News

Happy Lunar New Year! The Lunar New Year gives us an opportunity to highlight the rich cultural heritage of many of our members. Historically, these foundations are celebrated largely in Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, and other Asian cultures. There are many overlapping ideals and values of the Lunar New Year celebration that are bedrocks of the labor movement. It is for that reason we pause to reflect, acknowledge, and celebrate the Year of the Dragon, the 2024 Lunar New Year.

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“An injury to one, is an injury to all.” This famous labor quote set the tone for a press conference in Annapolis where the Maryland/DC AFL-CIO called on the Maryland General Assembly to pass legislation that would enable public employees throughout the state to have collective bargaining rights. Of the three bills that were highlighted during the event, AFT-Maryland has members that will be affected by two. 

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Public Service Recognition Week gives the country an opportunity to say thank you to the people who make our communities work. AFT-Maryland is grateful to call so many public employees our members. People in public service work on a daily basis to ensure our communities function and people have their needs met. We are fortunate to call workers in state and local government our members. For the full message from AFT-Maryland on Public Service Recognition Week, read > > > MORE

It is once again Black History Month and as a union of professionals in service to the public, this should be a celebration for all Marylanders. Many of us appreciate the historic contributions made to our state and country by Black people as those contributions have only served to enhance our nation and make the United States more just. As Americans, our country’s history is not something that should be ignored or diminished. We must tell honest truths, difficult as they may be, if we are indeed to create a more perfect union. 

Thankfully the labor movement has been and continues to be a place where Black people have been celebrated in community with others. CLICK TO READ MORE...

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AFT Nurses and Health Professionals and AFT Public Employees held their Professional Issues Conference in Baltimore, Maryland last week, and AFT-Maryland was there to welcome the conference to Maryland. “Baltimore is a strong union town and Maryland is a strong state for public employees,” said AFT-Maryland President Kenya Campbell as she addressed the attendees. 

President Campbell, along with other leaders and members of our local affiliates, played a big part in the conference, offering workshops, panels, and breakout sessions for professional public health workers and public employees. 

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Join AFT-Maryland for a Trunk-or-Treat event! We'll have treats and books for the young folks, and voter registration information for the grown-ups!

Saturday, October 28, 2023, from noon to 4:00 p.m. at the Arena Players parking lot, 801 McCullough St., Baltimore, MD 21201. 

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"...As labor activists, there are lessons from the creation of our nation that we can apply to our activism. Each of the original 13 colonies had their own interests, desires, and pursuits. Those pursuits were not always aligned with one another. There were, however, places of agreement that were greater than those disputes. ..."

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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 Martin Luther King Jr.  holiday should be among the most sacred days for labor. It was Dr. King who moved us with the fierce urgency of now to remember that each of us are “caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.” This is the ethos of the labor movement. It is a testament to our commitment to solidarity and why we should venerate him today and every day.

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The busiest travel holiday of the year is also the one centered most on family and friends. Yes, the origins of the Thanksgiving holiday are not as wholesome or simple as the narrative many of us learned in elementary school, but the beauty of customs and traditions is that a society can remake the tradition into whatever it sees fit. For so many of us, Thanksgiving is more than a story about early colonial settlers, but rather a moment to pause in gratitude and appreciation with those who we hold most dearly. 

As a state federation we have so much to be thankful for collectively...

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