The union is not only a home for active workers; it is also a place for retirees. AFT Maryland has three active retiree chapters in the state federation and each was represented at a retiree meeting held at the state federation office. Retired members from the Maryland Classified Employees Association (MCEA-Council 152), Baltimore Teachers Union (BTU-R), and the City Union of Baltimore (CUB-R) gathered for food, fellowship, and important updates on how to actively support labor, electoral, and community efforts of AFT Maryland. The gathering was organized by AFT Maryland organizer Janell Edmonds with support from the state federation.

Read on for photos and more from the event.

AFT Maryland Director of Policy and Legislative Affairs, Denise Riley, and Political Coordinator, Todd Reynolds, present important information about the 2024 Maryland Legislative Session, which closed on April 8, 2024. Many important pieces of legislation affecting our members are detailed below, including information on bills affecting education professionals, state employees, city and county employees, and employees at higher education institutions. 

Read on for more!

Once finals are over and grades are turned in, you may think a professor’s work is finished for the summer. That’s not completely true for community college professors who are a part of the United Academics of Maryland (UAMD). For them, the work continues into the summer. On Saturday, June 15, 2024, professors representing community colleges across Maryland including Prince George’s, Howard, Hagerstown, Frederick, and Baltimore City attended a steward training for higher education professionals.

For photos and more on the steward training, read on!

The AFT Maryland has announced their list of endorsed candidates for Baltimore City office, encouraging members to support in the 2024 Primary Election. The endorsements include the union-preferred candidates for mayor, city council president, and most of the 14 city council seats that will be considered for the May 14th Primary.

Read on for a quote from AFT Maryland President Kenya Campbell, and the list of endorsed candidates.

The Juneteenth holiday should forever hold a special place in the hearts of labor activists. It is indeed a holiday to commemorate the end of American slavery, but we should never lose sight that American slavery had as much to do with labor rights as it did with race-based discrimination. Marking the end of the civil war with this holiday is a celebration of the end of state sanctioned race-based exploitation of vulnerable workers. The effects of the end of slavery reverberated throughout the entire United States, not merely because it marked a shift in the moral direction of the country, but because it recalibrated work relationships all across the nation, and particularly in southern states. 

Read on...

The thaw of spring is promising to all of us who found ourselves hibernating during the shorter winter days. Plenty of work was done during the winter months, but the extra daylight and warmer temperatures invigorates us all with an added boost of energy. It is natural at this time of year to feel renewed. In just over a week, the legislative session in Annapolis will wrap up, and our members working in Baltimore city schools (as well as students and education professionals across the region) are currently on Spring Break...

Read on for more!