With the Coliseum sale in jeopardy, union
members fight for urgent action
OAKLAND,
Calif., June 28, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- In
response to criticisms of balancing the budget with one-time funds,
unions representing Oakland city
employees assert their firm stance that the Coliseum sale must move
forward on time and be used to protect public services. The
coalition of unions includes 4,000 city workers in IFPTE Local 21,
SEIU 1021, IBEW 1245, and Oakland Firefighters Local 55.
City workers plan on attending the Friday, June 28 City Council meeting to advocate
for these priorities in the 2024-2025 Mid-cycle Adjustments Budget.
Represented union members serve as firefighters, 911 dispatchers,
illegal dumping crews, head start coordinators, and librarians
along with hundreds of other jobs that keep Oakland running every single day.
"This potential setback will severely undermine efforts to keep
Oakland clean, safe, and healthy
by harming the communities that need it most and those who perform
the critical work of providing and keeping Oakland clean and safe," stated
Antoinette Blue, Police
Communications Dispatcher and SEIU 1021 Chapter President for the
City of Oakland.
"The revenue coming from the Coliseum sale right now is a life
raft for public safety, our libraries, our parks, our
infrastructure, and more," said Zac
Unger, firefighter and IAFF 55 President. "The fiscally
responsible thing to do is to use the sale to save our
services."
"City workers are the backbone of our essential services," said
lead electrician Michael
Patterson, IBEW Local 1245. "Cutting staff means cutting
services. Residents deserve better."
"Why would anyone scapegoat workers when corporations in
Oakland aren't even paying their
taxes?" said Julian Ware,
IFPTE Local 21 Oakland Vice President. "After this is over, the
City must explore every avenue to collect revenue."
City workers have made many sacrifices over the years to balance
the City's budget, including millions in concessions during the
Great Recession. In 2017, the City of
Oakland commissioned a third party to conduct a study of
compensation for civilian employees, which found that many of our
staff were paid on average 10% less than neighboring agencies, with
some positions more than 20% behind. The City's own staffing
reports have found that Oakland's job vacancy rate has hovered
between 18% to 19% since 2022, compared to 11.03% in San Francisco, 13.46% in San Jose, 12.93% in Berkeley and 8.85% in Concord.
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SOURCE IFPTE Local 21