CWA, Teamsters, and SEIU Join Forces for Denver Public Workers

Fifty union members from CWA, Teamsters, and SEIU filled the Denver City Council chambers last week to support an initiative to place collective bargaining rights for city workers on the ballot this fall. CWA Local 7777 Secretary-Treasurer Sandra Parker Murray testified to the council, saying, "I was shocked when I learned that Denver municipal employees didn’t already have collective bargaining. Thank you for your support now in bringing forward this important workers’ rights initiative and standing up for the working people who make our city run."

According to a letter the coalition sent to the Denver Mayor and City Council, “Fire, police, and sheriff deputies in Denver already have collective bargaining. In fact, more than three-quarters of private sector workers and more than two-thirds of public sector workers have bargaining rights across the country, yet workers in the City and County of Denver do not.”

The coalition now has 90 days to collect 63,491 signatures to ensure the question goes before the public for a vote. They have launched an aggressive campaign to secure the necessary signatures. The coalition is also pursuing an alternate path to victory—an amendment to the city charter through the City Council.

 
A coalition of labor activists from CWA, the Teamsters, and SEIU are pursuing public bargaining rights for Denver public sector workers.