ALBANY, NY (May 9, 2022) -- 1199SEIU healthcare workers – joined by State Senator Tim Kennedy, and Assemblyman Erik Dilan and a host of other lawmakers – today called for passage of the Reinvest in NY Healthcare Act to keep healthcare dollars in New York, instead of lining the pockets of insurance companies. Read More

Clara is a native of Alabama and started her education at Tuskegee Institute. She later completed her education at Emery Riddle University in Germany. Her career in the labor movement began as an organizer/educator with experience in all three sectors of labor (private, federal, and public). Read More

“A Supreme Court rollback of Roe vs. Wade would be a tragic loss of reproductive freedoms and healthcare for tens of millions of women in the United States, especially in states such as Florida that have passed extreme and intrusive laws curtailing women’s freedom and right to self-determination. Read More

La Sesión Legislativa del 2022 fue un reto significativo por que el gobernador y el liderazgo republicano continúan otorgando favores a las grandes compañías e intereses especiales al recortar la dotación de personal a los hogares para ancianos, y al atacar el voto, libertad de expresión y los derechos de salud reproductiva. Deberían de enfocarse en las prioridades de los floridanos de la clase trabajadora, como en crear buenos empleos que retengan a los héroes del cuidado médico. En lugar de eso, ellos se enfocan en amenazas imaginarias basadas en racismo y genero en un intento por dividirnos. Read More

The 2022 Florida Legislative Session was a significant challenge as the governor and Republican leadership continued to carve out favors for big business and special interests by cutting nursing home staffing, and attacking voting, free speech and reproductive healthcare rights. They should be focusing on priorities for working Floridians like creating good jobs that retain healthcare heroes. Instead, they focused on imaginary race based and gender-based threats in an attempt to divide us. Read More

“The explosion of cryptocurrency mining projects in communities across New York threatens the air we breathe, the water we drink, our climate, our ecosystems and biodiversity. There is no public benefit to New Yorkers for using large amounts of our valuable energy resources to generate profit for a small number of wealthy private equity investors. Read More

Corning, NY - More than 400 healthcare workers at Guthrie Corning Hospital are celebrating a victory this week! Unionized healthcare workers reached an agreement with management before their current contract was set to expire on April 30, 2022, following a one-year extension. Yesterday, workers overwhelmingly voted to ratify the 3-year agreement. Caregivers are represented by 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East. Read More

“The members of 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East stand with lawmakers who protested the brazen manipulation of Florida’s Congressional District maps. Read More

When NYS Council of Churches head Rev. Peter Cook said last month that, “the time is up for paying these guardian angels a living wage,” he echoed what religious and other leaders said 60 years ago during the early years of 1199’s hospital organizing campaign. Read More

For Jacynth Stewart, political awareness was nurtured from a very early age. Growing up in Jamaica, Stewart recalls: “My parents used to take me to all their political meetings as a young child and I would sit on their lap and play pretend like I was voting,” the now retired 1199SEIU Delegate remembers, “I would put my finger in the ink and stamp it on a piece of paper.” Read More

Florida members have been celebrating both legislative and contract wins in the early part of this year, which were a long time coming. Read More

In a historic decision covering more than 100,000 current and former 1199SEIU home care members, a New York City arbitrator has ordered 42 agencies to fund a $32 million Special Wage Fund to compensate members for wages owed for sleep and meal interruptions on 24-hour cases and other wage violations. Read More

Whether they work in hospitals, detox clinics, nursing homes or even legal services organizations, 1199SEIU social workers perform an essential role in the health care system. By approaching patients and clients in a way that considers the whole community in which they live—not just immediate medical needs—social workers are vital to securing the best long-term health outcomes. Read More

With the death of Edward (Eddie) Kay on Feb. 15, the progressive movement lost one of its most celebrated organizers. Kay stepped down from his post of 1199 Executive Vice President in 1999, but continued non-stop activity as a union consultant, educator and organizing guru until his illness and death at age 89. Read More

Finding and holding onto an affordable place to live has never been easy, especially when rents are rising faster than wages in many U.S. cities. Read More

On February 17, in the driving rain on a dark night, 1199SEIU members held a candlelight vigil in front of Westchester Medical Center/ HealthAlliance Hospital in Kingston, NY. Lindsey Bradford, a Cardiac Care Monitor, said it was time to shine the light on the risks to quality care caused by short staffing. Contract negotiations, aimed at helping to retain and recruit staff were going nowhere. Read More

As the 1199 Magazine was going to press, New York Governor Kathy Hochul announced that she would finally lift the pause on nursing home legislation that 1199SEIU members had fought long and hard to get signed into law last year. Read More

The Women’s Caucus at the union pulled together an evening zoom event on March 4 to honor the strength and courage of their sisters. Read More

Massachusetts members voted overwhelmingly to ratify new four-year contracts in February with Cape Cod Healthcare institutions, which will include a minimum of 10 percent wage growth over the life of the agreement. Read More

Damian Rivera, an1199 Delegate and CNA at Complete Care at Marcella Center in Burlington Twp., was fired without just cause the day after he and his co-workers attempted to bring health and safety concerns to management. Read More