Sticking with My Union

Worker: Sandra Handy, Security Officer, Houston

As a contracted security officer for the city of Houston, I work outside in the elements, rain or shine, in the cold or in 100-degree heat everyday. It is hard work, but I do it 8 hours a day, 5 days a week.  As a retiree, I’m grateful to have my job, but that doesn’t mean that I deserve to be treated without care or respect. That’s why I’m sticking with the union. 

Even though I’m still fighting to form my union now, I remember what it’s like to be a full union member. I worked for the Harris County Hospital District for nearly 20 years before retiring. At the hospital district, I was part of a strong union that always had my back. When I was in a union, we fought for our jobs, for wages, for benefits. We always had a voice on the job. Now that I’m without a union, I fully appreciate how important it was to my life. 

That’s why when I heard that SEIU Texas was helping my co-workers to organize into a union, I knew that’s where I needed to be. To this day, I am proud of where my co-workers and I have come. It was hard. But we finally got our union with SEIU Texas recognized, and we are so close to finally negotiating our first ever union contract for contracted city security officers. We have come so far, and that’s because our union here is strong. For workers to win, we need strong leadership and a vision for the future.