The workers, members of UNAC/UHCP, an AFSCME affiliate, are holding the line for better conditions for both providers and patients. This includes safer staffing levels and ensuring that patients get access to timely, quality care.  

UNAC/UHCP members report that Kaiser frequently double- and triple-books patients for appointment times, leading to delays that prevent patients from seeing their care providers for months at a time. 

"I've been here 38 years. This is not the same Kaiser I came to,” said Marla Hunt, a registered nurse at Kaiser West Lost Angeles and a member of her local bargaining team. “The Kaiser I came to, they cared about the patients, they cared about the nurses. They cared if you were happy at work and wanted to come back the next day. But now, they don't care. They want us to work at the top of our scope and do more with less. And the patients are the ones who suffer.” 

While Kaiser demands workers do more with less and claims it cannot afford to safely staff its hospitals, Kaiser's own financial reporting shows that the health care giant made over $9.3 billion in profits last year. Additionally, Kaiser currently has more than $76 billion in reserves.  

Four weeks into the strike, UNAC/UHCP members are staying strong by looking to one another for support. 

"Solidarity has been our strongest ally,” said Giana Valenzula, a registered nurse at Kaiser West Los Angeles. “We've been encouraging each other, communicating with each other, and reminding each other of what we're fighting for.” 

As they continue to fight back, Hunt is thinking about the next generation.  

“I’m fighting for the nurses in the future,” she said, “because if we don’t fight now, it’s going to get worse.” 

That’s from the latest annual report on union membership by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), published today. The report affirms Gallup polling that shows Americans’ support for unions remains near all-time highs and makes clear that unions are growing in the United States, even in the face of an administration run by billionaires and hostile to workers’ rights.

AFSCME President Lee Saunders said the report shows the power of the union difference.

“Despite unrelenting attacks on working people, public service workers are organizing, securing strong contracts, expanding collective bargaining and building power in workplaces and communities,” Saunders said in a press release.

AFSCME itself grew by 5% in 2025, thanks to important victories across the country. This growth didn’t happen by chance but was thanks to workers taking action. For example:

• AFSCME’s Cultural Workers United campaign has grown to over 50,000 members nationwide across premier museums and libraries.
• Following a 2022 law that enshrined their collective bargaining rights — and that they helped make a reality — county workers in Colorado are forming unions.
• AFSCME members in Virginia helped elect pro-worker leaders currently working to expand collective bargaining rights to the vast majority of public workers in the state.
• In Utah, AFSCME members and a coalition of labor partners defeatedan anti-union effort in Utah that would have stripped public sector workers of their union rights on the job.

These victories span red states and blue states, large institutions and small workplaces and clearly demonstrate that support for unions is wide, deep and growing.

Saunders also said workers are leading the effort to create an economy that “puts working families first.”

“As corporations and billionaires continue to raise costs on everything from groceries to health care, workers understand that joining a union gives them the strength in numbers they need to fight for what they’ve earned, protect their freedoms and build a better future for their families,” he said.

“The administration’s attacks on the workers who provide life-saving services during disasters are shameful and put lives across the country at risk,” said AFSCME President Lee Saunders. “When homes flood, hurricanes and tornadoes devastate communities, or wildfires burn through neighborhoods, FEMA employees show up to help families through the worst days of their lives. Dismantling this workforce will lead to slower response times and preventable loss of life, and further strain emergency response as state and local workers, including AFSCME members, lose this critical support.”  

Saunders also said AFSCME members are fighting back. 

“We will not stand by while the administration recklessly dismantles this essential workforce,” he added. 

In the complaint filed in federal court in California, AFSCME and a coalition of other unions, local governments, and nonprofit organizations say the attempt to slash FEMA staffing levels ignores the will of Congress to adequately fund the agency responsible for protecting people and property in disasters and other emergency situations. The coalition has asked the judge for an emergency order to block the cuts, and a hearing has been scheduled for March 3. 

AFSCME members who work for state and local emergency response agencies worry that the federal cuts would harm their ability to serve their communities. Without adequate staffing at FEMA, critical grant programs are delayed. This not only strains local and state budgets, creating uncertainty and job insecurity, but it stalls the critical disaster preparedness and recovery that AFSCME members carry out every day. 

“What is most concerning to me about the cuts to FEMA, however, is how it will impact our ability to carry out (the Oregon Department of Emergency Management’s) mission that I and my fellow bargaining unit members care so much about,” said Lilli Lessey, president of AFSCME Local 3241, which represents employees at the Oregon Department of Emergency Management (OEM).  

Lessey is a public assistance program representative at OEM and her declaration was submitted to the judge in support of the motion to block the cuts.  

“We took these jobs because we wanted to help make Oregon communities safer and more resilient,” Lessey also said. “We know that Congress has allocated resources exactly for this purpose. Further cuts to FEMA means that we can’t do the essential work of ensuring that this funding reaches communities in need.” 

