Fighting back for a future where public workers and the people we serve come first.
Billionaire-backed politicians want us to believe that the attacks on public services, health care, and working families are too big to stop. But this issue of the President’s Report tells a different story: workers are fighting back, and when we stand together, we win.
You see it in the courage of social workers and clinic workers defending the safety net. You see it in women leaders, caucus members, and cross-caucus organizing that is building deeper solidarity across our union. You see it in gig drivers taking on robotaxis and demanding that new technology serve people, not just corporate profits. You see it in court workers, Inland members, and Tri-Counties members who are organizing, bargaining, and beating back efforts to undermine our jobs and the public services our communities count on.
These fights are all connected. The same billionaire agenda behind H.R. 1 and other attacks on public investment is trying to weaken unions, slash health care, and shift more power and wealth to the top. Our answer is not fear. Our answer is organization.
Across SEIU 721, members are showing what real power looks like: protecting services, defending dignity, and building a future where public workers and the people we serve come first. That is how we fight back.
CELEBRATING RNPC
A DECADE OF BUILDING FOR NURSES
SEIU 721 celebrates the Registered Nurse Professional Council and 10 years of RN leadership and advocacy.
This year marks the 10th anniversary of SEIU 721’s Registered Nurse Professional Council, bringing together thousands of frontline RNs who are leading on patient care and workplace justice. Over the past decade, RNPC members have taken on unsafe staffing, fought to protect public hospitals and clinics, and spoken out for patients who cannot afford to lose critical services. They have organized coworkers, helped win strong contracts, and made their voices heard at the bargaining table, in management meetings, and at the ballot box.
Their recent gala captured what RNPC has always stood for: unity, professional pride, and an unshakable belief that when registered nurses stand together with their patients and communities, they can change the future of health care.
Union Power Vs the A.I. Tsunami
Sen. Bernie Sanders says a strong gig workers union is the best defense against Big Tech, robotaxis and runaway automation.
Senator Bernie Sanders told California Gig Workers Union drivers that union power is the best defense working people have against the coming AI “tsunami” that threatens to wipe out decent paying jobs. He warned that billionaire-backed companies are using robotaxis and other forms of automation to make themselves richer while putting hundreds of thousands of drivers’ livelihoods on the line.
During a recent visit to San Francisco, Sanders and his wife, Jane, sat down with CGWU drivers to talk about robotaxis like Waymo, life on the apps, and what runaway AI means for workers everywhere. Drivers described 12-hour days that barely add up to eight hours’ worth of pay and arbitrary deactivations that can erase a family’s income overnight. Sanders didn’t mince words: “The most important thing you’ve done is to form a union. That gives you a voice.”
Rules for Robotaxis
Gig drivers push SB 1246 to rein in Big Tech and protect public safety!
On March 25, California Gig Workers Union drivers rallied in five cities with community allies to demand real rules for robotaxis and strong support for SB 1246 (Cortese). The bill is a direct challenge to Big Tech’s “move fast and break things” approach, putting drivers, riders, and the public’s safety ahead of corporate profits.
SB 1246 would require enough trained, California licensed staff to supervise AV fleets, force companies to send a human within 10 minutes when a car crashes or stalls, and give first responders the tools they need to move disabled robotaxis out of the way. It also empowers local governments to fine AV corporations when their vehicles block traffic or delay emergency response, and mandates transparent monthly reporting on safety incidents, response times, and human intervention so the public can see exactly how these cars are performing.
we can do it With Our Union
Women’s Caucus packs the house, powering up for the fights ahead
The SEIU 721 Women’s Caucus packed the house for its 2026 Women’s History Month celebration, kicking off at the Wilshire Ebell Theater with a performance of We Can Do It, a musical about Rosie the Riveter and the women workers who powered the WWII homefront.
After the show, members headed to the union hall for a high energy luncheon and updates on upcoming caucus actions. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass joined with a message of encouragement, reminding members that women have always led movements for change—and will keep championing the vulnerable, lifting up their communities, and leading the fight for justice, equity, and dignity for all.
Inland COPE Changes the Map
Members turn political power into contract wins across the Inland Empire
\Years of steady COPE investment and organizing in the Inland Region are paying off. At this month’s Inland COPE Town Hall, members heard how electing more pro-worker candidates has changed the game in a region long dominated by anti-union politics. Instead of fighting alone at hostile boards and councils, SEIU 721 members are now bargaining and mobilizing with allies who understand that strong public services, fair contracts, and safe staffing are nonnegotiable. The Town Hall doubled as a planning session for the next election cycle, with members mapping out how to protect recent gains and expand worker power in key cities and counties across the Inland Empire.
Inland Steward Training Program
Dozens of new and veteran stewards came together for an intensive Inland Steward Training focused on enforcing contracts, filing grievances, and building strong worksite teams. Members left with practical tools and a shared plan to grow union power in every department.
