Local 170’s statewide convention, held in September over Zoom, adopted five political action goals for the 2021 legislative session:
- Increasing the annual increment pay from $60 per year to $80 per year.
- Pay raises for all public employees.
- Establish a permanent funding fix for Public Employees Insurance Agency (the
- Eliminate mandatory overtime.
- Improve recruitment and retention efforts.
Since the state of West Virginia does not provide public-sector workers with collective bargaining rights, they have to win improvements, and defend their rights, through political action. As Local Vice President Samantha Crockett wrote in a letter to members following the convention, “Our rights as public-sector workers can be easily either taken away or reinforced by the action or inaction by our elected officials. As working people, we have the right to expect that our governmental bodies will respond to the needs of our members.”
The convention elected Samantha Crockett as vice president, Erin Conner as financial secretary, Leslie Riddle as recording secretary, and Jamie Beaton as chief steward. Chester Sprankle was later elected as president of the local.