I want to thank everyone who supported the pitch and followed our reporting over the last few months. Here is another update.
We commissioned the city for layoff numbers. From May through September, the city issued 3,230 layoff notices to save $50 million and bridge a $538 million deficit. The city was ultimately able to rescind the notices sent to more than 2,000 of these workers.
After receiving these numbers, our story has evolved, and it has actually become more interesting. We spent several months looking at the circumstances – both within the city and the union – surrounding the layoffs.
As many of you may have read about, there are increasing tensions between SEIU 1021 – the union which employs the most city workers – and Mayor Gavin Newsom. Alternatively, the union has experienced internal issues. SEIU 1021 is a newly created entity, a conglomerate of ten smaller locals. Critics have charged that the merging has led to conflict and disorganization.
Our story delves into the politics surrounding the layoffs. Why did these employees lose their jobs? Before you read our story, I want to direct you to other relevant reporting. Here are several stories:
1.This is an interesting piece which discusses recent city layoffs. The story outlines a layoff breakdown by department. The majority of the layoffs are health department employees.
2. The blog above was run the San Francisco Bay Guardian. The paper ran a story in print last week which details the internal conflicts of SEIU 1021 – the union which lost the most city employees to layoffs.
3. Looking forward, as the recession continues to devastate California municipalities, San Francisco may be sending pink slips to more than 900 school employees – over 300 teachers – this week. The story ran in the San Francisco Chronicle.
4. Also, in an effort to save the city money, Supervisor Sean Elsbernd has proposed legislation to reform the cities’ pension system. The legislations will force workers to contribute 7.5 percent of paychecks to their own pensions, among other changes. The legislation is opposed by SEIU. The San Francisco Chronicle endorsed the legislation.
These are all great stories. Our story will discuss elements of each, and we will tie everything together in the context of last year’s policy debate.
Thanks again for supporting or following this story. Monica and I greatly appreciate your interest.
I hope that everyone has read the most recent blog post and had a chance to listen to the KALW radio interview.
I discussed the story with KALW's Ben Trefny for the program Crosscurrents (if you are unfamiliar with the program, I would encourage you to look into it. The Crosscurrents team is excellent.)
Monica and I are still working on the story. We have completed a few rough drafts, but it has evolved and we have more research to do.
You haven't heard from us in a bit - but we are still plugging away at this project. In fact, we are making significant progress. We are even talking to the local NY Times Bay Area edition to see if they will publish it (nothing is gaurunteed).
In the meantime - we thought you'd enjoy this interview with Kevin Start, one of our reporters on the situation of San Franciscos' budget woes and what that means for city employees.
If you find it informative - please pass it around.
From KALW: Mayor Gavin Newsom is busy sorting out the city’s projected budget deficit, estimated at more than half-a-billion dollars for the next fiscal year. That comes on the heels of last year’s budget deficit, which was nearly half-a-billion dollars. To bridge that gap, the city took many measures - like cutting programs in the department of public health and laying off city staffers. Reporter Kevin Stark has been covering City Hall for the Public Press - a non-profit news organization in San Francisco- joined us to talk about the crisis.
By Monica Jensen - Public Press, Originally published November 25th.
More than 500 low-wage city workers threatened with job and pay cuts this fall received a holiday-themed reprieve Tuesday, as the Board of Supervisors delayed layoffs in the hopes of finding federal and state funds to prevent cutbacks.
The delay pushes off layoffs and salary reductions for two months — in what members of the Board of Supervisors called the spirit of the holiday season. But critics said the hope for a federal-state rescue was just a “fantasy,” because the money to save jobs for the long term won’t materialize. The board voted 8 to 3 to preserve the positions of about 500 city employees, mostly certified nursing assistants and clerical staff, at their current pay rate through December. The decision will cost the city more than $1.8 million — funds that will come from the Department of Public Health’s fund reserves. Supervisors Michela Alioto-Pier and Sean Elsbernd criticized their colleagues for making promises that could not be kept.
“Everyone, at least on this side of the rail, knows full well, even if all 11 of us vote for this, the mayor is not going to spend this money,” Elsbernd said. “You are giving these people false hope.”
The full $8 million that had been slated to cover the city employees’ salaries for the rest of the fiscal year would come from the Department of Public Health, but only if the federal government approves proposed legislation from California to allow the collection of fees from private hospitals. Municipalities could be the beneficiaries of these funds, City Controller Ben Rosenfield said.
But critics weren’t buying it. “I’ll believe it when I see it,” Alioto-Pier said. “All I’ve seen is the state taking money away from us.”
As bad as things were last summer, when the city was faced with a $438 million deficit, the situation will likely be worse next year. The city is expecting a shortfall of $522 million in the next fiscal year, and no new revenue streams have been established.
The Service Employees International Union 1021 has accused the city of disproportionately cutting the jobs of minorities and women. In the past month, the union held rallies on the steps of City Hall to draw attention to what it calls a civil rights issue. Supervisor Bevan Dufty said he hoped that passing the measure would enable the board and mayor to revisit the budget. But he also took a share of responsibility for the current predicament, through his role on the budget and finance committee.
“In addressing this issue, I think that those of us on the committee have to accept, ultimately, that our product did not adequately address this issue,” Dufty said.
Supervisor David Campos agreed. “I believe that we have a responsibility to make sure that we consistently look at what we have done in the past for purposes of determining whether or not we can do better,” he said.
A longer discussion about equity was long overdue, said Supervisor Sophie Maxwell. “I know these women, I am these women,” she said. “And why are they always at the end?
