From: Dan Mariscal <dmariscal1 at sbcglobal.net> Subject: RE: [fightfor347] Am I alone on this? To: fightfor347 at yahoogroups.com Date: Saturday, June 28, 2008, 6:01 AM
I would like to say that your cynicism and paranoia are unfounded and everything will work itself out in the end.......but I can't. I've just come from a "tour" of the new Membership Resource Center (MRC) and I have some good news and some bad news. First the good news; It is a high tech office with a large informational screen to display statistical information such as how many calls are coming in per hour, how long the callers are on hold, the time duration of the calls, the average time it takes to "handle" a call.
The individual Member Resource Organizer (MRO) has large computer terminals that can display the callers name, the MOU of the caller and a category of the problem or issue such as "supervisor harassment, payroll issues, denial of overtime, etc,". The system is multi-layered and appears to be a complex system dependent on complex technology. The director of the MRC is a very nice gentleman by the name of Rodney Bullock and when fully staffed has about 23 MRO's.
Now for the not so good news; The staff is employed by the International, not the local. There are accountability issues in that kind of arrangement. In the former Local 347, the staff was accountable to the member elected Board. If a staff member wasn't "cutting it", the board could fire him/her and the board also gives their ratification to his/her replacement. That's obviously not the case now.
The MRC handles all of California, including 1021, 521, 721 and 221. In 721 alone there are 140 MOU's each with their own "past practice" issues that none of the MRO's are privy to. The MRO's are very nice people but have not worked in any of the unions that they "handle". They undergo 3 weeks of new hire training before being thrown into the mix.
Mr. Bullock stated that the MRO's do make determinations as to whether or not a member has a grievable issue, although the Director for OC/LA cities later contradicted this statement. Although the MRC receives hundreds of calls a week, the OC/LA Director stated that about 20% are referred to the Advocacy Center which is under the purview of the General Counsel. The layers of Bureaucracy are MRO, Worksite Organizer and Advocates.
There are also apparently "role" problems that still need to be worked out with the MRC staff, which may slow the system. This current system appears to be more technologically and statistically based. There is currently no evidence that our Los Angeles City employees worksites are stronger or better than before the merger from Local 347 to 721. Although the LA/OC Director did her best to give the "work in progress" and "let's make the best of it" speech, the changes are very noticeable. It's like waking up in handcuffs are being told "we should still move forward".
It's not just you and you are not alone. You have every right to be upset about being left out of the loop, especially when you've made the commitment to put yourself on the line for your brothers and sisters. It's called being disrespected and unappreciated. As for your brothers and sisters who "chickened out", that's what all stewards go through. It's called apathy. That's what happens when push comes to shove. There are employees who make a lot of noise about doing something about the unfairness and injustice that occurs at the worksite, but are unwilling to do what it takes to make it better. As for your unnamed "union rep (now known as worksite organizer)", please keep in mind that he/she has to "tow the corporate line" and he/she really needs the paycheck. They're not working under the same conditions as before the merger and they are discouraged from "making waves".
Elitist? Quite possibly. That is the corporate method of marginalizing what they call "risks". If there is information that they don't want you to have they just keep it from you, such as the time and place for decision-making meetings. Example; the Executive Board for 721 meets at 10:00 A.M. on a weekday. You'd have to take your own time off to attend this meeting, but the Board members get a "$tipend" for their attendance and don't have to take their own time for this meeting. Pretty slick, huh? Try this link for Executive Board happenings
http://www.seiu721.org/Search.aspx?searchquery=Executive+Board
(Executive Board wants to hear from you)
If you think your current "worksite organizer" is "deficient" you can call their bosses. Start with the LA/OC Director Julie Butcher, [(213) 200-2861], next John Tanner [(213) 368-8660]. Please be sure to identify yourself as a steward. Oh, yeah....here are their e-mails too; [julie.butcher@ seiu721.org] and [john.tanner@ seiu721.org]
Encourage your brothers and sisters to voice their concerns on this website as well as with the "higher ups" at 721. Remember, they now have your dues money and will be getting more with each salary increase we get. You should expect more!
Please keep us informed.-Dan
-----Original Message----- From: fightfor347@ yahoogroups. com Behalf Of js90731 Sent: Friday, June 27, 2008 4:00 PM To: fightfor347@ yahoogroups. com Subject: [fightfor347] Am I alone on this?
I'm somewhat of a cynic and paranoid person in general, which is probably why I become a show steward in the first place but I know that I'm not alone on this. I have been a shop steward for a little over a year now and I was working with my union rep on different issues, especially for the last contract negotiations.
I tried to keep my fellow co-workers up-to-date at every step to the best of the expediency in which my union rep provided me with the information. The union rep, which I will leave nameless at this point was designated as our source for grievances and other information as needed. He had a toll free number to the former union hall (St. Paul/ Wilshire) and he was generous enough to give me his cell phone number at which I kept in close contact with him during the contract negotiations as well as some divisional issues which concerned us city-wide prior to the budget "crisis."
He did an adequate job of getting me on the JLMC as well as two subcommitees in which I actively take part in as much as I can. I bombard him with numerous questions in which I feel is my duty because this is my chosen career and I am more than enthusiastic about learning about every aspect of my job, especially legally which includes knowing department policies, practicies and the MOU, which is why I stepped up to the plate when my fellow officers were bitching and moaning senselessly as they do best, but when given the opportunity to become active, they fell afoul and chickened out. I don't hold them accountable for their actions, I'm responsible for ME and the choice I made. For the past month or so, seemingly since the creation of this bullshit "resource call-in center" BASED IN PASADENA MIND YOU, I've learned of these discreet meetings with "veteran" officers and my union rep to which I had no knowledge of and was not given the opportunity to be party to.
I resent this. I know there's the popular line that's thrown at me "I'm really busy man, bare with me" is getting a bit tired considering that each paycheck about $25 plus is deducted for union dues and an extra $5 to which I am voluntarily retracting because I'm so distraught with the lack of service I'm receiving from "OUR" union.
I told him to his face that I think the call center was a bad idea from the start to which he also enlightened me that the call center will be the primary source for grievances and no longer the union rep's responsibility. What a way to pass the buck right? This impersonal disservice to city workers is offensive, repugnant and outright unacceptable in my opinion.
I don't want to have to call an impersonal call center located in a city in which probably has no clue what we do and the problems we face in our chosen occupation (Traffic Officers). It would seem that I as well as a few other concerned officers have been abandoned by the one beacon of hope (union rep) and left to deal with a panel of impersonal phone jockeys who probably haven't the slighest clue as to how to deal with our issues/concerns. I've noticed that I get NO email replies concerning meetings or other issues that I address to my union rep since the inception and enacting of this call center and when I questioned him about this "closed door" meeting he held with three "fellow" co- workers, he has not replied to me or given me a reasonable explanation as to why I wasn't included in this.
When I addressed him with concerns that I had, he would brush it off with a sardonic tone with such memorable quips as "What's up with you? You're like a rebel without a cause!" This remark coming from someone to which at one time I assumed was on the side of labor! WTF is that? I'm completely confused as to what's happening to the union and how impersonal and aloof it seems to be becoming. It seems to be forming into factions of elitists to which If you don't fit in, you can't "get in." Which is complete B.S. to me.
Am I alone on this?