Theo Jackson, a former senior case manager who worked at The Camp Recovery Center in Scotts Valley for three years, claims he was fired after leading efforts to unionize workers at the treatment center.
Just because Santa Cruz misses out on the obscenely good, guilt-inducing deals of Walmart doesn’t mean we have to do without the nail-biting drama of corporate union-busting allegations and crappy work condition complaints from current and dismissed employees.
Theo Jackson, a former senior case manager who worked at The Camp Recovery Center in Scotts Valley for three years, claims he was fired after leading efforts to unionize workers at the treatment center. According to Jackson, last August 80 percent of staff signed cards supporting unionizing, and 35 to 40 presented a formal petition to become a part of the SEIU Local 521. On Oct. 3, Jackson received a letter in the mail saying he had been terminated for being deficient on his paperwork. Jackson says that while he had been on a 90-day probation period in 2007 for the same reason, being behind on paperwork was the norm for many staff at The Camp due to high caseloads, and that he was employee of the month for the second time just two months before his firing. (Management at The Camp refused to comment for this article.) Jackson now lobbies in Washington with the SEIU to pass the Employee Free Choice Act. He’s also given a deposition to the National Labor Relations Board, which is investigating his firing.
Employees who remain at the Camp say workloads have increased. Charlotte Lyons, a clinical technician, is concerned about patient care at the facility, where she says staffing levels of nonmanagement workers have dropped from 75 in October 2007 to 55 now. She says the caseworkers have caseloads of 12 to 18 patients each.
“We’re trying to segue people from coming down from drugs…They need direction, they need to be given psychological tips on how to change their behavior (so) they can go back into the world without using drugs, and they’re not getting that now,” Lyons says. “If we can get this unionized, I think this will make a difference,” she asserts.
The Camp, a for-profit residential and outpatient detox and recovery center, is owned by Bain Capital as part of CRC Health Group, which has over 145 mental health facilities across the country.
Since August’s vote to unionize, management and the union have not been able to negotiate a first contract, which is crucial: if a year passes without a contract, employees can attempt to decertify the union.
Members of Local 521 are holding a conference at The Camp on Thursday, April 23, from 2pm-3pm to bring visibility to their cause. – Molly Zapp
