News

Juneteenth and Our Path Ahead

Today, we gather to celebrate Juneteenth, a day that holds profound significance in the history of our nation.

When We’re United, Anything Is Possible

For the last six years, Heather Hansen has worked as a Corrections Counselor at MCF-Togo, also known as the “Thistledew Camp" and a proud member of AFSCME Local 3887. She said, “For the first time in my life, I was making a livable wage and able to provide good medical insurance for my family. Working here has given me a sense of purpose that I’d never thought I would experience.

Every Vote Must Be Counted

Be Patient; Every Vote Must Be Counted

Every eligible voter should have their voice heard and their vote counted. But due to the coronavirus pandemic and health concerns, more people decided to vote by mail than ever before and absentee ballots take longer to count because of security measures to verify the accuracy of those ballots. We need to be patient so our election officials can take the time to make sure every eligible vote is counted accurately.

Scuffy Paulson: Keeping Minnesota Moving

Minnesota winters are tough. In Rochester, several blizzards brought the entire town to a standstill. Major roads and highways were closed, sometimes for days at a time.

When weather makes it unsafe to travel, Jeff Paulson – better known as Scuffy – hits the road. Scuffy works at MnDOT District 6, which covers Southern Minnesota. In the summer, Scuffy and his MnDOT team inspect bridges, maintain signage, and fix potholes and other road damage. But in the winter, they plow snow.

We Need You To Vote!

Make A Plan To Vote!

As union members, every day we see the attacks on collective bargaining, our pensions, our health care and our overall mission of social, racial and economic justce. One significant way we know that works to push back on these anti-worker groups is to VOTE!

Council 5 Executive Board Election Results

The Election Committee has completed its count of the ballots cast by the delegates to the 2020 AFSCME Council 5 Convention and wishes to report the following results.

Minnesota House Passes Bonding/Supplemental Funding Bill; Heads to Senate

AFSCME Council 5 is very pleased that the Minnesota House just voted to pass a robust bonding and supplemental agency funding bill that will invest in making our workplaces safer, create tens of thousands of livable wage jobs and funding to save the Togo and Willow River CIP program that our members have fought so hard to save. This is one step toward this bill becoming law and we call on the Minnesota Senate to swiftly pass this legislation that will improve our communities and workplaces and invest in our public and private sector workforces.

Mike Buesing Local Union Development Award: St. Stephen's Human Services

2020 Mike Beusing Local Union Development Award: AFSCME Local 999- St. Stephen's Human Services

The Mike Buesing Local Union Development Award is presented each year to an individual member, local union or group of members or locals who have contributed significantly to internal mobilization and local union development.

We're thrilled to have presented this year's award to Local 999 -St. Stephen's Human Services. Local 999 recently ratified their first tentative agreement, all while often negotiating virtually due to the COVID-19 global pandemic. 

Eliot Seide Communications Award: AFSCME Local 1307 -Anoka Metro Regional Treatment Center

2020 Eliot Seide Communications Award

This year we are honoring a local who has exhibited extraordinary service to our union and projected a bold, strong vision of what it means to be a leader, an effective communicator, and a change agent.

We in the Communications Department at Council 5 work every day as your storytellers and to put a public face to your work, but there is no way we could do our job effectively without the sustained pressure that all of you put on employers, legislators and others to do the right thing.