1199SEIU Massachusetts 2016: A Year in Our Movement

December 22, 2016

As a result of your tireless advocacy and steadfast commitment to our mission, we achieved significant victories in our movement for quality jobs, quality care and true social, racial and economic justice for all. Here are a few highlights from 2016:


We joined our partners in the Raise Up Massachusetts coalition to launch our Fight for $15 legislative campaign to ensure all Bay State workers are paid fairly and treated with dignity and respect.


We won a union for workers at Brockton VNA and strong contracts with Boston Medical Center, Steward, Medical Resources and other employers that protect good wages and benefits like the 1199SEIU Training and Upgrading Fund – and in the case of Steward, creates a pathway to $15.


We secured funding in the state budget to increase wages for nursing home workers and advocated to make sure this critical money goes to the direct care workers who need it most.


We formed a coalition with our allies in the disability community to successfully amend the state’s overtime management policy and protect access to quality PCA services for seniors and people with disabilities.


We strengthened our relationships with key external partners to achieve our common goals – Partners HealthCare, Massachusetts Senior Care Association and Raise Up Massachusetts.


Governor Baker, Senate President Rosenberg and Speaker of the House DeLeo heard our call to level the playing field in the Massachusetts hospital industry and created the Special Commission on Provider Price Variation to address the unfair way Massachusetts hospitals are reimbursed for care.


The questions we raised about the proposed merger’s impact on the regional economy and healthcare access, costs, delivery and jobs played a pivotal role in ending the merger process.


We: elected 33 out of 40 endorsed candidates to the Massachusetts Legislature and strengthened support for our issues on Beacon Hill; defeated, in overwhelming fashion, a dangerous ballot initiative that would have lifted the cap on charter schools and financially hurt our traditional public schools; and adopted the Community Preservation Act in Boston, Springfield and 14 additional communities to fund affordable housing, open spaces and historical preservation.


In partnership with our community allies, we advocated for passage of groundbreaking legislation to safeguard rights for transgendered people and made important progress to advance paid family and medical leave legislation and the Fair Share amendment to tax incomes over a million dollars and fund public education and transportation.