News

AFSCME President Lee Saunders praised the White House’s announcement Thursday that the Biden administration will forgive student loans for an additional 78,000 borrowers — including many AFSCME mem

AFSCME President Lee Saunders congratulated Nicole Berner, a longtime labor lawyer and general counsel of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), on being 

The Western CT Area Labor Federation and Eastern CT Area Labor Federation are excited to announce a new Labor Leadership Academy (LLA) that aims to create an exclusive opportunity for a diverse group of rising labor leaders. By developing a group of peers who work together, we will bolster future cross-sector solidarity and coalition building.

Council 4 Civil Rights Committee is hosting a movie series featuring films that portray the experience of African-Americans and the history of racism in the U.S. All films are screened outdoors in the AFSCME Council 4 parking lot (444 East Main St. New Britain). Council 4 members, their families, and affiliates, are welcome to attend. 

Movies and Documentaries Screened:

Workers Memorial Day 2021 arrives at a moment of the greatest urgency, when the front lines of the war against COVID-19 run through America’s workplaces.

To recognize the extraordinary efforts of our members and to foster unionism, Council 4 is offering continuing education assistance in the form of a $2,000 per year scholarship for up to four years (max $8,000) to dependents of Council 4 members and retirees.  Each year, the Council 4 Scholarship Committee will select two students to award a $2,000 scholarship that will be paid to the school of the winners.  Winners are eligible for up to four consecutive years by doing a brief presentation to the executive board.

Rep. Jahana Hayes (D-Conn.) joined Council 4 members in praising the benefits of the American Rescue Plan (ARP), a landmark law that is already benefitting communities across the state as the coronavirus pandemic continues into its second year.

The law, signed by President Joe Biden last month, was made possible by everyday workers who raised their union voice to demand real action from the federal government.

On Saturday, April 17 over 100 low-wage workers, CT Department of Labor (CT DOL) employees, Council 4 members, and community partners, all of whom are members of the Recovery For All coalition, rallied to demand increased funding for the CT DOL.

Workers in health care and social service industries are a big step closer to having safer workplaces.

On Friday, the House of Representatives passed the Workplace Violence Prevention for Health Care and Social Service Workers Act (H.R.1195) by a bipartisan vote of 254 to 166. The bill requires the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) to issue a standard to prevent workplace violence in health care and social service assistance settings.