Organizing for Power
From state to state, workers are joining AFSCME for a stronger voice on the job
Members of Miami-Dade County Local 199 (Florida Council 79) show their solidarity last year in the chambers of the Miami-Dade County Commission.
From state to state, workers are joining AFSCME for a stronger voice on the job
Florida
Building a union in ordinary times is tough enough. But the remarkable growth of Miami-Dade County Florida Employees Local 199 (Council 79) is proof that you can build a union even in the face of adversity. In fact, workers sought to join the union — representing 9,000 workers in Miami-Dade — because of the adversity.
Last summer, the local set a membership goal of 60 percent, from a starting point of 21 percent. It now approaches 32 percent — more than 1,000 new members. One of the volunteer member organizers responsible for that success is Mario Ambrose, 51, a record specialist with the Miami-Dade County Clerk of the Courts, as well as a steward and contract negotiating team member for Local 199.
Ambrose says he was “reared to believe that the union is one of the most important entities in a community,” and was eager to learn about organizing and determined to build the union’s strength.
Meeting with workers at their homes, Ambrose (and other organizers) made their case. “What I emphasized is that it’s a numbers game,” he said. “They don’t take us seriously because we don’t have the numbers. We need members to be able to fight.”
Fighting is exactly what they did. Members crowded the county commission budget hearings last year and reached out to the community to fight for public services. Also, Local 199’s contract was coming up for renegotiation.
Members ratified a new three-year contract in January. Although it contains some compromises, the union was ultimately able to preserve the bulk of the cost-of-living adjustment received last summer. It also maintains merit and longevity pay.
Still, workers continue to join Local 199. “They understand it’s going to take a union to fight, not a just a work unit,” says Ambrose.
Workers are also organizing with AFSCME in other states. Here is a list of some recent victories:
Illinois
One-hundred-and-seventy-five employees of the Village of Schaumburg have joined Council 31. Also joining the council: 55 employees of the State Board of Elections, through the state’s majority interest petition process; 25 employees at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, which agreed to voluntary recognition of the new AFSCME members; and 25 employees at the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana.
Massachusetts
Forty-two bus drivers, monitors and mechanics employed by First Student in Falmouth recently joined Council 93.
New Hampshire
Twenty-seven public works and recycling department employees of the Town of Hooksett voted overwhelmingly to form a union with Council 93.
New Mexico
Eighty corrections officers at the Bernalillo County Juvenile Detention Center have joined Council 18. Also gaining Council 18 representation: 34 court specialists at the Bernalillo County Courthouse, 20 corrections officers at Valencia County Detention Center and 15 dispatchers at the Grant County Regional Dispatch Authority.
New York
One hundred and eighty-eight full- and part-time time employees of Mastics-Moriches-Shirley Community Library on Long Island have joined Civil Service Employees Association (CSEA)/AFSCME Local 1000. Also joining CSEA: 70 Sodexo food service employees who work at Mount Saint Mary College. Voting overwhelmingly to join DC 1707 were 100 employees of Episcopal Social Services, which provides services to the developmentally disabled.
Washington
One-hundred and forty-two employees of homecare service provider Kitsap Tenant Support Services have joined Council 28, overcoming a vicious anti-union campaign that included the firing of eight workers.
