July 14, 2025 Champaign County, Illinois, workers win contract victory through solidarity A strike was averted in Champaign County, Illinois, as AFSCME members secure a strong contract through solidarity. Read More
June 11, 2025 Field Museum workers win hard-earned contract It took hard work, but workers at Chicago’s Field Museum finally won a fair contract. Read More
June 06, 2025 School of the Art Institute of Chicago faculty win big in first contract Another win for cultural workers in Chicago, this time it’s a fair contract. Read More
March 06, 2025 Powered by her union, this dental hygienist thrives while working in a prison Marci Smith, a dental hygienist who has worked in Illinois prisons for almost 30 years. is the subject of our latest Public Safety Spotlight. Read More
February 25, 2025 Chicago History Museum employees form union with AFSCME Chicago History Museum workers, welcome to the AFSCME family. Read More
December 16, 2024 Workers at another Illinois library organize with AFSCME Staff at another Illinois cultural institution are building power through AFSCME. Read More
November 07, 2024 Shedd Aquarium employees win union election despite management’s misinformation campaign Workers at a renowned Chicago aquarium have formed a union despite management resistance. Read More
October 08, 2024 AFSCME Council 31 report spotlights dangers of illegal drugs in Illinois’ prisons A new report by AFSCME Council 31 spotlights the spread of illegal drugs in Illinois prisons. Read More
July 26, 2024 AFSCME corrections members protest unsafe conditions at Illinois facility Safety is a big worry for staff at the Menard Correctional Center in Illinois. Read More
May 23, 2024 We honor behavioral health workers during Mental Health Awareness Month Behavioral health workers deserve recognition, especially during Mental Health Awareness Month. Read More
May 03, 2024 Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium workers are forming a union with AFSCME Workers at a famed Chicago aquarium are forming a union through AFSCME Council 31. Read More
January 26, 2024 Never Quit Award winner teaches inmates to develop a green thumb Amy Coonce is a horticulture instructor at the minimum-security Robinson Correctional Center in Robinson, Illinois. Read More
December 04, 2023 Illinois members take the wheel on solving school bus driver shortage Learn how an Illinois local solved the problem of school bus driver shortages. Read More
November 13, 2023 Newberry Library employees win first contract a year after forming a union More than 60 workers at Chicago’s famed Newberry Library have negotiated their first contract a year after forming a union. Read More
September 26, 2023 Art Institute school and museum staff win first contract Members of the Art Institute of Chicago Workers United (AICWU/AFSCME) have won a first contract that includes wage increases and addresses critical workplace issues. Read More
September 19, 2023 St. Charles Public Library workers in Illinois win first contract Library workers in St. Charles, Illinois, won a first contract that ‘ticks all the boxes.’ Read More
August 02, 2023 Illinois state workers ratify robust new contract More than 30,000 Illinois state workers have ratified a robust new contract. Read More
June 21, 2023 Waukegan Public Library workers win stronger rights in first contract AFSCME members working at the Waukegan Public Library in the Chicago area are celebrating their first contract. Read More
June 15, 2023 Nature Museum workers win union election with AFSCME Workers at Chicago’s Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum have voted to form a union. Read More
June 02, 2023 For Illinois paramedic, a desire to fully serve his community is hampered by short-staffing Fully serving his community is Illinois paramedic Nick Fensom’s goal. But short-staffing is thwarting him from doing that. Read More
May 19, 2023 Workers at another Chicago institution are forming a union with AFSCME Workers at the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago have decided to build power through AFSCME. Read More
April 18, 2023 Chicago City Council passes ordinance to support workers’ right to organize An AFSCME-backed ordinance that supports workers’ right to form unions is now law in Chicago. Read More
April 12, 2023 Staffing crisis hits patients, workers at Illinois center for intellectually disabled Meet Crosby Smith, an Illinois caregiver who can deliver even better service if he just had more help and support. Read More
March 28, 2023 Nature Museum employees in Illinois forming union with AFSCME Nearly 50 workers at the Chicago Academy of Sciences / Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum are forming a union through AFSCME Council 31. Read More
March 13, 2023 Field Museum employees win union with AFSCME AFSCME Council 31 welcomes workers at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago. Read More
February 28, 2023 AFSCME cultural workers spotlight Black artists AFSCME cultural workers take to Instagram to spotlight Black artists. Read More