Plaintiffs in the case include AFGE, AFSCME, SEIU, the City and County of San Francisco, Calif.; Santa Clara County, Calif.; the City of Chicago, Ill.; the City of Baltimore, Md.; Harris County, Texas; and King County, Wash., and nonprofit organizations.  

The FEMA case is part of an April 2025 lawsuit challenging the overall downsizing of the federal government without congressional authority. 

Victims of natural disasters already face huge economic challenges to replace or repair their homes and belongings, and state and local governments likewise take on tremendous costs to restore damaged infrastructure and public facilities that residents rely on. A smaller, weaker FEMA makes that process even harder. 

AFSCME members around the country are committed to protecting lives and property, and our union will fight for them to have the resources and strong federal partner they need to get the job done. 

No billionaire tax cut is worth the damage that these cuts to FEMA would cause to working families and our communities. 

Fortunately, they were determined to persevere no matter what.

As the only non-unionized public sector workers in Utah, the group of dedicated library workers spent nearly two years after their campaign went public organizing for their right to collectively bargain.

The process to win collective bargaining rights required two steps: first, the Salt Lake City Public Library had to approve a resolution outlining a union recognition process. Then, the Salt Lake City Council would have to approve their right to unionize, which finally occurred on Feb. 4, 2025.

However, a little over a week later, Utah Gov. Spencer Cox signed House Bill 267 into law, which aimed to effectively kill public sector collective bargaining across the state.

Even though HB 267 was slated to go into effect on July 1, 2025, SLCPL workers pressed forward. They began preparing for a union election while simultaneously joining citizen-led referendum efforts to put HB 267 on hold pending a statewide vote.

And on May 1, 2025, SLCPL workers made history by winning their union election by a 92% vote. The May Day victory positioned Salt Lake City Public Library Workers United as the first library union in Utah.

Despite the threat of HB 267 still looming at the time, SLCPL workers began negotiating their first union contract in late August. Time was of the essence: they needed to secure a contract so that all economic agreements would make it into the following year’s fiscal budget.

Less than three months later, on Nov. 13, 2025, SLCPL Workers United announced they had reached a tentative agreement in an emotional Instagram post:

“We are finally here. It has taken nearly 4 years of advocating, meeting with coworkers, changing laws, fighting the legislation and learning. We are extremely proud of our work and are committed to democracy where all workers have voice at the table.”

Members of SLCPL Workers United voted to ratify the tentative agreement, and the library board followed suit in December 2025. The Salt Lake City Council gave its final stamp of approval on Feb. 3, 2026.

Now, approximately 350 of the city’s library workers will see significant base pay increases across the board, guaranteed 5.5% raises every year through 2028, a new grievance procedure and telehealth opportunities for part-time workers.

“Winning this contract feels so much bigger than us,” said Christina Ordonez, an associate librarian who has worked at Salt Lake City Public Library for eight years. “With every challenge that came our way, we kept saying, ‘We’re not going to let this stop us. This isn’t over.’ I’m so proud of all the good trouble we’ve gotten into and everything we’ve accomplished, especially in a red state like Utah.”

AFSCME and its co-plaintiffs have filed a motion seeking a preliminary injunction against the freeze, supported by AFSCME members’ declarations. The freeze was temporarily halted in late January by a federal judge in a different case brought by the five targeted states, and while the states’ preliminary injunction remains in place for now, it is not a final judgment, so AFSCME’s action remains of critical importance.  

“If my clients can no longer afford child care, they will have to make hard decisions about leaving the workforce, which in turn has cascading effects on their well-being, our community, and the country at large,” said Janna Rodriguez, a member of CSEA and a child care provider in New York. “Paying child care providers on time is not optional. It is the foundation that allows working families, children, and the broader economy to function.” 

The challenge to the unlawful funding freeze, filed by AFSCME and several AFSCME affiliates, together with SEIU and the Main Street Alliance, states that the Trump administration is ignoring the legally-required process for halting such funding, targeting the affected states for improper partisan reasons and violating the First Amendment rights of the residents of those states. In addition to AFSCME, the AFSCME affiliate plaintiffs include United Domestic Workers (UDW/AFSCME Local 3930), AFSCME Council 31 and AFSCME Council 57. The plaintiffs are represented by lawyers from the pro-democracy organization Democracy Forward, as well as in-house counsel for AFSCME and SEIU. 

“Child care providers ensure that parents can go to work and kids can thrive,” AFSCME President Lee Saunders said in a press statement. “These services form the backbone of our economy, but instead of strengthening them, this administration is cruelly and illegally targeting child care providers, children and working parents to settle a political score.” 

AFSCME is not only representing the interests of its child care provider members, but also AFSCME members who themselves benefit from these subsidies, as well as AFSCME members whose state and local government jobs involve administering the funds at issue. 

Courtney Benton, of AFSCME Council 31 in Illinois, is a public health care worker and mother of two. She told the court that without the federal subsidy, her son’s preschool would be too expensive and she’d have to quit her job to stay home with him. 

