UNOFFICIAL PENSION BOARD TRUSTEE
ELECTION RESULTS

NAME — Votes — Percentage

Joseph Ramsey — 531 — 41.7

John Riehl — 741 — 58.2 winner

1274 Total Votes     Blank – 2

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT,
JOHN RIEHL, PRESIDENT LOCAL 207

On Friday July 9th, dozens of DWSD workers didn’t get our check on time, AGAIN! Some of us finally got paid an hour after day shift was over, others waited days longer. Many people whose checks weren’t right that day still have not been properly compensated...

See the FULL ORGANIZER #132.

Special to the 39th AFSCME Constitutional Convention

Public services, public workers and the very concept "the common good" are under unprecedented attack in our nation. We must not mistake what is happening today for just more of the same right-wing attacks we have endured for years. What we are seeing is qualitatively different. In reaction to attacks on public education from California to Puerto Rico students and workers through decisive actions have launched a new student and civil rights movement to defend public education and oppose privatization. We should eagerly support and help lead this movement now.

MOVEMENT TO DEFEND PUBLIC EDUCATION! (Support Resolution # 28)

We are now witnessing a concerted anti-public education, union-busting campaign far more dangerous than Ronald Reagan's firing of the PATCO air traffic controllers in 1981. The federal Department of Education's "Race to the Top" program is...

See the FULL ORGANIZER #131.

Elect an Honest Fighter for Your Rights!

Elect JOHN RIEHL for Pension Board Trustee!

I am running on my record, not just promises. For years I have publicly fought for Detroit employees when others have given up or caved in. I tell the truth when others shy away from it. This is what I will continue to do if elected as your Pension Board Trustee.

I have been president of AFSCME Local 207 for the last 9 years and a Chief Steward for the previous 21 years. If elected to the Pension Board, I will continue to serve as Local 207’s President. I supported the annuity loan program and made sure that AFSCME was one the first unions to approve it. Local 207 and four other AFSCME locasl have sued the city for improperly increasing health care costs for retirees. I have fought mayors’ concessions and their schemes to give Detroit away.

If elected as your Pension Board Trustee, I will:

• Publicly expose and oppose unwise investment scams like the scams the ones ex-mayor Kilpatrick pressured trustees to vote for. I do not give in to pressure.
• Fight Dave Bing’s attempt to give away Detroit’s control of our pension funds to the out-state Municipal Employees Retirement System.
• Support financially sound investments in Detroit.

I’ll abide by AFSCME International’s Best Practices for Trustees and Pension Systems, including:

• No Insider Trading. No More “Friends & Family” Plans
• No Gifts to Trustees from Investors or Investment Management Agents
• No Individual Private Meetings with Potential Investors
• No Campaign Contributions to Trustees from Investors (Pay-to-Play)

Endorsed by City of Detroit AFSCME Presidents, Teamsters Local 214, Association of Professional & Technical Employees, Detroit Retired City Employees Association

This week a major political gathering will be held in Detroit. The U.S. Social Forum (www.ussf2010.org) will feature thousands of union, political, environmental and social activists from around the U.S. and the world. One of the activities is a rally to oppose Mayor Bing’s anti-worker, anti-Detroit policies, and to demand jobs and federal funds for Detroit...

See the FULL ORGANIZER #130.

UNOFFICIAL PENSION BOARD TRUSTEE ELECTION RESULTS
(Run-off Election Required Between John Riehl & Joseph Ramsey)

Candidate—Votes—Percentage
Jermaine Brown—53—4.0%
Kenneth Gray—78—5.9%
Tasha Cowen—206—15.7%
Marilyn Berdijo—181—13.8%
Joseph Ramsey—214—16.3% (in run-off)
John Riehl—571—43.4% (in run-off)

1315 Total Votes   Void – 11   Blank – 1

Run-off election ballots will be mailed to your last known address on June 30. They must be mailed back and received by the American Arbitration Association by July 14.

Thank you for your support,
John Riehl, President

The Coalition of Black Trade Unionists (CBTU) is holding their national convention in Detroit this month. AFSCME and the CBTU are sponsoring a joint rally to support Detroit City & Wayne County workers who are facing more layoffs and contract concessions. After the rally there will be free food and refreshments at the AFSCME Building, 600 W. Lafayette at Third. Come picket to demand an end to second-class treatment of Detroit!

