Retiree Bulletin – MN AFL-CIO Retiree Council
June 23, 2017
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The May 6, 2017 Conference, FAMILY SECURITY AND RETIREE POWER IN A TIME OF CRISIS, drew over 100 people to the Minnesota Nurses Association to hear speakers and participate in a variety of workshops. Special thanks to keynote speaker Robert Roach Jr., President of the Alliance for Retired Americans and closing speaker Chelsie Glaubitz Gabiou, President of the Minneapolis Regional Labor Federation, for their inspiring remarks. You can watch their speeches at the State Retiree Council Facebook page: Click here, then click on “Videos” in the left hand column. And to the workshop organizers, presenters and sponsors of the event. Click here for a more detailed list of “thank yous”. Click here for Dan Mikel’s report on the workshop by Senator John Marty.
Check out the stirring call to action in the current issue of the Union Advocate, by Rose Roach, executive director of the Minnesota Nurses Association It is our responsibility as trade unionists and leaders, she writes, “…to create a path that will bring sanity and fairness, equity and compassion back into our lives . . . . Change is in the air, brothers and sisters. We must not be victims of darkness but beacons of light.”
The AFL-CIO Retiree Council will celebrate its twentieth year of action at the upcoming Annual Convention which will be held Wednesday, September 27. The convention will be held at the Sheet Metal Workers Local 10 Hall, 1681 Cope Ave. in Maplewood. Affiliates will be receiving details of time and deadlines when credentials are mailed out in July. Click here to read Mary Sansom’s reflections on this great occasion. (Mary was quite young in 1997).
President Bill Moore shares thoughts on the importance of strategizing as the Retiree Council takes on the creation of a strategic plan for the organization’s next several years. Click here to learn about organizations and their resources for growth.
This year’s Annual Fund Raiser of the AFL-CIO Retiree Council once again broke records on attendance and money raised. Well over 200 supporters found the new location at the St. Paul Regional Labor Federation. Those attending were generous in support of the Silent Auction and various raffle offerings. Special thanks to Lois Wendt and the many volunteers who spearheaded this fun occasion. Click here for a complete thank you list and click here for photos and a report on the event. Shown above, Rebecca Otto, state auditor, and Larry Koenck.
Affiliates of the Minnesota AFL-CIO Retiree Council should have recently received notices that affiliation fees for the 2017 calendar year are now due. If your organization is already affiliated, the notice should have gone to your officers. If the notice has not been received, or if your organization IS NOT affiliated and would like to be, please contact the Retiree Council at 1-800-652-9004 or 651 227 7647 Ext.121.
Governor Mark Dayton signed the state budget bills passed by the Republican legislature despite his disagreement with various provisions in them. He line-item vetoed funding for legislative operations. Legislative leaders have filed a lawsuit and the Governor has hired former Minnesota Supreme Court Justice Sam Hanson to represent him. Click here to read a Workday Minnesota background piece on this fight.
The Republican legislature’s state budget bills included anti-worker “poison pills” and did not provide needed staffing funds as the last days of the legislative session dragged on. Finally, a bonding bill was agreed to and critical staffing improvements for safety of state employees were met. Click here for information on these provisions. Another funding bill allowed the legislature to nit-pick already collectively bargained economic contract terms. Click here for the full story
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