After months and months of publicly insisting furloughs would save the state millions, Schwarzenegger admits that thinking was....wrong.

Gov. Schwarzenegger's private lawyers admitted yesterday in court papers that more than 1,000 workers at five state agencies were furloughed, despite achieving no economic gains for the state - a clear abuse of power. More at www.seiu1000.org.

Following a federal court order by Judge Claudia Wilken halting the implementation of severe cuts to home care for 130,000 Californians, new information presented during a Capitol hearing yesterday demonstrates that the Schwarzenegger Administration is unprepared to meet its own Nov. 1 deadline to implement new restrictions on In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program providers.

At least seven California counties have said that the Administration has provided confusing orders and failed to provide funds and materials promised to counties and at yesterday's legislative hearing, counties and stakeholders described how home care providers, and the seniors and people with disabilities who rely on home care have been thrown into a state of confusion due to the lack of preparedness. "It is troubling that with just four days until new job requirements go into effect, the State still has not given us clear information on what these changes mean for our jobs and for the people we serve," said Raul Rivera, a home care worker represented by SEIU 521 in Santa Clara County.

Who's going to be the most affected by Gov. Schwarzenegger's failure to provide adequate time to implement changes and consistent, clear guidelines: the state's approximately 450,000 elderly and disabled care recipients, as well as close to 380,000 providers statewide. What is the Schwarzenegger Administrations' reaction to CA counties' warnings of the chaos and panic likely to ensue, should these cuts go forward on Nov. 1 as planned? Tough luck! (and that's phrasing it nicely). Officials said today that they intend to go forward with the scheduled November 1st implementation date.

More about the specific concerns and obstacles preventing county governments from implementing the changes the Schwarzenegger administration ordered at the SEIU California State Council website and California Progress.

A new study by the California state Senate says that furloughs are "costing the state money and further hurting the economy" and Senate President pro Tempore Darrell Steinberg called for immediate passage of the SEIU Local 1000 contract contract bill, AB 88. In a letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Steinberg wrote the current furlough policy has become a 'penny saved, a dollar lost' approach that can be corrected immediately. "A 5 percent pay cut is a sacrifice for a state employee; a 15 percent cut is punishment."

It's just only about federally-paid workers--the Schwarzenegger administration lost a court battle last week over furloughs for workers at the state's workers' compensation agency, which may include back pay with interest for furlough days the roughly 6,000 workers have already had.

MoveOn along with co-sponsors DFA, TrueMajority, Center for Community Change, Doctors for America, HCAN and the SEIU hosted over 350 candle light vigils last night to remind legislators that the country cannot wait for reform. Overwhelming the nation is in favor of reform and the local vigil I attended in Hollywood provided further evidence to support the campaign.

Yesterday, a Superior Court judge issued a tentative ruling that State Compensation Insurance Fund employees are exempt from Governor Schwarzenegger's furloughs. The lawsuit affects over 6,000 clerical and professional SEIU Local 1000 workers who work for the fund, which provides worker's compensation insurance to employers. (Click here to read the tentative ruling)

This ruling comes after Local 1000 filed a lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court accusing the governor of violating the state's Emergency Services Act by illegally using that law as a basis for implementing furloughs. U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein also asked the governor to stop furloughing 1,415 employees who review Social Security disability applications because they are paid through federal money - not from the General Fund.

That same day, the state's Department of Finance admitted at a state Senate hearing that furloughs at the Franchise Tax Board and Board of Equalization will cost the state $350 million in uncollected taxes. At the hearing, FTB tax technician Renee Lee testified that she is now losing her Sacramento home of 18 years because of the 14 percent pay cut from furloughs--after 30 years of civil service. In a comment that widely picked up by media outlets, Lee said at the hearing, "I was living the American dream. I'm living a nightmare now."

If the decision becomes final and is upheld, the workers will be exempt from the Governor's furloughs and will receive back pay with interest for furlough days they have already had. Local 1000 President Yvonne Walker called the ruling "another crack in the governor's illegal furlough scheme." The union has filed a total of five lawsuits challenging the Governor's state employee furloughs three times a month. Read more at SF Gate.

Gov. Schwarzenegger signed the state budget into law last week, but not before chopping another half billion dollars from services for women, children, the sick and the elderly - services that just days before he'd agreed not to cut any further. Legislators, feeling betrayed, may head to court to challenge the legality of the cuts.

According to the Daily Roundup, "Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger seemed to relish the task of reining in government spending, almost as if it was another cinematic role in which to star.