“I simply cannot afford both my mortgage and the full cost of preschool,” Benton said. “The child care subsidy that I receive has enabled me to have a career, to contribute to my community by caring for others, and to maintain a home for my children.” 

The voices of these child care professionals and union members are critical in challenging the Trump-Vance administration’s plan to cut child care and other family assistance programs. The unlawful funding freeze endangers children and families in California, Colorado, Illinois, Minnesota and New York, especially those from low-income and single-parent households. 

“Losing that subsidy would mean losing nearly my entire enrollment and being unable to cover expenses like rent, payroll, food, or utilities,” said Juana Cortez, a member of UDW and child care provider in California. Of the 10 children in her care, eight are from families who qualify for the aid. 

Erika Prado predicts that her California child care program would close after two months if the subsidies are cut, since seven of the 12 children enrolled in her program are fully funded by the subsidies at issue and could be forced to leave.  

"I cannot run my business for long with tuition money from only five children," said Prado, a member of UDW. "I would be forced to lay off my two assistant teachers and consider closing my business altogether." 

In addition to the economic harm, AFSCME members also worried about the impact on the children they have dedicated their lives to care for, some of whom have special needs, and all of whom would lose access to important developmental and enrichment programs. 

Said Benton: “I feel confident sending (my son) to preschool where I know he is fed quality food, he is learning to read, he has good friends he enjoys playing with every day, and he has caregivers who love him. Nobody in my family is equipped to replace, for free, the professional care and education that he receives.” 

Read more about the lawsuit, AFSCME v. HHS, here. 

The event was hosted by Rep. John Larson, Rep. Richard Neal, the ranking member of the House Ways and Means Committee, and Rep. Joe Morelle, the ranking member of the House Administration Committee, who announced a Resolution of Inquiry — a measure to compel the Trump administration to hand over all their records relating to DOGE’s efforts to obtain Social Security Administration data. The Resolution of Inquiry was co-sponsored by every Democrat on the House Ways and Means Committee. 

“I’m here today as someone who relies on Social Security, and I’m proud to speak on behalf of the 2,500 AFSCME retirees who have called for an investigation into the misuse of our Social Security data by DOGE,” said Lyles, a member of Maryland AFSCME Retirees Chapter 1. 

“Seniors and people with disabilities have enough to worry about,” said Lyles, referring to the affordability crisis that so many seniors face. “We shouldn’t also have to worry about our Social Security data being misused or put at risk by billionaires who will never have to rely on a Social Security check to keep a roof over their heads or a meal on their tables.” 

Since then, several localities have agreed to give their workers a voice. Workers have won first-ever union contracts in dozens of city, county and local school districts, including major AFSCME victories in the City of Alexandria and Arlington County.  

Despite strong public support for Virginia public employees, too many anti-worker politicians have so far refused to even bring local collective bargaining bills to a vote. Even worse, critical public employees working for the state and its higher education institutions were not included at all.  

“It is simply not right that our freedom to be a part of a union is dependent on our zip code,” said Natalie Boyd Thomas, a social worker and AFSCME organizing committee member in the City of Portsmouth. “We show up every day and work hard to make our communities better and stronger; we deserve the same rights and freedoms as anyone else.” 

However, last month, state legislation championed by AFSCME and coalition partners was reintroduced to expand collective bargaining rights to all Virginia public service workers. It is supported by Gov. Abigail Spanberger. 

“State workers deserve a voice,” said Shenitia Banks, a direct service associate at the Northern Virginia Mental Health Institute. “Throughout the commonwealth, we work during emergencies, hold critical agencies and services together, and do it all with dedication and compassion every day. To address problems like staffing shortages and other issues that impact services, we must have a seat at the table.” 

Virginia is one of a handful of southern states that have for decades, dating back to the Jim Crow era, explicitly banned public service workers from entering into collective bargaining agreements with their employers. 

Research shows that strong collective bargaining laws help states reduce staff vacancies and turnover, improve public services and decrease racial and gender wage disparities.   

There is already evidence in Virginia that collective bargaining improves wages and staffing levels. As of 2024, roughly 1 in 5 state jobs were unfilled, and the median salary across the state workforce was a full $5,000 less than the median city employee salary in Richmond, which has adopted its own collective bargaining ordinance, according to the Economic Policy Institute. 

AFSCME members in Virginia are coming together to demand that 2026 be the year that all vital public employees in the state have a real seat at the table.  

This new rule would restrict access to federal student loans for these and other dedicated professionals who want to pursue a graduate degree. As a result, the path to an advanced degree would be blocked for many nurses, social workers and others from important public service fields. 

Workers nationwide already face severe staffing shortages in these fields. And if the pipeline of nurse practitioners and other vital health care professions dries up, all Americans, especially those in rural communities, would struggle to receive the health care they need. 

