Oklahoma – City Employees Win Back Collective Bargaining Rights
AFSCME members in Muskogee, and their uniformed sisters and brothers in the fire and police departments, cheered the return of collective bargaining rights to the city’s non-uniformed employees.
The City Council’s ordinance restored the rights in July. AFSCME Local 2465 quickly filed a petition to qualify for a union recognition election – recognition that was stripped away after a state law repealed their rights last spring. In August, the workers had a chance to vote themselves, and overwhelmingly elected to restore their AFSCME union.
Winning back their bargaining rights came after members got involved in the spring City Council elections, securing the victory of three pro-worker candidates. Their fight to win back rights is also rooted in an earlier victory. When the city tried to privatize waste water treatment last year, members mobilized to stop it, saving city taxpayers $200,000.
“When we stopped the privatization of the plant, we saw the power of coming together as a union. We weren’t going to let anyone take away our rights and freedoms,” says Local 2465 member Dustin Williams, an aquatics technician in the Parks and Recreation department.
In addition to electing lawmakers who care about working families, members also got to work proving that employees wanted their union and a restoration of rights. “Our co-workers saw us standing up and they got involved too,” says Williams. “We successfully collected signatures from more than two-thirds of the employees urging the City Council to pass this ordinance.”
The next step: negotiating a contract that protects workers’ wages, benefits and safe working conditions.
Their victory proves that – even in hostile “right-to-work-for-less” states – AFSCME won’t back down from fighting and organizing against those who hurt America’s middle-class families.
“We’re not just fighting for us,” says Williams. “We’re fighting for our children and your children. Everyone should have the same rights and a voice.”
