News

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.

When Alyssa Ledesma first joined Oregon AFSCME Local 328, she did it on the advice of a colleague, without knowing how helpful having a union can be.

The recent cyber attack on the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) could have been prevented. We know this because Oregon AFSCME represented members warned the agency that there was a danger to the security of DEQ’s system, and those concerns were ignored.

SALEM, OR - Biomedical researchers from OHSU testified in front of the House Committee on Rules on April 9th, advocating for House Joint Memorial 6 (HJM 6), which urges Congress to prioritize strong annual federal funding for the National Institutes of Health (NIH). HJM 6 further urges Congress to increase investments in cutting-edge medical research through grants from the NIH to research institutions.

PORTLAND, OR - After over 16 months bargaining their first contract, New Avenues for Youth (NAFY) workers have reached a tentative agreement with management on a three year contract, averting a one day unfair labor practice strike scheduled for April 1st.

NAFY workers serve some of the Portland area’s most vulnerable youth, assisting them in finding housing, education and job training.

SALEM, OR – Understaffing, extreme overtime and lack of safety protocols are creating untenable situations in the workplace, based on member survey results released today by Oregon AFSCME in their report, Unsafe on the Job. The report was released as more than 100 members came to the capitol to share their stories and call for action.
The survey findings of more than 520 AFSCME members showed:

PORTLAND, OR – Newly sworn-in Multnomah County District Attorney Nathan Vasquez recently referred to Oregon’s public defense crisis as a “work stoppage” in an OPB interview. AFSCME Locals 2805 and 3668, representing staff attorneys, investigators, case managers, legal assistants, and office staff of Multnomah Defenders, Inc and Metropolitan Public Defenders, refute this characterization as harmful and blatantly false.

PORTLAND, OR – Yesterday, City of Portland workers represented by Oregon AFSCME Local 189 voted 87% in favor of a strike, with 89% of members participating in the vote. After months of negotiations, the city still refuses to meet workers’ needs including in-person reporting incentives and pay equity across the city’s workforce.

The city and AFSCME Local 189 are meeting today for their final scheduled mediation.

To kick off National Apprenticeship Week, United We Heal (UWH) celebrated their graduating apprentices in Portland on Friday, November 15th. 

Workers from the Stabilization and Crisis Unit (SACU), represented by Oregon AFSCME Local 1264, have announced a vote of no confidence against Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) Director Fariborz Pakseresht.