"With gusto, he launched blistering attacks against fraud in the welfare system, demanding that those abusing the system be kicked out. He unwaveringly stood his ground on taxes, never allowing Democrats to seriously consider including them in negotiations. And he proclaimed himself the guardian of responsible, frugal government.

"It didn't seem to matter to Schwarzenegger that fraud in the system was minuscule compared with other soaring costs; or that voters actually favored taxes on oil companies, alcoholic beverages and tobacco products; or that he'd previously increased state spending by tens of billions of dollars after coming to office in 2003."

What matters, what doesn't

In making the additional cuts, the governor made his priorities crystal clear. He cut:

• $80 million that pays for workers who help abused and neglected children;
• $50 million from Healthy Families, which has already frozen enrollment and now will actually disenroll more than half a million children who are currently covered. In blunter terms, it takes away health care from half a million kids. Why? Because he can. It's easy to take candy from a baby.
• $50 million from services for developmentally disabled children age 3 and under;
• $16 million from programs protecting women from domestic violence;
• $6.3 million from services for the elderly;
• $6.2 million from parks.

But according to veteran Sacramento reporter Bill Cavala, new revenues that might have saved these and other services never really had a chance:

"The fight for revenue increases was effectively lost when the Governor and the Republicans were successful in depicting the defeat of the various ballot measures -- especially Prop. 1A -- as a referendum against taxes.

[...] The lack of public pressure ... combined with the need to involve Republicans because of the 2/3 requirement and the need for a signature gave the Democrats no real hand to play. Holding a gun to the head of Democrats by threatening the very existence of social service programs, the Governor was able to force changes in law otherwise unthinkable by the Majority Party."

So there you have it: government by extortion. Experts say we'll be back at it by October, trying to reform California's government, tax code, and maybe even the State Constitution. California needs a new way of working.

Detailed budget analysis from the California Budget Project - www.cbp.org

(Thanks to SEIU Local 1021 for this budget update)

By a 74 percent margin, SEIU Local 1000 state workers in California voted to step up pressure on Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger to ensure that the contract signed with the governor's representatives this past February is ratified. "We are not going to stand by and let him [Schwarzenegger] hurt California, our families and ruin the quality public services we provide," said SEIU President Yvonne Walker, making clear that the workers would strike if necessary. "We wouldn't be in this situation if the governor had lived up to his word and supported the contract that he agreed to, which would save the state $340 million," Walker added.

Local 1000 represents 95,000 state workers in numerous government agencies including clerks at the DMV, healthcare professionals in public hospitals, librarians at the State Library and auditors at the state tax board. More at SEIU Local 1000's website and the LA Times.

Now more than ever public services are needed: Pat Bryan, Ventura County Steward and Animal Control Officer knows first-hand the impact of job loss, foreclosures and a weak economy. The animal kennels in his California region are filled to capacity and in the past few months they've even been taking in horses. Recently, a Ventura County Star reporter and photographer spent the day with Bryan. Click here to read the full story.

Shelter officials across the U.S. say they are seeing more and more pets being brought in by their owners because they can't afford to care for their pets, or they have lost their homes and have to move to apartments or mobile homes that don't allow dogs or cats. In Los Angeles, for example, the number of dogs and cats turned in to the city's six animal shelters increased 14 percent to 55,742--the highest rate in five years, according to city data.

« Read more about SEIU Local 721 LA County animal workers here.
« Tips for home owners with pets when faced with foreclosure

With a future body count guaranteed to make it a horror film classic, the new California state budget approved by legislators on Friday puts an end to the endless "debate" that's been causing debilitating migraines even in those who don't suffer them.

But the pain is far from over. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger and his band of loyal lawmakers proved they're no 'girlie-men' with the budget cuts by taking healthcare from the sick and frail and every kind of care from the elderly; by closing schools so kids have nowhere to learn, and after-school programs so they have nowhere else to go. They closed the deficit by privatizing public services and throwing public servants under the bus, while taking money with impudence from those who remain. And if you thought these outcomes were shocking, here's the most shocking thing of all: CA lawmakers managed all of this without taxing corporations one single additional dime.

And no doubt the heads of those corporations will be spending this glorious, victorious weekend with Governor Arnold in his hot tub, smoking their cigars.

The difference
Rapid action by members of SEIU Local 1021, Local 1000 and all the California locals, together with the communities they serve, prevented the outcome of the budget deal from being much worse. "While we don't like the outcome [of this budget], had we not gotten involved it would have been much worse," said SEIU executive vice president Eliseo Medina.

