MEDIA ADVISORY FOR: Tuesday, June 26, 2018

Contact: Coral Itzcalli, SEIU Local 721, (213) 321-7332

Mike Long, SEIU Local 721, (213) 304-9777

In Reaction to Tomorrow’s Anticipated SCOTUS Ruling on the Janus v. AFSCME case, SEIU 721 Members and Allies in Ventura Will Stand Up for Worker Power and Vow to Stay Union Strong

Union Members to Express Renewed Dedication to Labor Movement Regardless of Court Ruling; Community Allies to Pledge Unwavering Support for Working Families

VENTURA, CA—Union workers who keep the County and City of Ventura clean, healthy and functioning will hold a press conference in reaction to tomorrow’s U.S. Supreme Court’s anticipated anti-worker ruling in the Janus v. AFSCME case. Labor participants and their allies will denounce what is expected to be an anti-worker the decision, declaring that they will remain undeterred by this most recent billionaire-driven effort to rig the system against America’s working families – and to destroy the middle class.

WHO:   SEIU Local 721 Members

Grace Sepulveda, SEIU 721 Executive Board Member and Client Benefits Specialist for Ventura County

Danny Carrillo, Tri-Counties Regional Director of SEIU 721

Jeremy Goldberg, Executive Director of the Central Coast Labor Council

Chris Mahon, former President of the Ventura County Professional Firefighters Association

Wesley Davis, Teacher in the Oxnard Union High School District, President Oxnard Federation of Teachers

Shannon Abramovitch, SEIU 721 Executive Board Member and Child Support Services Specialist III

Representative from the Central Coast Alliance United for a Sustainable Economy (CAUSE)

WHAT:  Press Conference by Union Members and Supporters Denouncing Anti-Worker SCOTUS Decision

WHEN: Wednesday, June 27, 2018 2018 at 2 P.M.

WHERE: For Location Details Call Media Contact

BACKGROUND: Members of the County and City of Ventura’s union workforce will host a press conference in conjunction with actions planned throughout the day at various union worksites across America – all in response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent anti-worker ruling in the Janus v. AFSCME case. The decision culminates a decades-long scheme by anti-worker groups like the Right to Work Foundation, the Freedom Foundation and the Liberty Justice Center to make it harder for unions to fight for good jobs and a voice at work by enacting so-called “Right to Work” laws nationwide. Without union protections, the fair wages, strong benefits and workplace protections provided by a union contract are eliminated – costing workers and their families everything.

In recent months, America has witnessed a huge upsurge in union activity as workers in various industries stand up to the falling wages that are strangling working people of all walks of life due to the skyrocketing cost of living. Public school teachers have staged massive, successful strikes in the West Virginia, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Colorado and Arizona. More than 50,000 service workers at major hotels on the Las Vegas strip are threatening to strike due to concerns over job automation. Additionally, workers at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim are advocating for a local ballot measure that would require the theme park – whose CEO receives up to $425 million in annual compensation – to pay employees a living wage of $15/hour.

In Right-to-Work states across America, living standards are consistently worse, with workers making $1,500 less on average than their counterparts in states where workers are free to collectively bargain. They also are less likely to have health insurance, a retirement savings or to see their children off to college – but more likely to be injured on the job.

 Throughout our nation’s history, union victories also have benefitted non-union workers in pivotal ways – including child labor legislation, vacation/sick time, the 40-hour work week and legislation preventing discrimination by race, gender, sexual orientation, disability or veteran’s status. Most recently, unions successfully fought for a $15 minimum wage in California, a watershed moment benefitting all workers across the state – and a milestone which many believe will eventually become the standard across America.

“Union power has protected generations of Americans from unleashed corporate greed,” said SEIU 721 President Bob Schoonover. “I know that working families and community supporters will continue to choose union, to defend the American middle class and to stand strong in solidarity against a toxic mindset which rapaciously prioritizes profits over working people’s quality of life. We will stay union strong.”

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