For the future of our unions, let’s get out the labor vote

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Sisters and Brothers:

On the day after Election Day, what kind of political reality would you like to wake up to?

Would you like to see the New Hampshire legislature gain pro-union majorities in the state House & Senate, and have a pro-labor candidate take back the Governor’s seat?

Or are you satisfied with the status quo of re-electing a Governor and state legislature that are determined to chip away at NH laws that protect workers’ rights and safety – and face the threat of yet another “right to work” battle, this time targeting the membership security of private sector unions?

If you prefer the pro-union option, New Hampshire AFL-CIO needs your boots on the ground to help elect labor-endorsed candidates for Governor, Congress and State Senate.

We have Labor 2018 member-to-member walks scheduled for the next 2 weekends, and we sure would like to see you there. Most walk volunteers will complete an average walk packet in 2 hours or less. We’ll have snacks, coffee, water, instructions and everything else you’ll need to have a great door-knocking experience.

Saturday, October 27, 2018 | 10am-2pm
Labor Walk in Nashua (State Senate Districts 12 & 13)
Staging Location: Nashua Teachers Union | 7 Taggart Drive Unit C, Nashua NH
Sign up on Facebook

Saturday, November 3, 2018 | 10am-2pm
Labor Walk in Hooksett/Manchester (State Senate District 16)
Staging Location: NH AFL-CIO | 161 Londonderry Turnpike, Hooksett NH
Sign up on Facebook

Other ways to RSVP:

  • Email labor2018@nhaflcio.org with your name, primary phone number and the dates you plan to volunteer
  • Call the NH AFL-CIO office at (603) 623-7302

Would you like to download the NH Labor 2018 Walk flier to share or print? It’s right here.

Let’s show those folks who say strong unions are thing of the past that we still have the power to turn out votes for local candidates who will stand with us on the issues. Sign up or RSVP for one or more labor walk shifts today.

In solidarity,

Judy Stadtman
Labor 2018 Field Director
New Hampshire AFL-CIO
labor2018@nhaflcio.org
(603) 623-7302

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NH AFL-CIO Legislative Conference votes on 2018 endorsements

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On Saturday, September 22, the New Hampshire AFL-CIO convened its 2018 Legislative Conference and confirmed the endorsement of candidates for Governor, U.S. Congress, NH Executive Council, State Senate, and 169 candidates for NH House of Representatives.

The purpose of the conference is to endorse candidates who support the core values of the NH AFL-CIO, our affiliates and their members and to protect and further the rights of working people in New Hampshire. Endorsements are made on recommendations from the NH AFL-CIO Legislative Committee and nominations by the Conference, based on the candidates’ satisfactory score on the 2018 issues questionnaire or a positive voting record on NH AFL-CIO legislative priorities and/or a discussion key issues with the NH AFL-CIO President.

A PDF document of our 2018 candidate endorsements may be found here

NH AFL-CIO 2018 Candidate Endorsements 09 27 2018_revisions
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New Labor 2018 Walk Dates Announced

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The New Hampshire AFL-CIO has announced new labor walk dates to support the state labor federation’s endorsed candidate, Mark MacKenzie for Congress in NH CD1. Please check out the event page for new dates and a link to sign up online, or email labor2018@nhaflcio.org for more information.

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Bernie Sanders to headline 2018 Labor Day Breakfast

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(August 8th, 2018 – Hooksett, NH) New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Glenn Brackett announced today that long-time friend of the Granite State labor community Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) will serve as the keynote speaker at the AFL-CIO’s annual Labor Day Breakfast. The breakfast is to be held at St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Manchester on Monday, September 3rd at 9:00am.

“Sen. Sanders’s advocacy and passion in his support of working families are American values whose time have come” Brackett said, adding “Bernie Sanders’s leadership sharpens the focus on the national conversation towards issues that affect every worker, in every community in this country.”

