United Michigan Medicine Allied Professionals Ratify First Contract
A huge congratulations to the members of the United Michigan Medicine Allied Professionals (UMMAP/AFT 6739), who ratified their first contract by a vote of 2869-49 on Friday. It’s been a long and winding road for the more than 4,600 healthcare professionals represented by UMMAP, who began organizing several years ago and have united members across hundreds of job classifications across six bargaining units to win a great first contract. The agreement includes fair and equitable raises based on years of service and prior work experience, fair and transparent standards for evaluations, job security, labor-management committees designed to address staffing and scheduling issues at the department level, and many more major improvements to working conditions for members. Great work by President Penni Toney, the entire UMMAP leadership team, and all the staff from UMMAP, AFT Michigan, and AFT who helped make this dream a reality!
Protect Our Kids: Mobilizing for a Day of Action – Webinar Feb 19
On Tuesday, March 4, affiliates across America will take part in actions calling on lawmakers to protect our kids and to strengthen, not decimate, our public schools. On Wednesday, February 19, please join our webinar that describes how we are fighting back against attacks on kids and schools, and how you can help to stand up and coordinate the actions on March 4, when we’ll march forth for our public schools and to protect our kids.
On Wednesday at 7p.m. Eastern, we’ll share resources and hear from AFT members already committed to our day of action. Please register here.
The stakes are high. President Trump and Elon Musk are swinging a wrecking ball at public education. Our kids risk losing special education services, extra academic support for students living in poverty, mental health services, after-school programs, and nobody wants Elon Musk rifling through private personal data. That’s why we are gearing up to show the public and elected officials that we’re here to protect our kids and the public schools that provide them opportunities for a better life.
A new poll from the Associated Press came out just a few days ago that demonstrates Americans don’t want cuts to public education. What President Trump and Musk are trying to do is unpopular. So it’s up to us to show up for our kids and our schools. We need this day of action to include events nationwide, which is why we want to meet to discuss it now.
Stop Elon Musk from Stealing Americans’ Tax and Other Private Data
Elon Musk and his minions are taking Americans’ private personal and financial data, in one of the biggest data hacks in U.S. history. Now that he’s gone to the Department of Education, he has access to the critical personal data of millions of people—anyone who has taken out a student loan or filled out a student aid application (the Free Application for Federal Student Aid). That FAFSA data includes Social Security numbers, tax returns, information on personal assets and more.
We’ve sued to stop Musk from accessing Americans’ private information—particularly students, their families, educators, nurses and other student loan borrowers—and we held a press conference demanding that our data be protected. We need to keep up the momentum.
Let’s be clear: We want bureaucracy to be more efficient. This isn’t that. Musk has access to your private personal and financial data. No one who voted for Trump thought he would give Musk permission to invade their privacy.
This is a breach of our fundamental freedoms. Right now, inside the Department of Education, the world’s richest man is rifling through 45 million people’s private student loan accounts, feeding the data into artificial intelligence, and downloading our most private data onto private personal servers.
WSU Free Seminar – Changes to MI Employment Laws
Please join the WSU Labor School on Saturday, March 1, 2025, to discuss MI Employment Laws and the recent changes that may affect MI workers. Learn about changes to paid sick leave, minimum wage, earn paid sick time, wage & hour, and workers’ compensation.
This seminar is free to the public. Please register here to attend with this link:
https://forms.wayne.edu/59a6d04e399fa
Michigan Higher Education Labor Summit – March 15
Black History Month Lesson Plans and Resources
Are your students familiar with Bayard Rustin, Coretta Scott King or Shirley Chisholm? Check out this lesson collection, inspired by this year’s theme: African Americans and Labor. Teaching about Black History is an essential and important part of any history curriculum and an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the contributions and accomplishments of Black people throughout history, and also serves as an opportunity to acknowledge and learn about the struggles and injustices of the past and present. By incorporating these lessons into our curriculum, we not only acknowledge the diversity of our society, but also gain a deeper understanding of our shared history and the ways in which it has shaped our world today.
Review sample resources from AFT Share My Lesson curriculum-spanning collection of free preK-12 lesson plans and activities, then begin your lesson planning here.
Contribute to the AFT Michigan PAC Today
AFT Michigan fights for our members, students, patients and communities all year round and we need your help. Can you donate $1 a week to aid us in this fight? Please visit the AFT Michigan website to contribute and make a big difference in protecting public education and building a better Michigan future!
Upcoming Professional Development
AFT Michigan
The Face of Trauma and Adverse Childhood Experience (ACEs) PreK-14
Saturday, March 1, 2025
8:30am – 4:00pm via Zoom
This workshop will explore strategies for addressing trauma and ACEs impact on the academic and social emotional growth of PreK-14 learners. Attendees will also have an opportunity to learn how students’ adversities can have negative effects upon professional staff well-being and productivity.
Click here to register
In solidarity,
Terrence Martin
President
