SEIU-UHW Member: ‘I’m disgusted. This is what happened to me.”

Tasty got the following e-mail from a longtime rank-and-file leader and shop steward at SEIU-UHW, who says s/he recently walked away from all involvement in the union because of its huge internal problems.

I am an avid reader and fan of your blog. I just knew I had to drop you a line after I read the Marcus Hatcher firing post.

I once upon a time was a labor leader within SEIU-UHW and held various leadership positions as a steward and… over [many years]. I [recently] walked away from all labor involvement. I resigned due to the behaviors you have spotlighted. I spoke out in my area for a long time about the unethical, racist, sexist, and outright disgusting behaviors that were openly acceptable within the Union. I was targeted at work and home for speaking out. I have been so disgusted by my Union's lack of leadership and shady financial dealings that for the 1st time in years of employment I became a fee payer in objection. Many of my coworkers felt the same, and also became beck objectors.

I have a paper trail with lots of tasty treats showing the harassment I went through for speaking the truth and calling out bad leaders. (car door keyed, followed/chased home, harassed on the unit multiple times by organizers, home egged, police reports, etc) Sadly, I know I am not the only member who was targeted and harassed for not blindly following and openly questioning corrupt, inept, and unethical labor "leaders", and what they do with our hard earned money. Also, please know that this destructive and greedy leadership mentality within the Union, is not just contained within UHW. This is a culture also existing within our good ole Coalition of KP Unions, as well as the half assed (and quite frankly embarrassing) Labor Management Partnership. I have witnessed and experienced many things in working directly with these people. It is 100% why I walked away and will never support any of these entities again. Your blogs are wonderful and hitting ALL the truth points!

I just would like to say, THANK YOU THANK YOU and THANK YOU for posting the truth and exposing for front-line members and others what really goes on at the purple palace! A lot of us have known for many years just how real and very serious these actions by leadership have been. There are so many people that have been terrorized and victimized by these people over the years. I can only hope that this validation brings some hope for accountability, change, and healing for those harmed by those who abused their titles and power. I knew many within the Union that turned a blind eye and deaf ear to the well known predatory and discriminatory actions of leadership in order to protect their cush, overpaid jobs. Shame on all of them!!

Goodbye and good riddance to egomaniacs like Marcus Hatcher and Mindy Sturge and any others involved! Hope this is the start of a domino effect and more firings are in the works. It's long overdue to expose the truths about just how widespread the greed, self entitlement, and frat boy pay to play mentalities that exist and are very much happening in SEIU UHW.  - the overpaid salaries and benefits for these people that members pay for, and have shoved down our throats as the exemplary great Gods of the Union we should all be honored and expected to worship....(insert total sarcasm ;) 

You are a voice for members like myself who can't openly say these things for fear of more retaliation and terror for speaking out.

In reading this member’s account, you get a taste of the toxic culture that President Dave Regan has brewed inside SEIU-UHW… including sexual misconduct by top officials, overpaid and unaccountable union officials, and a culture that targets internal critics with harassment, bullying and even physical attacks.

Tasty is reminded of many earlier posts about Regan’s “old school ways,” SEIU-UHW staffers’ shout-downs designed to intimidate its own members, “World War III” strategies, attacks against labor legend Dolores Huerta, death threats targeting the union’s own members, and Regan’s infamous physical assault against a process server in 2016.

If SEIU’s top officials sincerely want to reform their union and make it democratic and accountable to workers, they need to fix these problems.  Now!

Breaking: SEIU-UHW’s Dave Regan Reportedly Arrested after Breaking the Arm of Hospital Association's Process Server

SEIU-UHW's Dave Regan

Sources report that SEIU-UHW President Dave Regan was arrested after breaking the arm of a process server who served legal documents, authored by the California Hospital Association (CHA), on Regan at his home in Kensington, California.

According to a reliable source, the Kensington Police Department will soon forward Regan's arrest records to the District Attorney for possible criminal prosecution.

Four sources have corroborated the incident. Here's what they say.

The process server reportedly attempted to serve the legal documents when Regan answered his front door on Beloit Avenue.

Regan, rather than accept the documents, violently pushed the process server down the stairs, breaking his arm. When the police arrived at the scene, say sources, Regan got into an altercation with the police and was arrested.

According to court records, the CHA recently served a variety of legal motions on SEIU-UHW officials in response to Regan’s November 2015 lawsuit against the CHA.

On January 25, for example, a CHA process server delivered legal motions to SEIU-UHW's attorney, Eduardo Roy of Prometheus Partners, at the firm's a law firm in San Francisco. Those documents sought the court's permission for the CHA to formally intervene in Regan's lawsuit.

