Public Employee Press

The World of Work
Organizing Summer

By GREGORY N. HEIRES

DC 37’s parent union chalked up a string of important organizing victories this summer.

The successful campaigns to recruit thousands of workers reflect a more aggressive approach to organizing by the 1.4-million-member American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Under the 21st Century Initiative adopted at its 2006 convention in Chicago, AFSCME pledged to increase its membership by 5 percent a year and to build a 40,000-strong army of volunteer union activists.

In the recent drives, AFSCME has organized new members using tried and true labor methods (home visits and worksite meetings), cutting edge technology (e-mail networks and e-activism campaigns) and the political process (legislation and executive orders). Over the summer, more than 39,000 public employees in six states won the right to become union members and negotiate on their pay and benefits.

About 400 public school bus drivers, monitors and mechanics in Indianapolis voted nearly unanimously in August to be represented by AFSCME Council 62. The workers are employed by First Student Inc., the second-largest school bus operator in North America, which pays them low wages, contributes little to health care and provides no vacations or sick leave.

“We need health care we can afford to take care of our families and fair wages to keep up with the cost of living,” said First Student driver Grigette Yancy, who looks to the union to improve the workers’ pay and benefits.

Home-care workers
In August, some 10,000 home child-care and health-care providers in Maryland won collective bargaining rights under an executive order signed by Democratic Gov. Martin O’Malley. Thanks to an executive order from Democratic Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, 7,000 Kansas child-care providers also won negotiating rights. In Oregon, AFSCME organized 4,400 family child-care providers, who won bargaining rights under an executive order signed by Democratic Gov. Ted Kulongoski.

In July, Pennsylvania Democratic Gov. Ed Rendell signed an executive order granting collective bargaining rights to 4,000 state-regulated family child-care providers.

The victories in Maryland, Kansas, Oregon and Pennsylvania are part of a nationwide campaign to sign up child-care and health-care providers. All told, AFSCME represents 80,000 public and private sector home-care workers and 150,000 family child-care professionals, including Head Start workers, day-care center employees and early childhood workers in schools and other settings.

In early August, Democratic Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner signed into law legislation that gives over 13,000 state employees the right to negotiate for fair wages and benefits. Until now, only 2,500 — mostly public safety workers — had bargaining rights.

“This is a huge victory,” said Michael Begatto, head of AFSCME Council 81, which worked with a multi-union coalition on the legislative campaign. “Now state employees have the same bargaining rights as municipal, county and private employees. This landmark legislation has been over 15 years in the making.”

Commenting on the signing,AFSCME President Gerald W. McEntee said, “Collective bargaining is a fundamental workplace right, and Delaware is taking the right stand by recognizing that right and making it the law.”

Volunteer member organizers
“The key in our recent wave of organizing victories was that our councils and locals identified and trained dedicated and disciplined volunteer member organizers,” said DC 37 Interim Organizing Director Edgar DeJesus, who was a leader in AFSCME’s successful multi-union campaign to organize 100,000 workers in Puerto Rico from 1999 to 2001.

“AFSCME’s success at appealing to workers through a spirited campaign with a strong union message is a model for organizers everywhere, including us here at DC 37, where we will be using these techniques to bring workplace justice to thousands of new DC 37 members,” he said.