THE
State Employees Association of North Carolina, SEIU Local 2008 1621 Midtown Place, Raleigh, NC 27609 • www.seanc.org 800-222-2758 • 919-833-6436 • Circulation 55,000
I
May 2015
• Vol. 33, Issue 6
It’s Time for SEANC to Move Forward
joined SEANC’s predecessor, the North Carolina State Government Employees Association, in June, 1970, while working for the Department of Transportation in Asheboro. Just out of the army, I was used to working with others for a common cause. Seven years later, on March 14, 1977, I went to work for the association as its first field representative. Fast-forward 38 years to the day, I came out of retirement on March 14, 2015, to take over as full-time executive director in what has been the darkest time in the history of this organization. I have always thought of myself as a member rather than a staffer. Because of that, I made it clear to the Executive Committee and everyone who was in earshot that the only way I would take the executive director’s job is if we were completely honest with our members and ordered a full audit of our books. We sent a letter to each member detailing the results of that audit. It painted a pretty grim picture. Our former executive director had complete control, and used our finances like a personal checkbook. The amounts were staggering: More than $94,500 in excessive payments to a landscaper, $18,000 for a trip to China, $15,000 at Best Buy and $10,000 at another electronics store. The list goes on and on, to the tune of more than $293,000 in undocumented credit card charges and more than $494,000 in total charges without official SEANC purposes. You don’t have to tell me how mad this makes you. Believe me, it makes me just as mad as a dues-paying member of this organization for 45 years. I guarantee you that we will do everything in our power to collect every penny of the money taken from us over the years. We have already recovered some of it, and will continue that pursuit. We have also turned over our audit to the State Bureau of Investigation to help in their probe. What I care about most is you, our members, and the mission of this organization. I’ve been asked several times why would I ever come back to such a mess. My only answer is, “Sometimes, you have to do what you have to do.” In the last two-plus months that I have been executive
Director’s Message By Mitch Leonard
SEANC Executive Director
“Moving forward, this is no longer going to be a Dana Cope-led organization. It’s going to be a member-led organization dedicated to bettering the lives of all current, retired and future state employees.” Mitch Leonard, SEANC Executive Director
director, we have already made great strides. Some of the changes are listed on page 3 of this issue. We have a lot left to do, but I feel like we are on the right track. This column, along with the letter we mailed to each member and the email we sent to everyone we had an address for on file, is another attempt at transparency. The list of annual meetings is in this edition as well, and I am going to try to personally attend as many of them as possible. My door is always open to any member who wants to discuss the audit or anything else. Moving forward, this is no longer going to be a Dana Cope-led organization. It’s going to be a member-led organization dedicated to bettering the lives of all current, retired and future state employees. And we must move forward. We have big fights ahead. We still need a meaningful pay raise for all state employees and a cost-of-living adjustment for our retirees. We still have to protect due-process rights and point out the dangers of privatization. We still need to guard our retirement funds and advocate for an affordable State Health Plan. We need to recruit new members and get back to trainings. We need to pick ourselves back up and get back to work. There will be tough days ahead, to be sure. But I can guarantee you we will face them head-on, and I will keep you informed. mleonard@seanc.org