Charges expose a statewide pattern of forgery, coercion, and stonewalling targeting vulnerable caregivers.

Olympia, WA — The Freedom Foundation today announced the filing of 36 unfair labor practice (ULP) charges against Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 2015, SEIU Local 721, and United Domestic Workers of America (UDW/AFSCME Local 3930) on behalf of California homecare providers whose wages were taken without their consent.

The charges, filed with the California Public Employment Relations Board (PERB), the Los Angeles County Employee Relations Commission (ERCOM) and the Los Angeles City Employee Relations Board, allege a systematic pattern of interference, coercion and, in several cases, outright forgery — all aimed at keeping workers locked into union membership they never agreed to and taking dues money from people who can’t spare it.

Most of the workers named in the charges are In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) caregivers who left traditional jobs to care full-time for a disabled child, parent, spouse or loved one. Many had no idea union membership was optional. Others tried repeatedly to leave and were ignored, lied to, or – literally — turned away at the door when they tried to hand in their resignation.

“These unions aren’t just ignoring opt-out requests, they’re forging signatures, locking workers in rooms and stonewalling anyone who asks questions,” said Freedom Foundation CEO Aaron Withe. “Thirty-six workers came to us because they tried to leave and couldn’t. That’s not a clerical error; that’s a system built to trap people.”

“These cases aren’t isolated mistakes,” added Freedom Foundation Deputy Chief Litigation Counsel Shella Alcabes. “This is what it looks like when a union decides the rules don’t apply to them. They ignored opt-outs, produced membership “agreements” workers never signed, and kept the money. We’re going to make sure these workers get it back.”

Among the most egregious cases:

1. Locked in a room and pressured to sign. SEIU 2015 told Chaquan May, an IHSS provider in San Bernardino County, during her new employee orientation that “No one is leaving until everyone signs (a union membership card).” SEIU 2015 representatives locked the doors, sat at the end of the row and waited. So imprisoned, she only signed to escape and submitted her opt-out request the next day. SEIU 2015 ignored her for months.
2. A signature that isn’t hers. Brenda Hun, an Orange County IHSS provider, tried to opt out after noticing her dues had increased without her knowledge. UDW responded by producing a membership card bearing a signature that read “Prez” or “Perez” — not her name, not her signature. She called UDW more than seven times. No one called back.
3. “Do not want to participate.” Luzviminda Kendrick, an IHSS provider in Merced County, wrote those exact words on the signature line of her membership form at orientation instead of signing it. UDW processed the form anyway and deducted dues for over a year.
4. An opt-out note on an unsigned form. Maria Navarro, an IHSS provider in Riverside County, returned her post-Janusmembership renewal form unsigned, with a handwritten note on the back explicitly refusing to authorize dues. UDW ignored it and continued deducting dues.
5. On leave the day she allegedly signed. Judith Delmar, an 18-year Los Angeles County employee, was told she had signed a union membership card on July 16, 2024. She was on leave for the entire month of July and never received a single communication from SEIU 721 welcoming her as a member. Dues have been deducted ever since.
6. Signed by someone she’s never met. When Stephanie Lastra, a registered nurse employed by LA County, requested a copy of her membership application after SEIU 721 refused to represent her in a workplace grievance, the union produced a form signed by someone named “Lakesha Harrison” — whom Lastra has never met or spoken to. The union continued deducting dues until March 2026.
7. Dues taken before any agreement existed. SEIU 721 deducted dues from George Ramirez, an LA County employee, starting in August 2017. When the union finally sent him his alleged membership agreement, it was signed “George Ramirez, Jr.” — a name that appears on none of his IDs and that he has never used.
8. Four opt-out letters. Five years. Zero response. Shequita Chamberlain, an LA County IHSS provider, has been trying to leave SEIU 2015 since 2021. She has sent four certified letters, called repeatedly, emailed and even showed up at SEIU 2015’s headquarters in person only to be turned away under COVID protocols. As of the date of her filing, dues are still coming out of her paycheck.
9. Blocked at the door. Valerie Taylor, an LA County IHSS provider, never signed a membership agreement, and no union representative was even present at her orientation. When she went to the SEIU 2015 offices in person to opt out, a security guard physically denied her entry and turned her away. Dues continued.
10. Stonewalled on her own membership agreement. Nicole Valdez, a San Bernardino County IHSS provider, was told by an SEIU 2015 representative she had signed an enrollment card but was refused basic details, including the date it was allegedly signed. She followed the union’s own instructions to email her photo ID and request the document. She never heard back, despite multiple follow-up emails to multiple offices. Dues are still being deducted.

The charges allege violations of California Government Code §§ 3502 and 3506 under the Meyers-Milias-Brown Act, as well as First Amendment protections affirmed in the Supreme Court’s 2018 decision in Janus v. AFSCME, which held that public employees cannot be compelled to financially support a union without their consent.

These filings represent the Freedom Foundation’s largest ULP action to date in California.