The administration should be working to support people who want to join these honorable careers by making it easier and more affordable to pursue additional training and certifications.  

But instead, they’re making higher education less affordable. This rule is an insult to the workers who dedicate their lives to caring for others and will harm our communities by shrinking the pool of talented public service professionals at a time when we need them the most.  

You can join the fight to protect the path to higher education for these professionals. Submit a comment today to the Department of Education.  

Tell them that nurses, social workers, and public health workers are professionals.   

When members of Local 1899 realized that weekend hours were not being properly counted towards overtime hours, they filed a grievance to resolve the matter. Howard County Schools refused to resolve the dispute, and the case went to arbitration where an independent arbitrator agreed that Howard County Schools violated labor law and owed the workers compensation for the miscalculated hours.  

“This was a huge, huge win for our Local 1899. We felt that HCPSS was wrong in how they were paying us, and the arbitrator agreed,” said Glenda Robertson, president of Local 1899 and lead custodian at Wilde Lake Middle School. “Hopefully this puts HCPSS on notice that we will not tolerate them wrongfully taking money from us.” 

Additionally, Local 1899 was able to use this arbitration win to clarify emergency callback procedures and make sure that all callbacks are considered “emergencies” and will be paid out at the emergency rate of twice the workers’ regular pay. This agreement also means that many affected workers will receive payouts for emergency callbacks they worked but were not paid fairly for.  

“This is one of the many ways that a strong union contract makes a difference in people’s lives,” said Patrick Moran, president of AFSCME Maryland Council 3. “Workers at Howard County Schools are getting paid what is owed to them, and that wouldn’t be possible without a strong contract and grievance and arbitration process to hold employers accountable.” 

Payouts on both issues –– stolen overtime wages and emergency callback pay –– have already begun, and more are expected soon.  

Currently, Local 1899 members are in negotiations with the school on their new contract that will take effect in July, fighting for fair pay, better policies on emergency callbacks, and more.  

For Woodson, this designation wasn’t just about recognizing the past. It was meant to “inspire us to greater achievements” in the future, as he once put it. A century later, during Black History Month, we celebrate the civil rights and labor rights leaders who came before us.

People like A. Philip Randolph, who founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters — the nation’s first all-Black labor union — and who organized the 1963 March on Washington that helped stir the conscience of the nation. People like longtime AFSCME Secretary-Treasurer Bill Lucy, co-founder and first president of the Coalition of Black Trade Unionists, who was a key figure in helping end apartheid in South Africa.

And people like the AFSCME sanitation workers in Memphis, who in 1968 went on strike for safer working conditions and a living wage — one of American history’s most iconic struggles for both racial and economic justice.

Today, we remember their sacrifices. But we also recognize that Black History Month has never been simply a time capsule of the past. It’s a celebration of our struggle — past, present, and future — and a reminder that one voice can lead to a chorus of collective action that refuses to be silenced.

In 2026, we need more voices speaking up for working people.

Black workers everywhere face challenges to their very survival. They’re being squeezed on all sides by the rising cost of everything from groceries to housing to child care and health care. Meanwhile, anti-worker politicians are more focused on cutting taxes for the rich than helping working families stay above water.

But it goes deeper than that.

Throughout our nation’s history, public service jobs have been a ladder to the middle class for African American families. Even while we were turned away from the private sector, Black workers could find good-paying, union jobs in public service.

That’s why for over 150 years, Black communities have seen the United States Postal Service as a source for economic security. It’s why my father could get a union job as a bus driver for the city of Cleveland and provide a stable life for my brother and me. And it’s why to this day, around one in six African American workers have public sector jobs. For those Americans and the families who rely on them, a public service job with a union card has meant a path to a better life.

But in 2026, all that is at risk. For the last twelve months, we’ve seen a targeted campaign by the Trump administration to decimate the public workforce — forcing out hundreds of thousands of federal employees, stripping away collective bargaining rights for those who remain, and making unprecedented budget cuts that will endanger state and local public services that Americans rely on.

By attacking public service workers and stripping away their freedom to have a voice on the job, we’re not just witnessing an attack on public services — we’re seeing a wholesale attack on African Americans’ path to the American Dream.

That’s the current reality for Black workers. But it doesn’t have to be the future.

For the last hundred years, the power of the civil rights and labor movements has come from our collective action — our ability to band together and make the voices of the many speak louder than the commands of the few.

Now is the time to support our public service workers. Now is the time to stand up, speak up, and demand more for working people. Don’t just witness history, be part of it: join a union and organize your workplace. Call your congressmember and tell them to protect our public services. Educate and inform your friends and loved ones about the threats we face. And get off the sidelines and vote in this year’s primary and general elections.

We don’t have to accept a government of, by, and for the wealthy as the new normal. In fact, 100 years of Black History Month shows us that we decide what happens next. It only takes one voice to start a movement, and demand more.

He works hard to protect rural communities across Southwest Wisconsin.  

