2013 is going to be a big year for our members who work in LA County. For the last several years those members have sacrificed in order to keep LA County running.

Now those members deserve a raise. We laid the groundwork for a raise last year when members worked hard to pass Prop 30, which provides the state and County with much-needed revenues.

But there’s plenty of hard work ahead of us: we have to stay united, our bargaining teams have to be trained, CAT team members have to communicate with members at their worksites, and we must demonstrate our unity and strength publicly.

I’m happy to say that I’m very optimistic that we can achieve our goals. On February 2, nearly 700 LA County members attended a bargaining kick off in downtown LA. They agreed to work together, set goals and broke out into bargaining units to begin talking about the issues that matter to them. With that strong beginning to this campaign, I’m confident we can win and win big.

Do you want to get involved? Here’s what you can do: text LACOUNTY to 787-753 to get text alerts about bargaining. Go to our website and click “Update your contact info” to make sure we can get you the information you need. And most of all, come on out. There will be lots of opportunities for all LA County members to get involved in the drive for raises. The more people who participate, the better the outcome will be.

Sincerely,
Bob Schoonover
SEIU 721 President and LA City
Heavy Duty Equipment Mechanic