AFSCME Local 3692 member Bill Jones completed his associate degree at age 57—completely free with the AFSCME Free College benefit.

This September AFSCME Local 2515 members at Milestone Inc. ratified their third union contract since forming their union with AFSCME in 2014, improving wages and making no concessions.

Direct service personnel (DSPs) at Mosaic in Rockford made further gains in wages and protections in their second AFSCME contract.

Employees of Wexford Health Sources Inc. at Illinois correctional facilities celebrated a two-year contract agreement and their 20-year union anniversary this July.

AFSCME Local 2767 members at the McFarland Mental Health Center in Springfield were being repeatedly subjected to violent attacks by high-risk patients. They decided assaults should never be considered just "part of the job."

“My two biggest hopes are that when they get out, the inmates don’t come back. And that all our officers go home safe at the end of the day.”

Diego Andrade-Cabrera, son of AFSCME Local 2854 member Doris Andrade and recipient of a 2019 AFSCME Family Scholarship, describes how his mother's union job changed their lives for the better.

"It makes me happy that I’m able to make a difference in people’s lives, especially when it comes to the children. I dedicate my all to what I do every day. I’m determined to have a positive impact with care and words of encouragement."

In an extraordinarily challenging time, AFSCME members succeeded in sharing their story and fighting for continued progress for the adults and youth they serve every day.

City of Chicago employees and residents will join Alderman Sophia King and the newly formed mental health task force at a community hearing on June 13 to discuss ways to improve the city’s public mental health system.