A potential strike by Duluth city workers is now on hold thanks to a tentative contract agreement between the city and leaders of AFSCME Local 66. The deal, reached at 4:15 a.m. on March 4, was hammered out by negotiators in a marathon 19-hour session with mediators. The union bargaining team unanimously recommends that members vote to accept the agreement, which Negotiation Chair Jim Dreier calls “fair.” His team beat back union busting, got stronger layoff protection, won four days pay by ending forced furloughs, and retained steps, longevity pay and health benefits. Members will vote on their contract March 17 (St. Patrick’s Day) from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. at AFSCME’s Duluth Office, 211 W. 2nd St.

The job package to save and create American jobs will be up for a vote very soon in the U.S. Senate. The package includes substantial federal Medicaid match funding to Minnesota of over a half-billion dollars that will help save AFSCME jobs in our state. Please call our Senators Al Franken and Amy Klobuchar TODAY to urge them to vote for the American Workers, State and Business Relief Act, and to make sure the bill includes very substantial investment in Medicaid. Please call 1-888-460-0813 where AFSCME will patch you through to Franken and Klobuchar’s offices. See attachment for more information.

Chanting “Fund education, not administration,” hundreds of demonstrators marched though the University of Minnesota March 4. Their advice: Stop trying to fix budget problems by targeting front-line staff, faculty and students. Instead, administrators can save more money by scaling back the soaring salaries and rapid growth in their own ranks.

We’re the blue-collar workers who take care of South St. Paul, while Gov. Pawlenty cuts his hometown. We feed grandma, while he forces her nursing home to close. We staff the emergency rooms, while he cuts hospitals to the bone. We help minds soar, while he crowds classrooms, hikes tuition and closes libraries. Its unionized public workers who come to the rescue of Minnesotans who are losing their jobs, their homes and their health care. We’re their life preserver, not their anchor, as columnist Katherine Kersten suggests (Public sector: An anchor as we sink). Read AFSCME’s Counterpoint.

A few weeks ago, most House Republicans supported a bi-partisan bill to rescue General Assistance Medical Care (GAMC), calling it “a great step forward.” Within hours of their vote, Gov. Pawlenty vetoed the bill, which would have saved health care for 38,000 of the poorest and sickest Minnesotans, including 8,000 veterans. On March 1, those same Republicans decided it was more important to protect the governor than to protect vulnerable residents and veterans. Not one Republican voted to override Pawlenty’s veto. When it became clear there would be no Republican votes, the DFL tabled the override measure to keep its options open for another attempt later.

AFSCME is reluctantly supporting benefit adjustments recommended by MSRS and PERA to ensure the retirement systems have sufficient funds to pay benefits for retirees, active employees and future hires. Legislative action would allow both systems to reduce the cost of living increase. Our Board originally asked the Legislature to wait until next year to take action. We had hoped that investment returns would be enough to make up for market losses over the past two years. Unfortunately, the slow economic recovery demands an immediate fix.

Remember Wellstone’s vintage green school bus? It became a symbol of progressive action and we promised to “never park the bus” after our hero died. Today, a Metro Transit bus is wrapped with AFSCME’s mission for excellence in public services, dignity in the workplace, and opportunity and prosperity for all working families. Watch for the bus along University Ave. between downtown Minneapolis and downtown St. Paul, starting March 8. It’s part of a transit advertising campaign designed to build a bold, proud image of our union.

City of Duluth members in Local 66 soundly rejected a city contract proposal Feb. 23 and authorized their negotiating team to call a strike. Members previously beat back Mayor Don Ness’ attempt to force outsourcing and other union-busting language into the contract. Now, they intend to return to the bargaining table, seeking a multi-year deal that is fair and equal to what other city employees get. In the one-year offer that members rejected, the city refused to negotiate any proposals that would bring the AFSCME unit to parity with other city bargaining units.

Shaking a model of a human backbone, Council 5’s Executive Director Eliot Seide challenged state legislators to “Get a spine!” We expect the politicians we elected to raise revenue fairly and take action to help working families get ahead. If they don’t protect our services and jobs, then we won’t protect their jobs at election time. Listen to the interview on AM-950’s Minnesota Matters show. Listen to Mark Dayton, who has a spine.

If you’re looking for a leader with a spine, listen to Mark Dayton’s speech at our Day on the Hill. He has three tips for politicians who need to build a backbone: 1) say no to more jobs cuts, 2) unallot Gov. Pawlenty to save taxpayers money, and 3) fix the budget by taxing the rich, who can afford to pay their fair share. It’s evil for Gov. Pawlenty to gut essential services, while protecting Minnesota’s wealthiest individuals and corporations.