Working closely in collaboration with communities and allies, scores of public events were held all over the state that put a human face on the cuts to home care, health care, CalWORKS, schools, and other public services. All together, SEIU members made 40,000 calls to the Governor and legislators, took part in 400-plus lobby days and sent 100,000 petitions and postcards. The most dramatic difference these efforts made is that new revenues are finally on the table and, against the odds, even made it into the Conference Committee budget. And more significantly, SEIU members, CA activists and allies helped scale back (and lessen in severity) the Governor's worst cuts:

• Home care: In-home Supportive Services (IHSS) will be cut by 20 percent instead of 90 percent.
  
• CalWORKS will be cut 40 percent instead of eliminated entirely.
  
• Healthy Families: The Governor wanted to eliminate the program entirely - instead, it was cut by 50 percent.
  
• Education: Despite deep cuts to education, Proposition 98 was not suspended and legislative safeguards on school outsourcing were protected.
  
• State workers: Workers' pensions and health care were protected, and a fourth furlough day has not been issued like Governor Schwarzenegger threatened.

As California confronts severe budget difficulties in coming months, the war of words, lobby days and public actions are far from over. Middle-class families will continue to challenge state leaders to provide a common sense, balanced approach--even when it requires that our leaders have the courage to stand up to powerful corporate interests. More news and reports on the CA budget can be found from Rough & Tumble and California Budget Project.

Thanks to SEIU Local 1021 for this budget update.

In spite of the fact that months of debate between CA lawmakers on how to resolve the state's $26 billion budget deficit may be finally coming to an end, there can be no cause for celebration when the 'solution' does not reflect the priorities of a vast majority of California voters. Commenting on the staggering cuts agreed upon by lawmakers late Monday night, SEIU Local 1000 President Yvonne Walker said this:

"There may be a budget deal, but there's no budget solution."

Walker continued, saying "The governor's refusal to close corporate tax loopholes, eliminate waste in private vendor contracts and make big tobacco and big oil pay their fair share, is another series of bad decisions."

"Making state employees pay what amounts to a 15 percent furlough tax is just plain wrong ... We'll fight in the courts, in the Legislature and in the workplace to have it cut back," Walker said.

The California State Council of the SEIU also released a statement from State Council President Kristy Sermersheim, who declared "Big oil, big tobacco, and the alcohol lobby" the only real winners in this budget deal.

"Approximately 80,000 seniors and people with disabilities will be put at risk of leaving their homes for institutions. Nearly half a million children will lose healthcare. The deal will eliminate tens of thousands of jobs, making our terrible economy even worse. Local communities, which have relied on a responsible and balanced approach to their budget challenges, will now be hit with deep cuts to basic public safety and other services. And millions of school children will have an education inferior to what they could have."

Yesterday, California Democrat Judy Chu won a special election in District 32 with almost 62% of the vote to become the newest member of Congress. "She's a dynamic leader and a woman of action, who stands up and fights for her beliefs, whether outside on a picket line with workers or inside the corridors of power," said Courtni Pugh, Executive Director of SEIU California State Council. SEIU members endorsed Chu in January and contributed their time and energy to her victory.

Even our President is happy about the win, expressing his enthusiasm for Chu's victory via Twitter: RT @BarackObama: Congratulations to CA Rep. Judy Chu district on becoming the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress.

"Governor, we've sacrificed. And we've now reached our limit. We cannot, and will not, allow you to use us as pawns in your political power game," writes SEIU Local 1000 President Yvonne Walker in a letter to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger concerning the California union's contract deal and latest budget proposal. The deal -- which includes some concessions -- is now stalled by Republicans in the legislature.

The Governor's proposal seeks to pile on an additional 5 percent pay reduction or fourth furloughed work day for more than 230,000 state workers. The three furlough days per month state workers are already faced with amounts to a roughly 14 percent loss in pay for state workers. Add on 5 percent, and CA's state workers would lose nearly 20 percent of their income.

The letter Local 1000 President Walker delivered to the Governor on Friday afternoon informs Schwarzenegger that the state workers will not take the Governor's threats lying down. "When we negotiated one furlough day monthly, a wage freeze, and other cost saving changes, we were standing up for state services. While we will continue to battle for quality public services, we are now standing up for ourselves as well. We will fight for a common sense budget." (Read President Walker's letter to the governor here).

