Putting working families first

By Sandre R. Swanson

Developing Worker Own Businesses Securing Worker Rights Protecting Worker's Pensions

Sandré started the Worker to Business Owner Project for former military base workers who lost their jobs due to base closures in our county. He helped secure a grant for the program and got private sector partners to support the project. The project trained former base workers to become business owners and provided them technical assistance as needed. The program helped the potential business owners write their business plan, conduct market studies, analyze competition and forecast the financial feasibility of the business. Today these businesses employ many workers and credit Sandré as the reason they are still in business.

Securing Worker Rights

Sandré served as Chairman and Commissioner for the city of Oakland's Civil Service Commission for two terms. The Commission's caseload for employee and union appeals doubled because each appeal got a fair hearing from Chairman Swanson. He worked to protect the rights of employees in the work place. Sandré fought for the principles of progressive management and for fair promotions for minorities and woman in the police department, fire department, in public works and thought-out city government.

Protecting Worker's Pensions

Sandré is the past Chairman of the Alameda County Retirement Board. He is currently in his third term as Trustee for the County of Alameda's 4.7 billion dollar pension organization that supports the pension system for 15,000 active and retired county employees and their families. He believes passionately that worker pension security is a promise that can not be broken. Among his priorities is working for the protection of our worker's pensions and against any raid on worker retirement security by the Governor and his supporters.