News

Our union gained more than 9,000 dues-paying members and nearly 19,000 dues-paying retirees in the last year, suggesting that billionaires and corporations are failing in their effort to “defund and defang” public service unions.

Workers in Missouri and New Mexico have chalked important victories against anti-worker laws that would have robbed them of their voices and the right to bargain collectively.

In Missouri, two separate anti-worker measures, HB 1413 and SB 1007, were halted by state courts last week.

AFSCME social workers fight for the right to continue providing high-quality service to their elderly patients, who are among Minnesota’s most vulnerable residents.
The AFL-CIO Community Services Program, a national partnership between the United Way and the AFL-CIO, exists to provide resources, services and assistance to union workers and their families during times of hardship. “In Minnesota, there are AFL-CIO United Way partnership programs based out of Duluth, Minneapolis and St. Paul,” Rachel Loeffler-Kemp explains. The focus of the program, she says, is supporting working families. “We know that if we can help support them and the issues they face, our whole community is stronger.”
Receiving the MCA award has reinvigorated Gundgovi’s commitment to serving his parolees and the public. He says it’s an honor to be acknowledged, but the real reward is knowing he’s helping rehabilitate parolees to better themselves and strengthen our communities, and knowing his AFSCME colleagues have his back and share his values.
As AFSCME members, we’re committed to serving the public and giving back. This holiday season, AFSCME Locals around the state lived our union values by taking part in a variety of community giving programs. It’s just one more way we’re walking our talk: helping our neighbors, lifting up working families and strengthening the communities where we work and live.
At the AFSCME International Conference in Boston this year, we remembered that, despite the attacks on labor unions, AFSCME will and does Rise Up! Taking the ‘Rise Up!’ message to Las Vegas, AFSCME International gathered over 160 volunteer member organizers (VMOs) from around the country to share the benefits of collective bargaining.
“I love to talk,” says Minnesota Corrections Officer Rick Neyssen with a chuckle.