3,000 service employees rally in Sacramento over contract

[struggle4progress]

By BRIAN JOSEPH
The Orange County Register

SACRAMENTO – About 3,000 state employees are demonstrating outside the Capitol today, demanding the governor negotiate a new contract with their union.

Fred Banuelos, who works at the Department of Motor Vehicles call center in Irvine, boarded a bus at midnight in Fullerton to be at the rally.

"I'm here because I want to stay with state government but Arnold is making it hard to stay," Banuelos, a member of the Service Employees International Union, said over the booming tones of Bob Marley's "Get Up, Stand Up." He and the other protesters were wearing T-shirts in the union's characteristic purple with "Solidarity" or "Fighting for California. Fighting for our contract" written on the back.

The union has been negotiating with the state since before its contract expired in June 2005. Members say they're fed up with demands that they pay more of their insurance premiums and pension benefits. The SEIU's 87,000 California members will be voting this month on whether they're willing to strike. SEIU members have not seen their pay increased since 2003 ...

http://www.ocregister.com/ocregister/homepage/abox/article_1134128.php