Cleveland Rape Crisis Center employees are scheduled to vote next week on whether to join a union.
The vote will take place April 4 at five CRCC locations, including those in Cuyahoga, Mentor and Ashtabula counties, according to Samara Knight, executive vice president of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) District 1199 WV/KY/OH 1199. The union represents healthcare and social service workers in West Virginia, Kentucky and Ohio. About 45 CRCC employees, who are primarily clinical and advocacy staff, are eligible to vote. Child therapists, therapists, specialists and coordinators are among the positions that could become unionized.
“CRCC executives claim to center the survivor’s voice and choice and to be advocates for our community, but they devalue the workers who lift up and provide services to survivors of sexual violence,” Knight said. “This is insulting to all providers who work tirelessly to support survivors in our community.
“Workers at CRCC are forming a union to better advocate for survivors and ensure that all survivors have a team that is protected and respected in their advocacy and work,” she said.
Knight said that many employees raised several issues last summer with CRCC leadership and the board. She said these included concerns about people of color not being represented in certain positions as well as such employees being laid off in higher percentages than their white counterparts. The workers cited “issues of inequities as a primary reason they are uniting for change,” according to a union news release.
“The most recent events involved a total of 13 employees being terminated or laid off,” Knight said. “Aside from one person, all employees impacted were either a person of color or a member of the LGBTQI+ community.”
Knight said CRCC leadership and its board didn’t adequately respond to employees’ concerns. She said workers don’t believe management has been open and honest with them. Knight said the need for “transparency is a huge focus of why the workers are organizing.”
Signal Cleveland contacted CRCC about the union’s claims as well as the upcoming vote. In a statement, management addressed the vote, but none of the claims.
“On March 6, 2024, Cleveland Rape Crisis Center was made aware of a union organization effort within our team,” the statement reads. “We respect the right of our employees to engage in organizing activities.
“Cleveland Rape Crisis Center attracts talented and compassionate employees and we value our direct relationship with them,” it states. “Consent is integral to the Center’s mission and work, as are equity, dignity and justice. Throughout this process, we will remain fiercely focused on our mission and meeting the needs of survivors of sexual violence who lean on us for support.”