Editor: Our good friend and OB Rag supporter Monty Kroopkin was the nominee for president of Local 221 of the SEIU put up by a reform slate last summer. We interviewed him during the campaign, which the reformers lost. Allegations of fraud committed by the winners were raised by the reform activists. Now, they’ve won a round. Check out this update below.
by Eleanor Yang Su / San Diego Union-Tribune / April 22, 2010
The county’s largest union, the Service Employees International Union Local 221, reached a settlement this week over complaints about its election last summer, and will hold a new election under federal supervision before Sept. 30.
Members of the SEIU Local 221, which represents about 10,000 county employees and other public-sector workers, filed a complaint to the U.S. Department of Labor contending that the July 21 election illegally denied nearly 1,000 members the right to vote.
Other concerns included an alleged discrepancy between the number of members eligible to vote and the number who received ballots, and accusations that incumbent candidates and a contractor hired to conduct the election had violated campaign rules.
“This is very good news for the members,” said Monty Kroopkin, who ran unsuccessfully for president in the last election, and helped document the alleged election violations. “If the settlement had not been reached, it would have forced the government to take the case to trial, and that would have cost the union a lot more money.”
Union officials declined to comment about the settlement.
Leadership at the organization has been in flux for the past several months. The president elected in July, Sharon-Frances Moore, stepped down in January, citing personal reasons.
Since then, the day-to-day management has been handled by existing officers and an interim president appointed by the local executive board.
Go here for an update by the reform movement within SEIU Local 221.
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