Publications

June 20, 2006

Reporting organizing wins in ...

New Mexico, where 1,300 New Mexico State University/Las Cruces employees have formed a union with Council 18. After a hard fought campaign, 65 percent of those voting chose AFSCME. The workers decided to organize after falling behind other state workers in wages, while their health insurance costs rose faster. Also joining Council 18 are 38 employees of Western New Mexico University/Silver City. Maintenance workers and campus police officers, their victory has sparked renewed interest from white collar workers. In Rhode Island, 45 employees of the town of New Shoreham (aka Block Island) recently voted to join Council 94. Previously members of the New Shoreham Employees Association, the workers chose AFSCME through a state labor-board election. Now members of Local 2855, they work in such departments as harbor master, public works and police dispatch.

WFSE makes history

Six-thousand Washington state foster parents have a new and powerful voice — thanks to AFSCME. In a partnership believed to be the first of its kind in the nation, Foster Parents Association of Washington State (FPAWS), a nonprofit corporation, has formally affiliated with WFSE/ Council 28. Association members will have joint membership in their own organization and in a new foster care division created within WFSE. The one-year agreement (renewable in 12-month segments) permits the FPAWS/WFSE Foster Care Division to develop a dues structure in the future, while the association retains its autonomy, with its own governing board. The two groups have had an informal alliance for years, jointly advocating for resources for children's services. WFSE represents over 38,000 state employees, including 14,000 human services and direct care workers.

Supreme Court ruling

The Supreme Court, on a 5-4 vote, has ruled that public employees who make charges of official misconduct in the course of their official duties are not generally protected by the First Amendment. This decision sends "a chilling warning to potential government whistleblowers," says President McEntee, adding that "their anxiety about potential retaliation is well founded." The ruling stemmed from a case regarding a former Los Angeles prosecutor who claimed he was denied a promotion for writing a summary report about police misconduct. In McEntee's view, "this decision gives constitutional sanction to those who would fire a public worker for stepping forward to preserve the integrity of our public institutions. In effect, the court has said to public employees: 'Your conscience or your job. You can't have both.'"

Workplace-safety win

A long-sought goal of New York's CSEA — legislation to improve the safety of public workplaces — was achieved recently when Governor Pataki (R) signed the Worksite Security Act. The CSEA-sponsored measure would require state and local governments and other public entities to assess their worksites for potential violence. It would also mandate that employers notify workers of potential threats — and assist the employees (and their organizations, such as unions) in developing corrective actions. The new law also includes a procedure for employees to file complaints — without fear of retaliation — if they suspect potential violence, plus follow-up steps if employers don't comply. This is CSEA's biggest legislative victory since gaining COLA for the public employee pension systems in 2000. The union, which has been at the forefront of protecting public worksites for more than a decade, pressed the issue this time with a May 3 rally at the capitol.

One strike begins ...

In Illinois, 53 substance-abuse counselors at Sheridan Correctional Center, one of the nation's largest drug-treatment prisons, went on strike June 6 against their private-sector employer, the Chicago-based Gateway Foundation. The workers, who joined Local 472 (Council 31) last year, have been negotiating for a first contract since November. They make 45 percent less than state-employed, unionized corrections staff performing the same work. The union's leaders have urged Governor Blagojevich to cancel the state's contract with Gateway. They had warned that, if the workers walked out, the company planned to severely curtail the prison's drug rehabilitation programs.

... And one ends

In Minnesota, some three-dozen water and electric employees of the Grand Rapids Public Utilities Commission have settled a strike after eight days. The workers, members of Local 3456 (Council 65), ratified a five-year contract (about two years retroactively) that provides cumulative wage hikes of 19 percent for some classifications and wage adjustments for others. In addition, the employer will contribute a 3-percent match to a retirement account. The deal includes a higher health-insurance deductible, but the employer will pay it.

In memoriam

Luis A. Fuentes Ayala, 48, a founding member of SPU/AFSCME and president of Local 3227, representing Puerto Rico's social services department, died June 4. Dozens of SPU members marched to his burial ceremony. Fuentes Ayala helped organize SPU in the mid-1990s, raising the voices of public workers across the island. He leaves his wife, Jessica Benitez Castro, a daughter and a son.

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