“Unlike traditional law enforcement, my role as a conservation warden is to catch polluters and poachers, and protect our natural resources,” Gruber explained.

“We also do a lot of law enforcement work and provide rescue services within our state park system.” 

Building communities with strong public services 

Serving as a community law enforcement officer gives him a unique perspective on the challenges people are facing. Affordability is the top concern for working families like his. 

“Everybody’s fighting tooth and nail,” he said. “It's really difficult to watch working families struggle to put food on the table and gas in the car while we see billionaires continue to profit off of the work that everyday people are doing.” 

Now, Gruber is running for the state assembly. He is laser-focused on making life more affordable for working families and strengthening essential services people rely on. 

“One of the biggest challenges we face is properly funding our communities and our public schools,” he said. “That is something that I believe we need to fix. There are solutions available.” 

Public safety cuts hurt communities 

He’s seen first-hand how cutting essential services makes our communities less safe. 

Gruber spoke about how he helped save someone’s life in 2024 after getting an emergency call about a woman who had stopped breathing. He performed CPR for more than 20 minutes while waiting for an ambulance to arrive. 

The woman survived thanks to his quick response. He and a village police officer were later honored for their courageous work. 

“We received our awards the very night that our village board had to close our police department because they had to choose between water to flush the toilets and public safety,” Gruber recalled. 

Now, there are even fewer first responders in the area. This has put more strain on officers like Gruber and left residents more vulnerable in emergency situations. 

A fighter for working families 

Gruber is the former president of his union, AFSCME Local 1215, and he currently serves on the AFSCME Council 32 executive board. His experience in the union showed him that workers are powerful when we stand together. 

“As a union leader, my job is to fight for the people in my union,” he said. “And as a state legislator, my job will be to fight for the people in my district and people across the state.” 

He is pushing for stronger union rights as a lead plaintiff in the court case to overturn Act 10. 

If elected to office, Gruber said he will be a strong voice for workers and families who feel forgotten by their state government. 

“That really is why I'm running, because I've been there. I've been the person who showed up when your grandma fell. I've been there to deliver your babies. I've come to your kids’ funerals after I was there and tried to save them,” he said. “I have shown up my entire life to serve.” 

Public safety professionals are turning to AFSCME to build power at work, and advocate for safety on the job, better wages, good health care and a secure retirement. AFSCME members in corrections, law enforcement and emergency response defend our freedoms and our communities. 

Visit the AFSCME Public Safety website to get involved and learn more. 

Their employer had been crying wolf for a long time, claiming they didn’t have money to give their workers the wage increases they deserved — despite the institution’s huge increases in revenue and net worth. 

But as the White House made drastic cuts to higher education and research funding at the beginning of 2025, the Portland-based research institution and teaching hospital faced real financial challenges as well. The uncertainty, management told leaders of Local 328 (AFSCME Oregon), was real.  

However, the workers who keep OHSU running — pharmacists, front-line health care providers, scientists, administrative staff and more — knew their value and were ready. 

“It was a very tough fight,” said Jennie Olson, president of Local 328 and a research grant administrator at the university. “We agreed at the beginning that our goal was to raise up the lowest-paid workers at OHSU closer to what the MIT living wage standard is for Portland, Oregon. That’s $27 an hour.” 

Their tenacity paid off.  

In January, they ratified a new tentative agreement that brings many wins, including a $25 minimum wage by the end of the contract — very close to their target goal of $27 an hour — setting a new standard for the city of Portland. 

And there were significant ratification bonuses for the workers as well: $4,500 for full-time employees and $2,250 for part-time workers. 

And there were other improvements. 

Retirement benefits were firmed up and now can’t be changed by their employer. They won more expansive leave benefits along with even more robust rights for workers — from job protections to time-off protections and more.   

The new contract is a great example of workers who refused to waver and knew the critical value of their contributions to their workplace and community. 

Their victory is another example of the union difference.  

“When you’re not in a union, you’re just one person,” says Jennie Olson. “You’re at the will of management or a CEO. But when you’re in a union, you’re not one person. You can be 8,000 people, demanding to be paid with dignity, to have protections at the workplace. Being in a union is so profoundly different.” 

“When management proposed a zero-pay increase when groceries prices are way up, when home insurance rates keep jumping up and on and on, we knew we were up for a hard fight,” said Elizabeth Segura, a medical secretary at JHS and the recording secretary of AFSCME Local 1363.

So, they formed a coalition with their co-workers in SEIU Local 1991 and the Committee of Interns and Residents/SEIU to call for a 4% COLA and unity when it came to bargaining and actions.

“We knew that at the end of the day, zero was not going to happen, but we didn’t want them to weaken our power through different offers at the bargaining table,” said Segura. “So, we made sure that we were all in the room together, at the same time, asking for the same thing — what we deserve for the work we do.”

