Report: SEIU spends big on politics, little on members
[May 19, 2025]
By Jim Talamonti | The Center Square
(The Center Square) – A labor policy analyst says the Service Employees
International Union of Illinois spends far more on politics than it does
on representing workers.
Mailee Smith, senior director of labor policy and staff attorney at the
Illinois Policy Institute, said the SEIU Illinois State Council reported
to the Department of Labor that just 3% of its spending last year was on
representing employees.
“Sixty-five percent of its spending was on political activities and
lobbying,” Smith told The Center Square.
The SEIU Illinois State Council spent over $1.8 million in 2024. Of
that, just over $57,000 was spent on representing workers, $1.2 million
went to political activities and lobbying and the rest went to
administration, overhead and other priorities.
Smith said the numbers highlight what is wrong with government unions in
Illinois.
“What they have become are political parties, whether it’s SEIU or
Chicago Teachers Union, they are using their clout to hire their own
bosses. They pour money into candidates’ campaigns. They get those
candidates elected, and then that’s who they sit across the bargaining
table from,” Smith said.
The SEIU Illinois State Council is divided into local affiliates: SEIU
Healthcare, SEIU Local 1 and SEIU Local 73.
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Members of SEIU during a recent news conference in Springfield,
Illinois - BlueRoomStream
Smith said SEIU Healthcare and SEIU Locals 1 and 73 also spend money
on politics.
“While in some ways this does benefit the union or the members
themselves, it does show that their focus is politics and not the
basics of representing workers in contract negotiations,” Smith
said. “What this reporting shows is that the union’s priorities are
backwards. They’re focusing on the politics while deprioritizing
their members. That’s probably why tens of thousands of workers have
chosen not to be members of SEIU in Illinois.”
Smith said the U.S. Supreme Court has recognized that government
unions like SEIU are inherently political.
A spokesman for SEIU did not respond to requests for comment.
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