News

We Are Going Union!

A Super Majority of Workers from Dignity Health in Merced, California voted to form their union with AFSCME Council 57, Local 2703 today! 

Local 2620 Members Band Together to Save Parole Outpatient Clinics and Their Jobs

Our AFSCME Local 2620 mental health members recently won a victory when Gov. Gavin Newsom and the state Legislature decided to leave parole outpatient clinics off the chopping block in this year’s budget.

Keeping the clinics open means that dozens of our sisters and brothers get to keep their jobs—a direct result of months of organizing. Most importantly, the decision means that thousands of parolees living with mental health issues throughout the state can get the proper care they need to transition back into society.

Labor Groups Release Pathway to Schools Reopening

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2021

Contact: Martin Ricard
Email: martin.ricard@ca.afscme57.org

U.S. Conference on Mayors calls on Congress to go big on funding the front lines

The U.S. Conference of Mayors has sent a letter to Congress that echoes what AFSCME has been saying for months: It’s long past time to robustly fund the front lines.

Union Members Lost Fewer Jobs During This Pandemic. That’s a Difference a Union Makes

AFSCME President Lee Saunders issued the following statement in response to today’s Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) annual report on union membership.

“Today’s report reaffirms that when working people have the freedom to come together and join a union, they enjoy greater economic security and a higher standard of living for themselves and their families. Year after year, union members earn more than their nonunion counterparts, with the union difference being especially pronounced for women and people of color.

Burlingame Skilled Nursing Workers Demand Help Amid COVID Outbreak

This article orginally appeared on The Mercury New. To view the original, click here.

Workers at the Burlingame Skilled Nursing facility pleaded for help Wednesday as a coronavirus outbreak raced through the facility over the past two weeks, with scores of employees out sick or quarantined and patients “dying every day.”

Health Experts Reassure Union Members That COVID Vaccines Are Safe, Effective

The nation’s four largest public sector unions—AFSCME, SEIU, AFT and NEA—sponsored a virtual town hall with leading scientific experts, academics and government officials to explain the safety, efficacy and equitable distribution of the COVID-19 vaccines.

A big goal of Tuesday night’s town hall was to reassure union members that the vaccines are safe and effective and that they shouldn’t hesitate to get vaccinated when it’s their turn.

Union Coalition Calls Appointment of New Contra Costa County Administrator an ‘Act of Hositlity’

The Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to appoint Monica Nino as county administrator this month—but not before a large group of our union brothers and sisters expressed their opposition to the decision.

Across Contra Costa County, a coalition of unions representing more than 8,000 county workers—including our brothers and sisters from AFSCME Local 2700, AFSCME Local 512 and PEU/AFSCME Local 1—demanded that the Board of Supervisors rescind their decision to hire Nino, who previously served as the chief administrator for San Joaquin County.

Another reason to involve yourself in the GA Senate runoffs – funding for front-line heroes

Here’s a crucial reason for working people to do all they can to help Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock win the Georgia Senate runoff elections in January – federal aid to states, cities, towns and schools.

If Ossoff and Warnock prevail, there will be a pro-worker majority in the U.S. Senate. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, as president of the Senate, will cast the tie-breaking vote when the chamber is deadlocked.