And it wasn’t just at the bargaining table where they made their united voices heard, they also took action at worksites. In early December, the unions combined for a massive rally at Jackson’s main hospital. Workers spoke out and shared their support for the 4% COLA through tagging JHS in social media posts from the rally.

Just before Christmas, they delivered a petition to Carlos Migoya, president and CEO of Jackson Health System, signed by workers across the county and more than 1,000 AFSCME members alone.

“We made sure we were visible at work with stickers and as much AFSCME green as we could get,” said Segura. “But the action that made the biggest difference was the members turning out every bargaining session to fill the room and show our unity. That is some strength that management won’t soon forget.”

Members of United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP), the health care professionals are fighting for their patients — and a whole lot more.

They are fighting for better staffing levels. They are fighting for timely access to quality care. They are fighting for a voice in decisions that affect their patients. And they are fighting for better wages and respect at the bargaining table.

They are people like Christabel Vann Nguyen, a night-shift operating room nurse who works at Kaiser Irvine.

“We’re tired of [Kaiser’s] lack of commitment to our patients and the lack of respect they show for our work,” said Vann Nguyen. We give our all every day and we don’t have the necessary resources. We're here asking Kaiser to come to the table for our patients, so we can provide better care for everybody.”

Most UNAC/UHCP members have been bargaining with Kaiser since last May, with some bargaining since January 2024.

UNAC/UHCP’s contract with Kaiser expired on Sept. 30. In October, members held a five-day work stoppage to spotlight the issues they were facing.

In December, the union filed an unfair labor practice with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging that Kaiser attempted to bypass the agreed-upon national bargaining process and interfere with good-faith negotiations.

UNAC/UHCP represents 41,000 registered nurses and front-line health care professionals in California and Hawaii — 31,000 of whom work at Kaiser Permanente. They include physician assistants, certified nurse midwives, pharmacists, physical therapists, speech-language pathologists, and more.

And according to Gerard Corros, a day shift charge nurse in Orange County and member of the Southern California nurses bargaining team, they are the “glue that makes health care go.”

“When you need something in health care, you look for a nurse,” says Corros. “A physician cannot be a physician without a nurse. Health care will not be going anywhere without your health care professionals, without the PAs and MPs and nursing professionals.”

Kelli Rubidoux, a physical therapist who works at Kaiser’s Anaheim campus, shared a message with Kaiser’s CEO that echoes the feelings of all the striking Kaiser workers, who are demanding Kaiser return to the bargaining table.

“Show up, knock it off,” she said. “Let's go and get this settled. Do the right thing.”

The victory comes at a time when the county has an aging population and demand for home care services is skyrocketing. One in four residents is expected to be over the age of 60 by the year 2030.

Workers who receive wages through the state’s In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program provide home care services to the elderly and people with disabilities. They make it possible for their clients to live with dignity, health and freedom by assisting them with daily needs such as bathing, feeding, grocery shopping, medication reminders and companionship.

The new, three-year agreement will help these workers better afford the rising cost of living and support their families. United Domestic Workers (UDW/AFSCME Local 3930) represents just over 4,200 IHSS workers in Santa Barbara County and over 220,000 home care and child care providers in California.

“Together, we’re able to achieve higher pay for thousands of home care workers in Santa Barbara County,” said Courtney Cazenave, a Santa Barbara County IHSS worker. “We’re going to keep pushing for higher pay, training, and benefits so that home care workers are fully compensated for their vital contributions to our communities.”

The contract was approved by 98% of member voters and went into effect at the beginning of this month.

“Our Santa Barbara members are the backbone of our community, serving seniors and people with disabilities,” said Doug Moore, executive director of UDW and an AFSCME International vice president. “In 2026, we’re going to keep fighting for home care workers to be paid fairly for their vital work.”

And like many children who grow up bilingual, she didn’t always appreciate it when her parents forced her to speak their language inside the house. But that was then. Today, she is grateful that her fluency in Spanish allows her to serve her community in more ways than one.

A registered nurse for the Madison County (Ill.) Health Department, Golden works in the communicable diseases and sexually transmitted diseases programs. She serves patients who come in for testing, exams and follow-up interviews, and she provides them information and resources. Many of them are anxious about the reason for their appointment in the first place; those who face a language barrier even more so.

“I try to ease the anxiety and embarrassment that many people feel when they come in, especially for an STD,” Golden says. “I like to tell them that it’s okay, there’s nothing to be ashamed of. Those who speak only Spanish are often grateful that I helped lessen their anxiety. They feel better just knowing there is someone who can translate for them.”

Bobbie Tetidrick, a colleague of Golden’s who is also a registered nurse, says she often relies on Golden to call her Spanish-speaking patients, and Golden always responds “without blinking an eye.”

“Noemi goes the extra mile to make sure she can be the nurse for every Spanish-speaking person that walks in needing assistance, so they feel more comfortable getting the care they came to get,” Tetidrick says. “Her heart is big and she loves her community, and she refuses to not stand up and help, even when she has 60 other things waiting on her.”

