Sacramento, CA – The Service Employees International Union (SEIU) California, 700,000 workers strong, celebrated today’s election of April Verrett as President of SEIU International. Verrett’s selection at the SEIU convention in Philadelphia marks a milestone in the union’s history as she becomes the first Black president to lead the 2 million member worker organization.
David Huerta, President of SEIU California and SEIU United Service Workers West (SEIU-USWW):
“SEIU members in California know and love April and are thrilled that she is now our International Union President. She led our state and nation to recognize the value of caregivers and to build power for workers long excluded from our nation’s labor laws. To every conversation we had together, she brought an expansive and passionate vision of racial and economic justice, reminding us that our movement is a movement for all, and most especially for those who have been exploited, erased, and marginalized.
“We are also thrilled with the election of Rocio Saenz, the first Latina Secretary-Treasurer of our union, and a powerful team of leaders elected as Executive Vice Presidents: Joseph Bryant, from California, Heather Conroy, Leslie Frane, and Neal Bisno.
“From re-electing Joe Biden and sending a pro-worker Congress to Washington to building on the momentum of our Unions for All Agenda advanced by President Mary Kay Henry, our worker movement has a lot of work to do in the years ahead.
“We’re grateful for the decades of organizing, hard work, and strategic leadership Mary Kay Henry dedicated to our movement, and for April Verrett’s leadership at this critical time, as we meet our nation’s challenges head-on and move toward justice by building power for workers.”
Tia Orr, Executive Director of SEIU California:
“April Verrett will bring a new era of leadership to SEIU. Her powerful and compelling vision is deeply rooted in her experience as a Black woman raised on the South Side of Chicago by her grandmother, an SEIU member and a shop steward. SEIU members can tell instantaneously that when she listens to our stories and struggles, she’s connecting from a place of real personal understanding. She is one of us, and she is stepping into leadership for all of us. We can’t wait to get to work with her to help build a world where Black and Brown people thrive, where immigrants are respected, and where everyone, of every creed, gender, and color is valued.”
April Verrett, a South Side Chicago native, has been a formidable force in the labor movement, advocating tirelessly for workers’ rights and social justice. Prior to joining SEIU International as its elected Secretary-Treasurer, she served as the president of SEIU Local 2015, and SEIU California. Her leadership as the president of SEIU Local 2015, California’s largest local union representing long-term care providers, has been instrumental in advancing workers’ strength building a workforce to care for our aging population.
The election, which took place at the SEIU convention in Philadelphia, saw Ms. Verrett ascend to the presidency with overwhelming support. Her vision for the union, deeply rooted in the values of collective action and community instilled by her grandmother, a union steward for SEIU Local 46, resonated with members nationwide.
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