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Governor, mayor visit Baltimore Staff the Front Lines event and hiring hall

Gov. Wes Moore (white shirt) and Baltimore Mayor Brandon Scott (blue shirt) mingle with Council 3 members and AFSCME leaders. Photo: AFSCME Staff
Governor, mayor visit Baltimore Staff the Front Lines event and hiring hall
By Natalia Pérez Santos and Nick Voutsinos ·

BALTIMORE – Gov. Wes Moore, Mayor Brandon Scott, AFSCME President Lee Saunders and AFSCME Maryland Council 3 President Patrick Moran joined AFSCME members in Baltimore to urge job seekers to apply for open public service positions throughout the state.

The Saturday press conference coincided with a hiring event at the Council 3 Union Hall, where job seekers met with representatives from the City of Baltimore and essential state agencies including the departments of Budget and Management, Public Safety and Correctional Services, Health, and Transportation.

From nurses to sanitation workers to corrections officers, chronic short staffing is undermining the effective delivery of public services that Marylanders rely on. That’s why AFSCME launched the Staff the Front Lines initiative this year, to partner with elected officials on recruiting and retaining the essential workers who keep our communities running. The Staff the Front Lines bus stopped in more than 20 major cities across the country this summer and held recruitment events in many of them.

“This is about creating pathways to work, wages and wealth – for all families, and not just some of them. No matter where you come from, no matter what your background is, no matter what your family lineage is, no matter what neighborhood you live in, no matter what zip code you call home, no matter what your prospects have been or what you thought they were, this is the place to make your dreams come true,” Moore said.

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Representatives from state agencies and the city of Baltimore were at Saturday's hiring hall. Photo: AFSCME Staff

Scott thanked public service workers for their contributions to Baltimore, Maryland, and the United States.

“Now, it’s well past time to give you your raises, to give you your support, to give you colleagues to help – and train them up, so they can replace you when you move up in your job. We have to staff the front lines,” the mayor said.

Saunders noted that there are 840,000 open public service jobs across the country.

“There are thousands of jobs here in Maryland, in state and local government, that are open,” he said. “We’ve got to educate our communities. We’ve got to go to our young people and say that there are jobs that are available and they pay good wages with good benefits, good health care and good pensions. Come and join us.”

Moran applauded Gov. Moore’s support in helping Council 3 secure wage increases of more than 16% for state workers in the past year and a longevity step raise for workers with five or more years of tenure.

“I know there are many people out there who are looking for some stability at work. They want the opportunity to build a career. If that sounds like you, come and join us in public service,” said Moran, who’s also an AFSCME international vice president. “Come find a great union job.”

To learn more about AFSCME’s national bus tour, visit StaffTheFrontLines.org.

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