The story of just how PECG came to represent state engineers and related professionals (Unit 9) has been told many times. In short, in July 1963, engineers from the Division of Highways (later to become Caltrans) met in the basement of their District IV offices in San Francisco. They were united by their frustration with the outsourcing of their work and lagging pay and benefits.

At that meeting, they adopted a written declaration of PECG's purpose: "few of these items (outsourcing, pay and benefits issues) can be accomplished on an individual basis. They require concerted collective effort. A formal organization is necessary. Your active participation is the only way we can get the kind of representation necessary to preserve, foster and maintain the identity and stature of the professional engineer in state service." In 1981, after California state employees were granted collective bargaining rights, PECG was elected the exclusive representative of Unit 9 rank and file employees and, later, became the verified representative of Unit 9 supervisors and managers.

What is not often told about PECG's creation is this: many of the founders in the summer of 1963 and in the years to follow, were supervisors and managers. They were leaders in their respective departments around the state. They enjoyed the respect of the department higher ups and the rank and file employees who worked for them. They were in an ideal position to create a new, independent organization in which members make decisions entirely dependent on what is best for state engineers and related professionals.

To their great credit, they knew that to get results, PECG needed to represent all state engineers - supervisors and rank and file employees - to bring the maximum "collective effort" to bear to address the mutual problems they faced.

That is why PECG, unlike most other state bargaining units, continues to represent, and deliver for, state supervisors and managers.

PECG negotiates salary and benefits for supervisors and managers with the Governor's Administration through the Meet and Confer process. Over the years, PECG's Meet and Confer Team (made up of PECG supervisors and managers from around the state) has effectively advocated for significant pay and benefits gains for supervisors and managers.

Many of the benefits mirror provisions received by Unit 9 rank and file members through collective bargaining. Others are exclusive to supervisory and managerial employees.

These gains reflect PECG's dedication to supervisors and managers from the organization's founding through today. In turn, nearly 60% of supervisors and managers are members. They understand that PECG delivers competitive pay, pension protection, the best benefits in state service, and protection from outsourcing for all state engineer and related classifications.