IL - Council 31 | American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME)

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.’

August 02, 2023

Illinois state workers ratify robust new contract

More than 30,000 Illinois state workers have ratified a robust new contract.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

March 13, 2023

Field Museum employees win union with AFSCME

AFSCME Council 31 welcomes workers at the Field Museum of Natural History in Chicago.

February 28, 2023

AFSCME cultural workers spotlight Black artists

AFSCME cultural workers take to Instagram to spotlight Black artists.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

April 05, 2022

Recognizing AFSCME library workers

On National Library Workers Day, we celebrate AFSCME’s library workers.

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.

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!

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

May 18, 2021

S-T McBride honors museum workers

Secretary-Treasurer Elissa McBride spoke to some AFSCME cultural workers to mark International Museum Day.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

January 24, 2019

In the Wake of the Janus Ruling, We're Sticking With Our Union

The billionaires and corporations that brought Janus v. AFSCME Council 31 to the Supreme Court expected a flood of workers to leave their unions. Instead, what’s happening is just the opposite.

November 19, 2018

AFSCME Supports Bill Curbing Workplace Violence

The bill would help protect hospital, psychiatric, behavioral health care, EMS workers and others by requiring the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) to issue a federal worker-protection standard.

November 09, 2018

Victory over Rauner in Illinois Was Proof of AFSCME’s Strength

Gov. Bruce Rauner was not a friend of working people. So working people worked hard to make sure he was denied a second term.

November 01, 2018

Fierce Unity and Determination Mark Contract Win for Southern Illinois County Workers

Members of AFSCME Local 2464 (Council 31), county workers from Southern Illinois’ Jackson County, won a new union contract with fair pay and affordable health care.

July 23, 2018

Mark Janus Quits Public Service Job to Serve Big-Money Special Interests

He announced he is quitting his state job as a child support specialist to join the Illinois Policy Institute as a “senior fellow.”

July 10, 2018

‘A Form of Identity Theft’

When a corporate front group misused an AFSCME Council 31 member’s photo, she called the group out on it.

July 06, 2018

New Member Explains Why She Joined Her Union After the Janus Ruling

A must-read column from a new member of AFSCME Council 31 who explains why she converted from being a fee payer to a full union member – after the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Janus v. AFSCME.

June 29, 2018

Don’t Believe the Lies, AFSCME Remains Strong

The corporate interests who brought you the Janus ruling are launching their next phase.

June 27, 2018

Supreme Court Sides with Billionaires Over Working People

The U.S. Supreme Court today sided with powerful CEOs, billionaires and corporate special interests against public service workers and everyday working people by issuing an adverse ruling in Janus v. AFSCME.

June 06, 2018

‘We Wouldn’t Have Anything If It Weren’t for Our Union’

Only by joining together in a union can public service workers stand up to those who want to take away their fair pay and benefits and wreck their retirement and health care security.

May 23, 2018

How the Plaintiff in Janus v. AFSCME Benefits from His Union

Mark Janus, the plaintiff in the Janus v. AFSCME case, benefits from his union. So what convinced Mr. Janus to join this destructive lawsuit?

IL - Council 31 Archive

Never Quit Award winner teaches inmates to develop a green thumb

Illinois members take the wheel on solving school bus driver shortage

Newberry Library employees win first contract a year after forming a union

Art Institute school and museum staff win first contract

St. Charles Public Library workers in Illinois win first contract

Illinois state workers ratify robust new contract

Waukegan Public Library workers win stronger rights in first contract

Nature Museum workers win union election with AFSCME

For Illinois paramedic, a desire to fully serve his community is hampered by short-staffing

Workers at another Chicago institution are forming a union with AFSCME

Chicago City Council passes ordinance to support workers’ right to organize

Staffing crisis hits patients, workers at Illinois center for intellectually disabled

Nature Museum employees in Illinois forming union with AFSCME

Field Museum employees win union with AFSCME

AFSCME cultural workers spotlight Black artists

For Black History Month, AFL-CIO salutes these current and former AFSCME members

Cultural workers win at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago

Workers at Tacoma, Chicago museums highlight growing organizing momentum

Red Cross workers win 9% pay increase, retain strong health benefits in historic contract

American Red Cross workers, including AFSCME members, rally for fair contract

ISU employees ratify contract raising wages

Recognizing AFSCME library workers

The pay gap between Missouri and Illinois state workers underscores the union difference

Historic union wins at Art Institute of Chicago

We mourn the death of sister Deidre Silas, Illinois DCFS investigator

Historic union election looming at Art Institute of Chicago

Art Institute of Chicago employees are forming a union with AFSCME

Workers deliver big win for Illinois public library and the community it serves

Illinois district library workers decide to form a union through AFSCME

S-T McBride honors museum workers

Workers at Illinois hospital win their union

Library workers in Oak Lawn, Illinois, are newest AFSCME members

New Chief Safety Officer position makes prisons safer

IL Child Protection Investigator Makes the Rounds Despite COVID-19 Risk

Meet the 2019 Winner of the Gerald W. McEntee Scholarship

New Era in Illinois: State Workers Secure Fair Contract

Council 31 Members Make Gains in the Fight for Workplace Safety

Illinois State Workers On Proper Step After Illegal Freeze

Solidarity prevails in Rockford privatization fight

In the Wake of the Janus Ruling, We're Sticking With Our Union

AFSCME Supports Bill Curbing Workplace Violence

Victory over Rauner in Illinois Was Proof of AFSCME’s Strength

Fierce Unity and Determination Mark Contract Win for Southern Illinois County Workers

Mark Janus Quits Public Service Job to Serve Big-Money Special Interests

‘A Form of Identity Theft’

New Member Explains Why She Joined Her Union After the Janus Ruling

Don’t Believe the Lies, AFSCME Remains Strong

Supreme Court Sides with Billionaires Over Working People

‘We Wouldn’t Have Anything If It Weren’t for Our Union’

How the Plaintiff in Janus v. AFSCME Benefits from His Union