Volume 2 / Issue 9

Mission Statement To provide quality service to the REAP members with integrity and respect, understanding the member is the priority.

Well, they’re at it again. Is there anywhere in this great country that honest, hard-working public employees can go without having to be threatened, harassed and intimidated by SEIU thugs? There should be and I would love for that place to be right here in the Inland Empire. REAP is dedicated to making that happen. In order to accomplish that, we need to educate people on what SEIU is really about.

Our colleagues in San Bernardino County have been forced to learn about SEIU and their tactics over the last year as SEIU has been trying to kidnap the members of SBPEA (San Bernardino Public Employees Association). For those of you who are familiar with SEIU and their tactics, you know our colleagues in San Bernardino County and their families have been violated by SEIU as SEIU swarmed over San Bernardino County employees like locusts consuming and devastating fields of healthy crops. The damage both SEIU and locusts do can be crippling to hard-working American workers.

In a letter to their members dated June 2, 2014, SBPEA shares with members that SEIU was able to obtain, through illegal methods, employees’ names, home addresses, home and personal telephone numbers and emergency contact information for San Bernardino County employees who are currently represented by SBPEA (see pages 1 & 2). What did SEIU do with the information they obtained illegally from the County of San Bernardino? SEIU used the illegally obtained contact information to send multiple unsolicited, unwarranted and unwanted mailers to SBPEA members’ homes. SEIU continues to show no regard for what is best for public employees; they continue to cross the line by disrespecting the law, the employer and the very employees they seek to represent. This happens time and time again because they continue to focus on only one thing – the money.

REAP 19510 Van Buren Blvd. F3-197 Riverside, CA 92508 951-202-8058 / 951-858-6759 https://reap4us.org/ [email protected]

On June 19, 2014, SBPEA members in several bargaining units voted on their tentative contracts; all SBPEA units, with the exception of the Professional Unit, ratified their contract and will remain with SBPEA. The Professional Unit however, rejected their tentative contract and SEIU submitted designation cards to the County of San Bernardino documenting their intent to decertify the Professional Unit from SBPEA. The County of San Bernardino must validate the signatures and ensure the correct percentage of members’ signatures was obtained. Once both are confirmed, the SBPEA Professional Unit members will vote whether to move out of SBPEA and hire SEIU 721 as their new union. IF THEY ONLY KNEW WHAT LIES AHEAD…

Over this last year, SBPEA has not only had to negotiate a contract for several of their bargaining units, they also had to spend money and resources to fight SEIU and the lies SEIU told to get SBPEA members’ attention. SBPEA was forced to request (and they were granted) a temporary restraining order against SEIU. Additionally, the County of San Bernardino is looking at how confidential information was obtained by SEIU and is prepared to file criminal charges if warranted. Unfortunately, SBPEA was not granted a preliminary injunction however; SBPEA will continue the legal battle against SEIU until they get a permanent injunction.

Some of you have experienced these types of shenanigans from SEIU. Remember the dues increase they tried to slip by Riverside County employees? How many unwanted phone calls, fliers and home visits have you received over the years? SEIU staffers don’t show up with homemade cookies, freshly squeezed lemonade and inspiring quotes to lift your spirits. They come with promises of BIG raises, increased contributions to medical coverage and improvements to the work environment to include a BIG colorful SEIU bulletin board in your break room. Should you fall for these promises without question, SEIU will shower you with attention until you have volunteered for every campaign and committee you can fit in a 7-day workweek only to wake up one day to find you are doing all the work alone. For those that don’t fall for SEIU’s false promises and are so bold to ask a question, SEIU will respond in a demeaning manor in an effort to make you feel you are uneducated or misinformed, AND – they will never answer your question!

It is unfortunate that SBPEA and our colleagues in San Bernardino have had to experience SEIU at their best. The good news is that SEIU is so unorganized they probably have already lost all the contact information they obtained illegally.

The lesson here is that SEIU has not and will not change. They are not interested in doing work that is in the best interest of the members; their purpose is to gather more members because where there are members, there is money. It is all about the money.

Looking towards the future…