SEIU President Andy Stern's appointees in California healthcare unions have not been a great success. Stern appointee Tyrone Freeman (Local 6434) was forced to step down this August in response to charges of corruption. Stern's close aide, Annelle Grajeda (president of an L.A. SEIU local and of the union's State Council) was recently forced to step down because of financial improprieties. If this is the caliber of Andy Stern's appointees, we don't need any more of them!

"Let it be resolved that we will fight to ensure that UHW members maintain full control of our union and oppose any attempts to unlawfully trustee our local and place it under the watch of appointed leaders from Washington, DC for purely political reasons!"

"Let is be further resolved that UHW will fight to keep our members united in one statewide healthcare workers union and will use all available means, including mobilizing our 150,000 members to support our union and directing our President and Officers to take all appropriate actions including deploying the necessary resources, staff, and other means to carry out this resolution!"

"If you take one of us on, you take all of us on!"

"You have made me a believer!" --Eloise Burns, after a speech in support of keeping UHW-w Long Term Care workers in our union, as opposed to separating them out and merging them into an SEIU Long Term Care Local that they DIDN'T vote to join.

"I joined S.M.A.R.T. because I was frustrated by the merger of my union, Local 1021, and the attack on UHW-w. S.M.A.R.T represents one struggle with many fronts: We support increasing union membership by member-driven organizing founded on real union values. We support a single-payer healthcare system!" --Elizabeth

The goals agreed upon at the convention are:

1) To build one state-wide union for healthcare workers-- UHW-w.

2) To reform SEIU into a democratic union.

Cal Winslow, Labor historian and Fellow in Environmental Politics at UCB, spoke of the May Day Letter sent by scholars, progressive activists and artists from all parts of California to SEIU President Andy Stern. "We wrote this letter because we wanted you (UHW-w) to know you have friends -- you have a growing number of supporters in this country!!"

"We in California have a great deal at stake here! ...We need strong democratic unions, because our state is in a mess!" We need you and unions like UHW-w in order to avoid disasters like a trillion dollar war!"

Cal also made mention of SEIU's attempt to disrupt ongoing contract negotiations. (UHW-w is currently in bargaining with CHW state-wide).

"We are being attacked by an arrogant SEIU-- it has sent representatives to monitor us at our bargaining committee. We don't need their assistance: This is just a smokescreen for the process of taking over UHW-w! We are a union of heart! The labor movement is depending on us. Union democracy will not die on our watch!" -- Lover Joyce, Kaiser UHW-w/member V.P.

SEIU is holding a hearing on September 26/27 to determine whether to put UHW-w in trusteeship. This would take control of the union away from UHW members and place it in the hands of an Andy Stern appointee. UHW-w members are urged to attend the hearing to protest this action.