Building Our New Union

Reports on the SEIU 721 Work Groups

Representation
The Representation work group is providing feedback and guidance to the union staff that are developing the new Member Service Center. The goal of the Representation work group is to make sure that the new representation system is user-friendly for stewards and members alike.

Politics
SEIU 721 has set ambitious goals to dramatically increase member participation in the Committee on Political Education (COPE), the union’s political action program. Currently, about 9,000 Local 721 members participate in COPE. Our goal is to more than double participation by recruiting 10,000 additional COPE members by the end of the year. The Politics work group is currently focused on developing a plan to reach these ambitious goals.

Organizing
The Organizing work group is considering ways to increase member involvement in SEIU 721’s organizing campaigns and build the SEEDS program. Our goal is to recruit a dozen members from each county to participate in union activities. These leaders will be responsible for reaching out and talking to non-represented workers about union activities and the benefits of membership.

Member Involvement
Recognizing that first impressions are crucial, the Member Involvement work group is taking a close look at how new members and new hires are welcomed into the union. Do worksite leaders or staff regularly greet new employees? Does the union consistently participate in new employee orientations? What do new hires and new members receive from the union in the mail? The Member Involvement work group will be making recommendations on how SEIU 721 can improve how we communicate with new employees during their first 30-60 days on the job.

Leadership and Staff Development
The work group has identified the resources necessary to build the Leadership Academy. Development of the program includes access to quality trainings via 721’s internet web page and in-house trainings. Work groups will be working monthly to develop the structure, content and time frames of the Academy itself. The academy will assist stewards and leaders to develop their skills, within their areas of interest, such as grievance handling, politics, organizing, etc. The academy would be available to all 721 stewards and leaders.

Governance
The Governance work group is working to develop recommendations on how SEIU 721 should be structured to ensure that members have a strong democratic voice in the programs and policies of the union. The Governance work group is starting by researching other local unions, both inside and outside of SEIU, to find the “best practices” that could be customized to meet the needs of SEIU 721.