Bing Doesn’t Have a Clue. The City has just sent out layoff notices to the Unions. Bing says Detroit needs jobs – then issues more layoffs! No one with any sense is backing Bing’s goofy plan to evacuate...

See the FULL ORGANIZER #129.

OPEN LETTER TO DETROIT

Why You Should Attend This Meeting

This meeting is about organizing for survival and this meeting is for organizers. Detroit is under such a general attack that our enemies have created more allies for the defenders of Detroit. We must establish the community-wide solidarity needed to defend our city, our jobs, our futures, and indeed the fate of this nation...

See the FULL ORGANIZER #128.

Bing's Proposed Budget and Your Job

On Tuesday April 13 Mayor Bing presented his 2010-2011City Budget to the Detroit City Council. He was evasive as to details but clearly is asking City Council to approve hundreds of layoffs. Also Bing is requesting that many more city jobs that are currently unfilled to be removed from the budget in all city departments. This is a key part of his plan to dramatically downsize our city and cutback on the vital services we provide.

Departments that appear to be affected include Buildings and Safety, Environmental Affairs, Civic Center, Budget, Public Works, Finance, Health and Wellness Promotion, Detroit Workforce Development, Fire, Human Resources, Human Rights, Human Services, Information Technology, Law, Mayor’s Office, Planning and Development, Police, Public Lighting, Recreation, Homeland Security, General Services, Auditor General, Board of Zoning, City Council, City Clerk, Elections, Airport, and Parking and Transportation.

Detroit Water and Sewerage Department is slated for elimination of 308 currently vacant and unfunded positions. All divisions in DWSD are severely understaffed already. No direct layoffs of Water Department workers are listed in Bing’s proposal.

Some of Local 207 job titles though are known as city-wide titles because various city departments employ them. Examples include Building Attendant, Park Maintenance Helper, Storekeeper, Mechanical Helper, or General Auto Mechanic. Workers in city-wide titles are at risk of being bumped into layoff when higher seniority workers are laid off in other city departments. This has happened in recent years and will again this spring. When Bing announces his actual layoffs we will then understand their impact on members of Local 207.

Job titles that include words such as Water, Sewage, or Public Utility are exclusive to DWSD are not affected by city-wide bumping. Examples include Sewage Plant Attendant, Water Systems Helper, or Service Guard-Public Utility.

Local 207’s members in the Public Lighting Department are again being hard hit by job cuts. Bing has completely eliminated from the budget the Street Lighting Maintenance Workers who replace burnt out lamps and lighting fixtures for the whole city. We will try to convince City Council to keep these workers in the budget. This is another so-called “cost savings” that will cost the city much more right away.

Organize the Fight for Detroit's Future!

The Battle is On

Hundreds attended the March 17th City Council Public Hearing on union contract negotiations. On March 23rd a thousand DPS workers rallied at the School Center Building. Some of them then marched 2 miles to join hundreds picketing outside Bing’s “State of the City Address.” On March 25th hundreds of Northwestern High students walked out of school and marched through the rain together with the civil rights group BAMN down to DPS headquarters to protest the closing of their school. On March 30th hundreds attended a City Council meeting to save our pensions.

In Bing’s April 13th “budget Address” he announced another 300 job cuts by July 1st. Each job cut equals more service cuts. We must defend Detroit’s public services and jobs!

While these actions cannot substitute for the general upsurge that we need in Detroit (including a city-wide strike, student walkouts, etc.), they are meant to:

• strengthen understanding and solidarity between students and youth, school employees, county workers, and community members;
• identify and train independent leaders from those arenas to head up the defense of our city; and
• build confidence in our ability to fight and win, so that we feel strong enough to strike rather than let a second-class future be imposed on us.

See the FULL ORGANIZER #126, including the latest on Bing's contract demands.

Union-Community Demonstration:

THE BUDGET ADDRESS IS OFTEN WHEN MAYORS ANNOUNCE LAYOFFS!

The Battle is On

Hundreds attended the March 17th City Council Public Hearing on union contract negotiations. On March 23rd a thousand DPS workers rallied at the School Center Building. Some of them then marched 2 miles to join hundreds picketing outside Bing’s “State of the City Address.” On March 25th hundreds of Northwestern High students walked out of school and marched through the rain together with the civil rights group BAMN down to DPS headquarters to protest the closing of their school. On March 30th hundreds attended a City Council meeting to save our pensions.