Sen. Sanders has recognized the importance of the AFL-CIO NH Labor Day Breakfast by attending and speaking at this event a number of times. Attracting over 300 of the most active and influential advocates for workers in the state, the NH AFL-CIO’s Labor Day Breakfast represents the traditional kickoff of the campaign season and an opportunity for Labor to demonstrate support for pro-worker candidates in the fall elections.

Sanders, first elected to Congress in 1990 after serving as Burlington’s mayor, has been an advocate for workers’ rights in Washington and earned a lifetime AFL-CIO rating of 99%. He has been a dependable presence in the Granite State and won New Hampshire’s first-in-the-nation presidential primary with 61% in 2016.

“We are excited that Senator Sanders will help to make our Labor Day Breakfast a memorable event,” Brackett said.

For Labor Day Breakfast ticket information and other details, please visit the event page.

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2018 Candidate Questionnaire Deadline is August 17

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2018 candidates for New Hampshire Senate and House of Representatives must submit a completed NH AFL-CIO 2018 Candidate Questionnaire to be considered for our endorsement. The deadline for submissions is 5:00pm on Friday, August 17.

All candidates who filed for State Representative or Senate districts were mailed information about how to access the NH AFL-CIO 2018 questionnaire online and how to request a PDF or printed copy of the questionnaire by email or regular mail. Instructions were mailed to all candidates at the mailing address reported to the Secretary of State at the time of filing.

For more information about how to access the candidate survey online and how to request the questionnaire in an alternate format, please visit our 2018 Candidate Survey page. Candidates who need a reminder email with the survey password should send an email including your your full name and the House or Senate district in which you are seeking election to labor2018@nhaflcio.org .

 

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Order your 2018 Labor Day Breakfast tickets now!

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Working men and women make America strong, and there is no better time to celebrate the labor movement and our long legacy of fighting to improve the lives of working families!

The New Hampshire AFL-CIO Annual Labor Day Breakfast will be held on Monday, September 3, 2018, 9:00am at St. George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Manchester.

All are welcome! Tickets are $30.00/person (kids under 5 eat free) and may be ordered by emailing Billie Jo Schreiber, bschreiber@nhaflcio.org or by calling the NH AFL-CIO office at (603) 623-7302×17.

Click here to download a PDF of the 2018 Labor Day Breakfast flier.

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NH AFL-CIO President Glenn Brackett Statement on U.S. Supreme Court Janus Decision

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Hooksett, NH – June 27, 2018 – New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Glenn Brackett today issued the following statement in response to the U.S. Supreme Court decision in Janus v. AFSCME, Council 31:

Today’s Janus decision from the U.S. Supreme Court, which appears to be aimed at destroying the moral fabric of our society, is disappointing but not unexpected. This activist Court has, in short order, found that states should remain free to manipulate election districts to disadvantage voters who disagree with the bankrupt social and economic agenda of the political party now in power; and has ruled that out-right discrimination against the LGBT community is acceptable, as long as businesses thinly veil their discrimination in the sacred mantle of the First Amendment. It has determined that it is okay to deny entry to people from certain countries and ethnic groups, based on hateful stereotypes about their religious beliefs. In overturning decades of established law, it has ruled that employees cannot join together to make a collective complaint against an employer, making it virtually impossible for workers to hold employers accountable for patterns of discriminatory practices or stealing their wages.

And now with the Janus ruling, this Court has found that public employee unions must, under Federal law, provide representational services to employees who benefit from the negotiated protections of a union contract, for free.

The moral surrender of this Court to the right-wing corporate agenda is leading this country further down the path of moral indifference, and worse. We, the working people of America, deserve better than this – and by joining together and working in union, we will fight back the corrupt forces intent on dismantling worker protections and keeping wages low, and we will restore and make stronger the freedoms and promise of fairness and opportunity that the labor movement has always held out to working families: safe jobs with good wages and benefits, dignity and respect in the workplace for all, and the freedom to join together to bargain for better working conditions.

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Above:
New Hampshire AFL-CIO President Glenn Brackett and Executive Vice-President David Pelletier (UA Local 131) are sticking with the union after the June 27 Janus decision was announced.

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2018-2019 Linda Horan Scholarship Winners Announced

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Linda Horan Scholarship Awards

In honor of Sister Linda Horan, longtime IBEW member and former Chair of the NH AFL-CIO Scholarship Committee, we are pleased to announce the winners of this year’s awards. In order to assist with increasing costs of higher education, we have increased the amount of each scholarship award for the 2018-2019 school year.

We are proud to announce the following award winners and alternates:

  1. First Place – This award for $2,000 goes to Courtney Otto. Courtney’s mother is a member of AFT NH #1044. Courtney will be attending University of Rochester as a senior this year. Courtney was previously awarded a scholarship from the NH AFL-CIO as a Sophomore. Congratulations Courtney!!
      
  2. Second Place – The second-place award, for $1,250, goes to Augustino Fisher, who is a member of APWU #230. Augustino will be attending NHTI as a Sophomore. Congratulations Augustino!!
      
  3. Third Place – The third-place award, for $1,000, goes to Bethany Boulanger. Bethany is the daughter of a member of NALC #44. Bethany will be attending Boston University as a Junior. She also received a scholarship award from the NH AFL-CIO in 2017, following in the footsteps of a brother who won in 2016! Congratulations Bethany!!

Monica Johnson (APWU #230) and Tyler St. Peter (IBEW #2320) were selected as alternates in the event of any award winner’s inability to attend.

Congratulations to the Linda Horan Scholarship winners & thank you to all who took the time to apply. We wish you the very best in the upcoming school year.

The scholarship program was a labor of love for Linda, who was always committed to “leaving the ladder down” for the next generation. It is our hope to continue to honor Linda’s passionate advocacy for workers again next year by expanding our program and increasing the assistance we can provide. We can only do that with your help. Please consider helping to build for a better future by contributing to EAP Services, AFL-CIO Scholarship Fund.

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NH AFL-CIO kicks off Labor 2018 with labor walk for CD1 candidate Mark MacKenzie

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union proud and I vote

Union members and volunteers will kick off the New Hampshire AFL-CIO Labor 2018 election program on Saturday, June 23 with a labor walk in Manchester to support NH AFL-CIO endorsed candidate Mark MacKenzie in his run for Congress in NH CD1.

MacKenzie, who to date has received the endorsement of 20 New Hampshire labor unions, is a respected labor leader with over 20 years of experience as past President of the New Hampshire AFL-CIO. A former firefighter, he served for 25 years in the City of Manchester Fire Department. In 2016, Mark MacKenzie was elected by voters in Manchester’s Ward 10 to serve in the NH House of Representatives, where he was an tireless advocate for workers’ rights and safety. He is running for election in the Democratic Primary for CD1.

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2018 End of Legislative Session Recap from AFT-NH

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AFT-New Hampshire President Doug Ley has posted an end-of-session look-back at significant education and labor legislation considered by the state legislature in 2018. Of special note, Senate Bill 193, which would have authorized redirecting taxpayer dollars earmarked for funding public education as “grants” (i.e., vouchers) to private households to pay for private school tuition or homeschooling costs, was finally put on the shelf after Senate members attempted to resurrect the bill after a bi-partisan majority of House members voted to send the bill to interim study (and voted again to keep it there). Senate Bill 193, described as the most radical school voucher bill to be introduced by any state legislature in the United States, was supported by Governor Chris Sununu. This wrong-headed and harmful bill deserved to be stopped in its tracks, and fortunately, it was.

On a less upbeat note, Senate Bill 318, a watered-down version of a bill that expands the maximum number of hours 16-and-17-year-old students are permitted to work during the school week and makes it harder for the Department of Labor to investigate suspected violations of youth employment regulations, was passed on the recommendation of a conference committee dominated by legislators with ties to the restaurant and hospitality industry. New Hampshire AFL-CIO actively fought the passage of the bill and similar 2018 bills to weaken wage & hour protections for teen employees.

Read more about these and other legislative developments on the AFT-NH web site.

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