Unionized Workers Rally at City Hall

Nearly 80 Santa Barbara City employees associated with the Service Employees International Union, which represents about 840 city workers, rallied in front of City Hall Tuesday evening, hoping to pointedly but politely nudge city councilmembers to pay more attention to their negotiations with city management. The contract for two of the union’s bargaining units expired September 30, and thus far, neither side is willing to go public with details of contract talks. While the union enjoys considerable political pull, the recent credit crisis – coupled with the State of California’s ongoing budget mess -promise to make city bean counters more fiscally conservative.