Richard Kowalczyk
Richard (Rich) Kowalczyk was voted to be the first president of Local 3599 when it was started in 2018 and continues to serve in that capacity. Rich had also been active as an executive board member at the chapter level for many years prior to Local 3599 being started....
Michael Reid
Michael was elected to the executive board of Local 3599 as an officer-at-large when the local was started in 2018. In 2019 he was elected to the position of recording secretary, and Vice President in 2021. Michael is an Associate Project Manager in the Wildlife Studi...
AFSCME members from across the country are sharing their stories of progress over the last two years.
The last two years have been full of challenges.But under the leadership of the Biden administration and this Congress, we are turning a corner. There have been unprecedented investments in public services and public service jobs. Millions will see the price of life-sav...
The union difference: Greatest wealth gains are for Black and Hispanic union households
We’ve said it before: Life is better in a union. Workers who belong to unions make more money than their nonunion counterparts. They have better health care insurance and retirement plans, more job security and safer working conditions. They’re happier.
Biden administration extends pause on student loan repayment
Good news for federal student loan borrowers: This month, the Biden administration again extended the pause on student debt repayment – this time through Aug. 31.
AFSCME-backed bill would help child care providers with food costs
AFSCME supports a proposal in Congress to ease the financial burden on child care professionals who provide meals and snacks.
Make your plan to vote today
If there’s one thing the 2020 election has in spades, it’s choices – and not just the choices between Donald Trump and Joe Biden, Mike Pence and Kamala Harris, and choices up and down the ballot. In a year when our jobs, our families, and every aspect of our lives have...
Online Training Available for AFSCME Women Leading Change
Across the nation, women are creating change for working families more than ever before. The Women’s Leadership Academy is ready to train more AFSCME women to be leaders of that change.Introducing the 2019 Women’s Leadership Academy Online, which is kicking off training...
A New Jersey member’s career grows thanks to the AFSCME Free College Benefit
The pandemic has led many of us to take stock of our lives and our goals. For AFSCME New Jersey member LaTrenda Ross, the pandemic ignited a long-held dream—starting her own life coaching business.“I was thinking about revamping my whole entire life,” recalls Ross, a me...
DC37 PRESS RELEASE 9-10-21
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR HENRY GARRIDO CALLS ON MAYOR DE BLASIO TO DELAY “RETURN TO WORK” FOR 80,000 NON-ESSENTIAL WORKERS In an op-ed printed in the New York Daily News, Garrido warns bringing people back to the office too soon could move the city backwards in the fight agai...
In No Uncertain Terms
EMS Week is a time to recognize the sacrifices that EMS professionals make for their communities and to honor these skilled heroes who rush into danger when we need them most. AFSCME EMS professionals play an essential role in the emergency response system, but their st...
Amid tragedy, the ‘true soul of Hawaii’ shines bright
Cameron Dexter with U.S. President Biden. Member provided photo.
‘We Wouldn’t Have Anything If It Weren’t for Our Union’
When he first took a job at the Centralia Correctional Center in Illinois, Keith Kracht knew that a career in public service wouldn’t make him a millionaire. But then again, that’s not why he went into public service.
Bayou State Blues: Members Slammed While Processing Record Unemployment Claims
AFSCME members working for the Louisiana Workforce Commission (LWC) are hopping busy these days fulfilling a critical mission. They are helping Louisianans survive as the Bayou State’s economy buckles under pressure from the coronavirus pandemic.
"Return to Work"
The Mayor has announced via press conference that staff will start to return to work in May. The Mayoral Agencies were asked to submit their return-to-work plans by April 5th. DC37's Executive Director and Senior staff are in discussions with the Mayor's Office, and w...
House Bill Simplifies and Fixes PSLF, Overhauls Higher Education
A bill that has been introduced in the House of Representatives would simplify the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program for current and would-be participants.
Biden’s new $9 billion student debt relief plan would greatly help public service workers
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the Biden administration halted all federal student loan repayments. After the national COVID-19 emergency ended in March 2023, Congress passed a law preventing further extensions. As a result, payments resumed in October.For people whose s...
AFSCME Praises Supreme Court Ruling Protecting LGBTQ Workers
AFSCME praised today’s ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court that extends protections under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act to millions of LGBTQ workers.In a statement, AFSCME President Lee Saunders said such protections are long overdue and represent an important ste...
Another reason to involve yourself in the GA Senate runoffs – funding for front-line heroes
Here’s a crucial reason for working people to do all they can to help Jon Ossoff and the Rev. Raphael Warnock win the Georgia Senate runoff elections in January – federal aid to states, cities, towns and schools.If Ossoff and Warnock prevail, there will be a pro-worker...
We made it happen: Union members helped win the American Rescue Plan
As the world marked the anniversary of the official start of the coronavirus pandemic Thursday, President Biden signed the American Rescue Plan into law and offered words of hope to a weary nation.
Outnumbered and exhausted, a Louisiana corrections lieutenant fights for better staffing
Member-provided photo
AFSCME’s Saunders urges Senate to act on House-approved Build Back Better Act
AFSCME President Lee Saunders on Friday urged the Senate to follow in the footsteps of the House of Representatives and approve the Build Back Better Act, which he said would be a turning point for our country.
ARP funds are an opportunity to build up communities by investing in public service workers
The American Rescue Plan, which AFSCME members helped make a reality and which President Joe Biden signed into law a year ago, provided $350 billion in funding to states, cities and towns.