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Building Our Union Into the Future By Riko Mendez


To all the SEIU 521 family,

I want to start by congratulating all of the members elected to the next 3-year term of the SEIU Local 521 Executive Board and commend all who participated in the democratic election process of our union. 

I am proud to have been re-elected as your SEIU 521 Chief Elected Officer, and I am committed to our principles of racial and economic justice and unapologetic unionism. I humbly thank you for your support and drive to make our world a better place for all workers, families, and those you serve every day. 

I am inspired today by the incredible workers I had the honor of seeing in the field and across worksites throughout the public health crisis – true heroes and heroines saving lives and supporting the most vulnerable. 

Through the pandemic and some of the most intense financial and economic challenges in a generation, our union has remained strong by fighting strategically, staying engaged, and never giving up. By staying united, we could secure some of the best contract victories in recent memory and secure millions of dollars in essential worker pay that went directly to our members. 

The PPE campaigns, COVID sick leave victories, and continued fights for more staffing and services have helped us train our fellow members to take on some of the biggest challenges head-on and without fear. The skills and energy in our worksites are translating into more union voices and more coalition work. All of these will be necessary for our plan to succeed and thrive against the continued attacks by anti-worker groups and the post-pandemic world. 

We have so much more work to do together. I am confident in our path forward because I have learned firsthand that the members of SEIU Local 521 are some of the most essential, dedicated, and strongest union members in the nation. Our collective voices and unified vision to organize worker power will help us build stronger than ever before.

The enemies of our union and labor continue organizing to try to take back everything we have fought for and won- we cannot let that happen. There is too much at stake for our union, members, and communities.

Let us open up our union to be the most welcoming, inclusive, and powerful union we can be. 

I look forward to working alongside our dedicated staff, the re-elected and newly elected executive officers, and board members. A collective fight with our amazing contract action teams, stewards, chapter officers, and worksite leaders will be vital to continuing build and win for working families. 

Solidarity forever,

RIko Mendez
Chief Elected Officer
SEIU Local 521