For her service to her community, Golden, a member of AFSCME Local 799 (Council 31), is a winner of our union’s Never Quit Service Award. The award recognizes public service workers who go above and beyond the call of duty to make their communities better.

Golden, who has been with the health department for over 10 years and has served as a nurse for over 25, says her main drive is her children. She has three — Isaac, 25; Kylee, 21; and 17-year-old Shayna, a junior in high school.

They inspire her to serve other families in the best way she can.

“When families come in and they don’t speak the language, you feel for them, because they’re just as human as everyone else and they deserve to be treated the same as everyone,” Golden says. “We don’t know their story. The point is they’re here and they need help. If we can give them the resources they need, that’s what drives me. That’s what makes me feel good: knowing I made a difference in their lives.”

Last week, school employees of the Springfield Local School District — members of Local 478 of the Ohio Association of Public School Employees (OAPSE/AFSCME Local 4) — ended a weeklong walkout after reaching a tentative agreement with the district. The vote to ratify was 64 to 1. That kind of margin does not happen by accident. It happens when people are united and know they have each other’s backs.

The agreement includes a 3% wage increase retroactive to July 1, 2025. Just as important, workers fought back proposed concessions on health care and secured a contract with minimal changes to their health insurance. That matters. Health care is not a perk. It is how working families take care of their kids, their parents and themselves.

Too often, when budgets get tight, the first instinct of management is to ask working people to give up something. Less coverage. Delayed raises. More uncertainty. Springfield Township school employees said no. They drew a line and stood together until the district listened.

This win is a reminder of what makes AFSCME strong. Real power comes from working people coming together, speaking up for one another and refusing to be divided. When we stick together, we can protect what matters and win real improvements for our families and our communities.

In city halls and state capitals, AFSCME public safety professionals lobbied for laws that will give workers more power on the job and more financial security when they retire. These new laws will allow them to better serve their communities and make public safety a more sustainable profession.  

At the bargaining table, they showed their union pride, standing up to bosses, proving they deserve more for the difficult and dangerous work they do. Tenacious and united, many AFSCME public safety locals won strong new contracts.  

And as public service workers everywhere faced threats from anti-union extremists and billionaires, AFSCME public safety professionals joined the fight through AFSCME’s Get Organized campaign.  

Take a look at how AFSCME’s public safety professionals flexed their muscle last year and are gearing up to do the same in 2026. 

Visit the AFSCME Public Safety website to get involved and learn more.

And it could get even worse: child care is now on the chopping block.

Earlier this month, the Trump administration announced it was freezing over $10 billion in critical federal funding set aside to help families afford child care and the rising cost of living. For now, that means parents in five states where the White House has a political axe to grind — Minnesota, New York, California, Illinois, and Colorado — could be left scrambling to find care.

This is a blatant, targeted attack on working people. It’s an attack on children who deserve a safe space to learn and grow. It’s an attack on all of the child care providers — thousands of whom are AFSCME members — who rely on this funding to keep their doors open. And it’s an attack on every working parent who counts on reliable, affordable child care so that they can go to work each day and earn a living.

It’s heartbreaking. And yet sadly, it’s not surprising.

This latest scheme comes from the same pro-billionaire playbook this administration has used throughout its first year in office. It’s part of the same campaign that has cut health care and taken food off Americans’ tables to pay for tax cuts for the wealthy.

Make no mistake: not a single billionaire will lose access to their child care or scramble to arrange for someone to look after their child as a result of these freezes. For them, this kind of essential service isn’t a lifeline to hold on to — it’s a line item to cut.

The Trump administration isn’t just ignoring the cost-of-living crisis we find ourselves in. They’re actively making it worse.

But we’re fighting back — because we believe that in America, you shouldn’t have to choose between raising a family or earning a living. And we believe that children and working parents should be high priorities, not political hostages, for our elected leaders.

A federal judge has issued a temporary pause to the child care funding freeze, but we still have work to do to help working families. AFSCME members must continue to organize, to talk to our co-workers about what’s at stake, to call Congress and share with them the devastating impact of deep cuts in child care funding and call on them to invest even more. And we will use our political power, too — in this year’s elections, we will remember which politicians stood with children and families and which ones betrayed them.

We’re not helpless when we’re united. And we’re not powerless when we speak with one, unified voice. Even as anti-worker forces set out to dismantle essential services and enrich themselves, we’ll keep fighting to make sure the American Dream remains within reach for all working parents, and that means making child care affordable for all.

The agreement includes: 

• Wage enhancements, a new minimum wage and wage compression counter measures; 

• Stronger grievance language; 

• A sick bank seeded with 20 days paid leave for members in times of need; 

• Longevity payments for the first time ever; 

• And a reinstatement of a fifth week of vacation for all workers with 15 years of service to the city.  

“Our local members showed up, not only at the bargaining table through our bargaining team, but also at the ballot box to have their voices heard,” said Craig Sippel, president of AFSCME Local 2719. “We as a team put in the work, and it paid off big for our members.” 