On April 13th, we will picket on the day of Bing’s “Budget Address.” Mayors traditionally use their budget presentations to announce layoffs. We must rally to make it clear that we will defend Detroit’s public services and our jobs!

While these actions cannot substitute for the general upsurge that we need in Detroit (including a city-wide strike, student walkouts, etc.), they are meant to:

• strengthen understanding and solidarity between students and youth, school employees, county workers, and community members;
• identify and train independent leaders from those arenas to head up the defense of our city; and
• build confidence in our ability to fight and win, so that we feel strong enough to strike rather than let a second-class future be imposed on us.

See the FULL ORGANIZER #125, including the latest on Bing's contract demands.

Special call to action for people who aren't working this Tuesday morning:

Mayor Bing and several Michigan State Legislators have introduced bills in Lansing to merge Detroit's Pension Funds with a financially weaker outstate fund. On Tuesday morning, March 30th, the Detroit City Council will discuss this issue. We must pack the public seating in City Council Chambers and tell them "HELL NO!"

Detroiters are fighting on all fronts. Students, teachers and parents are fighting against the takeover, dismantling and privatization of our public schools system by State Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb. The community has nothing but disdain for Bing's plan to displace residents and cut off public services to much of the city. Most city workers have still not conceded to Bing's concessions that add up to at least 25% cuts, despite his threats of more layoffs and privatization of our jobs.

These anti-Detroit policies are being cooked up by private foundations funded by huge corporations, not by Detroiters. The banks and corporations have their bailouts, and they expect us to pay for them with privatization, charter schools, lower living standards, and second-class services. Bing and other politicians are merely carrying out this corporate agenda. But they have no community support for their plan to downsize and downgrade our city.

They hope that they can use the economic devastation that they created to quickly ram through their destructive schemes. This has forced them to attack Detroit on all fronts at once. But it has also meant that their attack is affecting the vast majority of city residents. This means Detroit is angry. That righteous anger is ours to mobilize and lead. Last week Northwestern High students staged a walkout and marched in the rain against school closings. We must actively support these students and any actions taken to stop the dismantling of Detroit!

City workers are not alone in this fight. We are leading this city, and Detroit can lead the nation in the fight for justice and equality. We will not be turned into share cropping "urban farmers." We will not let them tear up our city. We will not let them privatize our public schools. And we will not let them take over the pensions that we have earned! Be there 9:30 AM, Tuesday March 30th!

Next Action in the Campaign for Detroit's Future:

• Keep Control of City Pensions in Detroit!
• No Mayoral Control of Our Detroit Public Schools!
• No to Bing's Plan to Abandon & Evacuate Detroit!
• No to Bing's Union Busting & Privatization of City Jobs!
• No Concessions! No Layoffs! No Service Cuts

URGENT UPDATE! The March 19, 2010 Free Press reported that Bing is collaborating with state legislators to give control of our pensions to an outstate pension system, and reduce the City's contributions to our pensions! Picket Tuesday, April 13th at 4:30 PM.

BING: WANNA-BE UNION BUSTER

On Wednesday March 17 hundreds of city workers and supporters told City Council that we can not, and will not accept Mayor Bing ‘s list of contract concessions. Bing recently told the press that city worker unions “can’t read, add or comprehend.” And since city workers have given up contract concessions for decades without striking, Bing thinks that we won’t fight back no matter what he takes from us. To stop him from coming back for even more concessions in the near future, we must draw the line against concessions now.

BING’S PLANS FOR DETROIT

Bing is backing the absurd and racist plans of corporate-funded foundations to abandon and cut off public services from much of our city. This would mean massive layoffs for city, county and school workers. It would subject Detroiters to new levels of separate and unequal living conditions. He’s touting plans to move people out of certain neighborhoods almost as was done with Native Americans hundreds of years ago. He’s supporting “urban farming” as viable employment for Detroiters. What’s next? A City Council elected only from walled-off safe zones? Displacement camps? Sharecropping? This is the road to a new Jim Crow. Bing is taking on the unions now to suppress organized opposition to this despicable plan.

DEFEAT DAVE BING & ROBERT BOBB

As if Bing isn’t doing enough to mess over the City, now the media and corporations are pushing him to take control of Detroit Public Schools. The anti-Detroit forces have never gotten over the defeat they suffered when Detroiters voted 2-to-1 against mayoral control of DPS. Now they are trying it again. Make it clear that that Detroit still opposes mayoral control of our schools! Bing can’t even run the City. Why would we want a privatizer like Bing to replace a privatizer like State-appointed school dictator Robert Bobb?

