Kurt Kessler
"It's the Election of 2006 that made what we accomplished in 2007 possible. Without a predominantly pro-labor legislature and governorship, the hard work we put into Lobby Days and our other lobbying programs would have produced slim results...." Kurt Kessler, Dept of Human Services, Medford CAPE Committee Member
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LERC Funding Secured

The Labor Education and Research Center is a program at the University of Oregon helping rank and file union members hone their leadership skills.
Through recent budget cuts, LERC has been cut substantially. This is a small program, but it is the one program in state government that specifically is geared to labor union education.

In the final stretch of the legislative session, it looked unlikely that funds would be earmarked for LERC.

SEIU lobbied in coalition with other labor unions – in particular the American Federation of Teachers – Oregon and the AFL-CIO – to get specific funding increases for LERC.

However, the funds were going to be added to a catch-all category from which LERC might not have been able to draw down the money.

Senator Richard Devlin (D – Tualatin) stepped in. He has been a strong labor ally for years. Senator Devlin stopped the LERC budget hearing to make a phone call to the President of the University of Oregon. He got the President to testify via speaker phone that he would personally commit to ensuring LERC would get the increased funding.

Committee Chair Larry Galizio also deserves special credit for helping to get this on the record. LERC will be able to expand their important services to hundreds of labor activists who want to build the labor movement.