Welcome to Council 5

Streamlining Government

AFSCME Council 5 — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:43:57 -0500

Whether bosses call it “streamlining” or “reorganization,” the changes usually mean that workers will lose their jobs, their pay, their rights and their voice. Not this time. AFSCME is supporting SF 2874, a bill authored by Sen. Larry Pogemiller (DFL-Minneapolis) to reorganize state services related to business and employment. AFSCME members will have a key role in the process and the outcome. Council 5 Director Eliot Seide told legislators that workers will embrace change if they have job security and if certain principles are met.

Poison Pill

AFSCME Council 5 — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:28:58 -0500

Rep. Keith Downey (R-Edina) and Grover Norquist are two of a kind. They both want to shrink government and drown it in a bath tub. Downey introduced HF 3558, a bill to cut state government 15 percent by 2015. His poison pill is sugar coated with an early retirement option that’s packaged with furloughs, layoffs, frozen wages and a restructuring of our pension benefits. Please contact Rep. Downey today at rep.keith.downey@house.mn or 651-296-4363. Tell him to stop messing with AFSCME jobs and pensions.

For a Better Minnesota

AFSCME Council 5 — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 21:03:03 -0500

AFSCME’s Day on the Hill rally raised a ruckus in the Capitol rotunda this session. At least 1,000 members met with their legislators Feb. 17 to help shape a state budget that will put Minnesota back to work. With loud voices and strength in numbers, no one could ignore our message: Raise revenue fairly to save our jobs and the vital services that Minnesota needs. Watch the video.

Duluth Strike Averted

AFSCME Council 5 — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 13:40:03 -0500

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.

Call Now to Save AFSCME Jobs!

AFSCME Council 5 — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 20:18:25 -0500

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.

University Coalition Says: Chop From the Top

AFSCME Council 5 — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 19:40:01 -0500

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 Life Preserver

AFSCME Council 5 — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 15:46:29 -0500

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.

GAMC Override Tabled

AFSCME Council 5 — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 16:56:23 -0500

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.

Pension Fix

AFSCME Council 5 — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 12:50:43 -0500

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.

Hop on the AFSCME bus!

AFSCME Council 5 — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 14:51:31 -0500

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.