Last week, Local 1000's Council voted unanimously authorizing the union's officers to seek member support for concerted actions up to and including a strike to protect our members' pay, benefits and job security.

A U.S. District Court judge issued a preliminary injunction last week ordering the state of California to halt pay cuts of nearly 20 percent -- from $12.10 an hour down to $9.50 -- for the state's 400,000 home care workers. This ruling is big news for home care workers and those they care for, as it will temporarily stop the cuts that were to go into effect July 1st in those counties at risk.

There's a war being waged against home care, and Governor Schwarzenegger is leading the call. We can celebrate this initial victory, but this injunction will not stop the Governor from trying to cut home care again. CA State Department of Finance spokesman H.D. Palmer has made this much clear, saying that the Schwarzenegger administration "can't imagine a legal interpretation that would prevent the state from moving forward to implement [the proposed cuts to home care]."

It's up to us to keep the pressure on. Now that a court has ruled against the Governor and his cuts, we need to ask him to reverse course on these short-sighted cuts.
Please call the Governor now and tell him: "Home care not only saves money, it saves lives. We need a common sense budget that protects home care:"

The votes were counted last week in an important union election among 10,000 home care workers in Fresno County, California. Now that the dust is settled, here is more detail about what the Fresno home care election victory signifies--and what it means going forward.

On Tuesday, lawmakers on the California Legislature's joint budget committee refused to cut state worker pay and spared that state's In-Home Support Services the major cut that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed as part of his plan to solve the state's $24.3 billion deficit.

Under the governor's budget proposal, IHSS would stand to lose roughly $765 million, resulting in a near-elimination of services for nearly 400,000 people---or 90 percent of the elderly or disabled persons currently receiving care. Making such drastic cuts to California's IHSS program to make up for budgetary shortfalls would also result in more people having to resort to institutional care (nursing homes or other residential institutions)-- which is estimated to be four times more expensive to the State.

Assemblywoman Noreen Evans, who chairs the budget conference committee, reiterated the counter-productiveness of such large cuts to balance the deficit. Such large cuts would have been tantamount to cost shifting, Evans told the San Francisco Chronicle, as people would receive more expensive services at already-strained hospitals and nursing homes. "The imagination runs wild on what would actually happen to these people," said Evans. In contrast, the Conference Committee rejected the Governor's near-elimination of IHSS and passed cuts totaling $117 million, which would eliminate services for slightly less than 10% of those currently enrolled.

California Home Care Workers Rally at the State Capitol to Save the Services they Provide to California's Most Vulnerable: SEIU has played a big role in the movement to fight these cuts, mobilizing support for a fair state budget and balance budget approach that protects middle-class families, seniors, kids, and people with disabilities. Last week, SEIU released a TV ad arguing for a balanced approach and earlier this week, hundreds of home care workers rallied on the grounds of the California State Capital. "Stop home care cuts" was the message home care workers made loud and clear on the grounds of the California State Capital, as care providers from across the state displayed a 625 square-foot sign made up of more than 75,000 postcards calling for an end to the governor's drastic cuts to the In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program. In addition to the TV ad campaign, SEIU is encouraging Californians to weigh in for common sense budget at www.commonsense4ca.org.

The bottom line: Laying off state workers from their jobs and cutting their pay on top of the 9.2 percent cut those workers have taken through unpaid furloughs days is not the answer to solving this budget crisis. Neither is shredding California's social safety net and decimating state programs like the welfare-to-work program and health insurance for children. To produce revenue for the state, the legislative budget panel instead approved on Tuesday plans to hike up taxes on oil and tobacco, which would produce an estimated $830 million and $1 billion, respectively, in the coming fiscal year. Repealing a corporate tax break approved only a few months ago would produce another $80 million.

Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg (D-Sacramento) and Assembly Speaker Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles) said yesterday at their press conference that they "expect that [their] Republican colleagues will be responsible" in helping them pass a "compromise" budget. Lawmakers are meeting with Schwarzenegger again today, and the two Democratic leaders are holding out the possibility that common ground can be reached to put a Legislature-approved plan on how to close the state's deficit by the middle of next week. Highlights of the Legislature's approach to solving the budget crisis at California Progress Report here.

For more than 18 months, SEIU Local 1000 has been suggesting alternatives to Schwarzenegger's draconian cuts--promoting budget-balancing proposals worth billions of dollars, including the elimination of costly private vendor contracts. Instead, Gov. Schwarzenegger has fought to reduce the budget deficit by laying off 5,000 state workers from agencies supported by the General Fund, along with a 5 percent across-the-board pay cut for state workers. "Why in a time of crisis, [...] wouldn't the governor and the Legislature cut wasteful spending first, especially when state workers can do the work for one-third or even one half less?" questioned Local 1000 President Yvonne Walker.

