobs and the wages and benefits they need to support their families.

Local 634 members cook and serve food, supervise children, and keep them safe in nearly 300 Philadelphia public schools and early childhood programs.  Since 1977 they have been part of UNITE HERE, which represents food service, hotel, gaming, laundry, airport, manufacturing and textile workers across North America, including 8,000 workers in the Philadelphia region.

Tags: contract, Labor, Living Wage, School, SEIU, Unions, UNITE HERE, Vote (all tags)

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8 Comments

Shadow_head_small
What is up with the SEIU?

Raiding, trying to decert all over the place.  It's not like their traditional sector is completely organized.

by JJE 2009-11-06 02:40PM | 0 recs
97250_45
Re: UNITE HERE Beat Back SEIU Raid By 2:1 Vote

 I have no idea what went on from reading your diary. Can you link to some journalism on this (either unbiased or some from each side's biased point of view). It may well have been a raid, but I'd like more evidence before I form my meaningless opinion.

by QTG 2009-11-07 12:53AM | 0 recs
Shadow_head_small
Here it is

http://www.reuters.com/article/pressRele ase/idUS207671+27-Oct-2009+PRN20091027

by JJE 2009-11-07 04:55AM | 0 recs
97250_45
Re: Here it is

I was looking for something a little less one-sided. But thanks for the additional UNITE HERE sourced story just the same. (read the last line of the Reuters 'story' you linked.)

To me, this looks more like a soap opera, and I hope the workers don't suffer because of the drama. UNITE-HERE was formed from a 2004 merger between the Union of Needletrades, Industrial & Textile Employees (UNITE) and the Hotel Employees and Restaurant Employees (HERE). The union's textile industry segment led by Bruce Raynor (head of UNITE before the merger) voted to disaffiliate from UNITE-HERE back in September, while the hospitality industry segment led by John Wilhelm (head of HERE before the merger) voted to rejoin the AFL-CIO, which UNITE-HERE had left in order to join the new Change to Win labor federation, which was founded under the auspices of SEIU.

On paper, the marriage made sense, besides making for the catchy Unite Here name. Unite -- the descendant of two illustrious New York unions, the International Ladies' Garment Workers Union and the Amalgamated Clothing and Textile Workers Union -- had lots of money to organize workers, but few workers left to unionize because so many apparel jobs had moved overseas. At the same time, Here was starved for cash, but saw an ocean of hotel and restaurant workers to unionize.

The idea was that once the unions merged, Unite's ample treasury -- it owns Amalgamated Bank, the only union-owned bank in the nation -- would underwrite a surge in organizing.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/08/us/08l abor.html?_r=2&scp=1&sq=UNITE-HE RE&st=cse

It's a sad story, the truth about which is much more interesting than the propaganda presented by this diary. At least, like I said, that's how it seems to me.

by QTG 2009-11-07 01:35PM | 0 recs
Shadow_head_small
You got me

that Reuters article was just a reprint of a UNITE HERE press release.  If you think it's a good thing that the SEIU thinks raiding other unions is better for workers than organizing the unorganized, who am I to argue?

by JJE 2009-11-07 08:34PM | 0 recs
97250_45
Re: Stop doing that

Characterizing this childish yet complicated power struggle among selfish union leadership egos as a "Raid!" is just parroting one side's vitriol. I carry a union card (inactive thanks to George the first), and I resented the infighting that always seem to pre-occupy the in-power and out-of-power political factions inside the hall, to the detriment of the rank-and-file.

Stop trashing me for not taking sides with your side. They both suck.

by QTG 2009-11-08 04:07AM | 0 recs
Shadow_head_small
A raid's a raid

When one union tries to take members from another union it's called a raid.  Nobody's trashing you.  It's not vitriol, it's just a fact.  I agree with you that intra-union power struggles are damaging and UNITE HERE certainly has significant problems, but SEIU raiding doesn't help the situation.

by JJE 2009-11-08 05:21AM | 0 recs
97250_45
Re: SEIU raiding doesn't help the situation

 Certainly oversimplifying the analysis isn't useful.

by QTG 2009-11-09 06:38AM | 0 recs

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