American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Council 31
Recent News About American Federation of State County and Municipal Employees Council 31
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Pritzker calls for $700M in service cuts, silent on pension reform
Illinois’ current budget started out at a deficit, hoped for a tax increase that was rejected and counted on a federal bail-out that never came. Gov. J.B. Pritzker’s best fix is pension reform. -
Illinois spent $4.18 million nudging voters who did not request mail-in ballots
When Illinois state lawmakers wrote the mail-in voting law, they decided voters who did not seek a mail-in ballot should receive a letter from the state, and then another. -
Illinois scheduled to give $26 million in automatic pay raises to state workers
Pritzker should join other Democratic governors in postponing automatic pay raises, which would free up funds for needy Illinoisans and potentially preserve state worker jobs in the long run. -
Income tax hike dropped Illinois' economic freedom rank; 'Fair tax' would drop it even more
The largest permanent income tax hike in Illinois history was followed by a slide to 34th least-free state in the union, behind nearly every neighboring state. -
Unions should repay all fees received from non-union workers
If you found out you habitually had been overcharged for something or charged for something you didn’t want or know you were getting, you’d have a right to complain, to expect an end to the abuse and to receive reimbursement in full. -
Pritzker contract gives AFSCME unfettered access to workers' private information
Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker agreed to a deal with AFSCME Council 31 that threatens the privacy of state workers and violates workers’ rights. -
AFSCME funnels union dues to Mike Madigan
State records show AFSCME Council 31 funnels membership dues into its political action committee, which just gave a record-breaking $767,800 donation to Illinois House Speaker Mike Madigan. -
Post-Janus Landscape: Decision will impact union coffers, membership; more litigation on its way, say lawyers
In the wake of the U.S Supreme Court’s landmark decision to declare unconstitutional forced union fees, the legal and political landscape will undoubtedly change. But precisely what will change, and how and when those changes will roll out, remains anybody’s guess. -
At Janus oral arguments, lawyer for AFSCME predicted members would strike if no longer compelled to pay fees
WASHINGTON – Taxpayers should brace for strikes now that government unions can no longer compel members to pay agency fees for political campaigns, attorney David Frederick said last December arguing for unions before the U.S. Supreme Court. -
Meet the Illinoisan at the center of a historic Supreme Court case
Mark Janus learned about public service from a young age, growing up as a Boy Scout in Springfield. He eventually became an Eagle Scout. And he’s passed along his knowledge to young men and women from the state’s capital while leading scouting trips to Florida. -
Illinois pensions: Overpromised, not underfunded
For years, the state’s political elite has blamed ordinary Illinoisans for the state’s pension crisis. -
GOP state lawmakers join Supreme Court brief asking to reject challenge to compulsory union fees
A group of nine Republicans currently serving in the Illinois General Assembly, including two rookie state lawmakers, have signed their names to a brief filed with the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the court to uphold the state’s ability to allow unions to extract fees from government employees who don’t wish to join a union, arguing the country’s founding federalist principles should allow the 50 states to decide such policy questions for themselves. -
Judge who overturned Rauner 'fair share' executive order had worked as Madigan staffer in earlier days
Critics of policy decisions that prop up labor organizations at the expense of taxpayers have said it’s no mistake that some of the state's most consequential and political legal battles - contract negotiations, worker pay and union dues - have been filed in “union friendly” St. Clair County. -
Kolker sides with state labor in vacating Rauner's nullification of 'fair share'
St. Clair County Associate Judge Chris Kolker has ruled that Gov. Bruce Rauner's executive order prohibiting the collection of union dues from non-union state workers violates collective bargaining agreements. -
Janus v. AFSCME oral arguments scheduled Feb. 26 at Supreme Court
WASHINGTON - The U.S. Supreme Court announced it will hear oral arguments in Janus v. AFSCME on Feb. 26, in a case challenging the constitutionality of compulsory union dues for state government workers. -
Appeals court: State must give union workers their pay raises while negotiating new contract
The Fifth District Appellate Court dealt Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner a setback Nov. 6 by ruling in favor of union employees on the question of stepped salary increases, saying whether or not there is a collective bargaining agreement in place, the union workers are owed the regular pay raises, which the state hasn't paid since a contract expired in 2015. -
Janus v. AFSCME could mean more freedom for Illinois' government workers
For four decades, government workers have been denied their First Amendment right to freedom of association, but that could change with a U.S. Supreme Court decision in 2018. -
SCOTUS to take up Illinois case challenging power of unions to collect fees from non-union state workers
The U.S. Supreme Court will again wade into the question of whether public sector worker unions can force government employees who don’t wish to join their union to still pay fees, ostensibly for collective bargaining representation. -
Madigan petitions Supreme Court for direct appeal of LeChien's order preserving worker pay
SPRINGFIELD – Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has asked the Supreme Court for direct appeal of a St. Clair County order preserving a normal payroll for state employees in the absence of appropriations. -
AFSCME pitting members against taxpayers in possible strike, think tank attorney says
CHICAGO – The largest public employee union in Illinois is exaggerating its support and pitting members against taxpayers in its announced willingness to strike, a conservative think tank attorney said during a recent interview.