News

Local 1700 Defeats Privatization Effort in Duxbury

"Congratulations to the members of AFSCME Local 1700 Duxbury School Custodians on their victory over a short-sited plan to privatize custodial services in Duxbury this morning.

Nashua Custodians Never Quit 05/10/2016

NASHUA, N.H. – Raymond DeRusha wakes up early. He gets to Main Dunstable Elementary School, where he is the head custodian, before anyone else to make sure that the school is safe and clean for the kids who will spend their whole day learning in his school.

"When they're in one of my buildings," DeRusha says, "they are one of my kids."

Breathing Easier at Methuen City Hall 05/09/2016

METHUEN, Mass. – After learning that AFSCME members have experienced headaches, coughing and other health problems for years, newly elected Local 3699 President Bill DePardo made improving the air quality at Methuen City Hall an urgent priority.

Union members raised serious concerns about health dangers in the building during a February meeting, and members voted unanimously to request environmental testing as soon as possible.

Serious Dangers Behind Prison Walls 05/04/2016

WARREN, Maine – The 40-foot wall topped with razor wire surrounding Maine State Prison in Warren helps to protect the public from the dangerous inmates inside. But these barriers do little to protect AFSCME corrections officers like Sergeant Curtis Doyle.

A 20-year veteran officer and AFSCME Local 2968 member, Doyle must rely primarily on his experience, intelligence and sometimes even his sense of humor to get him home safely to his family every day.

Big Win for Mental Health Care in Maine 04/29/2016

AUGUSTA, Maine – The Maine House and Senate overwhelmingly voted to support the safe staffing bill in support of direct care workers at Riverview and Dorothea Dix state mental health facilities. AFSCME Council 93 thanks state legislators for their overwhelming, bipartisan support.

Fighting for Death Benefits Fairness 04/22/2016

BOSTON – AFSCME Council 93 is lobbying Massachusetts lawmakers to extend payments and benefits to families of public sector employees who are killed on the job. These payments now are available only to public safety and law enforcement workers who die in the line of duty.

'Friedrichs' Result a Victory for Unions 03/31/2016

WASHINGTON – The U.S. Supreme Court released its decision in Friedrichs v. CTA on Tuesday, March 29, and the result was a major victory for public service workers across the country. But Friedrichs is not the end of Corporate America's political attack on workers and the unions that defend them.

Mansfield Keeps the Lights On 03/18/2016

MANSFIELD, Mass. – Members of AFSCME Local 1702 have another reason to be proud after receiving a national award for the Mansfield Electric Department's high reliability and few power outages in 2015.

Mansfield Light placed in the top 25 percent for achieving "exceptional electric reliability" in 2015, according to the American Public Power Association based in Arlington, Virginia. The APPA compared Mansfield's reliability data to nationwide data collected by the Energy Information Administration, which independently publishes national data on energy.

Skipping Breakfast 03/14/2016

BOSTON – Nervous college administrators abruptly cancelled a planned legislative breakfast at Roxbury Community College on March 1 after AFSCME Local 1067 members joined with other union members and supporters to rally against the unfair firing of five AFSCME workers in the college's IT department.