Stronger Together

Month in Photos

President's Report

Hello brothers and sisters of Local 722, the school year has started and the local has been giving out backpacks to our members with kids in school while supplies last. If you are a member and need a back pack call the office while supplies are available.

I want to inform you that the Washington Hospital Center has started random locker searches. Please remember, the lockers are owned by your employer, they just allow you to use the locker to store your contents. No locker is exempt from the search from the 5th floor to the basement, the P.O.B. building and the East building. During the September 29th search, items were found that should not have been on hospital property and people were terminated. So Please don't bring things to work that will get you in trouble.

Brothers and sisters, don't think that because you work offsite or at Children's Hospital that your locker can't be searched because it can. This is your warning also.

There are new blue and yellow gates in the parking garage at the Washington Hospital Center. If you are not assigned to park in these areas, then "Don't Park There"!!! If you did not know, please be advised that the parking areas at Washington Hospital Center as well at Children's National are equipped with cameras. And management is already using these cameras to discipline our members. I hope that you value your job more than you value where you park. Big brother is always watching. Don't let parking cost you your job.

Flu season is upon us and you've been informed that flu shots are available. Please take advantage and get vaccinated. For those of you with exemptions get your documents submitted sooner rather than later.

Also, pay attention to your symptoms if you think you have caught a cold / flu because your symptoms may be similar to COVID. And yes, please be aware that COVID cases are also on the rise. See you doctor and decide if you should get any new COVID boosters. You and your doctor know what's best for your health. Protect yourself even if your employer has not changed its COVID protocols.

We Can We Will And We Must Know our "WHY" !! Why - why we come to work in the first place. We all have a mission true to ourselves and our families. We should not allow anything to interfere with our mission. Not COVID, Not the FLU, Not Parking, and Not bringing unauthorized things into the facilities where we work. Big brother is always looking. Don't allow any of these systems to sabotage your mission. WE CAN WE WILL AND WE MUST Stay focused and stay true to our families and our mission. 

WE CAN WE WILL AND WE MUST
Stay focused and stay try to our families and our mission.

Greetings All, I am Leticia Alvarenga a Medical Assistant in the Family Practice Clinic here at WHC.

First I want to start by saying how grateful I am to my union SEIU Local 722 for allowing me to be part of this magnificent event. I had the pleasure to meet and speak with so many empowered Latinos. It was an experience that made me feel like nothing is impossible if you work hard and stay diligent.

In this (2) two - day event I've learned so much about what it is to a Latino in America, and the impact we have made in this country. I am an immigrant from Honduras, and just like everyone else I have dreams. I'm an immigrant full of dreams. When I was at this conference sitting in front of Vice President Kamala Harris and so many other leaders of this country, I can honestly say that "Dreams Do Come True".

It is very important to be involved in our communities, knowing what is happening around us, and taking action. Opportunities to get involved and stay involved are everywhere and we must take advantage of these opportunities. Are voices do count. As Latinos, we should embrace our culture and be very proud of who we are.

The Congressional Hispanic Caucus Institute was founded in 1978 by (3) three Hispanic members of Congress committed to creating a non-profit, nonpartisan leadership institute to ensure a diverse and inclusive workforce that includes talented Latino Americans. We should not miss an opportunity to help grow this caucus. United together we can and will make a difference.

During this terrific opportunity, I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Marco Davis, the President and CEO of the CHCI. With his work and love for the Latino community he has inspired me to get more active in my community and continue to embrace my culture.

Back to School

National Preparedness Month is an observance each September to raise awareness about the importance of preparing for disasters and emergencies that can happen at any time. Emergency planning is a key component of school safety that can include large-scale actions or everyday activities that help build a safe school environment. So, as we prepare for our loved ones to return to school be mindful of all the safety issues before them. Families and communities expect schools to keep their children safe from a range of emergency events, like crime, natural disasters, and accidents. Emergencies can happen at any time, and planning for different emergencies can be challenging for schools. Are you in the know on what to do if an emergency happens? Do you know how the school will reunify you with your children after an incident? Students’ physical and emotional safety can impact their social and academic success at school. There are several reasons behind school violence; in some cases, being the victim of bullying could play a contributing role. Everyone in society must work together to create an environment where bullying is not acceptable. So, talk about it at home. Mental health challenges are common among students also, however, uncommonly reported. According to the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine, up to 1 in 5 children living in the United States experience a mental disorder every year. Symptoms often start in early childhood, although some may develop during the teenage years. By supporting students who are experiencing mental health challenges, schools can help foster a sense of safety and promote better academic and behavioral outcomes. Providing access to mental health services can reduce mental, emotional, and behavioral difficulties with students at risk. Also, please remember and be aware that school is back in session. Kids are on the streets, and they may not focus on your driving, so you need to be aware of their playing. Please observe the traffic laws, pay attention to the school buses, watch out for the bikes and balls that may pop out of nowhere, and that child running across the street. There are many more safety tips to look out for, but you get the message. Let’s prepare for a safe environment for the children, mine and yours, as they return to school.