Hemet Campaign Kick Off
In Hemet, members launched a new campaign to win fair pay and protect vital community services. The kick off meeting packed the room, with workers signing commitment cards, planning outreach, and gearing up for council actions in the months ahead.
Hemet Campaign Kick Off
In Hemet, members launched a new campaign to win fair pay and protect vital community services. The kick off meeting packed the room, with workers signing commitment cards, planning outreach, and gearing up for council actions in the months ahead.
Social Workers Keep LA Strong
SEIU 721 celebrates frontline guardians of children and families.
March is National Social Work Month, and LA County social workers in BUs 711, 723, and 777 packed the hall on March 14 for a special celebration hosted by the LA County Social Workers Chapter and SEIU 721. Social workers are the backbone of the safety net, helping keep kids safe and connecting vulnerable families to housing, health care, and vital support. Across the country, the profession is growing rapidly as demand surges in child welfare, health, housing, and mental health services. Here in LA County, SEIU 721 social workers are also leading the fight to reduce dangerously high caseloads so they can better protect every child and family who depends on them. The event honored their life-saving work and renewed our union commitment to win safe caseloads, strong contracts, and the resources they need to serve every client with dignity.
Clinic Workers Raise the Bar
St. John’s members organize for a contract that protects care and respects workers
St. John’s community clinic members are turning up the heat for a strong new contract that keeps experienced caregivers at the bedside. Workers have packed bargaining sessions, rallied at clinics, and met with patients and community allies to demand fair pay, affordable benefits, and safe workloads. Their message is simple: when clinic workers can afford to stay, patients get the stable, high quality care they deserve. This campaign is setting a new standard for clinics across the region.
Court Workers Win Real Gains
Riverside and San Bernardino members turn unity at the workplace into contract wins.
Riverside Courts Ratification
Riverside Superior Courts members voted overwhelmingly to ratify a new agreement that delivers meaningful raises, protects health benefits, and strengthens job-security language. The win caps months of organizing, from purple-up days to packed board meetings, and shows what happens when court workers stand united.
San Bernardino Courts Side Letter
In neighboring San Bernardino, court members secured a powerful side letter that locks in additional equity adjustments and clarifies key protections for frontline staff. By staying organized at the worksite and the bargaining table, SEIU 721 members are making sure the justice system respects the people who keep it running every day.
Tri-Counties Stops Contracting Out
SEIU 721 members organize, fight back, and keep public jobs in public hands.
During our last County of Ventura contract bargaining campaign in 2025, our bargaining team fought hard to stop outsourcing. Part of that effort was making sure there would be meet and confers over any County outsourcing per
AB 339.
We recently met with County management regarding Anacapa Surgical, the last non-union ambulator care clinics in the county. As a result of the meet and confer, we were able to bring in 22 Surgical Techs into the union!
Cross-Caucus Power in Action
SEIU 721 Caucuses unite to build a stronger, more inclusive union
In a historic Cross-Caucus meeting, leaders from SEIU 721’s Women’s, African American, Latino, API, LGBTQ+, and other caucuses gathered under one roof to share strategies and plan joint campaigns. Members traded organizing lessons from worksites, elections, and contract fights, focusing on how to confront racism, sexism, and all forms of discrimination that weaken worker power. The energy in the room was electric as caucus leaders committed to deeper collaboration—supporting each other’s actions, lifting up new member-leaders, and making sure every community’s voice is at the center of the union’s fight for justice.
SEIU 721 Chief of Staff Gilda Valdez
Our Union
Billionaire-driven policies are killing our economy. We’re fighting back with a unified plan to protect public services.
Wealth inequality in America just hit its widest gap in more than three decades – the top 1% now owns about as much wealth as the bottom 90% combined.
That didn’t happen by accident. It happened because billionaires and corporate lobbyists wrote the rules – and politicians, including the backers of H.R. 1, did their bidding. But here’s the other truth: working people are fighting back, and SEIU 721 is in that fight every day.
H.R. 1 – Trump’s so‑called “One Big Beautiful Bill” – rips tens of billions out of Medi‑Cal and other safety‑net programs, putting coverage for up to 2 million Californians at risk and dumping hundreds of millions in new costs onto counties like ours. LA County’s public hospitals and clinics are being told to do more with less just as need is exploding.
Our answer is a unified plan to unrig this system. In LA County, we’re backing a half cent healthcare sales tax that would raise roughly $1 billion a year to keep public hospitals, clinics, and mental health and substance use programs open despite H.R. 1’s damage. At the state level, we’re joining with SEIU State Council to launch Unrig California, a landmark effort that will compel California’s wealthiest corporations to pay their fair share and finally help refill the Medi Cal and school funding H.R. 1 drained. And in the City of Los Angeles, our Fair Funding Framework takes on corporate loopholes, luxury vacancies, and tax cheats so we can fund services without squeezing working families.
We pay our taxes and keep this region running. It’s time the super-rich did the same.
