Sarah Chrisofferson, an 1199SEIU Florida member and a Registered Nurse at  a West Palm Beach hospital, recently took part in a national panel discussion on how to build worker power and achieve wins in the workplace, our communities and in politics.

The panel was a featured component at the 1199SEIU national delegate assembly and “Our Vote = Our Power” kickoff in New York City and attended by more than 1,000 union member leaders and officers, as well as top elected officials across the country.

The RN highlighted how elections have very “direct and dramatic impact on our jobs, lives and families,” from staffing standards, to funding for raises and healthcare jobs themselves, essential supplies, coverage for community members and so much more.

As an especially painful example, she cited the Trump Administration’s “Big Ugly Bill” slashing trillions of dollars in essential healthcare funds, skyrocketing health insurance premiums and other deeply damaging impacts to pay for bigger tax breaks for billionaires.

“If you say you don’t care about politics, then you’re saying you don’t care about any of this, and I don’t believe that can be true especially for all of us who are caregivers,” she said.   “And on top of caring, we need stand up and fight for our families.”

A nurse and 1199SEIU member for eight years, Christofferson recently became a union delegate and more actively outspoken because of increasing dark, damaging and dangerous policies out of Washington, D.C. and Tallahassee.

“It feels daunting these days, especially in Florida, but if you stand up and fight, you can win.”

As a volunteer at a community center that provides health services to LGBTQ residents and people living with HIV/AIDS, she’s proud of a victory earlier this year. The center was initially denied a critical $300,000 grant to make repairs at the facility, including the air-conditioner, because the health center was deemed a “DEI initiative” under Tallahassee extremist definitions. The 1199SEIU nurse took part in community protests that ultimately forced Palm Beach County to reverse its decision and release the important funding for the healthcare center.

While Florida is a difficult political landscape, the nurse activist is encouraged by other union members becoming engaged in elections, workplace initiatives and other efforts. “We are building our power,” she told the large 1199SEIU panel audience and guests such as U.S. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and U.S. Senate candidate Angie Nixon. “More and more people are becoming involved. Lots of drops in the bucket eventually fill the bucket.”