Members of AFSCME Local 1303-112 (Rocky Hill Town Employees) are celebrating a new contract along with multiple lessons they learned about the process of negotiations.
Federal money for programs and services that help millions of vulnerable Americans and employ many AFSCME members could be in jeopardy next year.
AFSCME is teaming up with allies to fight drastic cuts proposed by right-wing lawmakers. More draconian proposals are likely if Donald Trump is elected president in November and his allies seize control of Congress.
As labor unions gain in popularity, workers’ rights remain under threat. But while private sector workers have the right to form unions under federal law, public service workers lack that same guarantee.
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 selects two students to award a $2,000 scholarship 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.
The last few years have seen a rise in worker momentum, with unionized workers raising their voices to demand higher pay, safer working conditions and more.
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 members — under the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
The public sector has finally recovered from the COVID-19 pandemic. At the end of last year, there were 22,000 more public service jobs in the nation than in February 2020, just before the pandemic started.
This is cause for celebration for everyone in our communities, but especially for workers of color, who have been historically overrepresented in state and local government jobs.
