News

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) Direc

In a nearly unanimous vote today, Benton County workers represented by AFSCME Local 2064 ratified a strong three-year contract, following nearly a year of bargaining and five days on the strike lin

What an election season! Oregon AFSCME members did over 700 volunteer shifts, knocking 10,000 doors and doing 50,000 contacts via phone/text! Thank you to all the incredible volunteers that made it possible! 

We wanted to highlight a few areas where we made big progress for working people: 

October 18th, 2018 marks the one year anniversary of the Lane County strike. On that cold sunny morning a year ago, over 500 employees decided to walk off the job after the County proposed increased healthcare costs that would result in pay cuts. For the next week, we were bolstered by the support of this community and fellow union members like our local firefighters and graduate teachers, who were amongst the first to join the picket lines. 

Oregon AFSCME represented workers at Volunteers of America Oregon (VOA) have finally reached a tentative agreement with their employer. The tentative agreement was signed yesterday evening, following eighteen months of contentious negotiations that led to multiple protests from workers and their union, including a May 14th sit-in which resulted in 10 arrests. 

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.

Across the board, AFSCME-Endorsed Candidates had a great night! Here are a few highlights. 

Val Hoyle 

A lifelong advocate for working people won the race for Oregon’s labor Commissioner.  It would be hard to find a person better qualified and readier to take on the task.  Val comes from a union family, served in the legislature, and has spent a career fighting for things like a higher minimum wage, defending PERS and state services, and helping to pass paid sick leave. 

Joe Berney

Don't fall for the scam.
When AFSCME members stand together, we have power in numbers. Together, we can defend our freedom to take our loved ones to the doctor when they get sick and retire with dignity some day. Together, we have the power to make our voices heard at work and in our democracy. That’s our AFSCME Agenda.

Public service workers across the country are losing their foothold in the middle class. So says an article in The New York Times this week that serves as a reminder of why labor unions are more needed now than ever.