Finally...Schwarzenegger Agrees with SEIU: Use of Government Vendors needs Revamping
Yesterday, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger issued an executive order calling for all unfulfilled state department vendor contracts to be canceled through the end of the fiscal year, retroactive to March 1, and to cut outside contracts by 15 percent. Schwarzenegger's recognition of the vendor waste is just the tip of the iceberg. SEIU Local 1000 believes the California government is hiding $34.7 billion in some 13,600 vendor contracts.

Read the study prepared by SEIU Local 1000, which represents 95,000 state government workers, showing California's "hidden branch of government."

This past Saturday, Organizing for America asked that Americans around the country meet to discuss what they believe health care reform should look like. President Obama's organization put out a video that organizers could show their group and use to solicit support for reform and encourage participants to share their stories dealing with the broken health care system. Change that Works California is committed to working with OFA to support the President and make health care available to all Californians.

This past weekend, hundreds of meetings took place in California with thousands of participants around the state. I attended two OFA meetings in the Los Angeles area. On June 6, Mayor Abbe Land, Council member Lindsey Horvath and Deputy to the Mayor, Corri Planck held an OFA meeting at the West Hollywood City Hall. Approximately forty people were in attendance from in and around the city of West Hollywood. Participants watched the President's video; wrote their health care stories and talked about they wanted health reform to look like. Many community members stressed an emphasis on choice, echoing one of the three principals of health reform the President has stressed. Community members also wanted health care reform to encourage preventive treatment.

The second OFA meeting took place at Pasquale's Café in Los Angeles. About 25 folks squeezed into the café and dined on Pizza Michelle (created in honor of the First Lady by Chef Tonino) as they listened to several speakers, including Jack d'Annibale; Ronald Norby, Regional Director of the Veteran's Administration Desert Pacific Health Care Network and Mike Petrold, CA State Field Director for Organizing for America. Community members asked questions about the federal employees health plan and discussed their concerns about health reform. Health care stories were collected and the meeting concluded with a mini phone bank organized by Obama campaign workers from Nevada.

These kick-off meetings along with many others, are the precursors to the June 27 day of action-- check for listings of many of the OFA events around California on this site.

The SEIU released a report about the true value of health care reform in the state of California. Read the excerpts below about public option and choice:

Increasing Choice and Portability while Reducing Costs
An essential part of any comprehensive health reform proposal must be to provide American families with more ways to attain quality, affordable health coverage. Providing Americans with a public option would increase options for Americans choosing their health care plans, and allow them to keep their insurance, even when they switch jobs. This new option could also help to remove many of the barriers placed between patients and their doctors by supplying healthy market competition against huge, often monopolistic insurance companies.

• Insurance Monopolies Come Between Patients and Their Doctors.
• Lack of choice and competition in the health insurance market is coming between California patients and their doctors. According to the American Medical Association, consolidated insurance markets "systematically undermine" the physician's role, by giving large insurance companies too much power.

• 94 percent of United States health care markets are considered highly concentrated, meaning that one company or a small group of companies control a great deal of the market. In California, the top two insurance providers control 58 percent of the health care market share.

The Public Option Introduces Real Choice. The Current Health Care System Provides False Competition.

• Consumers Are Left To Fend For Themselves In Current System "Competition today takes place on a restricted terrain, with each plan cutting its own deal and costs shifted back and forth across plans and providers. Patients-- the ultimate "consumers" of care--generally do not have much choice of health plans and, in many cases, even of providers, and they are often left to go it alone in dealing with the complicated and sometimes harmful practices of other players in the system."

• Introducing Public Health Insurance Plan Will Provide Real Competition, New Choice For Consumers "Healthy competition requires not an endless array of choices--indeed, the evidence suggests that too many choices can impair consumer judgment. Rather, it requires a reasonable number of meaningfully different choices. One of the key reasons for public plan choice is that public plans can offer a set of valued features that private plans are generally either unable or unwilling to provide."

• Competition Drives Down Costs for Consumers. Competition between public and private plans will drive down costs for consumers by forcing private plans to cut costs to compete. "It is the competition between private plans and public health insurance, with its distinctive cost control advantages, that presses both public and private plans to provide more for less and ensures that the goal of affordable quality coverage can be maintained over time at a price the nation can bear."

