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! 

Our Union Has Been Never Stronger. AFSCME Strong Is Making the Difference

The billionaires, corporations and right-wing groups that filed the Janus v. AFSCME Supreme Court case wanted to destroy our union. But we are very much alive – never stronger and never more resilient as we fight for our communities every day.

And we have been proving our worth from the start of the COVID-19 pandemic by providing vital services to our communities, even as some front-line members work without enough personal protective equipment, even as some have paid the ultimate price.

Want to Know What Could Happen If We Reopen Schools Too Soon? Ask Head Start Members

When the shelter-in-place order first began in California, facilities such as Head Start Balboa in Richmond made themselves available to nurses, grocery store workers and other essential workers so their children could have a safe place to go while they worked on the frontlines.

As the COVID-19 pandemic continued, Balboa and other centers reopened for all children—and everything seemed to be going well until something happened that put AFSCME Local 1 member Yolanda Williams on high alert.

Some Library Workers Took Jobs As Disaster Service Workers During COVID-19. Now They’re Fighting to Make Sure Their Whole Careers Don’t Get Shelved

As a librarian at the Walnut Creek Library, Rita Carrasco is used to the hustle and bustle that comes with working in a place that is so essential to the community.

With two stories, its central location to downtown and BART, and the nearby park, the library gets hundreds of visitors a day—and Carrasco and her coworkers show up to work every day with a smile on their faces eager to answer people’s questions and help them find the information they’re looking for.

Pelosi joins AFSCME in calling for state, local aid amid soaring virus cases

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Thursday joined AFSCME President Lee Saunders and front-line public service workers from states experiencing surges in coronavirus cases to urge the Senate to approve at least $1 trillion in flexible aid to states, cities and towns.

California: Don't Close the Parole Outpatient Clinics

Mental health professionals in the Parole Outpatient Clinics throughout the state play an important role in helping parolees transition back into society and keeping our communities safe.

Now, because of COVID-19, those mental health professionals' jobs are on the chopping block. Watch as our AFSCME Local 2620 members share why closing the Parole Outpatient Clinics in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic is a bad idea.

AFSCME Praises Supreme Court Ruling Protecting LGBTQ Workers

AFSCME praised today’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that extends protections under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to millions of LGBTQ workers.

In a statement, AFSCME President Lee Saunders said such protections are long overdue and represent an important step in the fight for equality and justice for all workers.

Now Is Not the Time to Side With Corporations

Just over a week ago, an unarmed, innocent black man was murdered by a Minnesota police officer. The killing of George Floyd—along with the murders of two other innocent black people, Breonna Taylor and Ahmaud Arbery—has fueled protests around the world calling for swift justice in their names.

Economists with Diverse Views Agree: Federal Aid to States, Cities, Towns Is Needed Now

Economists of diverse backgrounds, who might otherwise disagree on a range of policy issues, spoke with a single voice on Monday on the need for Congress to provide robust aid to states, cities and towns.

Such aid, they said, is crucial in the midst of an economic crisis that is decimating state and local budgets and threatening essential public services that are critical to beating the pandemic and jumpstarting the economy.