Union Station Homeless Services Staff Vote to Unionize, Join SEIU Local 721

Staff at Union Station Homeless Services, the Pasadena-based nonprofit that serves as the San Gabriel Valley’s largest agency for the unhoused, voted Thursday to unionize with the Service Employees International Union Local 721, according to both the union and the organization’s management.

An independent arbitrator confirmed that a majority of the nonprofit’s nearly 200 employees had signed union authorization cards, the union said in a press release Thursday.

CEO Katie Hill said the organization voluntarily recognized the union under a previously established neutrality agreement and would begin collective bargaining.

Workers said they organized in response to pay that has not kept pace with the rising cost of living in Los Angeles County, limited benefits, and high staff turnover that they said undermines the quality of services to clients.

“We’re finding it more and more difficult to help those folks making their journey out of homelessness in the current conditions that we face, the pay structures that we have, the lack of a living wage right now,” said David Serri, a care coordinator at USHS, in an interview Thursday. “It all combines to make an environment that causes a ton of turnover.”

CEO Hill, in a written statement, said management’s response aligns with the organization’s values.

“Our mission is rooted in dignity and respect for both the people we serve and the people doing the work,” Hill said. “We are committed to working with SEIU and our employees in good faith as we move forward, and our focus on serving the community remains unchanged.”

Serri said the union also plans to advocate for increased public funding for homeless services, which he described as facing “an unprecedented attack” from budget shortfalls.

Hill, too, addressed the money side of the process.

“As part of our standard fiscal stewardship, we will evaluate any financial implications throughout our regular budgeting and planning processes. Our focus remains on long-term financial stability and continuity of services,” Hill told Pasadena Now.

She added that the organization sees the union partnership as an opportunity to jointly advocate for sustainable public funding.

“We also see opportunities to work together in advocating for policies and funding that support both frontline staff and the communities experiencing homelessness,” Hill said.

She said services would not be disrupted during the transition to collective bargaining.

“We do not anticipate disruption to services,” according to Hill. “Collective bargaining is a structured process that will occur alongside our ongoing work.”

Danielle Leal, a care coordinator at USHS, said in a statement released by SEIU 721 that the union would strengthen the organization.

“Our union will make our organization stronger and help ensure that we can provide the best services possible to the most vulnerable among us,” Leal said.

Shana Epps, a housing navigator at USHS, said in the union’s statement that workers hope to bargain for a contract that addresses workplace conditions.

“We’re very united, and we hope to now bargain with management for accountability in our workplace and a strong union contract,” Epps said.

USHS employees are the latest homeless service workers in Los Angeles County to join SEIU 721. Frontline workers at the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, Los Angeles County, and the nonprofit Step Up on Second are also represented by the union, according to the SEIU press release. SEIU Local 721 represents more than 100,000 workers across Southern California, according to the union.

Union Station Homeless Services was founded in 1973 and is headquartered at 825 E. Orange Grove Blvd. in Pasadena. The organization operates 17 housing sites across the region and provides outreach, care coordination, interim and permanent housing, and employment services to homeless and very low-income adults and families, according to the organization.

Serri said that for workers, a successful first contract would change how employees view the job.

“A successful contract to me changes the way that US workers look at the job, that it’s a job that we want and it’s a job that we want to keep, and it’s a job that we’re going to stay at,” Serri said.