Our 21st Century Initiative
From the President, Gerald W. McEntee
Our proud union heritage has taught us never to allow defeats to be setbacks — at the bargaining table or at the polls. We're tough. We're committed. We're union. We know how to get back up and fight another day. It's who we are, what we do. That's how labor made major gains, from the 40-hour workweek to civil rights, from Medicare to collective bargaining.
Sisters and Brothers, so many things that are good about America came from us — the committed men and women of the labor movement — and we won't stop now.
NOV. 2 was a rough day. Although the margin of the Republican Presidential victory was only 51 percent to 48 percent, in elections who wins is all that matters.
AFSCME must regroup, rethink and rebuild, and we have a plan for doing that. It will guarantee that when we meet at our 2006 International Convention in Miami, we will be the finest union in the American labor movement. Our goal is to engage every member to assure that AFSCME is Number One. And the vehicle for reaching that goal is our Committee for the Twenty-First Century.
The delegates to the 36th International Convention in June established this committee to examine how to strengthen our union and make it more effective. To find out more about the group and its work, follow the committee link at AFSCME.
NEW WAY FOR A NEW DAY. To move us along on our road to success, the structure provides for five subcommittees. Each will concentrate on one action area.
The first area is growth.
We need to set goals for growing our union so we can be more effective at negotiating in the workplace and the halls of Congress. We need to attract nontraditional workers — and get them to join us. For those who aren't able to form a union, we need a membership program that gives them a voice. Organizing must be a top priority with every member, every local, every council and every affiliate.
The second area is politics. Without a strong political arm, we can't win elections. The truth is that decisions about job security, wages, pensions and health insurance are all political decisions made by politicians. So we need strategies and goals that involve affiliate leadership and full participation by all our members. Plus, we must continue to build coalitions.
Next, we are going to look at transforming our national structure so that it's more workable and efficient. To make sure this happens, we'll motivate and train staff at all levels of the union. We'll con sider education, mentoring and apprentice programs.
We must also focus on affiliate capacity. A strong program for affiliate leadership will top our list. In that way, we can build our councils' ability to be more effective in political action, education, organizing, communications, public policy and research, as well as representation in the workplace. Lastly, we must look at our dues structure. To move ahead in all the areas and get the job done, we need to have a stable, progressive dues structure.
In order for us to be at the top of the labor movement, everyone in this union — that means you, that means me — must get on board the Twenty-First Century AFSCME Express. In the coming year, we'll keep you posted through our Web site, Public Employee and meetings across the country. Most important in all of this is you, the members — what you think, what you want, what you do. If everyone becomes engaged in our Twenty-First Century Initiative, we will be the new AFSCME, and we will have more power than ever before.
