Get Organized!
The attacks by billionaires and anti-union extremists on our public services and union rights are not just a federal issue – they are already impacting AFSCME members here in Pennsylvania, and it will continue if we don’t Get Organized.
Getting Organized means going to your local union meeting, engaging with your coworkers about your union, and signing up for alerts from AFSCME. It means building your Council 13 local union membership (join here) so you and your coworkers are as powerful of a force in your workplace as possible. It means contributing to PEOPLE (or PAL for Council 13) so we can swiftly respond to the constant attacks while supporting candidates who will help us fight back.
We are fighting back against the gutting of federal, state and local budgets. The billionaire-backed extremists that have hijacked our government want to slash essential programs like Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid. They are already reversing health and safety protections. This is an assault on working families that will hurt all of us – especially children, seniors and those most vulnerable.
Many Council 13 members are very concerned about these proposed cuts, especially those to Medicaid. In Pennsylvania, more than 3 million people rely on Medicaid. That’s 1 in 6 adults, 3 in 8 children, and 5 in 8 nursing home residents. 34% of births in this state are covered by Medicaid. The Commonwealth receives $29 billion in federal Medicaid funding, representing 24.42% of total commonwealth expenditures (2024).
Why are the billionaires in power attacking these invaluable public services? So they can give themselves trillions in tax cuts – money that belongs to working people. And they’re not going to stop there. Their plan, known as Project 2025, even says our union shouldn’t exist, but we’re Getting Organized and fighting back.
Learn more here and check out the video below for a call to action from our International President Lee Saunders!