RAISE HELL OR CATCH HELL

The corporation owners are trying to use the recession that they created to shift money and power away from the vast majority of us into their own greedy hands. When they say that we can no longer afford public education and public services, what they mean is that they plan to starve those institutions of resources to make it easier to privatize them.

We must demand the federal monies that we deserve to rebuild Detroit, not tear it down! To make Detroit and other depressed areas a priority we must keep escalating our campaign for Detroit’s future among city workers, DPS teachers and other workers, DPS students, Wayne County workers, community members and all those who love this city. We need a general political upsurge to stop the corporate-funded foundations and their political agents from planning a bleak future for Detroit without permission of Detroiters. We need student actions, mass militant rallies, and a strike of all public workers to back them off, put control of our destiny in our own hands and pave a brighter future for our city. If we raise enough hell, they’ll raise the cash!

Come and speak at the City Council Public Hearing on Wednesday. Be prepared to speak for 2 minutes to tell Council that we demand to be treated with dignity, and that the Council must not follow Bing’s dead-end lead regarding Detroit’s future.

Bing has taken an openly hostile stance toward Detroit’s unions, demanding complete submission to his contract concessions without any real bargaining at all. City workers have given up contract concessions for decades without striking, so Bing has drawn the conclusion that he can do anything to us, and we won’t fight back. To stop him from coming back for even more concessions in the near future we must draw the line this time. No more concessions!

Bing is backing the absurd racist theory of abandoning and cutting off public services to much of our city which will lead to massive layoffs. He’s touting plans to move people out of certain neighborhoods almost as was done with Native Americans. He’s supporting "urban farming" as viable employment for Detroiters. What’s next? A City Council elected only from walled off safe zones? Displacement camps? Sharecropping? Clearly this is the road to a new Jim Crow. Bing is taking on the unions now so to suppress organized opposition to this plan.

As if Bing isn’t doing enough to mess over the City, now the media and corporations are pushing for him to have control of Detroit Public Schools. The anti-Detroit forces have never gotten over the 2-to-1 defeat for mayoral control of the schools in the 2004 "Proposal E" vote. Now they want Bing take control of our schools if Detroit voters support it. Make it clear that that is not on! He can’t even run the City. Why would we want another open union-buster like Bing to replace the current State-appointed school dictator, Robert Bobb?

The corporations owners trying to use the recession that they created to shift of money and power away from the vast majority of us into their own greedy hands. When they say we can’t afford public education and public services, they mean that they plan to starve those institutions of resources to make it easier to privatize them. We must demand the federal monies we deserve to rebuild Detroit, not tear it down! Bing admits that he is asking for federal funds, but he says that the White House won’t return his calls (but he says they’ve "made eye contact!"). If we successfully keep escalating our campaign for Detroit’s future, among DPS teachers and other workers, Wayne County workers, and all those who love this city, we can get more than "eye contact" from Washington!

Campaign for Fair Contracts
Kicks Into Higher Gear!

We have about 18 weeks to change the course of history. If we start now and keep building, we can stop Bing from imposing the worst contract in the history of Detroit city worker unions. We must remember how we all felt on August 19, 2009 when thousands of city workers and community supporters surrounded the Coleman Young Center and spilled into the street. We must use each event as part of an escalating campaign for dignity and respect for public workers. And our campaign must be part of the battle for the future of Detroit and other cities around the nation, especially cities with large black and/or Latino communities.

The super-rich bank and corporation owners are trying to use the recession that they created to make an historic shift of money and power away from the vast majority of us into their own greedy hands. When they say we can’t afford public education and public services, they mean that they plan to starve those institutions of resources to make it easier to privatize them. In Detroit the powers-that-be have imported Dave Bing as mayor, and Robert Bobb as the DPS Emergency Financial Manager to impose conditions on Detroiters which we would never vote for. This means that they have ever-shrinking support in the community, and they can be defeated.

There is more and more evidence throughout the nation that workers and others are sick of the huge cut backs that we are expected to swallow without a peep. The recent student and worker demonstrations in California and other states against privatization and cuts in public education is a sign that things are changing. That doesn’t mean that things are going to go smoothly. On the contrary, from now on we either organize and fight back, or get run over. But it does mean that we are getting fed up with being told that we just have to take it. And we are beginning to sense that we can win if we fight.

