On July 1, I went to San Francisco as a representative of SEIU Local 721 to show support for our striking brothers and sisters in Local 1021 who work for the Bay Area Rapid Transit. At a rally, I told the BART workers that their friends in Southern California are standing behind them 100 percent.

Some people might wonder why I traveled 400 miles to speak at a union event that doesn’t even involve members of my own union. The reason is simple: as union members, we don’t just stand in solidarity with our own brothers and sisters. We stand in solidarity with all working people.

There’s been a lot of talk lately about unions like ours “bargaining on an island.” That means we win amazing victories for our members, but pay little attention to working people beyond the reaches of our MOUs.

Well, anyone who’s heard me speak or attended a bargaining meeting lately knows that things are changing. In Los Angeles County, we’re tying our bargaining campaign to raising the living wage. In all of our regions, we’re calling out corporate tax cheats who starve our communities of the revenues they need to provide services. And our Organizing Department is now ground zero in the struggle to organize fast food workers, who are paid so little that their hard work does almost nothing to bring them out of poverty.

Of course, what I’m talking about here is nothing new. It’s called solidarity, and it’s the heart of trade unionism. It means that we demand respect for all work and believe that an injury to one is an injury to all.

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