The Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community is a vital part of the broad tapestry that is AFT-Maryland. We are grateful for our members from a community who work alongside other public employees to help make Maryland communities what they are today.  Click through for the full message from AFT-Maryland on Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month > > > MORE

The Paraprofessional and School Related Personnel (PSRP) division of the AFT is filled with labor activists and leaders who give their all for students and families while helping shape the school community. Across the country, PSRPs do a number of jobs including but not limited to cafeteria workers, janitors, facility managers, office staff, and paraeducators. A collection of those activists came from across the nation to Baltimore, Maryland for the 2023 AFT PSRP Conference.  CLICK THROUGH TO READ > > > MORE

Attacks on public education in America by extremists and culture-war peddling politicians have reached new heights (“lows” may be more apt), but they are not new. The difference today is that the attacks are intended not just to undermine public education but to destroy it.

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The pandemic caused a shift in the way quite a bit of legislative business was handled. Some of those changes have outlived the social distancing guidance that dictated how we did business. That includes virtual testimony, zoom meetings, and live streaming of in-person events. One event that returned with a force as strong as it was pre-pandemic was the Metro Baltimore Council AFL-CIO labor rally, held on Lawyers Mall in front of the Maryland State House in Annapolis.  The annual event is a show of solidarity among labor as unions collectively flex their strength and call on state legislators to pass bills that support working people and their families. As AFT-Maryland President Kenya Campbell reminded the audience “labor power definitely works.” Click for more photos and to read > > >

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The race to the end of Maryland’s Legislative session is in full speed, but that hasn’t stopped AFT-Maryland from pushing for expanded collective bargaining for higher education workers at Maryland public institutions. The bill that would do that (HB275/SB274) is held up in the Senate Finance Committee, as is HB65, a bill granting collective bargaining to Maryland public library workers. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) collaborated with AFT-Maryland for a joint press conference urging the Senate Finance Committee to move those bills out of committee so public employees in libraries and state higher education institutions can have the right to choose collective bargaining.  CLICK THROUGH TO READ > > > MORE