To kick off the last weekend of Pride in Portland, the Oregon AFSCME LGBTQIA+ Caucus in partnership with AFSCME Local 2805, Multnomah Defenders, Inc and Local 3668, Metropolitan Public Defend
Salem, OR — For the third consecutive bargaining cycle, Oregon state workers represented by Oregon AFSCME have called on state leadership to honor Indigenous People’s Day with a paid holiday.
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, a quarter of the U.S. labor force, close to 43 million people, have filed for unemployment benefits.
Washington state has been the hardest hit. Between a surge of fraudulent claims originating overseas as well as a record number of legitimate claims, the equivalent of 30 percent of the workforce has filed for unemployment insurance.
Employees at the Washington state Employment Security Department (ESD) like Beth Toms, an Intake Specialist in the Spokane office who serves as the Secretary Treasurer of WFSE Local 1221, have been working around the clock to process unemployment claims.
AFSCME member Kong Yeung, a 61-year-old maintenance custodian at the University of Washington, died in late March after contracting COVID-19. Two months later, his co-workers are still calling on the UW to follow public health guidance and take precautions to keep them safe from the coronavirus.
Olympia, Wash.—The Washington Federation of State Employees (AFSCME Council 28) Executive Committee released the following statement condemning the recent murders of Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor and George Floyd:
Even in the best of times, organizing can be tough work. Add in a global pandemic, and growing your local union can seem impossible. Yet over the last few months, a group of interpreters in Washington state hasn't let the COVID-19 crisis slow them down.
Essential workers at several community colleges in King County fought for and won hazard pay, but there's work to do at Bellevue College. Sign the petition!
When UW Medicine announced they would be furloughing staff, our union took action to ensure that any reductions would be minimal and applied fairly. Our team negotiated into early Saturday morning and secured the following:
WFSE members scored several legislative victories over the past week, including bills that will protect our birthdates from public disclosure, hold private government contractors accountable, and grant language access providers the ability to negotiate their health care.
Take a look at the WFSE-sponsored bills that are on their way to Governor Inslee's desk:
