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We would like to wish everyone a happy and healthy holiday. As you celebrate with your family and friends, please remember those who are unable to celebrate with their families especially the victims of the Newtown, Connecticut shootings.

We hope you use your time off to relax and reflect on this year and what we can do to improve next year!

AFT-Maryland offices will be closed from Monday, Dec. 24th through Tuesday, Jan. 1st. We will re-open on the 2nd for regular business hours.

Happy Holidays, and Happy New Year! See you in 2013!

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Having reflected on the tragedy on Friday, I would like to send my condolences to the community of Newtown, Connecticut and the students, parents, faculty and staff at Sandy Hook Elementary School. 

Please also keep the family of Cindy Ann Yuille, an AFT member who was killed in the mall shooting in Oregon earlier in the week, in your thoughts. These are awful tragedies and we should all take a minute to be thankful for what we have. 

In light of these horrible events, I would encourage all of you take the time to make sure that you have up-to-date emergency information and plans for your

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Workers in Michigan need your help to protect their voice and Michigan’s middle class


Right now in Michigan, Gov. Rick Snyder and Republican leaders are attempting to jam through controversial “right-to-work-for-less” legislation at the behest of wealthy CEOs and corporate donors. And they’re doing it with lame-duck legislators whom voters chose not to re-elect. That’s not fair. That’s not democracy. And it won’t help Michigan’s economy. Stand up against this attempt to pass a right-to-work law in Michigan. Sign the petition.

President Obama put it best: So-called right-to-work laws are not

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Workers in Michigan need your help to protect their voice and Michigan’s middle class


Right now in Michigan, Gov. Rick Snyder and Republican leaders are attempting to jam through controversial “right-to-work-for-less” legislation at the behest of wealthy CEOs and corporate donors. And they’re doing it with lame-duck legislators whom voters chose not to re-elect. That’s not fair. That’s not democracy. And it won’t help Michigan’s economy. Stand up against this attempt to pass a right-to-work law in Michigan. Sign the petition.

President Obama put it best: So-called right-to-work laws are not

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State employees such as healthcare workers in Bargaining Unit E and engineers, scientists, and other professionals in Bargaining Unit G will find a 2% raise in their pay checks beginning January 1, 2013.

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This week AFT-Maryland, the Baltimore City Public School system, the Baltimore Teachers Union and the Labor Movement lost a great friend.  On Tuesday November 27, 2012,  Patricia Cook-Ferguson passed away after a brief illness.  

I met Pat more than twenty years ago when she came to Cross Country Elementary School. She taught Special Education in a small art room that had been converted into a classroom. We became friends instantly.  She had three small sons that I watched grow into young men. She later had five grandchildren that were the light of her life.  

Pat became involved in the Union

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We would like to wish our members, their families and friends a very Happy Thanksgiving! Please travel safely if your holiday plans put you on the road.

We are mindful this holiday of our sisters and brothers in coastal areas still recovering from Superstorm Sandy. If you want to help, consider donating to AFT's Disaster Relief Fund, or through DonorsChoose.org, where you can direct specific gifts. Click for more at AFT.org.

We are also keeping in our thoughts workers who are striving for dignity and fairness in the workplace.

Specifically, we are thinking of Wal-Mart workers in their fight for

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Maryland state workers are reminded that the day before Thanksgiving, Wednesday, November 21, is a day off thanks to the terms of the contracts negotiated by unions. ...

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Before, during and after Superstorm Sandy, Ocean City, Md., employees worked to keep residents safe and protect their seaside town. Praise for them came from all quarters: the mayor, city council and residents.

But it wasn't enough for them to win a referendum guaranteeing them the right to collective bargaining...

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With a sigh of relief, we can begin the day by congratulating President Obama and Vice President Biden on their re-election. It’s been an exciting election season, and one of the most exhilarating aspects has been watching our members step up to the challenge. You talked to your friends and families, knocked on doors, made phone calls, and supported this campaign with your time and your vote. It has been an incredible team effort, and we thank you all for your hard work and determination.

This election shows that our state and our country will continue to move forward for the future of our

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