Labor Updates (3/27/08)

(Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO)
MD House Funds State Worker Contracts: The budget passed last week by the Maryland House included funds for state employee contracts negotiated last year. “When some legislators called for a reduction of the pay raise, AFSCME members hit the phones and the emails,” reports AFSCME MD. “We spoke out about the need to recruit and retain state employees in order to assure that Maryland is safer and able to provide the educational, health and social services that are critical to so many.” Although AFSCME MD warns that “Several budget issues remain,” they say that “AFSCME members who took action can take some pride in our success in making the pay raises and benefit improvements we negotiated a reality.”