AFSCME, UAW Join Forces in New Hampshire

by   |  May 23, 2008

Reposted from the AFL-CIO Now Blog. Employees at the University of New Hampshire (UNH) are seeking a voice on the job through a historic coordinated effort by two unions – AFSCME and UAW. Kelly Hinton, an eight-year financial support specialist, says:

This is great news for all UNH employees. We feel that the two unions working together will be a good fit for the University alongside of the faculty union. Working together with AFSCME and the UAW means we are united and stronger.

Says Lonn Sattler, a veterans coordinator who has worked at UNH for 26 years:

This is a terrific opportunity for us to have a real, effective voice on the job. With two great unions working together, we can make UNH a better place to work.

Last year, the state Legislature passed legislation allowing state employees, including those at UNH, to form unions and bargain with their employers when a majority of workers sign union authorization cards. AFSCME and UAW agreed to coordinate organizing efforts and support the negotiating teams of all UNH workers who are successful in forming their own local unions and bargaining units. Under the agreement, clerical, technical, skilled trades and administrative employees and certain supervisory employees will be eligible to join AFSCME. Service and professional staff, adjunct faculty members and some supervisors will be eligible to become part of the UAW. Both unions say the partnership will help the workers. Says Bob Madore, director of UAW Region 9A:

Our goal is to help workers who want to form their own unions. By combining resources so we can work with AFSCME, we can be even more effective.

Alva Arellano, AFSCME’s director of organizing in New England, adds:

This is the right approach for UNH workers and for our two unions. We’re going to help UNH workers join together so they can have a voice in the decisions that affect their lives and improve the important public services they provide.