Let’s use the next few months before Bing imposes his outrageous contracts on us to build up the strength to strike. Only by striking can we really win and force Washington DC to give Detroit the bailout we deserve, and stop giving our taxes to the banks. If we stand up to defend public services and our city, as well as our own interests, the community will stand with us. Let’s fight to win!

A Strong Union Requires Dues

For the past few months, Mayor Bing has refused to deduct union dues from our pay checks. He is tying to force AFSCME to agree to his contract concessions. AFSCME continues to insist that the City negotiate a fair contract. But Bing keeps demanding that we concede to his complete list of outrageous concessions. Our contract has been extended on a day-to-day basis since July 1, 2008. Bing used that situation to stop dues deduction last year. Though AFSCME took legal action, we did not prevail.

Tell Bing that he cannot force us to accept his concessions – especially while we still have the legal option to continue bargaining. Make that statement by paying our dues to Michigan AFSCME Council 25 every two weeks. Otherwise, we are helping Bing screw us. If Council 25 has your current address they will mail you a dues invoice. Put a check or money order in the enclosed pre-addressed, pre-stamped envelope.

Local 207 survives on only about 15% of the total dues Council 25 collects from our members. A Union is only as strong as our members’ willingness to fight, including paying dues. Defending our rights cost money – phones bills, copier lease, lawyers’ fees, etc. If you’re not paying your dues then the rest of us are carrying you. We can hardly expect Council 25 to fight harder for us if we don’t pay dues. Finally, Council 25 has said that they will collect all back-owed dues, so let’s not get too far behind.

Stay Connected

Give us your current address, phone numbers and email address on the form below and get it back to the Union. This is not just for dues collection. We can use this information to email you the newsletter and text you about upcoming events. Email us at afscme207@sbcglobal.net

Wayne County Executive Bob Ficano has issued furlough notices to 700 AFSCME County Workers, furloughing them one day per week until further notice, resulting in a 20% pay reduction. Meanwhile he has purchased the Guardian Building, is planning on another building purchase, and is using state revenue funds to pay off some the county’s debt! This is his vicious and cynical attempt to force 10% cuts on the other 900 AFSCME County Workers because they "dared" to say no to the cuts. Wayne County workers have already given concessions for years. Enough is enough!

AFSCME Detroit City Workers have given up contract concessions for decades. While we are still in the negotiations process, Mayor Dave Bing is not budging from his demands for three years of unpaid furlough days (totaling 78 days!), as well as major attacks on pensions, overtime rules, longevity pay, sick time, vacation time, etc. In a matter of months, Bing plans to impose these harsh measures unless he is backed off. Already he has laid off 400 workers. Many non-AFSCME City employees have been forced to take unpaid furloughs for the past few months and city services are suffering. We must stand together—union & community—to defend city services and city workers!

Detroit Public School teachers have been saddled with a historically bad contract by State-appointed Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb. This contract was specifically designed to lower the cost of labor in Detroit schools so that low-paying, low-standard private charter schools can compete here. This is not only an attack on teachers and other school employees disguised as "reform." It is an attempt to reduce our public schools to "schools of last resort" for the poorest of students while funneling public money to private, corporate-run schools. We can not let this happen! Defend public education – defend public school workers!

Throughout the nation, workers, especially public workers, are under blatant attack. Every day some Republican or Democrat politician offers up another way to reduce our wages, benefits and jobs and further cut the public’s services. We are told that there is no money. Trillions of our tax dollars are being spent to bail out the banks and corporations which created the recession, even as they’re paying themselves billions in bonuses! The money "saved" by cutting public services and public education, and by privatizing as many public institutions as they can, will just end up in the hands of the bankers. They are using the financial crisis they caused to further concentrate the nation’s wealth in the hands of the super-rich. If they can get a bailout, Detroit and Michigan certainly deserve a bailout! Surely we didn’t elect our nation’s first black president to have Detroit and Michigan abandoned like stripped-out, foreclosed houses! Demand federal money now to save our city and our state!

RALLY & MARCH SPONSORED BY WAYNE COUNTY AFSCME LOCALS 25, 101, 409 & 1659, AND CITY OF DETROIT AFSCME PRESIDENTS

On Thursday, January 28, AFSCME members from all City of Detroit locals will have our first chance to come together and take a stand against Mayor Bing’s concession demands. AFSCME has not held such a meeting in years. We must all attend this meeting to protect ourselves, our families and our city. At the meeting, we must make clear to our union representatives that we will not accept Bing’s concessions, and will strike to shut the city down rather than meekly submit to them. Members should tell union officials not to bring us Bing’s package of concessions for a vote. Doing so will allow Bing to reopen negotiations on issues that the City has already signed off on. We must use this meeting to launch a renewed campaign to fight against Bing’s agenda.