On January 26, the CHA filed its own lawsuit against SEIU-UHW alleging that Regan violated a gag clause contained in his secret partnership deal with CHA officials.

For those familiar with Dave Regan’s history, the reports of his arm-breaking assault will not be surprising. Regan reportedly has a history of violent encounters, including fistfights at SEIU events, some of which were reportedly fueled by alcohol.

In 2008, Regan led busloads of SEIU staffers and supporters in an attack against a national conference held by "Labor Notes," a network of union activists seeking to democratize and reform US labor unions. Regan's troops violently forced their way into the conference in Dearborn, Michigan, where they reportedly punched, kicked and knocked participants to the floor.

Regan's troops assaulting the Labor Notes conference: 2008

One female conference attendee was sent to the hospital with cuts and other injuries to her head.

Tragically, one of the members of Regan's union at the time, SEIU 1199 West Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio, died during Regan's assault from a heart attack.

John Sweeney (then President of the AFL-CIO) denounced Regan's attack on the conference, stating: "There is no justification -- none -- for the violent attack orchestrated by SEIU," according to the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.

When Regan parachuted into California in 2009, sources say he schooled SEIU-UHW's staff in his "old school ways," including the use of threats and intimidation against the union's members and its critics.

During a 2009 election among homecare workers in Fresno County, SEIU staffers reportedly threatened immigrant home care workers with deportation unless they voted for SEIU-UHW, according to TV news coverage and video-taped testimonials of workers and SEIU staff.

During NLRB elections at Kaiser Permanente, SEIU-UHW employed a "World War III" strategy designed to intimidate its members by employing, for example, violent "shout downs" against union members.

In one infamous incident inside a hospital cafeteria, SEIU-UHW staffer Tiffany Ford issued death threats against Kaiser employees… for which a Los Angeles Superior Court judge imposed a restraining order on her.

Another SEIU-UHW staffer, Liz Castillo, became a YouTube sensation (88,000 views) for her violent assault in a hospital cafeteria captured on videotape.

SEIU-UHW -- including staffer Angela Hewett -- even threatened and intimidated 80-year-old labor legend Dolores Huerta, who co-founded of the United Farm Workers Union with Cesar Chavez. In one incident, SEIU-UHW representatives shamefully screamed at Ms. Huerta to "go back to the fields."

All of which raises important questions:

Why did SEIU officials -- including Andy Stern and Mary Kay Henry -- install a man with a history of violence to head a union of healthcare workers in California?

And why have Henry and SEIU's International Executive Board allowed Regan to remain in his seat atop one of SEIU's largest local unions in the nation despite his repeated acts of intimidation and violence -- including his latest assault against a processor, who good just as easily be a union member?

Are SEIU presidents and officers permitted to break the arms of court workers without being held accountable?

Stay tuned.

Where Is She Now…? SEIU’s Angela Hewett

SEIU's Hewett inside Kaiser cafeteria

When readers last sent news of her, Angela Hewett had quit her job at SEIU-UHW and taken a position as the Organizing Director at the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

In an earlier post, Tasty described Hewett’s dramatic makeover. 

At SEIU-UHW, Hewett was best known for thuggery. Under Dave Regan’s guidance, she instructed SEIU-UHW’s stewards to turn Kaiser Permanente’s hospitals into “World War III” battlegrounds to try to stop workers from discussing their choices in an NLRB election between SEIU-UHW and NUHW.

Later, Hewett was captured on film as she screamed and beat her fists on tables inside the cafeteria at Kaiser Baldwin Park Medical Center in Los Angeles. Hewett was trying to stop 82-year-old labor legend Dolores Huerta, a co-founder of the United Farm Workers Union with Cesar Chavez, from talking to workers inside the hospital’s cafeteria filled with patients, family members and off-duty workers.

Well… it looks like Hewett’s job at the AAUP hasn’t turned out so well. Just months after she took the professorial job, Hewett is no longer an employee.

Tasty doesn’t have any details on Hewett’s departure… although he speculates that her Regan-inspired fist-pounding might have rubbed some of the professors the wrong way. Who would've guessed!

Angela Hewett during a quieter moment at the AAUP

Labor Legend Dolores Huerta and Filipino-American Health Workers Ass'n Endorse NUHW

Dolores Huerta

As ballots arrive at the homes of 45,000 workers at Kaiser Permanente, two voices in the labor movement have thrown their support behind NUHW.

Dolores Huerta -- who co-founded the United Farm Workers Union with Cesar Chavez -- has been spotted at Kaiser hospitals in Southern California wearing a red NUHW t-shirt as she meets with workers. Here’s a statement from Huerta, who last year won a Presidential Medal of Freedom:

Kaiser workers organizing with NUHW-CNA are carrying forward the proud tradition of Cesar Chavez and me with the United Farm Workers, of standing up for their rights. I urge you to be part of Cesar's legacy by voting for NUHW-CNA.

