State Employees

State Members Speak Out

"Now it's Our Turn"
Sheila Davis is well educated and highly experienced. The CPS Intake Supervisor has a master’s degree in social work and has built a 30-year career with the state. She loves her job and she’s good at it.

However, Sheila has grown frustrated at not being able to fully address what everyone understands to be the main problem at Child Protective Services – too many cases and too few staff.

“We’ve tried to address issues of overwork before,” Sheila said. “The [CPS] system has always been operating in some crisis state, but I’ve never seen it this bad.”

And the outlook is challenging, to say the least. As Arizona grows, so does the demand for all state services, including those provided by CPS staff.

“I have always had very steady, very stable working conditions and it’s rare that anyone leaves the unit. But since June 1 of this year, we’ve lost five and there has been no diminishment in the quantity of work we need to do.”

Sheila believes that membership in SEIU Arizona is the first step toward having a meaningful impact on the issues that impact state workers and the community we serve.

And she’s seen positive changes in other fields as a result of employees organizing.

“Teachers as a group got organized and they have improved their salaries and their work life immensely. Nurses did the same thing and have improved their situation so much so that men are entering the profession now,” she said with a laugh.

“Now it’s our turn. Nothing is going to happen for us unless we do something to solve our problems. And I see joining together as a way we can do something about that,” she explained. “With SEIU, we can mobilize as a group so that we have some impact on decisions that are being made about our job.”

"We Have Power in Numbers"
After 12 years of working for ADOT as a Highway Operations Technician, Don Hurd hasn’t seen much change in wages or working conditions.

Don Hurd, ADOT

“In my 12 years, I haven’t seen much improvement,” he said. “We get a raise and then they raise our health insurance contribution. I have to work a lot of overtime just to get by. I’d like to see us paid like city or county workers.”

But Don is convinced that by joining together in SEIU Arizona, real change will come for state employees.

“The reason I joined is for the voice. But we also need an adequate raise to meet the cost of living and I’d like to see employees get their medical paid for once they retire.”

These are ‘bread and butter’ issues: A good day’s work for competitive wages and benefits that will make retirement possible when the time comes. And they’re issues that affect most state workers whether they work on the highways or in the office.

Don is calling on all state employees to get on board. “Get on the bus! It’s an important move for you and the people who are coming up behind you. We have power in numbers but it won’t change unless you get involved.”

Raring to Go

Martha Seaman, a 21-year veteran of Arizona State DEQ, is an enthusiastic member of the SEIU State Employees Organizing Committee and she is raring to go. “This is the best chance we’ve had, for as long as I’ve been a state employee, to really bring about the kind of power we need here.”

» Meet Martha

Membership Makes the Difference

Joe Elie believes that state employees need to be thought of as State assets. “Long term employees do more because they know more and that makes them assets worth keeping."

» Meet Joe