WHEREAS:
Public service workers and the services they provide are under attack by anti-worker politicians and big corporations determined to privatize or outsource their jobs, strip them of their rights and gut vital public services; and

WHEREAS:
Public service is among the most honorable of professions, and the workers who perform it do so conscientiously and well, and fully deserve to be recognized for the good and vital work they do; and

WHEREAS:
Public employees protect the health and well-being of all Americans – they are the nurses who care for the sick, the child care providers who educate our children and keep them safe, the corrections officers who keep criminals off our streets, the custodians who keep our schools, hospitals and public spaces clean, and the administrators and office workers who are the backbone of local, state and federal government agencies; and

WHEREAS:
At every level of government and in private agencies that provide public services, public employees are the people who make America work and help make ours a just and democratic society; and

WHEREAS:
Hurricane Katrina shined a spotlight on what can happen when the public sector is under-funded and neglected by short-sighted officials who put politics before the people they are meant to serve; and

WHEREAS:
Hurricane Katrina also shined a spotlight on the extraordinary actions of public employees who put the welfare of others above their own and who, in the face of this unprecedented natural disaster, were the first ones on the scene and are still there today; and
 
WHEREAS:
Public employees are our nation’s unsung heroes and heroines but have been scapegoated by right-wing forces committed to dismantling the public sector to advance their own privatization agenda; and

WHEREAS:
From California to Indiana to Missouri, President Bush and other anti-worker politicians have shamelessly blamed public employees for their failure to keep their financial houses in order; and

WHEREAS:
Through the deliberations and town hall meetings of the 21st Century Committee, the leaders of the International Union, affiliate leaders and rank and file members across the country identified the need for AFSCME to develop a consistent, modern and exciting identity and message for all of its internal and external communications; and

WHEREAS:
AFSCME’s message and identity should showcase the pride and power of our union and use cutting edge images and graphics to illustrate our vision; and

WHEREAS:
The 21st Century Committee also identified the need for AFSCME to complete a comprehensive audit of all of our internal and external communications to ensure that our union has a consistent, modern and exciting message.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED:
That AFSCME will launch an aggressive campaign to educate the media, elected officials and the general public about the need for a vibrant and adequately funded public sector that meets the needs of America’s people and values and respects the employees who deliver the services every community depends on; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:
That AFSCME will publicly and vigorously fight attempts – in legislatures and the courts – to silence the voices of public service workers who are charged with protecting the public good; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:
That AFSCME will develop and execute a comprehensive plan to project a proud and bold image of public services and the employees who provide them – through paid media, issue campaigns, public service announcements and aggressive media outreach at the local, state and national levels; and

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED:
That AFSCME will evaluate how we project ourselves in printed materials, electronic communications and in every other way to ensure that we project a consistent image that shows the purpose, strength and vitality of our mission; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED:
That the goal of this effort will be to build respect for public services and public service workers to project the pride that AFSCME members have in their union and in the important work they do, in all our external and internal communications, and ensure that the public service employees of today and tomorrow have the compensation, health care and retirement security they need to keep providing the high quality services Americans need and deserve.
 
 
SUBMITTED BY:  INTERNATIONAL EXECUTIVE BOARD