SEIU Local Annual Holiday Party Ticket Distribution

Children's Hospital Members

November 3rd - 6am - 6pm

November  17th 6am - 6pm

December 1st 6am - 6 pm

Main Building: 1st Floor Engineering Conference Room

Deposit: $20 - returned at the door.

Washington Hospital Center Members

October 30th   6:00am -  6:00pm

November 10h  6:00am - 6:00pm

December 1st    6:00am - 6:00pm

Ground Floor: Room G-008 (Union Office)

Deposit $20 - returned at the door.

Members can give their member tickets to guests.

Guest must pay the guest rate.

Members who work at offsite locations: Please contact the office at (202) 483 - 6221. We have not established a date yet for your many locations. CNMC offsite members are free to get tickets on the Children's dates at the Children's location and WHC offsite members are free to get tickets on the WHC dates at the WHC location.

HOLIDAY PARTY

SATURDAY, DECEMBER 16, 2023 @ 8:00PM - 1:00AM

MARTINS CROSSWINDS

7400 Greenway Center Drive

Greenbelt, MD 20770

Guest Tickets: $50.00

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The Rising Cost of Living

Life can be unpredictable, and financial setbacks can crop up at any time. Whether that's a job loss, medical or dental bills, a fender bender or a major appliance that suddenly stops working. An emergency savings can always be helpful.

An emergency savings fund is a lump sum of cash set aside to cover any unanticipated expenses or financial emergencies that may come your way. But nowadays, people can't afford an emergency fund because the cost of living is rising.

We encourage you to hang in there. Everyone has been impacted by the pandemic and now there's a ending recession. After more than a year of avoiding restaurants due to COVID, many Americans rushed back to their favorite eateries to break bread with family and friends. But with the rise in cost, many of us are cutting back again. But not just on restaurants. We're also adjusting how we buy our groceries as well.

Besides offering peace of mind, an emergency fund can help save you from having to rely on high interest debt options, such as credit cards or unsecured loans, or needing to undermine your future security by tapping into retirement funds. However, with gas prices soaring many Americans are keeping their cars parked and even forgoing vacation spending until this inflation gets under control.

This may very well be the best time to start financial planning for the future if you haven't already done so. Don't just plan to get through this crisis, make adjustments that you can sustain long term for the next crisis. As well as for your future goals, like retirement. So you may think about an emergency savings, because there's always a rainy day ahead, however, your retirement would be a whole lot better if you plan for more than social security.

So take advantage of the retirement savings being offered by your employer. We hear people say all the time "I can't afford to save"; but realistically, you can't afford not to save.

One of the biggest fears of an employer is losing their clients or losing to their competitors. But there is something that the employer might want to pay a little more attention to and be fearful of; that's losing their employees. Leading a team of unhappy, disgruntled, and generally tricky employees is the real challenge. The impacts of a dissatisfied team go beyond high employee turnover rates. Such workers will create a tense, hectic and hostile work environment, negatively impacting the entire team's productivity.

Your employees are your most valuable assets. But do you "the employer" do enough to maintain the high energy, high quality, highly enthusiastic workforce you once had? Have you invested as much in your employees as you have in building the company? Recruitment of the best and unique talents are always a plus for any employer, however, many times employers missed out on talent they already have because they don't invest in retention of their employees. Retention should be a natural process for the growth of the organization.

With help wanted signs all over the place, why aren't employers offering "On-the-job training" or "Cross-training" to current employees. It's more cost effective to train an incumbent employee than it is to recruit and on-board new employees. This investment strengthens the entire organization. As an employee, "Would you be interested in on-the-job training for a new position?"

SEIU Local 722 will be pushing your employers to collaborate on more opportunities for upward mobility for our members. On-the-job training is a collaboration that should be a win-win for everyone. Obviously, there will be some budget, goals and timeline issues to work through, but our intentions are to facilitate some new opportunities for you our members. We hope to have some effective engagements between the various leaderships that will result in positive outcomes.