RETIREMENT
As of end of business today, I have tendered my resignation as Local President and will be retiring after almost 32 years with the Courts and close to that many years as a CSEA activist. It’s been great meeting so many members over the years, many that I consider to be my personal friends, and I look forward to seeing many of you after retirement.
Ian Spencer will be taking over as the new Local President, Tammy Witteman as the new Executive Vice President, and Rosanne Wicks will become the new 1st Vice President. Sheila Sears will remain our Treasurer, and Catrina Leone will still be our Secretary. They are all dedicated and well-versed in their responsibilities as Local officers, and I have every faith that they will do a great job representing our members going forward. I personally want to thank them for all of their support – it’s all about teamwork!
My last thought as Local President? Please talk with new employees and make certain they are aware of the importance of belonging to their Union. I’m seeing a trend of new employees that are not familiar with Unions deciding that they do not want to join CSEA Judiciary. As a result, the entire contract, our EBF benefits negotiated on your behalf and more – all of those are supported for through your dues dollars and the non-members are riding along at your expense, no cost to them. In my view, freeloading is not acceptable. WE need to keep our Union strong, so please do your part to educate new employees and urge them to become members. (If you want to know who the non-members are in your location, you can contact Ian at any time. There are about 13 non-members out of our 1150 Local members.)
Thank you for the opportunity to serve as your Local President since 2007! And take the time to tell your family and loved ones how much they mean to you – tomorrow is not promised to anyone. Carpe Diem!