News

State Employees' Reopener, Recruitment and Retention Agreement Approved by Appropriations Committee

State Employees' Reopener, Recruitment and Retention Agreement Approved by Appropriations Committee

Agreement will continue efforts to protect and expand our communitie

Council 4 Executive Board Elections

The regular election of AFSCME Council 4 Executive Board members took place on April 6, 2024 at our union headquarters in New Britain, CT.

The results are as follows:

Council 4 Education Scholarships

COUNCIL 4 EDUCATION SCHOLARSHIPS

To recognize the extraordinary efforts of our members and to foster unionism, Council 4 is offering continuing education assistance in th

In Bridgeport, Occupancy Specialist Provides Relief During Crisis

Imagine you are laid off. You go through the checklist of essential needs for you and your family: food, medications, electricity, water, and shelter. Some expenses cannot be negotiated. When the rent is due – what do you do to keep the roof over your head?

For those living in public housing, this situation has escalated to more complicated levels due to impacts from the COVID-19 crisis. With the closure of schools and businesses directed to curb the spread of COVID-19, many workers were laid off.

AFSCME Local 269 Member Answers The Call To Assist Unemployment Filers

As a customer service representative for the Connecticut Department of Labor in Waterbury, Mayra Cruz of AFSCME Local 269 is on the phone for 10 hours a day, without a telephone headset, assisting clients with their claims and answering questions.

Receiving and returning calls has been non-stop since their office closed to the public. About 50 other employees come into the office daily. The public health crisis poses a unique challenge for her – both in her job and at home.

Attention Council 4 members: Take our COVID-19 Member Survey

While most people are taking steps to limit contact with others, the vital job duties of AFSCME members require that they do just the opposite. Council 4 members are, and will continue to be, on the front lines providing the vital public services that individuals and families of Connecticut need during this unprecedented global health crisis.

AFSCME Urgently Demands More Aid from Congress for States, Localities

It’s become clear that relief bills Congress has approved thus far, including the record $2.2 trillion Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, won’t be enough to quell the health and economic fallout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.

What other aid should Congress provide? AFSCME has recommendations.

Putnam School Paras Mobilize And Get Their Jobs Back

Everyday Heroes: AFSCME Local 1303-087

In response to the COVID-19 public health crisis, the last few weeks have been a trying time for the Putnam School district as paraprofessionals were out of work and the Board of Education struggled to reconcile unanticipated expenses and potential future budgetary constraints.

In anticipation of federal stimulus money to help off-set expenses associated with COVID-19, the district and leaders of Local 1303-87, AFSCME Council 4 engaged in talks to bring these dedicated professionals back to work.

AFSCME Local 3145: On the Front Line of Blood Collection In A Pandemic

As the number of coronavirus infections continues to rise, workers in health care and related professions are on the front lines, helping to save lives during an unprecedented pandemic.

For Chris Banziruk, Jackie O’Connor and the members of AFSCME Local 3145 (American Red Cross/Connecticut Blood Services), the challenges of a public health crisis are especially acute.

Their Lives Are On The Line. Yet, ‘Public Service Workers Still Answer the Call’

Updating wills before heading into work. Extending the lives of single-use masks. Self-isolating from their own families. These are just some of the shameful realities and conditions health care workers on the front lines of fighting the COVID-19 pandemic are facing each day.

Fighting COVID-19 Pandemic in State Prisons

As front line employees in the Connecticut prison system, Sherine Bailey and Aimmee Reyes-Greaves of AFSCME Local 391 (State NP-4 Department of Correction Bargaining Unit) are dealing with a special set of challenges posed by  the coronavirus pandemic.

A prison is among the dangerous settings for the coronavirus to spread. Close confines, stringent security measures and the near impossibility of maintaining social distance require a special brand of vigilance.