Time to Fight  In 1993, despite repeated votes against concessions, we did not strike. Consequently Mayor Young imposed a year of 10% hour / wage cuts on most city workers. In 2006 AFSCME had the members vote on a package of concessions even though the City had not agreed to abide by the vote. Council 25 officials apparently wanted to use this vote to appear "reasonable" (read compliant) before the State Fact Finder. The members soundly rejected the concessions. But Council 25 did not organize a strike. Again, Mayor Kilpatrick imposed a year of 10% hour / wage cuts on most of us. Local 207, which led the fight to reject the contract, said at the time that if AFSCME let Kilpatrick impose his concessions without a strike, then the next concessions would be worse. We were right. Bing’s concession demands are much more serious than those imposed by Young and Kilpatrick.

Fighting is Only Real Choice  Bing recently told the press that his full package of concessions would only save the city $11 million per year. That wouldn’t even cover the interest on the City’s reported deficit...

See the FULL ORGANIZER #118, including the latest on Bing's contract demands.

Contract Negotiations Drag On

Contract negotiations between AFSCME and the City of Detroit have been grinding on for 20 months. Even though meetings have been held as often as three times a week, little has been accomplished, particularly since Dave Bing was elected mayor in May.

Bing has constantly issued threats of more layoffs and unilateral deadlines, but will not seriously negotiate on the most important parts of the AFSCME contract. He has escalated the City’s demand for two years of unpaid furlough days to three years (26 per year). Bing has offered to back off total elimination of Longevity Pay – offering to instead eliminate it only for new hires and those with a major suspension in the last 14 months – but only if we agree to the furloughs.

Bing is still demanding the elimination of overtime pay any time we work more than eight hours in a day. He wants to pay OT only after forty hours in a week, with sick time, job injury, jury duty, comp time, swing holiday, and furlough days not counted towards the forty hours. Bing has offered to drop his demand that vacation time and holidays not be counted toward the forty hours, but only after we agree to the full 78 furlough days over three years! It’s no wonder most city unions have not ratified their contracts.

On August 19th, over 1500 city workers and supporters demonstrated against Bing’s war on Detroiter’s public services and public workers. Local 207 initiated that picket with support from many city unions, organizations and average Detroiters. We said then, and continue to say now, that an all-union/ community strike is needed to stop Bing. Only by striking we can get better contracts, and force President Obama to spend some of bailout money on Detroit.

The leadership of most of the city unions failed to seize the opportunity to fight and win, instead diverting people’s hopes and energies into the mayoral election, an election that Council 25 Al Garrett told Cranes Detroit Business that Barrow could not win. The rallies and mass meetings were the road to victory. The election was an illusion that Barrow could beat Bing, and more importantly, that Barrow could or would have saved us from having to lead Detroit in a fight for our common futures, including against Barrow!

See the FULL ORGANIZER #117, including an evaluation of where we are at and reports on the election and other developments.

AFSCME "In the News" section is now LIVE!

There is now a new section of the website, "In the News," tracking media coverage of AFSCME Local 207. VISIT THE PAGE to see Local 207's leadership role the past few years winning the resignation of former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and defending public jobs and services in Detroit.

 

 

 

Rally & Picket

No Imposed Contracts! No Service Cuts!
No Layoffs! No Concessions!
Wednesday, October 21st, 4:30 PM
Coleman A. Young Municipal Center
(City-County Building) Woodward @ Jefferson

Come to this rally and let Mayor Bing know that we are not caving in to his contract concessions, and that we will fight his efforts to impose them. This is more than a short-term battle, it’s a long-term war. After years of struggle we are doing what is needed to win: providing leadership to all workers and the community. Unions have always been strongest when we help lead a general fight for justice and equality. Public workers’ fight for jobs is the same as the community’s fight for services. We have taken the fight for community support further than ever before. We have organized county workers, bus riders, teachers and students to join in a common front to defend public services, public education, the black community and workers’ rights. This has forced Bing to compromise on longevity and health insurance cutbacks, and back off his threatened deadlines and layoffs.