And in a second endorsement, the Filipino-American Health Workers Association (FAHWA) issued a written statement urging Kaiser workers to vote for NUHW and sharply criticizing SEIU-UHW for colluding with the hospital industry to cut workers’ benefits, implement layoffs, and undermine California’s landmark safe-staffing laws. Here’s an excerpt from FAHWA’s statement, with the full version below.

The Filipino-American Health Workers Association (FAHWA) views with deep concern the collusion of California Hospital Association and the management of SEIU-UHW, led by Dave Regan...

FAHWA condemns in equally strong terms the collusion of the healthcare industry and Dave Regan to water down contractual standards... The collusion will enable health corporations to set in place various schemes of labor flexibilization that will ultimately result in unsafe working conditions, loss of job security, unsafe patient care, and the loss of pensions, benefits and jobs. This collusion is already hurting the interests of SEIU-UHW members...

In stark contrast to SEIU-UHW's sell out of its workers, FAHWA commends the efforts of the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) and the California Nurses Association (CNA) to preserve the gains and standards that its membership and union have won in the past. Both unions have stood their ground against the attacks of the healthcare industry against the health workers and their patients.

FAHWA calls on the general membership of SEIU-UHW, in particular the 15,000 Filipino-American nurses and other healthcare workers in Kaiser Permanente, to repudiate the collusion of California Hospital Association and Dave Regan's SEIU-UHW-led management and to support NUHW-CNA; and join the ranks of health workers and their organizations that genuinely advance the interests to uphold, promote, protect and defend their rights and of their patients.

   The Filipino-American Health Workers' Association's statement of support for NUHW in the NLRB election at K...

Where Is She Now? SEIU's Angela Hewett

Readers may remember SEIU staffer Angela Hewett for her infamous thuggery during the giant NLRB election at Kaiser Permanente in 2010.

In the run-up to the election, Hewett implemented SEIU-UHW’s plan to turn Kaiser’s hospitals into “World War III” battlegrounds to prevent hospital workers from discussing their choices in the government-run election. This article describes how Hewett instructed dozens of SEIU-UHW’s shop stewards -- while they were at a day-long, Kaiser-paid meeting -- to launch SEIU’s “WWIII” strategy at the request of SEIU’s Dave Regan.

Next, Hewett was famously captured on film as she screamed and beat her fists on tables inside the cafeteria at Kaiser Baldwin Park Medical Center in Los Angeles. Check out this 4-minute video -- Hewitt appears at 2 min and 30 seconds. 

So why was Angela disrupting a cafeteria filled with patients, their family members, and employees?

She and a bunch of SEIU’s thugs were trying to stop employees from talking with 82-year-old labor legend Dolores Huerta during their lunch break. Dolores Huerta, who co-founded the United Farm Workers Union with Cesar Chavez, had come to the facility to talk about the NLRB election at the request of NUHW supporters.

While Hewett was beating her fists on tables, an SEIU-UHW organizer whom Hewett supervised -- Tiffany Ford -- threatened to kill two hospital employees because they supported NUHW. Way to go, SEIU.  Days later, two Superior Court judges issued restraining orders against Ford because of her death threats.

So where’s Hewett now?

Well, she abandoned the purple ship… and landed a job at the American Association of University Professors (AAUP) as the union’s organizing director.  WTF? Wonder what the professors will think when they learn that Hewett favors intimidation over free discussion and debate. Democracy much, Angela??

Hmm… and if Angela was trying to turn hospitals into WWIII battlegrounds, wonder what her plan is for universities? Sounds like the profs ought to invest in some body armor. 

PS. Here’s a photo of a sensitive-looking Angela Hewett in her new job at the AAUP. Notice the color of her lanyard?

SEIU Adds Zumba - and Invokes Cesar Chavez - in Latest Wellness Push

Tasty hears that SEIU’s Dave Regan and John August are raving about their recent “wellness strike” (aka flash mob)... even as Kaiser executives attempt to slash workers' health benefits.

Last Wednesday, John August (the Chief Negotiator for the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions) published this article entitled “100,000-Member Union Coalition 'Strikes' at Major Health Care Foes: Obesity and Chronic Disease.” It includes inspiring passages like these:

And whoever thinks unions haven’t yet entered the 21st century need only take a look at this new campaign to understand that they are quite mistaken.

To improve our own health, union members will organize mass walking campaigns, participate in Kaiser Permanente’s online health assessment tool which has been shown to improve health; and work in worker co-led unit based teams to improve healthy eating and healthy work practices like walking meetings, open stairwells, and safe walking paths.

