President's message
Ben Valdepeña, Association President
Members make a difference in election
Whether you like it or not the election is over and what an election cycle it was! It seems like every race and every ballot measure was contentious in one way or another. But we made it through and, thanks to the hard work of CSEA volunteers, we saw most of our CSEA-endorsed candidates succeed!
From the top of the ballot on down, pro-labor candidates were elected to the presidency, Congress, the state legislature and school boards. See our report in this issue of Focus detailing our election wins.
Make no mistake, the efforts of CSEA members made a huge difference in these races and, in fact, was the deciding factor in many.
We put a lot of energy and resources to electing these leaders and I can tell you, it will make a huge difference for all CSEA members. Our legislative races were especially critical to ensure we have laws and budgets that protect our members and all California workers.
Make no mistake, the efforts of CSEA members made a huge difference in these races and, in fact, was the deciding factor in many. Whether through volunteering to phone bank, text messaging or contributing to the Victory Fund, we all helped elect leaders who will keep classified staff and our students in mind as they make decisions that affect us.
We didn't win every race, of course, but we came out far better than we were two weeks ago. For that, we should all be extremely proud.
Even though we put a lot of effort into the election, we didn't let it take away from the regular business of our union. This year has given CSEA the opportunity to offer our members trainings like no other and Maintenance and Operations was no different. We hosted our first ever virtual M&O Academy on November 6th and November 7th with over 320 members in attendance!
To help members address the challenges of this pandemic, CSEA partnered with the Silicon Valley chapter of the International Facilities Management Association to provide training on preparing not only school facilities but also ourselves for the reopening of schools.
Software company SAP’s director of facilities management was a guest speaker and instructed our members on the reality of what reopening schools during COVID times would look like and our own Amy Gonzales, Labor Relations Representative from the Orange Field Office, educated our members of their rights on the job as well as what the California Department of Public Health guidelines are as it applies to our members.
It was a great event, put together and hosted by the M&O Committee, and one that I know the members who attended will take back to their chapters valuable know-your-rights information and best safety practices.
Brothers and sisters, as we head into another spike of COVID cases nationwide and in our state, please use safety measures both at work and during your time off. Your students need you, we need you and your family needs you to lead by example and stay safe. In solidarity,