On October 19th, Detroit Free Press reported that...

Read the rest of the Organizer #116 CALL TO ACTION.

AFSCME Local 207 Election Results!

See the results in PDF format

Nominations were held for AFSCME Local 207 General Officers & Trustees. There was only one candidate for each office, except for the three Public Light Department Unit Officers, for which there were no nominations.

Thus, the following officers & trustees are elected by acclimation (that is, without opposition):

President: John Riehl
Vice-President: Andre Batie
Secretary-Treasurer: Michael Mulholland
Recording Secretary: Susan Ryan
Sergeant-at-Arms: Nicole McCants
General Unit Chairperson: Lekita Thomas
General Unit Vice-Chairperson: Joseph Rowland
General Unit Secretary: Esther Williams
Operators Unit Chairperson: Nathan McKinney
Operators Unit Vice-Chairperson: Andrew Sawyer
Operators Unit Secretary: Dennis Avery
Public Unit Chairperson: No Nominees
Public Unit Vice-Chairperson: No Nominees
Public Unit Secretary: No Nominees
Trustees (3): Andre Canty, Anthony Harris, Cynthia McKissack

Sincerely, Participants in the Nomination Meeting:
Jody Grimmett, Keith Coffin, Kevin Floyd

AFSCME Local 207 Endorses Tom Barrow for Mayor of Detroit

See Local 207's ENDORSEMENT. (PDF file)

See Tom Barrow's campaign site.

Rally & Picket

Wednesday, October 21st
4:30 PM

Coleman A. Young Municipal Center
(City-County Building)
Woodward @ Jefferson

• No service cuts!
• No Layoffs!
• NO Concessions!

Resolutions for 2009 Council 25 Convention
from AFSCME 207 Delegates

Go to the Resolutions Page, or click on a resolution below to see it:

• Support Public Education
• Support Federal Lawsuit Against the Anti-Affirmative Action Proposal 2
• Bailout Main Street
• Winning Real Health Care Reform
• Brint the Troops Home Now!

September 17th Election Results Are In!
See the RESULTS (PDF file)

Defend Detroit! Defeat Bing & Bobb

DETROIT IS NOT FOR SALE! For years, Detroit’s public institutions have been under attack by companies that to want profit from privatizing public education, bus service, garbage pickup, rec centers, parks, water & sewerage, etc. Any public services they can’t profit from, they want eliminated. But Detroit’s black community has never supported privatization because they recognize it for what it is: legal larceny. Wholesale privatization has been blocked repeatedly in Detroit.

DETROIT’S LEADERSHIP HAS BEEN OUTSOURCED. Now the corporations have resorted to political outsourcing in order to degrade and depopulate Detroit. Emergency Financial Manager Rob Bob was flown in from California and given dictatorial powers by Governor Granholm to close schools and privatize Detroit’s public education system. Big business imported Dave Bing from a gated community in Oakland County to be mayor of Detroit precisely because he has no allegiance to our city. Bing started with demands for huge wage and benefit cuts for city workers. Now his mass layoffs will further diminish the city services that remain after thirty years of cutbacks. If they get away with their scheme, Bing & Bobb will cut and privatize the rest of our services, and turn our schools over to private corporations, regardless of the harm done to Detroiters. They hope to bury forever the militant labor and civil rights history that characterizes Detroit in the eyes of the world. This is a civil rights issue as much as a workers rights issue. Detroit, the nation’s largest and proudest black community, has never willingly submitted to racial mistreatment, and we aren’t about to start now, regardless of who is pushing the policy.

A GENERAL UPHEAVAL IS BREWING. Bing and Bobb have their orders and half-baked plan, but we have a solid strategy to defeat them. To win we must unite our unions with the black community (particularly DPS students) and stand together against this second-class treatment. The strongest expression of this strategy is a community-supported joint City, County & DPS strike, and we need to strike to win. But all actions to defend our schools, city services, jobs, wages and benefits should be supported as blows stuck against Bing & Bobb’s corporate agenda, including pickets, rallies, mass meetings, student walkouts, etc. The more we make it clear that Detroit will not accept unfair treatment, the more we can win. If the banks and corporations that brought us this recession can get a trillion dollar bailout, Detroit can win the federal funds we deserve to build a brighter future for our city. And if we keep fighting other communities will follow our lead.

