Electoral Victory for San Diego Workers and Residents

AFSCME Local 127, representing San Diego City workers, has won an important victory with the passage of Measure J, a local ballot initiative that mandates the City to more closely monitor private contractors bidding for public work and increases transparency in the outsourcing process.  As a rule, AFSCME supports increased scrutiny of for-profit private contractors, which benefits the public by assuring that outsourcing takes place only after proper due diligence is done.

Measure J came about after the City awarded a refurbishing contract to some "bad folks," as one City Council member has put it. The City Council voted to put Measure J on the ballot to prevent further such incidents, and it won enough support from San Diegans on November 7th to become the law. 

Measure J now requires that anyone who has at least a 10% financial interest in a City contract or a 10% interest in a company who wins a City contract must disclose their names and identities. So, if Company XYZ wins a contract to refurbish a City building, Company XYZ has to tell the City the names and identities of everyone who has at least a 10% stake in Company XYZ, according to Anthony Schroth, an AFSCME Business Representative who is tracking how the measure elevates public service standards.

Schroth says that Local 127 is eyeing the possibility of taking the law a step farther: "We'd like the City to ask about how Company XYZ has made it's money for the last few years. What projects has it worked on? What does Company XYZ's workforce look like? Does it have indicators of discrimination?"

Stay tuned for updates on this issue!