Posts tagged AFSCME
Op-Ed: Are unions intentionally exploiting the language barrier?
March 26, 2026 // They don’t know dues are voluntary. They don’t know they can stop payments. They don’t even know they have a choice. And just as importantly — they’re too often made to feel like they shouldn’t ask.
New group of Alexandria City workers vote to unionize
March 25, 2026 // As new negotiations gear up in Alexandria, public workers and unions around the state are waiting to see what Spanberger does with the public-sector collective bargaining bill that the General Assembly passed. The bill would remove the collective bargaining ban on local government, school board, and state employees. Currently, local government and school board employees only have the right to collective bargaining if their employers pass resolutions allowing them to do so. The bill would also extend collective bargaining rights to home care providers and service workers at public universities. The bill excludes university full-time professors, adjuncts, and librarians. These workers are waiting to see if Spanberger adds them back to the bill or makes other changes.
PHILADELPHIA: Prosecutors in District Attorney Larry Krasner’s Office move to unionize
March 24, 2026 // In addition to the ADAs, more than 100 paralegals and victim witness coordinators in the office are also seeking to unionize, according to people familiar with the plans, though it was not immediately clear which union would represent them. The unionization effort could represent a major shift in the culture at the district attorney’s office, where prosecutors make up a significant portion of the 600-person staff. It could also be a flashpoint for Krasner, a three-term progressive Democrat who has cast himself as a supporter of organized labor.
Opinion Aaron Withe: Why unions love the ‘Billionaire Tax’
March 12, 2026 // It has attracted a coalition of supporters — chief among them government employee unions. That might seem like an odd pairing, but the logic becomes clear once you trace where the money is supposed to go. Sanders’ legislation would redirect the projected revenue — $4.4 trillion over a decade — into an array of new federal spending programs, including direct cash payments, a federal salary floor for public school teachers and expanded Medicare benefits. Not coincidentally, pouring money into such programs means more federal employees, more union-eligible positions and more dues flowing into union bank accounts.
Group of Springfield city workers unionize
February 24, 2026 // A group of Springfield city workers have unionized due to a “need for a collective voice in shaping policies affecting City Hall employees.” Workers in the finance department, code enforcement department and law department came together to be represented by AFSCME Local 739,
Illinois at near record-low union membership in 2025
February 23, 2026 // Just 13.1% of workers in Illinois were union members in 2025. Thousands of government workers have rejected union membership. Union membership in Illinois was at a near-record low in 2025, according to a release from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Feb. 18.
Op-ed: The $921M Special Interest Machine That Controls California
February 21, 2026 // The California Policy Center’s analysis lays it bare: California’s public sector unions collected $921 million in 2018 alone. That’s not campaign contributions—that’s annual revenue. The prize they’re protecting? According to Govern For California, state and local governments spend $240 billion per year on public employee compensation and benefits.
West Yarmouth Man Pleads Guilty to Stealing Funds from Labor Union
January 19, 2026 // Between May 2020 and May 2025, Mattoon embezzled funds from the Barnstable Massachusetts Department of Public Works Employees Local Number 3003 of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO. Mattoon was an officer of the labor union at the time. The charge of embezzlement from a labor union provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
Op-ed: AFSCME Let Me Down When I Needed Them Most
January 15, 2026 // I had paid the union thousands of dollars over the years and had never asked for a thing. But when I requested the union’s help to defend its own contract, it flat-out refused to process a grievance on my behalf. If I was shocked when the state broke the contract, I was outraged when my union rolled over and let it happen. I had to ask myself, if Council 13 wouldn’t even defend something as fundamental to a union as seniority, what other parts of the contract would it allow the state to trample?
Unionization Wave Hits Nonprofit Sector
December 17, 2025 // ASeveral key economic factors are driving this current union organizing trend, including inflation and job security. In this environment, employees are motivated to seek the protections that higher pay and increased benefits offer. However, about one-third of nonprofit museums and cultural institutions are also struggling to confront the loss of government grants or contracts. More than half of museums reported fewer 2025 visitors than in 2019, according to a Novemberreport by the American Alliance of Museums. In spite of these conflicting economic difficulties, employees are continuing to push back, feeling that they have been taken for granted for many years. Bottom line: unions continue to seek out new groups of workers to organize as their traditional targets, such as manufacturing and production jobs, wane or move overseas. Nonprofit employers would be well advised to stay engaged with their employees, keep an eye on employee morale, and look for ways to reward employees' hard work even when funds are scarce.