1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East is a healthcare union in the United States, with a membership of 400,000, including retirees. It is a

local union A local union (often shortened to local), in North America, or union branch (known as a lodge in some unions), in the United Kingdom and other countries, is a local branch (or chapter) of a usually national trade union. The terms used for sub-bran ...

within the

Service Employees International Union Service Employees International Union (SEIU) is a labor union representing 2 million workers in over 100 occupations in the United States, Canada, and Puerto Rico. SEIU is focused on organizing workers in three sectors: healthcare (over half of m ...

. It is a former local of 1199: The National Health Care Workers' Union.

History

The 1199 Union traces its origins to

women of color The term "person of color" (: people of color or persons of color; abbreviated POC) is used to describe any person who is not considered "white". In its current meaning, the term originated in, and is associated with, the United States. From th ...

employed at drug stores and volunteer hospitals in New York City, who worked for relatively low wages.

Influence

Patrick Gaspard, a former

executive vice president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

for politics and legislation at the union, was the political director for Barack Obama's

presidential campaign A political campaign is an organized effort which seeks to influence the decision making progress within a specific group. In democracies, political campaigns often refer to electoral campaigns, by which representatives are chosen or referen ...

. Gaspard was appointed White House Political Director during Obama's first term in office. In 2016, 1199SEIU's president George Gresham was credited by

New York Governor The governor of New York is the head of government of the U.S. state of New York. The governor is the head of the executive branch of New York's state government and the commander-in-chief of the state's military forces. The governor ha ...

Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...

for helping secure the passage of the $15 minimum wage in New York State.

Spending

A 2025 Politico investigation found multiple instances of questionable union expenditures used for the personal benefit of Gresham, his family members, and political allies. Under Gresham, 1199SEIU paid for flights to South Africa, concerts during Gresham's family reunions in a small Virginia town, lavish parties with celebrities, de facto personal chauffeurs for Gresham, salaries and penthouse suites for a nonprofit seeking to "eliminate racial inequities in the criminal justice system", and medical bills for

Jesse Jackson Jesse Louis Jackson (Birth name#Maiden and married names, né Burns; born October 8, 1941) is an American Civil rights movements, civil rights activist, Politics of the United States, politician, and ordained Baptist minister. Beginning as a ...

. Politico also found discrepancies between recorded expenditures and other documents. 1199SEIU said that they complied with federal laws requiring management of union funds "solely for the benefit of the union" and proper authorization and disclosure of all expenditures.

References

*(Information on the early history of 1199.) *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:1199seiu United Healthcare Workers East Service Employees International Union

History

Influence

Spending

See also

References

External links