AFSCME Retirees gathered for their 42nd Annual Retiree Council Meeting on Sunday, where they charted a course for the future, participated in seminars to foster growth, elected officers and heard from AFSCME President Lee Saunders and AFSCME Secretary-Treasurer Elissa McBride.
While Retirees have hardly slowed down over the pandemic, signing up more than 20,000 new members since the last Convention, the meeting in Philadelphia was a chance for members from across the country to see one another in person and build momentum for the next two years.
The AFSCME Retiree Council is made up of retiree leaders from AFSCME’s 46 retiree chapters, who represent AFSCME’s nearly 200,000 retiree members. The Retiree Council meeting took place on the eve of the 45th AFSCME International Convention.
Retirees always turn out when they are called; never more so than during elections. Retirees understand the stakes of this year’s midterm elections and discussed the priorities for working families and what they can do to turn the tide to elect pro-worker lawmakers.
They also learned techniques to drive retiree engagement, like the art of telling their own stories. As the nation grows more fractious, they also brainstormed ways to bridge the gap between people who may be of starkly different political or social beliefs.
Though they come away armed with new tactics to meet the future, many of their objectives remain the same: protecting retirement security, pensions, Social Security and Medicare.
Retirees also elected their leaders. By acclimation, they voted to reelect Jeff Birttnen, Minnesota AFSCME Retiree Chapter 5, as council chair; Sonia Moseley, California AFSCME Chapter 1199-UNAC, as council vice chair; and Sue Conard, Wisconsin AFSCME Retiree Chapter 32, as council secretary.
In a joint statement, the retiree leaders expressed their gratitude and vision for the future: “Thanks to our fellow retiree leaders for your continued support. Despite the challenges our union continues to face, we are excited and hopeful for the opportunity to continue to lead as AFSCME retirees across the country fight to protect and expand retirement security for today’s and tomorrow’s retirees.”
With spirited messages of gratitude for their contributions and a call to fight even harder in the years ahead from both Saunders and McBride, AFSCME Retirees stand all together to meet the future.