Principal Michelle Sousa is 3-weeks new to Tenderloin Community School. And said that "losing my secretary would be very difficult...I really depend on her for the ins and outs."
Alice Lin-Tay is the secretary at Tenderloin Community School. She received a layoff notice but was offered a position in the Health Department. She said that she will be replaced by someone from Laguna Honda or SF General.
We learned about her when members of the community spoke before the Board on the 4th. Here's what she had to say...
Supes will vote whether to restore funding for pink slipped workers next Tuesday. Theresa Rutheford, a CNA at Laguna Honda, talked about how the cuts would effect her.
Thanks again for those people that have donated to this story! It is wonderful to know that people are supporting our work.
Last week, Monica and I conducted a series of interviews. Here is an update on what has been happening.
The full Board of Supervisors voted not to pass measures that would have saved the jobs of some of the city workers. I first wrote about this plan here, when it passed committee.
The vote was 7-4, with notable dissent from Supervisor Sophie Maxwell. This is a blow to SEIU 1021, a labor union. The union has been hustling to get this measure passed.
The fight is not over. This week, a board committee will re-work the legislation and send it back to the full board next week.
The union held a raucous rally last Thursday. Almost two dozen union members stormed Mayor Gavin Newsom’s office. Another hundred rallied outside his chamber.
I was at the rally, but the security refused to let me into the Mayor’s chambers. Rebecca Bowe, a reporter for The Bay Guardian, wrote about the scene inside. Her editor, Tim Redmond, followed her report with an editorial encouraging Maxwell to vote for the plan.
The union is very angry. The mood at the rally was intense, agitated even. Carlos Rivera, a media spokesperson, told me that union members are increasingly furious. “We are reaching the end of a journey,” he said.
Also, SEIU has reached out to state legislators. They now have the support of Assemblyman Tom Ammiano and state Senator Leland Yee.
Anyway, thanks again! I’ll keep everyone updated on our progress.
What a great first day of fundraising. Thank you, everyone who donated!
We greatly appreciate your support!
Also, here are some relevant stories:
Monica and I have collaborated on several pieces. Our most recent story was published on Wendsday. The board of supervisors moved forward with proposals that would save jobs.
Rebecca Bowe, a reporter for the San Francisco Bay Guardian, has been covering the issue extensively. Here is one of her stories. She published this story shortly after the pink slips were sent out, and Bowe breaks down the affects of some of the layoffs.
There have been several rounds of layoffs. Our story, which will run in a few weeks, looks at the total impacts of all the summer cuts.
Paul Hogarth, a blogger for BeyondChron, has great analysis of the layoffs here.
By Kevin Stark The Public Press — Nov 4 2009 - 9:14pm
San Francisco city leaders have found an extra pot of $8 million they hope to use as a patch on the summer’s tattered budget, potentially rescuing more than 500 frontline workers already given pink slips or downgraded to lower-paying jobs.
On Wednesday, the Board of Supervisors’ budget committee moved forward with two pieces of legislation that would hand a victory to SEIU 1021, a major labor union that represents nearly all of the 546 city workers threatened with layoffs this fall.
Supervisors Chris Daly and John Avalos authored the two proposals. Avalos’ legislation would save the health-care and clerical workers’ jobs by scaling back management positions.
Daly’s plan is to use $7 million from the city’s general fund to prevent the layoffs. The Department of Public Health is projecting a surplus of $8.25 million for its fourth quarter. Daly’s legislation would, effectively, dip into these funds.
While the full board will consider both ideas in the next few weeks, there is the chance the jobs could be saved through other approaches.
“The mayor’s office is continuing discussions with the union,” Avalos said. Avalos also said he hopes the city could find new revenue from the state.
Race, gender and class at issue
Dozens of workers and their supporters spoke at Wednesday’s committee meeting. Madeline McMillian is a clerk at the Hall of Justice. While she did not receive a pink slip, she came to speak on behalf of coworkers who were laid off. She said the cuts were unfair.
“It’s just not right,” McMillian said. “They should cut straight across. I work at the Hall of Justice. They just hired two deputy chiefs. Their income could cover five of us.”
The layoffs are a heavily debated political issue. The union has decried the cuts and criticized Mayor Gavin Newsom for balancing the budget on the backs of low-income workers.
Newsom’s aides say San Francisco nursing assistants are better compensated than those in comparable cities in California. The city, facing a $438 million budget hole, had to make tough decisions, Newsom said.
The union says the layoffs disproportionately hurt women and minority workers.
“Eighty-two percent of the city layoffs over the course of the last three years have been SEIU members,” said Robert Haaland, a political organizer for SEIU 1021. “We only represent 50 percent of the workers.”
Debating the numbers
The controller’s office could not confirm Haaland’s statistics.
“Layoffs are not necessarily evenly distributed among unions,” Deputy Controller Monique Zmuda wrote in an e-mail.
Zmuda said many factors influence layoff decisions, including “the value of wage concessions, priority of services and ability to reduce costs while maintaining service delivery.”
Supervisor Carmen Chu was the only member of the budget and finance committee to vote no. She said it was important to evaluate the impacts of the legislation, specifically how many jobs it would save and how many new managerial jobs would be lost.
But another supporter of the change, Supervisor David Campos said the attention on the issue represents unfinished business from the summertime cuts.
“People are so passionate about this issue is because it is so important,” Campos said.
Can you take photos, help report, sift through documents and records, or contribute to reporting in some other way? If so, get in touch with the authors.
