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Local 615 joins immigrant communities and civic groups in urging census participation

march 9 census briefing

On Wednesday March 17 at 10 a.m. at the Harborside Community Center of East Boston, SEIU Local 615 will join Mayor Menino  and a broad spectrum of the state’s immigrant and civic leaders to urge our communities to be counted in the 2010 census. All SEIU members and their families are invited. The historic gathering is the first time so many ethnically diverse groups have come together to promote census participation in Massachusetts. SEIU has joined forces with the Ya Es Hora/Now’s the Time campaign to encourage census participation, and is the only union involved in the campaign. “The census tells the story of who we are as a nation. It’s also vital for making our political voice heard,” said SEIU Local 615 president Rocio Saenz. “Being counted is crucial for funding all kinds of services that our members rely on -- everything from education and child care, to libraries and public transportation.”

 

SEIU Workers Win No-Layoff Guarantee at Boston College

After nine rocky months of negotiations, Local 615 members at Boston College voted six to one on February 17 to approve a new six-year contract that will give most of the 270 facility workers a no-layoff guarantee that is rare in any industry. While the agreement allows BC to contract out work to reduce overtime, the union will have opportunity to review and discuss beforehand the University’s proposals to contract out. The contract prohibits BC from replacing in-house jobs with outside contractors. The union also won raises totaling 4 percent by June 2010, with future raises to be negotiated. Students, alumni, legislators, and faculty all helped the union win a fair contract.