Hey John, Tasty realizes you're a big fan of wellness and "Let's get healthy." But don't you think it's gonna be devastating to workers' HEALTH if Kaiser effectively strips HEALTH INSURANCE from tens of thousands of part-time workers and their children by boosting their monthly premiums from $0 to $700 a month?

Meanwhile, last Friday, SEIU-UHW’s Dave Regan unveiled his latest effort to promote Kaiser’s wellness program: Zumba classes!  Check out this post on SEIU-UHW’s website (click on the image to enlarge):

That’s right! Zumba has now joined other cutting-edge SEIU tactics like “team salad days,” “walking meetings,” and “mass walking campaigns.”

BTW, did you notice how SEIU-UHW is now "celebrating Cesar Chavez day"?  Readers might be a tad bit skeptical about SEIU’s newfound respect for Cesar Chavez and farmworkers. During the Kaiser election in 2010, SEIU-UHW staffers actually attacked and insulted Dolores Huerta, the 81-year-old legendary labor leader who co-founded the United Farm Workers with Cesar Chavez. 

When Dolores visited several Kaiser hospitals to meet with workers, she was surrounded by SEIU organizers who told her to “Go back to the fields.” Check out this video, which captures purple-shirted SEIU staffers and supporters telling her to go back to the fields.

Here's a second video, where Dolores describes her experiences with SEIU organizers trying to pick a fight with her and telling her to "Go back to the fields:"

SEIU's YouTube Star Is Back!

Remember this video of SEIU staffer Liz Castillo as she bullies workers and then smashes a camera to the floor inside the cafeteria of a California hospital? The video went viral on YouTube, where it's now been viewed 72,000 times. Castillo can be heard shouting at an SEIU-UHW member dressed in scrubs and then saying, "Shut the f*ck up, you f*cking asshole" as she prepares to backhand a seated observer.

When Castillo's purple-shirted assault became a YouTube phenomenon, SEIU officials canned Castillo in hopes of managing the fallout from SEIU's other attacks... like the death threats against workers at Kaiser Permanente and SEIU's outrageous attacks against Dolores Huerta, the 80-year-old co-founder of the United Farm Workers along with Cesar Chavez.

So what's Castillo up to these days? Has she landed a career on a Detroit roller derby team? Well... kind of. A reader reports that she's back at SEIU-UHW, where her bullyboy exploits caught the eye of Dave Regan, who reportedly instructs SEIU staffers to intimidate workers who criticize SEIU. Here's the reader's report:

Just in case you didn't know, Liz Castillo is back working with UHW- she was seen in the smoking area!!! (which she visits 20X a day) early this week. She was telling the group of smokers that she is back! as an organizer!!! God Help Us!!! 

More..... this week the craziest woman in UHW Flannery Hauck (crazier than Liz) was seen lecturing! torturing a group of organizer going over a rap for a campaign she is leading "Lets Get Healthy California" . I felt sorry for those organizers in the second floor.... welcome to the "Flannery concentration camp"

Well, California workers, look for Liz in a hospital near you. Tasty hears she'll soon be playing an integral role in Regan's "Let's Get Healthy, California!" campaign by telling workers to "Shut the f*ck up and fill out the f*cking survey." Way to go, SEIU!

'The Worst Day in the History of SEIU'

So what’s happening inside SEIU? Tasty hears that when the judge announced her decision to toss out the Kaiser election results, Trustee Dave Regan told SEIU staffers it was “the worst day in the history of SEIU.”

Hmmm… kinda says something about Dave Regan, doesn’t it?

Apparently, Dave is all torn up because he’s finally been found guilty of violating workers’ rights. But I guess Dave wasn’t too upset when he was actually COMMITTING all the violations.

So Dave... see if you can answer these simple questions: Why WASN’T it “the worst day in the history of SEIU”…

…when you ran a campaign of lies, disinformation and threats against SEIU’s own members?

…when you made back-room deals with Kaiser’s executives to cut workers’ pensions and health benefits?

…when two separate Superior Court judges were forced to issue restraining orders against SEIU staff for threatening to kill Kaiser workers simply because they supported NUHW?

…when your staff heckled and bullied labor legend Dolores Huerta, the 80-year-old co-founder of the United Farm Workers, and even told her to “Go back to the fields” because she was visiting NUHW supporters in a Kaiser hospital cafeteria?

…when your staff – including Angela Hewitt – beat their fists on tables and shouted down workers inside Kaiser cafeterias so they couldn’t talk to one another about the election?

…when you adopted a disgusting strategy of converting Kaiser facilities into “World War III” battlegrounds to try to intimidate Kaiser workers into silence?

Well, Dave… whatsa matter? Cat got your tongue?