Just Work | SEIU.org

Just Work Member Blog Series

Just Work is a blog series presented by SEIU to give a voice to working people to discuss their daily struggles to balance work, afford life and participate in a more just society. Every other week on the Huffington Post an SEIU member shares a new story about what life is really like for workers in America today.

SEIU welcomes submissions to
Just Work!

Please send your story (800 words or less) to ali.jost@seiu.org.

Since it began in August, 2007, a diverse group of members--nurses, janitors, home care workers, child care providers, Iraq war veterans and others--have written for the series.

The topics are as varied as the authors themselves. Some have written about their struggle to afford the rising cost of living and healthcare premiums when wages remain flat. Others have expressed concern about the widening gap between rich and poor and their frustration over an economy that fails to reward the hard work of millions of American workers. Still others have expressed hope that through organizing their voices and putting pressure on management and politicians, they will improve their lives.

Below is a summary of Just Work blogs with links to their full, original content on Huffington Post.

Economy

Craig Jones: Just Work: It's Up to Us to Turn Minimum into Livable
Cincinnati janitor Craig Jones writes about turning minimum wage into a livable wage, and the organizing victories of the Cincinnati Justice for Janitors Campaign. Read more.

Jim Longley: Just Work: The Forgotten Other Half
Jim Longley, a customer service specialist for a utility company in Erie, Pennsylvania, writes about the growing gap between rich and poor in this country, and urges fellow Americans not to forget about those families who are barely scraping by. Read his full story.

Politics

Lynn Radcliffe: Just Work: Barack Obama is the Fundamental Change Working America Needs
SEIU Ohio member and Cleveland Municipal School District employee Lynn Radcliffe discusses why Obama’s the ticket for American workers. Read her full story.

Giuseppe Martinelli: Just Work: Red Tape is Blocking My Path to the Voting Booth
New York nursing home chef and 1199 SEIU member Giuseppe Martinelli shares his 12-year struggle to navigate the red tape that’s blocking his path to U.S. citizenship and the voting booth. Read his full story.

Diana Lacey: Just Work: New Hampshire’s Responsibility; America’s Opportunity
New Hampshire health and human services worker and SEIU Local 1984 member Diana Lacey talks about what’s at stake for New Hampshire voters in January 8th's primary election. Read her full story.

Lori Theim-Busch: Just Work: Get Out of the Passenger Seat-It's Our Time to Drive
Lori Theim-Busch, a phlebotomist and EKG tech in the Twin Cities, writes about the importance of individuals doing their share to participate in local, state, and national politics so that we can shape our nation's future. Read her full story.

Healthcare

Dr. Vaughn Whittaker: Just Work: In the Trenches of a Sicko Nation
SEIU Healthcare’s Committee of Interns and Residents member Dr. Vaughn Whittaker writes about a day in his life as Chief Surgical Resident at Harlem Hospital Center and the tragic impact that lack of preventable care has on too many of his patients’ lives. Read his full story.

Eric Emmanuel: Just Work: CA’s Healthcare Plan; A Good Choice for Working Families
San Francisco doorman and member of SEIU local 1877, Eric Emmanuel writes about California’s universal healthcare plan and the hope that he will no longer have to choose between taking a pay cut or keeping his family’s health insurance. Read his full story.

Paula Hall: Just Work: Just Rewards?
Paula Hall, a child care provider in Spokane, Washington, writes about losing her home and struggling to pay the bills after a family health crisis left her bankrupt. Hall also delivered the national Democratic radio address the following day. Read her full story.

Joseph Louis: Just Work: Unjust End
Joseph Louis, a former janitor who was fired by Nova Southeastern University in Davies, Florida, for courageously organizing to form a union, writes about the tragic death of his colleague and close friend, Elirose Pierre-Louis. Read his full story

Barbara Principe, Ph.D.: Just Work: What if You get Sick?
Barbara Principe, a psychologist in Brooklyn, N.Y. who is battling breast cancer, worries about what will happen when she can't work anymore. Read more about Barbara's daily fight and the downsides of a system that ties healthcare to work.

Elderly Care

Robin Bawkey: Just Work: The Golden Years?
Robin Bawkey, a home care provider in Kalamazoo, Michigan, shares the story of her mother's tragic death in a poorly managed nursing home. Bawkey warns about the impact major private equity buyouts will have on nursing home care. Read her story.

Queenie Turner: Just Work: What's Non-Essential about Home Care?
Queenie Turner recently voted with 22,000 home care workers to join with SEIU to transform health care and stabilize the Massachusetts home care industry.In this piece, Queenie writes about the irony of the state classifying workers like her as "non-essential".

Union Organizing

Craig Jones: Just Work: It's Up to Us to Turn Minimum into Livable
Cincinnati janitor Craig Jones writes about turning minimum wage into a livable wage, and the organizing victories of the Cincinnati Justice for Janitors Campaign. Read more.

Queenie Turner: Just Work: What's Non-Essential about Home Care?
Queenie Turner recently voted with 22,000 home care workers to join with SEIU to transform health care and stabilize the Massachusetts home care industry.In this piece, Queenie writes about the irony of the state classifying workers like her as "non-essential".

Other

James Gallagher: Just Work: Thankful to be Home this Thanksgiving
Iowa National Guard member James Gallagher reports that after spending his 24th and 25th birthdays in Iraq, he is feeling more thankful for the basics--a private bed, an indoor toilet, clean drinking water, and "a good old fashioned dinner with my family."