MAKE BING & BOBB CURSE THE DAY THEY GOT HERE. We must continue to involve more students, teachers, city & county workers, bus riders, etc. in building actions. In the past two months we have had large union-community meetings and rallies that boosted peoples' confidence and forced both Bobb and Bing to back off of their deadlines for contract concessions and service cuts. The August 19th rally was even larger than the rally during the 1986 city workers strike, and with more community supporters. If you missed it, don't miss the next one on September 23rd. If we keep building we will keep winning. Be there and make history!

The Battle for Detroit

This is a battle for Detroit’s future. Dave Bing is trying to screw us, but he can be beat. Local 207 has organized big union-community meetings, pickets and rallies, and intervened in public hearings on bus cuts. Bing has been forced to delay his bus cuts and bus driver layoffs. He has now spent some of the federal stimulus money he said could never be used to keep Detroit running. He has repeatedly backed away from the arbitrary deadlines that he set for unions to agree to his concessions. Bing has little support in the community and is clearly vulnerable.

But Bing is far from defeated. He is not only sticking to his outrageous concession demands, he’s increasing them. This is known as "regressive bargaining", a violation of negotiation standards. He may be hoping that if he drops some of his new demands, we will be grateful enough to settle for his original proposals. But all of his demands are unacceptable. Meanwhile, his massive layoffs are starting to take effect, with the inevitable loss of city services (reduced bus service, shorter hours of operation at rec centers, etc.).

We are on the right track to defend our city, but we need more people to step forward as leaders: students willing to organize walkouts to defend our schools, more teachers and DPS workers willing insist on a strike to defend public education for Detroit, more city and county willing demand a strike to defend our jobs, wages, benefits and the future of our city. In the past month we’ve distributed tens of thousands of fliers to the community and other city workers. We must continue and accelerate those efforts. We now know how to win. We must expand our reach, escalate our efforts and fight to win!

Bing’s Contract Demands (Updated 9-09-09)

• 26 unpaid furlough days per year for 3 years (total 78 days) – equal to a three-year 10% pay cut.
• If your department decides to work you on some furlough days, Bing wants to force you to take unpaid furlough days at some other point within the year.
• If your spouse has health insurance available from his/her employer (regardless of how substandard or overpriced) Bing would require that spouse to ...
(continued in Full Update below)

See the complete Update, which includes:
Update on Mayor Bing's Contract Demands (9/9/09)
Local 207 Meeting Sep. 10, and Council 25 State Convention Oct. 9-11

Channel 7 News Story on AFSCME 207

This is an older WXYZ story from mid-August reporting on AFSCME 207. See the VIDEO (On the page, play the video in the upper-right corner.)

FOR INFO OR TO HELP: 313-965-1601 or afscme207@sbcglobal.net

Photos from Sept. 2, 2009 union-community mass meeting:

Detroit Needs a United Public Worker/Teacher/Community Strike to Defend Detroit’s Public Services, Public Education & Public Workers!

Attend Union-Community Picket & Rally

Wednesday, September 23, 4:30 PM
Coleman A. Young Municipal Center (City-County Building), Woodward @ Larned

• Union–Community: unite to stop bus and other service cuts & public worker layoffs! NO contract concessions!
• Defend public education, DPS workers & students
• No reliance on politicians – organize to defend ourselves
• Bailout Detroit – demand federal funds now
• Build the New Civil Rights Movement and Rebuild the Labor Movement
• Save Martin Luther King’s Dream for America in Detroit

Only a community-backed public workers strike can save Detroit – the nations’ largest black community. Mayor Dave Bing, Detroit Public Schools Emergency Financial Manager Robert Bobb and Wayne County Executive Ficano are attacking Detroit. They are trying to degrade, dismantle and privatize Detroit’s public services and public education. They are coordinating their attacks and we must mount a coordinated defense. Any attempt to fight our battles separately will allow us to be divided and conquered. Any attempt to portray this fight as merely a conflict over union contracts is not based in reality, and will lead to a defeat for our whole community. If Bing and Bobb win . . .

See the complete Update

Channel 4 News Story: City workers prepare for strike to save Detroit

AFSCME Local 207 President John Riehl: "It would be an organized strike where everybody would decide democratically in advance to do it, and in a way of forcing renegotiations to actually get something really resolved. Instead of him trying to pick at us and lay off our members and cut back the community one at a time, we all fight back together."

See the VIDEO

FOR INFO OR TO HELP: 313-965-1601 or afscme207@sbcglobal.net

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