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AFSCME President Lee Saunders praised the White House’s announcement Thursday that the Biden administration will forgive student loans for an additional 78,000 borrowers — including many AFSCME mem

AFSCME President Lee Saunders congratulated Nicole Berner, a longtime labor lawyer and general counsel of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU), on being 

As the coronavirus (COVID-19) emerges in the United States, many AFSCME members are and will continue to be on the front lines caring for and transporting those afflicted with the virus. Workers in emergency services, health care, child care, educational institutions and many others may come in contact with people who’ve contracted the coronavirus, putting themselves at risk.

On the eve of Saturday’s Nevada Democratic primary caucuses, AFSCME members and retirees gathered at a Las Vegas restaurant to hear one last time from presidential candidates on the issues that matter most to working families.

AFSCME members sat down with congressional lawmakers last week to share stories about how the Public Service Freedom to Negotiate Act would improve communities and empower workers.

Through a budget proposal announced this week, President Donald Trump continues his attacks on vital programs for working families, including Medicare, Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act (ACA).

And rather than invest in America’s future, he seeks to disinvest, proposing deep funding cuts to programs in education, environmental protection, disease prevention and more.

Leanne Kunze began serving as the union’s executive director this February after being selected by the AFSCME Council 28/WFSE Executive Board in January. She is the fifth person and first woman to hold the position.

Kunze brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the job, both as a member activist and staff leader.

“In my estimation, the executive board made a great choice to help drive our energetic staff,” said outgoing executive director, Greg Devereux.

Thousands of public employees from across the state called in for a tele town hall on January 30 hosted by President Mike Yestramski and Vice President Andrea Vaughn. WFSE's new executive director, Leanne Kunze, was also available to answer questions about pending legislation to protect state employees' personal information (HB 1888).

We'll keep you posted on upcoming tele town halls. But if you missed January's, check out the video below.

Executive Director and International Vice President Greg Devereux retired in January after nearly 40 years in the labor movement. His leadership made the Washington Federation of State Employees (WFSE) one of the strongest AFSCME councils in the nation and a progressive force for working people in Washington State.

Devereux began his career with WFSE in 1993 as the deputy director, and in 1994 he was selected to serve as the union’s fourth executive director. Prior to that, he worked at AFSCME’s Public Policy Department and ran corporate campaigns at the AFL-CIO.