Publications

June 10, 2005

It's been a very good several days for AFSCME and its interests, with major successes in Washington state (politics) and in Tennessee and Connecticut (privatization):

Gregoire for good

Democrat (and former AFSCME member) Christine Gregoire is at long last the official, no-ifs-or-buts governor of Washington. After three vote counts and a number of lawsuits, a Superior Court judge ruled that Republicans had failed to demonstrate that Gregoire's razor-thin voting margin (129 votes) resulted from irregularities at the polls. Although more than 10 times that number of illegal votes were cast, the judge said. there is no evidence that the Democrat benefited from them; nor is there evidence of "partisan bias" among election workers. Many observers expected Republican candidate Dino Rossi to appeal further. Instead, he conceded defeat.

'We'll stay public'

That's what the sheriff and mayor of Shelby County, Tennessee, announced earlier this week in a surprising rejection of Corrections Corporation of America's proposal to privatize management of the county's prison and jail. Too many unanswered questions -- mostly about cost savings -- still need addressing, said the two officials. At stake were more than 1,000 jobs held by Local 1733, as well as (for CCA) a management contract worth $200 million plus cash incentives of at least $30 million per facility. The victory rewards a vigorous struggle waged by the Grassroots Leadership coalition in which AFSCME is a leading participant. The coalition works for justice across the United States.

'No' to privatization

Strong grass-roots efforts by members of Connecticut Council 4 helped push through the legislature a stunning piece of legislation: a ban on state and quasi-public-agency privatization and contracting out for up to four years. The action grows out of the legal and ethical transgressions, and eventual resignation, of former Governor Rowland (R). But it was made possible by relentless member lobbying together with a media campaign conducted by a coalition of state employee unions. Says council Exec. Dir. & IVP Sal Luciano, "As the Rowland administration showed, privatization leads to corruption when the people doing business with government actually begin to own the government through illegal favors and outright payoffs. Privatized public services create an impenetrable accountability shield for the government. Services intended to serve the public then cease to be responsive to them and only serve to make their rich owners wealthier."

Fourth Iraq-War death

Oregon National Guard Sgt. John Ogburn III has become the fourth AFSCME member to die in Iraq-related military action. A resident of Fruitland, Idaho, Ogburn was a member of Local 3940 (Council 75) at the Snake River Correctional Institution (SRCI) in Ontario. He worked as a corrections officer there for three years before being deployed to Iraq in June 2004. Ogburn, 45, died near Kirkuk in a vehicle accident. He was assigned to a unit that was conducting peacekeeping missions in Iraq. When representatives of his local asked that the flag at SRCI be lowered to half staff, the prison administration said it did not have the authority to do so. Local officials then contacted longtime Oregon AFSCME corrections lobbyist Mary Botkin, who set the proper wheels in motion.

Contracts: Two up ...

Wisconsin Council 40 members in the Pulaski Department of Public Works ratified a three-year contract that includes a wage increase of 2.5 percent, retroactive from Jan. 1; a 2.5 percent hike on Jan. 1, 2006; and an additional 3 percent on Jan. 1, 2007. The employer will also continue to pay 85 percent of single and family health care insurance premiums.

After voting last week to authorize a strike, some 200 workers at Illinois' DeKalb County Rehabilitation got what they wanted from management. The members of Local 3537 (Council 31), who had been working without a contract since last December, sought the same pay package offered to county administrative employees, and their bosses finally came across: a hefty, 5.5- percent pay increase the first year plus a reduction from 25 to 15 percent in their share of health care insurance premiums; annual pay hikes for the next three years of 3, 3 and 3.75 percent, respectively.

... One down

AFSCME Local 500 rejected a proposed two-year agreement with Kansas City, Mo. It called for a 3.2 percent, across-the-board increase in the first year and a 3- to 4-percent raise, based on performance, in the second. Ninety percent of the local members voted against the deal.

Pensions protected

In Illinois, AFSCME Council 31 and other public employee unions were successful in turning back a plan pushed by Governor Blagojevich (D) to cut pension benefits for future hires. State legislators credited a months-long campaign of grass-roots activism by union members with protecting the pensions. The campaign's activities included town hall meetings around the state, coordinated call-in days and full-page newspaper ads placed in key markets.


 

 

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