February 24, 2023 For Black History Month, AFL-CIO salutes these current and former AFSCME members AFL-CIO’s Black History Month profiles include three people from the AFSCME family. Read More
December 16, 2022 Cultural workers win at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago Chicago is the site of another cultural workers organizing victory. This time, it involves 600 non-tenure track faculty at the School of the Arts Institute of Chicago. Read More
November 04, 2022 Workers at Tacoma, Chicago museums highlight growing organizing momentum The Field Museum and the Tacoma Art Museum provide the latest examples of the organizing momentum in the cultural sector. Read More
September 19, 2022 Red Cross workers win 9% pay increase, retain strong health benefits in historic contract New Red Cross contract provides long-overdue raises and workplace safety improvements for front-line heroes. Read More
May 12, 2022 American Red Cross workers, including AFSCME members, rally for fair contract American Red Cross workers, including many AFSCME members, are rallying for a fair contract in cities across the country this week. Read More
May 10, 2022 ISU employees ratify contract raising wages Support workers at Illinois State University have reason to be happy. They stood strong and won a robust new contract. Read More
April 05, 2022 Recognizing AFSCME library workers On National Library Workers Day, we celebrate AFSCME’s library workers. Read More
February 10, 2022 The pay gap between Missouri and Illinois state workers underscores the union difference Some Missourians choose to work for the state of Illinois rather than their own state because of better pay secured through a strong union contract. Read More
January 20, 2022 Historic union wins at Art Institute of Chicago 500 workers at the Art Institute of Chicago and its school have formed a union through AFSCME Council 31. Welcome to the AFSCME family! Read More
January 13, 2022 We mourn the death of sister Deidre Silas, Illinois DCFS investigator Rest in power, Sister Deidre Silas. The AFSCME member in Illinois was killed on the job. Read More
November 22, 2021 Historic union election looming at Art Institute of Chicago Workers at the Art Institute of Chicago and the institute’s school have filed petitions with the National Labor Relations Board seeking union elections. Read More
August 17, 2021 Art Institute of Chicago employees are forming a union with AFSCME Workers at the a famed Chicago art museum and school want to form a union to better serve their community. Read More
August 09, 2021 Workers deliver big win for Illinois public library and the community it serves More than 150 AFSCME members said no to threatened cuts to a Chicago-area public library’s budget – and prevailed. Read More
June 24, 2021 Illinois district library workers decide to form a union through AFSCME Nearly 100 workers at the Niles-Maine District Library in Illinois are planning to form a union through AFSCME Council 31. Read More
May 18, 2021 S-T McBride honors museum workers Secretary-Treasurer Elissa McBride spoke to some AFSCME cultural workers to mark International Museum Day. Read More
May 06, 2021 Workers at Illinois hospital win their union The state of Illinois has certified a staff union at CGH Medical Center in Sterling. The workers won despite management’s two-year anti-union campaign. Read More
December 23, 2020 Library workers in Oak Lawn, Illinois, are newest AFSCME members Nearly 80 workers at Oak Lawn Public Library in Illinois are now part of the AFSCME family. We welcome them. Read More
December 15, 2020 New Chief Safety Officer position makes prisons safer The Illinois Department of Corrections is working with AFSCME corrections unions to fight the coronavirus pandemic as one. And the results are promising on many levels. Read More
April 06, 2020 IL Child Protection Investigator Makes the Rounds Despite COVID-19 Risk For this Illinois child protection investigator, telework and social distancing are not options. Read More
August 16, 2019 Meet the 2019 Winner of the Gerald W. McEntee Scholarship This year’s winner of the Gerald W. McEntee Scholarship juggles a full-time job, graduate studies and union activism. Read More
June 24, 2019 New Era in Illinois: State Workers Secure Fair Contract In an unmistakable sign that a new era has dawned in Illinois, state workers have secured a fair, new contract from Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s administration. Read More
May 23, 2019 Council 31 Members Make Gains in the Fight for Workplace Safety AFSCME Council 31 members who work for Illinois’ Department of Corrections and Department of Juvenile Justice successfully used their union contract. Read More
May 02, 2019 Illinois State Workers On Proper Step After Illegal Freeze State workers in Illinois are getting step increases they were denied under former Gov. Bruce Rauner, thanks to the current governor, J.B. Pritzker. Read More
April 08, 2019 Solidarity prevails in Rockford privatization fight When members of AFSCME Local 1275 (Council 31) stood as one and said no to outsourcing, their employer – Rockford, Illinois, Public Schools – backed down. Read More