Health Care

Health care is a basic human right.  America’s labor movement has worked for more than a century for guaranteed high-quality health care for everyone.  The Affordable Care Act is a historic milestone on this journey, but we still have a long way to go.

America must continue moving forward toward a more equitable and cost-effective health care system. Moving forward means working with employers to demand health care payment and delivery reforms to control costs, allowing people of all ages to buy into the equivalent of Medicare through a public plan option and allowing Medicare to negotiate lower drug prices.  Of course, the most cost-effective and equitable way to provide quality health care is through the social insurance model (“Medicare for All”), as other industrialized countries have shown. 

The worst thing we could do is move backward by repealing the Affordable Care Act or its key provisions; privatizing Medicare or turning it into a voucher program; raising the Medicare eligibility age; increasing Medicare co-pays and deductibles or otherwise cutting Medicare benefits; or taxing employment-based health care benefits. 

More about this issue:

Jan 21, 2022 | News Story

After more than 2.5 years of bargaining, New York Magazine Union has reached a deal with NY Mag and Vox management, with a groundbreaking contract that raises the bar for all news workers.

Jan 21, 2022 | News Story

This week the NYC CLC, in partnership with the NYS AFL-CIO and Local 338 RWDSU/UFCW, held a virtual roundtable with over 60 labor and community partners to discuss the impact of the Marihuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA).

Jan 21, 2022 | News Story

The AFL-CIO Housing Investment Trust (HIT) is helping to finance the $337.7 million new construction of 311 West 42nd Street, a mixed-use development comprised of 330 residential rental units, 83 of which are affordable, and 41,678 square feet of rentable retail space.

Jan 21, 2022 | News Story

Two years after forming a union with NewsGuild of NY, the Sports Illustrated Union has agreed on a first contract that, once ratified, will protect their workplace and their journalism.

Jan 21, 2022 | News Story

Salon’s 16-member bargaining unit yesterday unanimously ratified their second collective bargaining agreement with the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE).

Jan 14, 2022 | News Story

After ten long weeks on strike, in what became the largest labor action in the country, student workers at Columbia University have reached a tentative contract

Jan 14, 2022 | News Story

In a long-awaited decision, the National Labor Relations Board this week ruled that New York Times tech workers can hold a vote on unionization starting later this month as one united bargaining unit.

Jan 14, 2022 | News Story

The Staten Island Ferry workers union that has gone over a decade without a new contract or wage increase is cautiously optimistic that New York City’s new mayor will prioritize resolving the longstanding stalemate.

Jan 14, 2022 | News Story

This week, the majority of animation workers at Harriet the Spy and Superjail! studio Titmouse who are based in New York signed union cards to be represented by The Animation Guild, IATSE Local 839, and Titmouse managemen

Jan 14, 2022 | News Story

On Monday, workers at New York City’s Jewish Museum including curators, art handlers, educators, and other employees petitioned the NLRB for a union election, seeking to join UAW Local 2110.