More than 87,000 SEIU Workers to Vote on Possible Strike

After three years without a raise, some 87,000 of 173,000 SEIU workers will vote June 10 on whether to go on strike.

Union officers say they expect approval. The public employee workers of SEIU Local 1000 say they would lose ground under the state's current offer of a 3% raise because of the climbing costs of living and changes in their health coverage.

A strike by the union members, who include toll collectors, tax collectors, custodians, DMV staffers and agricultural inspectors - as well as nurses and teachers - could affect the daily lives of most Californians.

But the union says they have been left with no choice. They fault Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger for failing to change the state's pensions and budget systems through ballot initiatives. Local 1000 President Jim Ward said the union would call a strike if there is no agreement on a new contract by June 15.

The strike could be illegal because legal precedent says unions may strike only after a formal declaration of an impasse.

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