PLANET Secretary/Treasurer Maria Candler, a landscape contractor
who relies heavily on H-2B workers , dispels the myth that the jobs
that she depends on filling with H-2B guest workers are taking jobs
away from Americans. Overall, the lack of guest workers will not
only devastate individual companies , but will hurt the overall U.

The term 'migrant worker'generally refers to a person who is to be engaged , is engaged or has been engaged in a remunerated activity in a State of which he or she is not a national .

slavery okies

Where: Meet at City of Sonoma Plaza
Sonoma, CA

Sonoma Healthcare Center caregivers will join community members in a march
and rally to defend the Sonoma area against the Ensign Group's (owner of
Sonoma Healthcare Center), anti-union and discriminatory behavior towards
their staff and to stand up for improved resident care. Yet the Ensign Group
continues to attempt to undermine their workers' efforts to unionize and
improve patient care. If our employer will stop their discrimination and settle a
contract, it'll also help our residents---with a contract in place , caregivers
will have a greater ability to advocate for residents and will be happier and
more eager to stick around.----The Professional
Landcare Network (PLANET) announced today that two of the
fastest-growing industries in the nation, landscaping and lawn care,
are being severely impacted by the current mandated cap on H-2B
workers. "It's not just about having a
workforce. economy .

overworked plight

Ensign's substandard patient care track record is alarming to communities
across the state ."
SEIU United Healthcare Workers -- West, with more than 140,000 members, is
the largest and most powerful healthcare union in the Western U.

reluctant okies

Caregivers and Local Community Members Hold Rally to Decry the Ensign Group's
Anti-Union Tactics and Efforts to Prevent Employees from Settling a Fair
Contract

SONOMA, Calif. Staff turnover is a huge problem for our nursing
home, and we believe that through a union and a fair contract, we can
encourage the quality caregivers to continue to work here.
"For the last three years, we've been struggling to improve patient care
and working conditions at Sonoma Healthcare Center, but management refuses to
hear our concerns," said Eulalia Gonzalez, a certified nursing assistant at
Sonoma Healthcare Center.S.org

onward unscrupulous

CONTACT: Thea Lavin of SEIU, 510-520-7732.

Where: 1250 Broadway, Santa Rosa, CA

Sonoma Healthcare Center employees and community residents will gather to
protest the Ensign Group's discrimination against patient care whistle blowers
and Union activists at Sonoma Healthcare Center. The latest has been to enlist the DHS in investigating certified
nursing assistants who are also union activists."
Many other industries are also suffering from the lack of workers,
such as the cannery and seafood processing business, the hospitality
industry , and the horse training and breeding industry, among others. Without the passage of the bills soon and with
approximately 60 percent of PLANET members relying on H-2B for
survival, many consumers may find their local landscape contractor and
lawn care service out of business this spring.

plight rosaura

"For these reasons, I'm dedicated to helping Sonoma Healthcare Center
caregivers fight both discrimination and anti-union tactics from management.S.S.
economy," Foley further explains."
PLANET members are putting pressure on members of Congress to get
the bills passed soon.

tuc onward

"My co-workers and I are participating in this march because there is so
much injustice here for the workers and the residents of Sonoma Healthcare
Center," said Glori Betancourt, certified nursing assistant. Our mission is to achieve high quality
healthcare for all.

slavery migrant

"I love the work
that I do and I want to stay here , but I also want to be treated fairly. "The severity of this impact has forced our organization to
declare a state of emergency," states Dan Foley, president of PLANET. Citizenship Immigration Services (USCIS ) declared that they had
received enough H-2B guest worker petitions to reach the 66,000
mandated cap of workers for 2005.

arjan onward

Sonoma Healthcare Center Workers Community Residents to March for Justice Fair Treatment at Local Nursing Home

Business Editors/Gardening Writers

HERNDON, Va . In January,
U.S."
"The lack of guest workers actually winds up hurting American
personnel at companies," adds Foley. These firms and their employees
represent more than 100,000 green industry professionals.

glades underpaid

Their most recent endeavor has been enlisting the
Department of Health Services to investigate union activists and patient care
whistleblowers of Mexican descent. We
know our rights , we know we are not being respected on the job and we know it
is totally unjust for the Mexican descent workers who are union activists to
find themselves the sole targets of investigations by the Department of Health
Services.S.
Presently, there are 33 senators sponsoring the bipartisan "Save
Our Small and Seasonal Business Act of 2005" (S. By allowing guest workers to fill these jobs, American
companies can prosper and contribute to a strong U.S.
PLANET represents approximately 4,000 green industry service
provider companies and suppliers nationwide that specialize in lawn
care; interiorscaping; and exterior landscape maintenance,
installation, and design/build.

migrants workers

I
know how important a union is to protect the rights of working men and women,
especially those who are new to our country," said City Council Member Ken
Brown.

underpaid umos

Sonoma County Residents, Nursing Home Caregivers Deliver Over 1,000 Postcards
From Community Decrying Discrimination by Sonoma Healthcare Center Management

SANTA ROSA, Calif. This provision would take effect
immediately and expire on October 1, 2006 .

okies migrant

In the three years since the union election occurred, the Ensign Group has
used a variety of tactics to intimidate employees who support their union and
avoid settling a contract."

SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West, with more than 140,000 members, is
the largest and most powerful healthcare union in the Western U.S. Sonoma City Council Member Ken Brown, Reverend Norman Cram and
Community Activist Ben Boyce will speak out at this event in support of the
caregivers at the nursing home. to fill
nonagricultural jobs for which U. For more
information, call PLANET at (800) 395-2522 or visit the Web site at
www.

oxnard alleges

m. We
represent every type of healthcare worker, including nursing, professional,
technical and service classifications.

CONTACT: Thea Lavin, +1 -510-520-7732, for SEIU.
793) of the same name with 53 signing on in support of this small
business issue.

mexicans overworked

Caregivers are concerned that
the recent Department of Health Services investigations, prompted by their
employer, the Ensign Group, have targeted Union leaders of Mexican descent who
have spoken up for nursing home residents by demanding improvements in patient
care standards. "These are jobs that Americans simply will not
take," states Candler, "We have advertised and worked to recruit for
years, and we can only find H-2B guest workers for these positions
that are critical to our survival .

alleges plight

In August 2004, a judge ruled in favor of Sonoma
Healthcare Center employees and told management that they needed to recognize
the union and begin to negotiate a first contract.
"I was raised in a union household, and am a first generation American.S.

migrant boon

Sonoma Healthcare Center Caregivers Community Members Urge Ensign Group to Cease Anti-Union Anti-Immigrant Behavior

,

When: Wednesday , June 15, 2005 3:40 p. "It's reassuring to know that we have the support of
our community in calling upon our employer to stop discrimination and work
with us to improve patient care. workers are in short supply. "With a lack of guest workers,
many companies find they will have to lay off middle and upper
management to survive. "We're a seasonal industry and we need relief
now," Candler states .

glades mexicans

On May 24, 2002, a
majority of Sonoma Healthcare Center workers voted to form a union to have a
stronger voice in decisions that affect facility residents, their staff and
their families.

H-2B
allows hiring foreign workers, with valid visas, for up to 10 months
within the USCIS fiscal year (October through September).352) which would
exempt from the 66,000 cap workers who have participated in the H-2B
program for any of the past three fiscal years and direct the
Department of Homeland Security to immediately resume processing of
petitions for these workers. House of
Representatives has also introduced an identical bipartisan bill (H.

migrants mexicans

"
Workers and community members alike planned Wednesday's event to demand
that the Ensign Group stop singling out workers based on their immigration
status or discriminating against employees who speak out to improve conditions
at the nursing home.S.

okies boon

Their care record in California includes quality lapses that have led
to: resident injuries and deaths, gangrenous bed sores, residents forced to
lie in their own feces and urine while waiting for care, severe weight loss,
medication errors and numerous other episodes of resident suffering .

Landscape and Lawn Care Industries Declare State of Emergency; Bills before Congress Could Bring Significant Relief

The U.

unscrupulous farmworker

We
represent every type of healthcare worker, including nursing, professional ,
technical and service classifications.
Employees at Sonoma Healthcare Center have been in a labor dispute with
the nursing home's owner, The Ensign Group, for nearly three years. The Ensign Group
has used a variety of tactics to intimidate employees for supporting their
union. Department of
Labor to allow guest workers to temporarily work in the U. Without
these workers, companies cannot fuel the economy via capital
investments in trucks, equipment, facilities, etc.

arjan oxnard

m.
"We have members who report that they may have to close down their
businesses if the bills before Congress do not pass soon," says Foley.landcarenetwork.

farmworkers tuc

,

When: Saturday, July 23, 2005
3:30 p.

R.
"Now that the landscape contracting and lawn care service season is
under way, workers are desperately needed.

overworked workers

Ensign's facilities amassed 78% more care violations in a
recent reporting period than the average California nursing home, according to
an analysis published by Nursing Home Watch, a statewide coalition, in August
2004.

arjan tuc

A majority
of employees voted to join the Service Employees International Union in May
2002, and it took a protracted legal battle to force The Ensign Group to
recognize the union and begin to negotiate a first contract. Our mission is to achieve high quality
healthcare for all.
The H-2B visa program was created under the U. It 's a domino
effect that impacts additional industries.