Members of the Office of Professional Employees International Union Local 2 have voted to go on strike against their employer, the D.C. headquarters of the Service Employees International Union, if it doesn’t stop outsourcing its work to non-union contractors. The workers have not actually hit the picket line so far.
Both sides are still trying to iron out their differences, said SEIU spokeswoman Sara Lonardo. “Everyone at SEIU values the work performed by our staff to improve the lives of SEIU members,” she told the Washington Examiner. “SEIU has been strongly committed to reaching a negotiated settlement that allows our union to meet the daunting challenges that SEIU members are up against and provides a workplace that is aligned with our values.”
OPEIU’s members voted to authorize a walkout Tuesday, according to the Huffington Post. David Hoskins, a SEIU research and shop steward for OPEIU, said they were reluctant to walkout. “No one on this bargaining committee joined SEIU to be in a fight with SEIU,” he said. “We did it because we believe in these programs.”
SEIU is one of the largest and most active unions in the country, with 1.9 million members nationwide and $314 million in revenue in 2017 alone, according to Labor Department filings. It has been at the forefront of most union social justice movements in recent years. It has been the main funder of the Fight for $15 minimum wage movement.
However, even the wealthiest labor unions have found themselves facing criticism from the workers in their own buildings. In October, 150 members of OPEIU Local 2 and their supporters protested in front of the D.C. headquarters of the AFL-CIO, claiming it was trying to force an unfair contract on their members, who represent janitors and other office employees at the headquarters.
A spokesman for OPEIU could not be reached for comment.
