Big labor politics in California just took a toxic turn. Independent investigations into SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West President Dave Regan—the primary architect pushing California's high-stakes billionaire tax ballot measure—reveal explosive allegations of bullying, intimidation, and targeted harassment against women.
If you are trying to understand why this massive tax fight has turned so vicious, you have to look past the campaign ads. The real story involves internal union warfare, hardball tactics, and a fierce battle over Proposition 40.
Inside the Investigation Report
The controversy centers around Proposition 40, a proposed one-time 5% wealth tax on California billionaires meant to shore up funding shortfalls for Medi-Cal. While Dave Regan’s local union has championed the initiative, the broader coalition within SEIU California hesitated to jump on board.
That hesitation triggered a brutal internal clash. According to an independent investigative report commissioned by SEIU California, Regan resorted to severe pressure tactics to force compliance. Investigators found that Regan pressured the SEIU state council and threatened executive directors to secure endorsements for the billionaire tax.
Most notably, SEIU California Executive Director Tia Orr told investigators that Regan warned her in December that if the statewide union did not back the measure by January 1, he was "coming for you". Orr reported feeling physically unsafe, prompting the state council to take immediate defensive action, including temporarily banning Regan from its offices to protect female employees.
SEIU California subsequently filed formal charges with the SEIU International Union, alleging a systemic pattern of threats, extortion, and bullying.
Targeting Women and Reviving Past Claims
The reports didn't just focus on political hardball regarding the ballot measure. Investigators also documented past and present misconduct targeting women within the labor organization.
The findings brought to light an aggressive incident involving Courtni Pugh, the union's former executive director, during a political dispute prior to her 2009 resignation. Pugh told investigators that Regan yelled expletives at her, kicked in her office door, and cornered her against a bookcase while telling her she lacked the toughness for her job.
When these findings leaked, reactions fell sharply along political lines. SEIU-UHW aggressively defended their leader, dismissing Pugh's account as a "trumped-up claim from 17 years ago" and pointing out that Pugh's current political consulting firm has worked for groups opposing Proposition 40.
Pugh fired back in a public statement, calling Regan's defense offensive to anyone who has endured his threatening behavior. She noted that she originally reported the incident to colleagues at the time and participated in the recent probe simply to ensure no other employees had to suffer similar treatment.
Regan's Defense and the Stakes for Proposition 40
Dave Regan has pushed back hard against the characterization of his actions. During a news conference, he owned up to using coarse language with colleagues but flatly denied accusations of physical assault, extortion, or threats against female labor leaders.
"I will own up to and take responsibility for anything that I've said and anything that I've done," Regan stated publicly. "Pero I absolutely am not going to stand by and... be expected to accept flat out lies."
Meanwhile, supporters of Proposition 40 argue that the timing of the report's release is no coincidence. They contend that opponents of the billionaire tax—who are already pumping massive amounts of money into defeating the November ballot measure—orchestrated the leak to sink the initiative by tarnishing its primary architect.
No matter how the international union handles the disciplinary proceedings against Regan, the damage to the progressive labor coalition is already done. When the architects of wealth-redistribution policies are accused of practicing heavy-handed coercion behind closed doors, it hands a massive weapon to the very billionaires they are trying to tax.
