On a March Friday, a collection of state workers who decided they no longer wanted to be just employees, but that they wanted to be leaders in their workplace, convened at the AFT-Maryland office for a steward training. This training equipped members with skills on how to engage fellow workers and managing a range of worker related issues.
When federal legislators wanted to protect public water, they knew they could call on President Antoinette Ryan-Johnson of the City Union of Baltimore. They knew she’d be the perfect ally for this fight to protect public water.
The union’s work ensuring funding for students often takes members, leadership, and staff to Annapolis to make the case before Maryland legislators. However, a special assignment to secure federal funding brought BTU PSRP Chapter Chair and AFT-Maryland Executive Board member Sandra Davis to Washington, D.C.
CUB president Antoinette Ryan-Johnson led a delegation of AFT-Maryland members and leaders in Annapolis to testify on a bill that would allow union members to write off their union dues on state income taxes. This bill would increase the number of union members in the face of the anti-worker Supreme Court Janus decision.
The AFT’s long-time advocacy for public schools has just been turbo-charged, with a sweeping, multi-pronged campaign to fund the future of American public education. Amid the continuing wave of teacher activism shining a spotlight on massive shortfalls in education investment, the Fund Our Future initiative aims to take the teachers’ megaphone into Congress, statehouses and communities nationwide.
Karen Pilecki and members of the Baltimore County Federation of Public Health Nurses testified in Annapolis before the House of Delegates Health and Government Operations committee. They are seeking a standardization of training practices and protocols across jurisdictions throughout the state.
“A majority of American teens say they are worried about a shooting happening at their school. Let that sink in,” AFT President Randi Weingarten writes in her latest column for the New York Times. “Young people are demanding meaningful action beyond ‘thoughts and prayers.’ They know, as do law enforcement officers and educators, that there are effective ways to address gun violence.” Read more about the proven strategies that would enhance school safety and reduce gun violence.
It’s time to divest from private prisons: The US incarcerates more prisoners than any other nation in the world - and private prisons profit. Our new report details how AFT members can encourage their pension funds to divest from private prison corporations.
Due process is an essential right for every employee, however employees at the Maryland School for the Deaf currently don’t have that right. The AFT-Maryland was hard at work ensuring that wouldn’t be the case for long. AFT-MD took to the halls of power in Maryland to make the case for due process rights for all state employees including those at Maryland School for the Deaf.
When our sisters and brothers of labor are in need, we will answer the call. The unions that make up the AFT-Maryland answered the call for their American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) sisters and brothers in an act of selflessness and solidarity. When the Metro Baltimore Council of AFL-CIO put out the call, we were there in full force to answer.