History

AFSCME History

• Oregon workers have been coming together under the AFSCME banner for more than 80 years because they know that’s the path to better wages, better benefits, and better workplaces.

Nationally, the history of AFSCME began in 1932, as the country suffered through The Great Depression, when a small group of white-collar professional state employees met in Madison, Wis., and formed what would later become the Wisconsin State Employees Union. The reason for the group’s creation was simple: to promote, defend and enhance the civil service system. They were also determined to help spread the civil service system across the country.

Today, AFSCME represents over 1.4 million workers.

Oregon AFSCME 

In Oregon, AFSCME’s history dates back to the early 1940s. The first Oregon AFSCME local union was Local 191, chartered on Nov. 24, 1942, representing the “Oregon State Juvenile Parole Officers.”

The statewide organization, Oregon AFSCME Council 75, was chartered by the national union on June 1, 1967. It took 13 years for all AFSCME local unions to voluntarily affiliate with the umbrella organization.

Today, Oregon AFSCME is the fastest growing union in the state, representing over 40,000 workers who work for the state, counties, municipalities, behavioral health and social service non-profits, workers at OHSU and childcare providers.