In This Issue:
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Welcome to the New CAPSule Newsletter!
Our collective commitment and actions make our union, CAPS-UAW Local 1115, powerful – and that power is fueled by knowledge. That’s why we are making a major change with this issue of CAPSule by delivering it electronically. The new device-friendly format is convenient to read on your phone, tablet, or desktop computer, not to mention more environmentally friendly. Each issue is packed with information you need to know about how our union is recruiting and organizing members, exercising collective power to improve our wages, benefits, and terms of conditions of employment – and what you can do to make us stronger!
Member Meetings TODAY Will Discuss Contract Talks, Poll You for Our Next Moves
Our contract fight is truly in the hands of you and your colleagues. As members, you are our union’s highest authority. With this in mind, your CAPS-UAW Bargaining Committee requests YOU attend a Membership Meeting this Wednesday, July 24, 2024, 6-7 pm to deliberate and determine our next moves at the bargaining table.
You and your colleagues will participate in a straw poll to determine the direction of our contract fight. Only members attending can participate in the straw poll. It is critical members like you attend the meeting in person to demonstrate solidarity with your fellow scientists and to show our power to the State. Here is a list of confirmed in-person meeting locations. While in-person attendance is highly recommended, members will also have the opportunity to participate virtually. RSVP to attend the Membership Meeting here.
If you cannot attend in person, please register to attend virtually here.
Sign Your Photo Petition TODAY
We are close to delivering our incredible visual petition to the administration with our demands for pay equity. If you haven’t already, add your face to this dramatic document depicting thousands of your State Scientists colleagues demanding change from the Newsom Administration.
Our cause is about more than us. It’s about making change for all Scientists today and for future generations. It’s about our families. It’s about science itself. It’s about ensuring our field is where everyone, regardless of gender, can thrive.
Your photo is an indispensable part of our collective struggle. It’s a statement that says, “My contributions matter! The work I do has tremendous value! I deserve equal pay!” Already signed? Great work! Can you get three others to do the same?
Sign the photo petition today.
To learn more about the gender pay gap impacting State Scientists, visit CAPScontract.org/equal-pay-ca.
What You Should Know About … Our Union’s Enemies
We have enemies bent on destroying our union. Some identify themselves, such as the Freedom Foundation. Others have no names. They are the faceless billionaires who write huge dark-money checks to organizations that fund litigation and support campaigns committed to dismantling government and the unions that represent government employees.
They are ruthless. Their agenda cuts public services, terminates government pensions, outsources public jobs to the private sector, and neuters regulations that protect fair commerce and the environment – all to fatten incomes for the uber-wealthy and boost revenues and stock prices of the corporations that stuff their bank accounts.
CAPS-UAW protects State Scientists and our vital contributions to the public good. As long as we are strong, the uber-rich can’t get their hands on the billions of dollars the government invests in scientific programs and other services that contribute to a better planet, a healthier public, and a better way of life for all people.
Our enemies know our union’s collective power threatens their agenda. They worry that we have a strong voice at the bargaining table, in the State Legislature, courts, and streets. They worry because as we get stronger, they get weaker.
So, we expect them to fight harder.
Don’t be fooled by messages from some innocent-sounding group or individual saying it’s in your best interests to cancel your union membership. They encourage you to opt out because they know the only way to break us is to divide and undermine our collective strength one member at a time. Their lies will leave us weaker and leave you without important workplace protections when you might need them the most.
Your membership matters in the fight for greater collective power, equitable pay, better benefits, and improved working conditions for all State Scientists. Why would our enemies work so hard to weaken us if it didn’t?
Stay informed. Critically evaluate the motives behind any information you receive. Remain active and engaged in our union to help ensure that we can continue to make gains for all State Scientists, our State, and the residents we serve.
Our Salary Bill Wins Unanimous Committee Support
Our legislation to address the longstanding pay inequities between State Scientists and state engineers recently cleared another hurdle when the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment & Retirement unanimously approved AB 2335. It is now with the Senate Committee on Appropriations.
Assemblymember Tina McKinnor’s (D-Inglewood) measure would expose longstanding gender-based pay inequities between State Scientists and state engineers. (A majority of State Scientists are female and earn less for doing the same work as state engineers, a largely male group.)
Once signed into law, the legislation would require the State to address pay disparities and classification imbalances by identifying where state-service employment disparities of specific groups exist. It would also enhance the process for evaluating and addressing gender and ethnic pay inequities, refine salary range adjustments, and restore historical salary relationships within state civil service.
You can view the Committee hearing, including comments by CAPS-UAW Secretary Hannah Johnson, by opening this link. The AB 2335 discussion starts at the 54-minute mark and runs approximately six minutes.
Membership Progress Report
Your CAPS-UAW Board of Directors has challenged us to grow our membership – including rank-and-file, supervisors and managers – to 80% of State Scientists in Unit 10. Here’s where we are as of June 1. Tell a colleague about our movement, and let’s keep growing our collective strength!
