Sisters and Brothers,

For everyone who joined the Townhalls on Wednesday – thank you. Like every part of being in a union, it’s your participation that made them a success. We received many great, and challenging, questions from members and represented employees alike. I was able to answer many in real time, but not all of them. I want to reiterate that we will be doing our best to get answers to all the questions we couldn’t get to as soon as we can.

I want to thank everyone who asked a question and participated. We can’t grow, we can’t rebuild if we shy away from answering tough questions about the state of our union.

For those of you who couldn’t make it – I want to share three takeaways from the townhalls. 

1. Our goal is to focus on our locals, on rebuilding our membership, rebuilding our union’s strength in our workplaces, and developing the skills and tools we need to have a voice, with or without any Legislature’s or manager’s permission.
2. We’ve got work to do in Missouri and Kansas. This week, I went to Missouri and met with local leaders and members. I’m getting up to speed on their needs as fast as I can so we can help them grow and succeed for a better future.
3. Respect is earned, not given, but we’ve got to open doors and start conversations to make progress for our union. I sat down on Tuesday with Governor Reynolds to introduce myself and just to start a conversation. We agreed that there are areas we can work together on – and areas that we are going to disagree – but that we need to have a line of communication to solve problems in our workplaces. 

I stand ready and willing to hold management and elected officials accountable for their promises. I also stand ready and willing to have conversations with them to achieve our goals.

Finally, and most important. We need your voice in your union. If you want to get involved, if you want to sign an Iowa membership card, please click the button or the link below to volunteer.

Thank you,

Rick Eilander

President, AFSCME Council 61