A cartoon from last year. Not much neutrality coming from SEIU Local 73.
Christine Boardman is the President of SEIU Chicago Local 73.
She is the poster woman for trickle down unionism. Although local members have not felt much trickle.
She is a strong supporter of Mayor Emanuel.
Can she bully the President of the Illinois Service Employees International Union, Tom Balanoff?
Although Boardman’s local donated money to Rahm’s campaign, the SEIU took a neutral position in the primary, which failed to install Rahm for a second term.
Current polls show Rahm and Chuy Garcia in a dead heat.
A few days ago Balanoff hinted to the press that SEIU would change its position of neutrality and join its healtcare unit which had earlier endorsed Chuy.
The Sun-Times is reporting:
“I think what SEIU has to do is decide whether they’re going to stand by the principles of unionism that they purport to support or whether they’re going to allow renegade locals” to take matters into their own hands, Local 73 Secretary-Treasurer Matt Brandon told the Sun-Times on Monday. Brandon said he filed charges against SEIU Health Care in January with the international group.
“I think we have a legitimate vote that’s on the table right now for neutrality,” Brandon said. “I think anybody who has other opinions probably hasn’t looked at it enough.”
Brandon said his group, which has the highest number of Chicago employees, believed Emanuel was “doing a good job,” crediting him with creating 250 new positions and protecting 3,000 jobs within the Chicago Board of Education.
Brandon said in his interpretation the matter can be called for a revote only if the person who seconded the original motion calls for it. That person, however, he said, is a vice president within SEIU Local 73 and does not intend to do so.
Last year, SEIU Council had agreed to remain neutral in the Feb. 24 election in part because Emanuel backed a minimum-wage increase to $13 an hour in the city. Last week, SEIU’s Local 1 political operative Jerry Morrison said president Tom Balanoff was taking “a very close, serious look at the race,” saying “the neutrality vote we took was a vote in the first round. This is now a different election.” Balanoff heads the state council as well as Local 1, which represents about 52,000 members in seven states.
Boardman and Brandon are hypocrites. Local 73 is not now and never has been neutral. They grovel at the feet of the Mayor.
The only question is if Tom Balanoff will allow himself to be bullied by Christine Boardman.
Fred Klonsky 
Certain union members should understand that the status quo is not helping their situation. Splitting ideologies with CTU is not in SEIU s best intentions. When you throw in the fact that these are unskilled laborers , Rahm can and will replace you and privatize in a heartbeat.
The privatization threat is exactly what Rahm is using to pressure Boardman into “supporting” him. If Rahm wins, he will continue to demand concessions from her. After Rahm gets what he wants, he will then privatize the Local 73 members jobs anyway. Their best bet is to vote against Rahm now. By the next election it will be too late, their jobs will be gone.
Reblogged this on jkduszak's Blog.