A Legislative Staff Union - a Call to Organize

Dear Colleague,

As the 2024 legislative session comes to an end, after months of hard work and late nights, and as we restart the cycle of overflowing inboxes and unacknowledged overtime, we want to take some time together thinking about our future. We’re reaching out this Labor Day to talk about our own labor movement and call for our time to organize.

Many of us spent Labor Day weekend doing labor. In District Offices, this weekend brought us work as usual at community events. Early mornings and late nights spent away from our families, sacrificing time with our loved ones, in our work connecting constituents and their representatives. In the Capitol, staff stayed until the early hours of Sunday morning providing talking points, updates on bills, and making sure the end of session wrapped up as smoothly as it could.  Staff are public servants dedicated to helping California - we respect the constitutional deadline that brought us to the office on a Saturday. We are proud to play a role in the development and achievements of California. But without tangible or meaningful acknowledgement, we feel the toll this weekend that much deeper.

Many of us place our well-being low in the long line of priorities California must have, but our well-being cannot be forgotten. The irony isn’t lost on us: while we dedicate ourselves to strengthening and showing solidarity with our most vulnerable communities, to protecting workers and making California livable, in our own workplace the support often falls short. Would it be so hard to adequately compensate for our tireless efforts? Without representation, without a union, the office you work in determines whether you’ll see anything more than a passive thank you for long hours and late nights.

The long and hard-fought battle didn’t end last year with AB 1. We are incredibly grateful to the members of the Legislature - our employers - who chose to support protections in the workplace and to give us the opportunity to organize. A majority of them affirmed the dignity and value we have as employees. We are also grateful for the thoughtfulness going into examining how to best support staff over the next two years, as we take the next step in our labor rights. But we must be a part of the conversation. The other end of the bargaining table has already begun the process of crafting what our union can look like, where we can be represented, and when our voice will be welcome. The longer we delay our organization, the less we can expect the changes we need to remain on the table. Our union is taking shape, and now is the time for us to help shape it.

We acknowledge the nuance that must go into representation for legislative staff. Our union will not be identical to other unions. But it will be ours, and it must be shaped by our perspectives. It’s crucial that we not let the next two years go by without us. How we spend the next two years will be vital in shaping our careers and the careers of those who will join us in the Capitol, the Swing Space, the LOB, and the incredible districts of California. We owe each other a powerful union. 

Let’s take the time this recess to get ready and to get involved. Talk with your coworkers about the ways we can improve the workplace. Share ideas of what our union should look like. Think about what you can do in the coming months to help bring our legislative staff together, in our common goal of supporting and strengthening California for every person - and being properly valued and respected while doing it. And reach out with any questions - we’ll be working this recess too.

Sincerely,

CLU