The Boss's Union

Last week, while 2,500 NUHW members at Kaiser Permanente were holding California's biggest strike of 2011, SEIU showed itself to be the ultimate boss's union.

Before the strike, SEIU sent this glossy mailer to the 2,500 strikers in an effort to undermine support for the strike.

Next, NUHW's 1,200 RNs at Kaiser Los Angeles Medical Center got a strange letter at their homes. The letter, on plain paper, appeared to be a personal plea from RN Charles Garfield aimed at (you guessed it) undermining the strike. The letter reads:

NUHW STRIKE THREE!!!! Another strike? NUHW wants all of us to strike again and again and again... Months and months of negotiations and no progress, so NUHW will make the RNs walk out again. Another strike is not the answer.

The letter made personal attacks against NUHW's Chief Steward at the hospital by recycling false information that SEIU has been trying to peddle. RNs smelled a rat, so they confronted Garfield, who finally confessed that SEIU had organized and funded the fake letter. Garfield then signed this statement admitting that the whole episode was another one of SEIU's dirty tricks. Garfield's statement reads:

I was provided the personal information (i.e, names and addresses) of Kaiser LAMC - AFN-NUHW Registered Nurses from the Service Employees International Union (S.E.I.U.). I obtained your personal information without your consent. In addition, SEIU paid for this mailing.

Charles Garfield

In Tasty's humble opinion, SEIU's latest actions represent a new, despicable low. Is SEIU actually gonna undercut striking workers who are fighting for fair conditions for their patients and families? Gimme a break!

Unfortunately, this is not the first time that SEIU's trustees have worked hand-in-glove with Kaiser executives to promote the giant HMO's interests ahead of workers. Last year, as tens of thousands of SEIU members were in contract negotiations with Kaiser, SEIU's trustees put out this leaflet. The leaflet, filled with inaccuracies, tries to lower workers' expectations about winning better wages and benefits at the bargaining table. It reads:

Economic Downturn Still Rippling through Kaiser.

The economic downturn has been hard on Kaiser. Unemployment in California is the highest it has been since 1941... Kaiser posted $800 million loss in 2008 prompting Kaiser, according to the San Francisco Business Journal, to begin "serious belt tightening"...

Sounds like the boss talking, right? The SEIU trustees conveniently forgot to tell SEIU members that, in 2008, Kaiser made $1.5 billion in profits from its day-to-day operations and that the HMO's so-called $800 million loss was a temporary paper loss resulting from the effects of the downturn of the stock market on Kaiser's investment portfolio. SEIU's trustees also forgot to mention that Kaiser made $2.1 billion in profits in 2009 and gave multi-million-dollar bonuses to its execs because the company was so profitable.

Boss's Union (definition):

(1) A union that cooperates with the employers more than it promotes the interests of the employees.
(2) A union that purports to represent employees while actually ignoring (or working against) the best interests of employees.
(3) SEIU.

NUHW members at Kaiser Strike!

Check out coverage:

LAist

KTLA TV

KNBC TV

Michael Moore's website

More Changes in 721's Leadership

Tasty hears reports that Raahi Reddy, who staged a February palace coup against John Tanner at SEIU Local 721 in Los Angeles, got dumped as the local's Executive Director.

NUHW WINS!!!

Don't belive the hype--NUHW is in-it to win-it!

CPMC is the largest hospital in San Francisco and the second largest hospital in the state. And tonight the votes were counted and the 750 members at CPMC are now NUHW members!

NUHW won CPMC by 384 to 237!!! WooHoo!

NUHW lost St. Luke's Hospital by 88 to 179. (WTF St Luke's workers? SEIU has been helping SF shut your hospital down!)

PS If the two hospitals had been combined into one vote, NUHW would have won the whole unit. But whatevs.

No Pants!

Some readers are wondering what's happened to Jonpaul McLellan, the SEIU organizer who famously tweets about his erections on public buses. Well, Tasty learned that SEIU originally hired Jonpaul through TruCorps, a for-profit temporary staffing agency set up by SEIU and staffed by Jim Philliou and Pamela Kieffer , the wife of Dave Kieffer.

After Jonpaul's temporary gig on SEIU's Kaiser election campaign, a genius over at UHW hired him onto the union's staff.

Tasty hears that Jonpaul, who also likes to tweet about taking his pants off in movie theaters, is particularly excited about May 6, which is officially "No Pants Day" (Nope, not kidding). Tasty bets that this is Jonpaul's most favoritest day of the year!

In fact, check out this photo that Jonpaul posted on his twitter site. From what Tasty can tell, looks like he took the pic inside of a department store. When ballots are counted next Tuesday at CPMC, workers will know if they can finally say they've seen the last of Jonpaul!

CMPC News

Tasty hears that SEIU has brought in busloads of staff to visit workers in their homes. According to one worker, SEIU organizers showed up at her house and told her to rip up her ballot after she told them she'd voted for NUHW.

So with SEIU's organizers frantically knocking on workers' front doors, SEIU is apparently struggling to find staff to station inside CPMC's cafeterias. In fact, they even sent Mary Sacramento, the famous dancer, from UHW's Human Resources Department to sit in one of the cafeterias with a purple shirt. Luckily, Mary has plenty of cash to buy all the cafeteria food she wants. According to LM-2s, SEIU's trustees gave Mary a 25% pay increase after the trusteeship, boosting her pay to $75,000 a year. SEIU members' dues dollars at work!

In other news about dues dollars, SEIU bought lunch and dinner for CPMC workers at the California Campus, many of whom didn't eat it because they don't support SEIU! Too bad for those members becuase SEIU paid $1600+ for lunch, and again for dinner--and left the proof on the table. (see pic)

$3200 worth of non-eaten Brisket ain't gonna buy you a win, SEIU!

Blago's Back

Looks like SEIU President Emeritus Andy Stern and SEIU International Executive Board member Tom Balanoff are getting some air time in the re-trial of former Illinois Gov. Rod "The Hair" Blagojevich, who's facing corruption charges in federal court. According to the Chicago Sun Times, federal prosecutors played tapes for the jury of telephone calls between Blago, Stern and Balanoff. The calls were secretly recorded by the FBI as part of their investigation into Blajo's scheme to sell Obama's vacant US Senate seat to the highest bidder.

Tasty wonders if Stern and Balanoff will get their chance on the hot seat??? If so, Tasty has a few questions he'd like to ask... Click here for the "Blago Blog" covering the hearing.

Dance Party FAIL

Yesterday, Mary Sacramento, HR for SEIU-UHW, was caught dancing on the floors of Cal campus of CPMC.

When one worker was trying to leave, Mary jumped in front of her and continued to dance. When the worker asked her to move, she continued to dance.

Mary was then treated with the following remark: "I hate you so much. I can't wait to kick you out."

Keep on Dancin' right out the door, Mary!