Category: Cook County Employees

Thousands of public service workers—members of AFSCME and our allied unions in the We Are One Illinois coalition—gathered in Springfield on Nov. 13 to demand lawmakers fix the broken and unfair Tier 2 pension system.

The upcoming Fix Tier 2 Town Halls are an opportunity to drive our message home with lawmakers. To do that, we'll need to pack the rooms. Find a Town Hall near you and register today!

Understanding the unfairness of Tier 2 and the challenges of fixing it

How to find out if you're on a Tier 2 pension, why lawmakers are so reluctant to address pensions, and more.

On April 28 we observe Workers Memorial Day, a day to remember workers who have been killed on the job and to recommit ourselves to fighting for safer working conditions for all.

Primary Election Day was June 28 in Illinois. We voted together to elect pro-worker candidates. And Winnebago County decisively voted YES to save River Bluff Nursing Home.

Some Illinois AFSCME members have received communications from the so-called “Freedom Foundation,” or “Opt Out Today," a group that seeks to stop workers from collectively fighting to protect pensions, raise wages, or improve protections and benefits.

AFSCME Local 1216 members at Loretto Hospital uncovered a system payroll error—more than 100 nurses had been underpaid to the tune of $148,000. Back pay returned to individual employees ranged from a few dollars to more than $10,000.

“I could see the angst in her eyes,” AFSCME Local 2953 executive board member and chief steward Serbekian Minas said. “How can I not help this woman as much as I can and go the extra mile?"

In February we celebrate Black History Month, and AFSCME’s long legacy of standing up for racial justice—from the strike of Memphis sanitation workers 56 years ago this month, to affirming that Black Lives Matter today.