Members more than doubled their turnout according to local leadership, a sign of strong member engagement. As part of the push for voter turnout, the local also signed up 27 new members.  

There were no significant givebacks in the three-year agreement. What’s more, through the negotiation process, our union was successful in accreting new bargaining unit positions, growing the base of workers protected by the contract. 

That’s the power AFSCME members have when we mobilize. We negotiate strong contracts, establish strong local unions, and provide strong public services for the people we serve. 

That is where AFSCME’s Public Service Spotlights come in. The campaign began in 2022 and partners with local TV news stations across the country to highlight AFSCME members and the essential work they do. These TV interviews have helped garner public support for AFSCME members and for their union freedoms — while inspiring other public service workers to become a part of the AFSCME family. 

This year, we ran Public Service Spotlights in Maryland, Michigan and Colorado — states where AFSCME is actively organizing. The segments featured members across various job classes and informed viewers of the value of public service and unions. 

Lansing, Michigan 

In Lansing, we partnered with WILX News 10 to feature members of AFSCME Michigan 925 and MSEA — from health care workers and state mechanics to groundskeepers and custodians. 

One of those members was Kim Williams, a custodian at the University of Michigan. Kim spoke about creating safe, welcoming dorms for incoming freshmen — and how she proudly serves as a “mom away from mom” for many students. As a mother herself, she also highlighted how her union contract allows her to support her own family while supporting students. 

“At Michigan 925, we have fair wages, great benefits, and a great retirement,” Williams told viewers. 

We also spotlighted Andrew Skindell, a Parks and Recreation officer and proud MSEA member. Andrew explained the behind-the-scenes work that goes into keeping Michigan’s parks safe — work that is made easier thanks to his union. 

“[Our union] gives us a seat at the table with management so we can educate and inform them on what we face in the field,” said Skindell. “Then we can work together to get new equipment, whether that be first aid equipment or vehicles. And that’s really helped us throughout the years, and it has really saved lives.” 

Baltimore, Maryland 

In Baltimore, AFSCME partnered with WMAR 2 News to spotlight Council 3 members who keep the city running — including social service workers, water treatment employees, front-line nurses and more. These segments helped build public support for both their work and their ongoing contract fights. 

During the summer, Chris Heady, a Howard County Library employee, joined the program to talk about creating educational and creative opportunities for kids outside the classroom — and how AFSCME supports cultural workers like him. 

“Librarians are so committed to serving the community,” Heady said. After forming a union with his co-workers, they began bringing patron feedback directly to the bargaining table and advocating for policy changes that improve library services for everyone. 

For Heady, being an AFSCME member means “listening to what the community needs — and being able to respond to it.” 

Denver, Colorado 

The freedom to organize with a union is a relatively new one for many public service workers in Colorado, but AFSCME quickly built a strong presence in the state. Our Public Service Spotlights with KDVR’s Great Day Colorado program is bolstering our presence in Denver, the state’s largest TV market.  

With well-known television personalities interviewing stars from the local library to the department of transportation, these segments introduced viewers to AFSCME and showed public service workers in the area where to turn to when they’re ready to organize. 

One spotlight featured Lori Nelson-Carothers, a permanency case worker with the Arapahoe County Department of Human Services. Lori discussed her essential work supporting Colorado’s children in need — and her advocacy for these families at the bargaining table as a union member, where she sees herself “standing in the gap” between resources and families in need.  

“We have over 500 members in our union,” said Nelson-Carothers. “That gives us strength in telling people the needs that we see.” 

Watch all our 2025 Public Service Spotlights below: 

• Licensed Practical Nurse and AFSCME Council 3 Member Jenny Reese 

• Parks & Rec Officer and MSEA Member Andrew Skindell 

• Howard County Library Worker and AFSCME Council 3 Member Chris Heady 

• University of Michigan Custodian and AFSCME Michigan 925 Member Kim Williams 

• Associate Engineer for the City of Denver and AFSCME Colorado Member Mike Wallin 

• Family Services Case Worker and AFSCME Council 3 Member Cherish Vick 

• Maintenance Mechanic and MSEA Member Duane Doyle 

• Baltimore City Schools Custodian and AFSCME Council 3 Member Teresa Fleming 

• Registered Nurse and AFSCME Michigan 925 member Andrew Green 

• Permanency Case Worker and AFSCME Colorado member Lori Nelson-Carothers 

• University of Baltimore Administrative Assistant and AFSCME Council 3 Member Claudette Booth 

• Library Worker and AFSCME Colorado Member Christine Catramados 

• Water Treatment Technician and AFSCME Council 3 Member Dara Dorman 

And we raised the standards for workers in museums, libraries and other cultural institutions throughout the nation by winning better wages, benefits, workplace protections and security on the job.  

Check out highlights in a video summarizing our incredible year of organizing in this sector.