Live from the 46th Convention: Contract Victories

Three AFSCME members from across the country described what it took to win contract victories for themselves and their union siblings.

In Florida, Joe Simmons, a solid waste worker for Local 871 (AFSCME Florida), described the uphill battle he and fellow union members were facing after attacks by anti-worker Gov. Ron DeSantis. In the Midwest, Megan Durham, a youth services librarian at Daniel Boone Regional Library in Missouri and member of AFSCME Local 3311 (Council 61), described how not having a union made things go from bad to worse. On the West Coast, Rachel Atkins, a member of AFSCME Local 101 (Council 57) and a veterinary technician at the Happy Hollow Zoo in San Jose, California, was facing a major staffing shortage — 900 open positions across the city.

“We joined forces with the other union negotiating with the city and formed Staff Up San Jose. Hundreds of us rallied. We covered buses and bus shelters with ads so the community would understand our fight. We delivered a petition with 2,000 signatures — it was 75 feet long — to the city council,” recalled Atkins. “When they still wouldn’t listen, we voted to authorize a strike — more than 99% of us voted yes.”

The city caved and agreed to their terms. They won double-digit raises, increases in paid family leave and improvements for part-time workers. 

Her lesson, and the lesson shared by all those who have fought for strong contracts, is that we must stand together to achieve big gains for workers.