{"id":1898,"date":"2020-05-06T10:00:32","date_gmt":"2020-05-06T10:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.uniontrack.com\/blog\/?p=1898"},"modified":"2020-05-06T14:16:06","modified_gmt":"2020-05-06T14:16:06","slug":"nnu-seiu-profile","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/uniontrack.com\/blog\/nnu-seiu-profile","title":{"rendered":"NNU and SEIU: 2 Unions Fighting for Front-Line Healthcare Workers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ken Green
\nCEO\/Founder
\nUnionTrack<\/a><\/p>\n

Healthcare workers are on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving them vulnerable to exposure. They and their patients need protection that most facilities haven\u2019t planned for, which is why unions are stepping up and fighting for protections for those workers.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Healthcare unions are playing an essential role in the nation\u2019s response to the current crisis by uniting in their efforts to ensure the health and well-being of workers so they can, in turn, provide the best possible care for patients.<\/p>\n

Two of the most active unions during this time have been the Service Employees International Union United Healthcare Workers East (1199SEIU) and National Nurses United (NNU).<\/p>\n

SEIU United Healthcare Workers East<\/h2>\n

With more than 450,000 members, 1199SEIU<\/a> is the largest healthcare union in the U.S. The union represents nurses, techs, housekeepers, pharmacists, social workers and many other professionals in the medical field throughout Massachusetts, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, Florida, and Washington, D.C.<\/p>\n

How 1199SEIU Is Helping Protect Workers During the COVID-19 Pandemic<\/h3>\n

1199SEIU is making itself seen and heard on all fronts during the COVID-19 pandemic, approaching the crisis from both legislative and grassroots angles.<\/p>\n

The union, from the beginning of the pandemic, has lobbied both the federal and state governments to adequately address the health and safety of healthcare workers who have lacked resources they need.<\/p>\n

“We’ve not taken action as a nation to make sure healthcare workers who are literally placing their lives on the line are given adequate protection,” says Dale Ewart<\/a>, executive vice president of 1199SEIU Florida. “It’s not a problem that employers can solve. Only the states and the national government can resolve it.”\u00a0<\/p>\n

Proper PPE, paid sick time and family leave, and expanded access to healthcare coverage are just some of the issues the union wants to see addressed at the political level.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Elsewhere, 1199SEIU is on the ground doing what it can to support healthcare workers. In Manhattan, the union delivered 110 gallons of hand sanitizer to home care employees as a way to keep those essential workers safe and healthy on the job. \u201c1199 home care workers are essential employees, and they are on the front lines of the COVID-19 crisis,\u201d says Rona Shapiro<\/a>, executive vice president of 1199SEIU Home Care Division.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The union has also partnered with Airbnb<\/a> to provide housing for members who are in need of housing \u2014 even if it\u2019s just a safe place to rest between shifts.\u00a0<\/p>\n

History of the 1199SEIU<\/h3>\n

Founded in 1932<\/a>, Local 1199 began as a local of the Drug, Hospital and Health Care Employees Union when a Polish-American drugstore clerk named Leon Davis led a group of New York City pharmacy workers to unionize. They banded together to stand up to deplorable wages and racial segregation of the 1930s, establishing the union\u2019s platform of \u201cequality, justice and democracy.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

To demonstrate their commitment to that platform, those initial union members led a historic effort to organize the mostly Black workforce of pharmacy sodamen. This at a time when racial segregation was the norm.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Its social justice reform efforts didn\u2019t stop there. In the late 1950s, the union hosted organizing drives at New York City\u2019s voluntary hospitals, where the workforces were mostly African-American and Latina women. It was a bold move that labor historian Joshua Freeman<\/a> calls \u201cNew York labor\u2019s most important organizing success of the post\u2013World War II era,\u201d with the exception of the unionization of public employees.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Such actions gained the respect of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., who called the 1199 \u201cthe authentic conscience of the labor movement\u201d in recognition of its efforts to organize all workers, regardless of race.<\/p>\n

Local 1199 continued to see success throughout the 1960s, including winning statewide collective bargaining rights for hospital workers in New York and establishing a $100-per-week minimum wage. During that time, it expanded to create new 1199 districts across the country.\u00a0<\/p>\n

In the 1990s, the union began organizing nursing home and home care workers in and around New York City. This led to the merger of Local 1199 with SEIU<\/a> to become 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East, which absorbed other, smaller SEIU healthcare workers unions over the years.<\/p>\n

Current Leadership and Structure<\/h3>\n

The 1199SEIU is the largest local union within the greater SEIU. It has office locations up and down the East Coast, with its primary headquarters in New York.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The organization holds leadership elections every three years. In the 2019 election, delegates re-elected President George Gresham and Secretary-Treasurer Maria Castaneda<\/a>, both of whom have been serving in their respective roles since 2007. According to the union, Castaneda is also the highest-ranking Asian-American in the labor movement.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Their leadership roles are supported by executive vice presidents, vice presidents, union-side vice presidents at large, organizers and elected executive council members.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Other 1199SEIU Advocacy Campaigns<\/h3>\n

These leaders are supporting the union through initiatives that continue to focus on fighting injustices \u2014 racial, social, economic and environmental \u2014 to fulfill the union\u2019s vision<\/a> of creating a world of \u201cequal opportunities for all people.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The union addresses issues such as affordable healthcare and housing, immigration reform, LGBTQ rights, peace and international cooperation, and racial justice.<\/p>\n

Some of its current campaigns are focused on:<\/p>\n