Kurt Kessler
"It's the Election of 2006 that made what we accomplished in 2007 possible. Without a predominantly pro-labor legislature and governorship, the hard work we put into Lobby Days and our other lobbying programs would have produced slim results...." Kurt Kessler, Dept of Human Services, Medford CAPE Committee Member
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Building on Success and Moving Forward

Raise Your Voice. You have a story to tell and a role to play.
 Members have led a number of legislative campaigns: Homecare workers' compensation, highway safety, better protection for abused and neglected kids. Front-line workers led the fight and made the difference.
What do you see on the job that needs to be changed? Are the privatizers ripping off the system? Are budget cuts being proposed that are penny-wise and pound foolish? No one knows better than front-line workers how to improve public services.
Virginia Santillan, Child Care Provider
Virginia Santillan
 In addition to canvassing and phonebanking to get pro-worker legislators elected, SEIU members told their stories and moved the legislature.

Virginia Santillan and Portia Moye , child care providers, testified about how difficult it was to provide quality child care on a sub-minimum wage. They also pushed for an expansion of working parents' ability to access affordable day care. 		Portia Moye, Child Care Provider
  Portia Moye

As a result, the legislature moved Oregon from 49th in the U.S. to a top-tier state for child care subsidies for working parents.
Mary Wood, Homecare Provider
Mary Wood 		Mary Wood , a Homecare provider from Lincoln County, testified about being treated as a second-class worker because she does not have mandatory workers' compensation coverage to protect her from on-the-job injury.

The legislature passed legislation to provide Workers' Compensation for Homecare workers.
Bill Morris and dozens of other front-line workers at the Eastern Oregon Training Center drove hours to tell legislators about the services they provide for the developmentally disabled.;
As a result, members stopped an effort to close the Eastern Oregon Training Center facility in Pendleton.

These are just a few of the examples of SEIU members fighting for themselves, for their clients, and for quality public services.

Individually, a lot of voices were heard. Collectively, a lot of fights were won. We still have work to do to improve public services, stop rampant privatization, make health care affordable, and make corporations pay their fair share.
Workers from EOTC lobbied to keep the facility open.










Workers from Eastern Oregon Training Center lobbied their legislators, including Rep Bob Jensen, to keep the facility open.

We should stop for a moment and recognize the accomplishments of those member-leaders and our allies in the legislature who fought long and hard for fairness and justice.