• The Public Health Insurance Option Would Enhance the Insurance Market By Providing
• Stability to Consumers. Consumers would be less vulnerable to fluctuations in premiums, would have steady access, and a more stable insurance environment with the addition of the public option. "One of the key reasons for public plan choice is that public plans can offer a set of valued features that private plans are generally either unable or unwilling to provide. Stability, wide pooling of risks, transparency, affordability of premiums, broad provider access, the capacity to collect and use patient information on a large scale to improve care--these are all hallmarks of public health insurance that private plans have inherent difficulties providing."

Read the entire Value of Reform in California report here:

Dozens of provider leaders from Child Care Providers United of California--a joint SEIU/AFSCME local union--rallied May 4th at the state Capitol in Sacramento and called on lawmakers to support payment reform measures on behalf of providers and working families.

CCPUnited leaders met directly with these legislators to urge them to support AB 304 (Price), which would make direct deposit available for providers statewide who serve working families eligible for subsidized child care, and AB 315 (de Leon), which would standardize payment procedures and notification policies for providers. In addition, they called on legislators to reject measures to reduce reimbursements rates and increase family fees in a hearing on the current budget negotiations.

"We're here from all over the state to make our voices heard for California's working families," said Socorro Avita, a provider and CCPUnited leader from Los Angeles.
Both AB 304 and AB 315 passed their respective committees in early May. Providers testified at legislative hearings in strong support of both bills, while giving examples of how late payments can cause numerous problems for providers who often live paycheck to paycheck.

"Providers know firsthand the struggles of making ends meet," testified Carolyn Thompson, provider and CCPUnited leader from Contra Costa County. "Lawmakers can make a huge difference in so many lives by saying 'yes' to [these bills]."

Janne Day, a CCPUnited member from Sacramento, commented on the flaws of the current system: "Regardless of where the error or delay occurs, it is the provider who doesn't get paid. Our own bills won't wait ... What this bill is asking for should already be in place."

During an earlier committee hearing on the state's budget, Kern County CCPUnited member Maria Munoz was invited to testify against wage reductions and fee increases, as well as to urge elected leaders to use federal stimulus money to take kids off the state's waiting list for subsidized care.

"I know many parents who call their local alternative payment [AP] agency to apply for child care subsidies, and are immediately put on a waiting list and given their numerical place. Every couple of weeks they call the AP to check on their position, and every time the number stays exactly the same. Years can go by before they reach the top of the list." said Munoz.

Although AB 304 and AB 315 were passed during their initial subcommittee votes, there are still several hurdles they need to clear before they can become law. That's why providers are continuing to call and write their legislators about the state budget and are meeting regularly with their elected officials and staff to tell them just how important these bills are for providers and the families they serve.

Friends and allies of SEIU are celebrating Pride month in a special way this year: Joining with home care workers in Fresno to protect their union and to keep their union voice strong in SEIU UHW.

The volunteer effort by SEIU allies for SEIU UHW caregivers follows outspoken support by the union for the rights and freedoms of LGBT people, including marriage equality. SEIU locals throughout California opposed Proposition 8, a statewide measure attacking marriage equality, and denounced a state court ruling last week upholding the measure.

Bao Thao drove from San Diego to volunteer time and meet with SEIU UHW home care members in Fresno. "Unions must keep supporting all people so we avoid such discrimination as Prop 8," she said. "SEIU has provided that support, and so I'm here to support these members."

Kevin Xiong, executive director of SOY (Shades of Yellow), a nonprofit LGBT organization in Minnesota, also volunteered his time to knock on doors in Fresno and support SEIU UHW members. "By going door to door, we are seeking to correct deliberate efforts to set the union off course and sap its strength to meet the struggles that only a large, experienced union like SEIU UHW can win. Home care workers in Fresno are passionate about their union and understand the need to stick together," he said.

Xiong joined many Californians in criticizing the negative signal he saw in the state ruling on Prop 8. "This is a civil rights issue," he said, "dividing people in two classes, those who can marry with benefits and those who cannot." He described the ruling as undercutting the rights of same-sex couples who hoped to marry in the future by denying their committed unions equal recognition under state law. "SEIU UHW continues to fight this upcoming vote to weaken its union," said Xiong.

The theme of legal recognition for families is at the heart of SEIU's support for legislation crucial to many LGBT couples, the Reuniting Families Act. The House bill, introduced yesterday by California Congressman Mike Honda, includes same-sex partners in its scope.