Tag: AFSCME

The Story: It was a decision not to decide. Still, the American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the largest federation of public...

Buy Photo Pennsylvania’s public-sector labor unions, which represent 6 percent of the state’s workers and spend tens of millions of dollars on political campaigns annually, could be substantially handicapped thanks to a blockbuster decision by the U.S. Supreme Court. Pete Matthews, president of Philadelphia’s District Council 33, said his blue-collar municipal union spent more than a year asking members to sign cards pledging to remain. Janus ruling follows years of labor losses The Supreme Court’s decision comes after America’s unions have suffered decades of decline. “This decision could have far-reaching implications beyond public-sector unions to unions generally and to workers, even some who are not organized,” Casey said. “Even if we didn’t have union participation in supporting candidates, I think there are some members of the corporate right that just don’t want workers to be organized anyway,” he said. His union mostly represents workers outside of the government. He echoed Morgan in saying that the Janus decision could mobilize workers who feel under attack. According to a 2014 report by the Congressional Research Service, 5.6 percent of workers are union members in states with right-to-work laws, compared to 15 percent in other states. Less than 10 percent of the people represented by the union are not members, according to Kirsch. It’s politics.