It is time for a positive change
It is time for a positive change - the Santa Monica Malibu Classified Employees Association (SMMCEA) would give us a powerful voice, focused solely on classified employees' needs and free from the control of SEIU Local 99 and its interests. SEIU Local 99 takes your dues and does not fulfill its obligations. SMMCEA will offer better union representation at a fraction of the cost. It is time for a change, it is time for our own independent union.
As an independent union, the Santa Monica Malibu Classified Employees Association (SMMCEA) will be the most effective advocate for what our classified employees want and need.
Our members have been representing the SMMUSD classified employees for years and know how to work for our employees better than SEIU Local 99 ever will.
Stay in the Know
Please share your contact information to stay informed with important updates, help brainstorm solutions and get ready to be fully supported by a union that shows up for their people and cares for all.
Your participation is crucial to success!
SEIU Local 99
Your current union
Santa Monica Malibu Classified Employees Association
Takes 1.5% of your salary for membership dues, most of which goes directly to the SEIU headquarters in Washington DC, and into politics, lobbying, and SEIU Local 99 employee salaries.
Lower membership dues (1.2%) but offering real, quality representation and accessibility, with office hours, trainings, site visits, weekly union updates, and general membership meetings that foster engagement in our classified employee community.
Corporate, impersonal union model that treats all of us as just a number and lacks respect and knowledge of our contract and district processes.
Directly responsive to the real-time needs of classified employees when it comes to discipline, grievances, and contract negotiations because we take care of our own!
Silences members who have different opinions and doesn’t value us beyond being source for union dues.
We are on the front lines advocating for our people, because we are connected.
Unresponsive to our needs and counterproductive in contract negotiations with the district. Always changes the narrative to their benefit.
Treats our classified employees as individuals because we have a lifelong relationships with one another and care about doing the right thing for each other.
Controlled by SEIU National and does not have the interests of SMMUSD classified employees at heart.
Independently controlled by our own local leaders rather than top-down control from a national affiliate.
Your voice matters.
Your choice matters.
We need a better choice for our union:
Santa Monica Malibu Classified Employees Association is the answer.
Please sign your proof of support card today to give all of us a voice and a choice in our union representation. Signing a card will allow SMMCEA to appear on the ballot in a union representation election against SEIU Local 99. Signing a card does not create any obligation on your part.
Individuals who are members of the SMMUSD Classified Employees bargaining unit represented by SEIU Local 99 are eligible to sign a proof of support card. This is true whether the employee is currently a dues-paying member of SEIU Local 99 or if they are not a dues-paying member.
The proof of support cards will be used to secure an official representation election between Santa Monica Malibu Classified Employees Association (SMMCEA) and SEIU Local 99. Support cards must be collected from at least 30% of the bargaining unit. The election will be run by the California Public Employees Relations Board (PERB) and will determine which group will represent SMMUSD classified employees.
Once enough cards have been collected, the cards and petition are submitted to the Public Employee Relations Board (PERB) for validation. PERB will issue a notice to all parties (SMMCEA, SEIU Local 99 and SMMUSD) and schedule an election. Once SMMCEA wins the majority of the votes cast, it will become the new union.
The Public Employees Relations Board will set the election date. We anticipate an election in early fall.
Cards must be signed by hand and given to the SMMUSD employee.
To complete the card, please legibly print your name, sign and date the card. Your phone number and email are not required but will be helpful for future updates and communications
Your card will only be seen by the SMMUSD employee you give it to. It will not be seen by SEIU Local 99 or SMMUSD. The cards will be delivered to PERB for validation and will remain confidential.
Ballots are typically mailed and would be sent to the home address the employee has on file with SMMUSD. A return, prepaid envelope will be provided.
Yes, ballots are confidential. Your name will not be on the ballot. Only a number will appear on the ballot so no one will know how you voted.
Under the status quo doctrine, the existing terms of the contract, as they apply to employees’ wages, hours, working conditions, and benefits, must remain the same until SMMUSD and SMMCEA negotiate a new contract. This means that SMMUSD must honor the terms of the existing contract after the contract expires and before a new contract is signed between SMMUSD and SMMCEA. The status quo doctrine is well established in California law. (see, e.g., California State Employees' Assn. v. Pub. Emp. Rels. Bd., 51 Cal. App. 4th 923, 59 Cal. Rptr. 2d 488 (1996);El Camino Healthcare District, El Camino Hospital, and Silicon Valley Medical Development, LLC, (PERB Decision No. 2868-M, 2023); County of Kern,(PERB Decision No. 2615-M, 2018)).
Stay in the Know
Please share your contact information to stay informed with important updates, help brainstorm solutions and get ready to be fully supported by a union that shows up for their people and cares for all.
Your participation is crucial to success!